Taiwan’s “warm power” moves its Asian neighbors
Dr. Michael Hsiao, presidential advisor and chairperson of the Taiwan–Asia Exchange Foundation (TAEF), calls Taiwan AID “warm power.” Taiwan AID is one of TAEF’s many collaborative partners. Since TAEF was established in 2018, the foundation has actively promoted multifaceted exchanges between Taiwan and other Asian countries. Functioning as a nongovernmental think tank, TAEF has deepened Taiwan’s partnerships with its Asian neighbors.
“TAEF’s role is to expand the government’s New Southbound Policy,” Hsiao says. Initiated in 2017, the Yushan Forum is a pioneering event, and has already become an established platform for regional dialogue. The 2018 forum, with the theme “Creating Regional Glory,” showcased the New Southbound Policy and NGO activities, focusing on regional prosperity and stability. Speakers at the event included Nobel Peace Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi and former South African president F.W. de Klerk, himself a peace-prize laureate.
International exchanges move forward
To augment the New Southbound Policy, TAEF has launched a “Five Major Cores Project,” encompassing citizen cooperation, think-tank exchanges, youth leadership training, and artistic and cultural exchanges, as well as an Asian regional resilience plan focused on disaster preparedness. Private-sector cooperation and partnerships can extend into areas that government agencies find hard to reach.
In short, TAEF’s mission is to make friends for Taiwan and promote regional exchanges.
“The government has always been pushing a people-centered approach; our ‘Five Major Cores Project’ is for people,” says Micheal Hsiao. Disaster preparedness saves lives, and young people are our future. Other activities, such as think-tank exchanges and links to civil society, are all intimately related to people. “We’re not meeting challenges alone.”
TAEF’s many projects have connected Taiwan AID, the Prospect Foundation, the National Culture and Arts Foundation, the American Institute in Taiwan and other partners. TAEF conducts in-depth exchanges with think tanks that share the ideals of the New Southbound Policy, as well as policy experts, foreign diplomats stationed in Taiwan, and current and retired government officials. Going beyond more rigid governmental policies, flexible NGO strategies are allowing Taiwan to win many new friends.
Regional dialogue and cultural exchange
In October 2018 TAEF invited six Vietnamese visual artists to come to Taiwan to engage in dialogue with Taiwanese artists, painters, photographers, and sculptors.
In May 2019, TAEF held a special summit with mid-level officials from Vietnam, Myanmar, Indonesia, and the Philippines to share disaster prevention and preparedness experience and explore disaster preparedness initiatives.
Sharing equally and telling Taiwan’s story
Michael Hsiao believes Taiwan’s exchanges with other Asian countries are based on sharing experience. “We want to share; moreover, we can tell Taiwan’s story,” he says.
Rebecca Wang’s overseas assistance experience mirrors this ideal. When Taiwanese NGOs provide aid to other Asian countries, “Our only intention is to sincerely help, offering long-term support, never abandoning others,” Wang says.
At a time when the international community is growing wary of “sharp power,” the island of Taiwan is radiating warmth and friendship through the New Southbound Policy’s cooperative endeavors, transmitting Taiwan’s unique “warm power” and showing to the world our nation’s outstanding contributions to the Asia‡Pacific region.
TAEF has facilitated interactive exchanges between Taiwanese and Vietnamese artists. (courtesy of TAEF)
The Dhading community development center offers health education classes. A Nepalese women’s group often holds lectures on women’s health at the center. (courtesy of Taiwan AID)
Taiwan AID chairperson Rebecca Wang says international aid is a long-term endeavor: “We’ll never abandon our friends and neighbors.”
Dhading’s new community development center offers cooking classes, energizing the community. (courtesy of Taiwan AID)
This year’s Southeast Asia–South Asia–Taiwan (SEASAT) Youth Camp, co-sponsored by AIT, introduced young people to the Wulai Atayal Museum in New Taipei City’s Wulai District.
The “SEASAT Youth Camp” allowed young visitors to gain a deeper understanding of Taiwan’s Atayal people.