SDG14.2.1 Freshwater ecosystems (community outreach)

Although Taiwan is surrounded by the sea, due to its climate and geographical conditions, the available freshwater resources are insufficient, making water the most important constraint on Taiwan’s social and economic development. In recent years, countries all over the world have become aware of the importance of sustainable resource development, the maintenance of biodiversity, and ecological conservation. Water resources are crucial to all these efforts. NCUE’s Environmental Education Centre, and General Education Centre are responsible for the planning and implementation of environmental programmes related to the freshwater ecosystem. They provide free education to communities locally and nationally, NCUE students, and current junior and high school teachers by applying for programmes funded by the government. The subjects cover freshwater ecosystems, freshwater organisms, observation of indicator organisms in freshwater, freshwater water quality factors, freshwater ecosystem water quality factors, testing of campus and community water quality, water used in production (including irrigation, industrial water, energy water and agriculture and fisheries), leisure and tourism, and individual and business efforts in controlling water pollution and conserving the water environment. These programmes aim to improve the knowledge of NCUE students, current junior and high school teachers, and communities locally and nationally on water environment and their awareness of water environment protection.

1. Environmental Education Centre at NCUE
The Environmental Education Centre at NCUE promotes programmes, including 24-, 33-, and 120-hour courses for the certification of environmental education personnel’, the ‘Fangyuan Reengineering USR Seed Programme’, and the ‘Sprouting Programme for Engaging Fangyuan and Dacheng: Industrial and Environmental Sustainability for Changhua’s Twin Towns in 2020–2022’.

1.1 24-, 33-, and 120-hour courses for the certification of environmental education personnel
The Environmental Education Centre provides education courses for local and national communities from September to November 2021 by supplementing the ‘Programme for Engaging Fangyuan and Dacheng: Industrial and Environmental Sustainability for Changhua’s Twin Towns’. The following courses were conducted: the Special Environmental Personnel Certificate Course for Yuhua Elementary School in August 2021 for training 36 environmental education personnel; 33–hour Environmental Education Personnel Certificate Course in September 2021 for training 31 environmental education personnel; and 120–hour Environmental Education Personnel Training Course from September to November 2021 for training 13 environmental education personnel. A total of 80 people completed the training and developed into education talent in environmental education and freshwater ecosystem maintenance.

Special Environmental Personnel Certificate Distance Course for Yuhua Elementary School

A class of the 33–hour Environmental Education Personnel Certificate Course

Students of the 120–hour Environmental Education Personnel Training Course attended a class held at the Soil and Water Conservation Education Center

Links for the course videos are given below.

1.2 Fangyuan Reengineering USR Seed Programme and Sprouting Programme for Engaging Fangyuan and Dacheng: Industrial and Environmental Sustainability for Changhua’s Twin Towns in 2020–2022: Bilingual lectures on freshwater ecology and water quality workshops were held in Changhua Hemi Experimental High School and Changhua Erlin High School. The workshop covered the freshwater ecosystem, freshwater organisms, observation of freshwater indicator organisms, freshwater water quality factors, freshwater ecosystem water quality factors, and testing water quality in campuses and communities.
For more information, see: https://www.facebook.com/-NCUEUSR/photos/?tab=album&ref=page_internal

2. General Education Centre at NCUE
From 14 September 2020 to 15 January 2021, the General Education Centre at NCUE offered the Understanding the Water Environment course. The goal of this course is to prepare our students with an in-depth understanding of the water environment in this increasingly crowded world. As the process of controlling and using water becomes more complex, and the demand for water continues to rise, every drop of water has to be used for agriculture, industry, and livelihoods, sometimes in turn.
However, in the case of abnormal weather and the public’s lack of care for resources, great damage is often caused. Although Taiwan is surrounded by the sea, due to its climate and geographical conditions, available freshwater resources are insufficient, making water the most important constraint on Taiwan’s social and economic development. In recent years, countries all over the world have become aware of the importance of sustainable resource development, the maintenance of biodiversity, and ecological conservation. Water resources are crucial for all these efforts. Therefore, this course covers irrigation, industrial water use, energy water use, agricultural and fishery water use, leisure and tourism, and discussion on how individuals and businesses can prevent water pollution and conserve water resources and the environment. Development topics such as ‘Irrigation and Water Conservancy Organization’ and the ‘Relationship Between Water Resources and Local Culture’ are also addressed to strengthen students’ understanding of the connection between water and our daily life. This could motivate them to take care of the water resources and revitalise streams and shorelines damaged by pollution, as well as inspire them to think about what are the necessary qualities of a modern citizen in relation to the environment and environmental protection.

For more information, see:

https://webap0.ncue.edu.tw/DEANV2/UploadDEAN/SUBJECT/1091/00234_0CCGE0179720.pdf

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