We all know how superhero movies work: Superman, Spider-Man, Thor and the rest use their superpowers to fly through the air or bore through the earth to rescue ordinary mortals.
But superheroes don’t exist. In the real world, the day-to-day efforts of regular joes—utility mainten­ance workers, trash collectors, high-rise window cleaners, and others—are what keep the “plot” moving. Their diligent execution of their duties keeps the world running.

When it comes to service, the British emphasize elegance, while the Japanese focus on meticulousness, but both tend to generate a sense of aloofness. But in Taiwan, this little Pacific island off the coast of East Asia, friendliness does not need to be “unzipped,” and personable hospitality is in endless supply. This is what makes visitors into regulars, eager to come back over and over.
So how does one get to feel this hospitality for oneself? Come stay a night in Taiwan!

By encouraging consumption and continually increasing production, the fashion industry has reached a new peak in its historical development. But this has given rise to a many environmental problems.

Now in its seventh year, the Overseas Art Travel Program sponsored by Taiwan’s National Culture and Arts Foundation (NCAF) functions as a pivotal promoter that helps budding artists realize their dreams. Temporarily immersed within an alien social milieu, funded artists free themselves of inhibited thinking, and emerge freshly energized.

In this age of excessive materialism, we tend to prefer new to old and quickly dispose of anything used. We’ve traveled this path for so long that we’ve stuffed Nature’s gullet with trash. With the natural world now rebelling at last, humanity is slowly awakening to the problem. We have been far too comfortable with the production-consumption cycle, with simply throwing away anything “old.” But can we change our attitudes? What if waste weren’t simply waste?

Given that the planet only has limited resources, perhaps solutions can be found in the circular economy, which emphasizes the sustain­able use of resources. Embracing the ideal of human­kind living in harmony with nature, the drinks container rental service “Good to Go” and the home appliance rental platform “Homeapp123” are creating a new economic model to bring more citizens into the circular economy.

Near the southern tip of Taiwan, at a five-minute drive from Pingtung’s Fangliao Station, there is a white two-story Japanese-style building. Like many family homes in Japan, this timber-frame house uses traditional carpentry joints. Yang San’er envisioned the house when he was 50, and he has done almost all the work himself, consulting just one book.

In 2016 The Wall Street Journal praised the Taiwanese as “the world’s geniuses of garbage disposal.” That same year the newly elected government proclaimed that Taiwan was entering the era of the “circular economy” as part of the nation’s “5+2” industrial innovation program. Instantly, the phrase became a buzzword. Nevertheless, many people mistakenly equate the term with recycling.

Interpersonal interactions are at the heart of diplomacy, and in the age of social media, technology makes it possible to convey friendship between countries even more rapidly and widely. And it is not just frontline diplomatic personnel who can feel this warmth—every ­netizen can do so too.
Social media not only create an avenue for direct interaction between foreign affairs agencies and citizens, they also make it possible for countries to enjoy a wider range of contacts and closer ties.

Cycling along Provincial Highway 7A from Datong to Lishan, after topping Siyuan Pass we cross from Yilan County into Taichung City. At the 46 kilometer mark it is raining heavily, and cold. But by the time we pedal to the 49 km mark, the skies are sunny and clear as far as the eye can see. In less than ten minutes, we transition from bone-chilling cold to warm sunshine, showing that a bike ride can be as volatile as life itself!