In order to align with the United Nations SDGs and the development priorities of national green life movement, we launch the 2022 Environmental Education Project. We hope to implement the legislative spirit of the "The Environmental Education Act " in various activities, promote green living actions to the public, and encourage the public to take concrete actions for the sustainable development of the earth. The following is a summary of the final results of this year's plan:
1. Coordination with Environmental Festivals and other environmental education related activity plans
1.1 Annual theme: With "Sustainability x Environmental Education x Green Light Travel" as the main theme, combine the SDGs indicators, the local environmental education facilities and sites, to design themed courses. It is expected that through the courses, students will enhance their environmental knowledge, attitudes, behavior intentions and skills in environmental literacy, and engage in friendly environmental activities.
1.2 This year, four international important environmental festivals, including "World Water Day," "Earth Day," "International Biodiversity Day," and "World Environment Day," were held with a total of 462 participants. Participants learned about environmental literacy such as "Ecology and Green Energy," "Green Living," "Nature Conservation," and "Marine Conservation," as well as ways to engage in friendly environmental activities. In terms of environmental literacy, 60.11% of participants strongly agreed that the activities enhanced their environmental literacy, while 36.38% agreed. The overall satisfaction rate was 77.62% very satisfied and 22.38% satisfied, with most qualitative feedback being positive. This shows that this year's "Sustainability x Environmental Education x Green Light Travel" international environmental festivals were highly valued by participants.
2.Plan of Operations related to Article 19 and 24 of the Environmental Education Act
2.1 This year, 28 units have been selected and completed a field inspection after screening. The overall inspection suggests that: (1) The inspected units should fill in the outline of environmental education content in detail according to the actual implementation of the activity and explain the content and environmental education implications; (2) Submit the hours reported within one month after the completion of the activity; (3) Remind that outdoor learning courses should be held in environmental education facilities.
2.2 Seven units have been inspected consecutively for 2 years and have been provided with operating manuals, contact information or on-site guidance, as well as templates from other units for reference. It is expected that units that are continuously selected for inspection can improve.
2.3 In cooperation with the reporting of the results of the environmental education action plan, one member of the environmental education consultative committee meeting was invited and completed on-site inspection of the county's 5 bureaus by June 15, 2022. The Administrative and Research Department is the coordinating unit for the sustainable development goals of Hualien County, and its policy direction and results can be used as a reference for environmental education activity planning, making environmental education more comprehensive and profound.
2.4 Agency and school counseling sessions: An online course was held on September 14, 2022, with a total of 86 participants. In terms of participants' satisfaction with the activity, 69.75% of them said they were very satisfied, 27.75% said they were satisfied, and 1.5% said they were ordinary. Through this session, various agencies and schools in the county familiarize, understand and operate the "Environmental Education Lifelong Learning System", which will facilitate the completion of various environmental education reporting operations.
3.Environmental Education Volunteer Training, Implementation, and Management Plan
3.1 Management Plan: In response to the establishment of the "Environmental Education Digital Center", environmental education ambassador capacity building will be carried out to enhance teaching effectiveness.
3.2 Environmental Education Volunteer Professional Training, Special Training, and Capacity Building Courses:
3.2.1 Professional training: 7 sessions have been completed, with the first 4 sessions aimed at "enhancing teaching effectiveness." During these sessions, existing teaching plans were demonstrated and exchanged with a focus on environmental education. The overall satisfaction rate was above 98%, with 86.19% of participants very much agreeing that they had learned new knowledge and were inspired to think about environmental education. 13.81% of participants agreed. Through these trainings, 14 promotional teaching plans and presentations were updated, and 39 "energy conservation and carbon reduction" seed teachers were trained. The last 3 sessions were "environmental education field experience" where environmental education ambassadors were led to Heping Industrial Port, Ocean Station, Asia Cement Ecological Park, Eco-Garden, and Posko Biomass energy Center. The overall satisfaction rate was above 99%, with 81.17% of participants very much agreeing that the activities improved their environmental awareness and understanding of marine environment conservation, natural conservation, and environmental and resource management. 17.7% of participants agreed.
3.2.2 Special training: Topics of international concern, such as climate change, zero emission policies in Taiwan, circular economy theories and practices, and environmental education teaching practices were introduced. The training integrated environmental education ambassadors, counseling teams, environmental education facilities, and faculty from Dong Hwa University. 79.67% of participants were very satisfied with the training, and 20.33% were satisfied. In terms of environmental awareness, 77.56% of participants very much agreed that the activities improved their environmental awareness, 21.15% agreed, and 1.28% were average.
3.2.3 Capacity-building training: The goal was to promote the learning of environmental education sites outside the county by environmental education ambassadors. The training was held at Tainan's Black-Faced Spoonbill Ecological Exhibition Hall, Taiwan South Regional Meteorological Center, and Tree Valley Archaeological and Environmental Education Center, with 1 capacity-building session completed. The training satisfaction rate was above 90%, with 85.96% of participants very much agreeing that the activities expanded their knowledge of environmental education sites outside the county. 11.71% of participants agreed.
3.3 Environmental Education Volunteer Utilization: This year, 451 ambassadors of environmental education have been planned to participate in the promotion of environmental education in cooperation with schools and communities for the courses that have been applied for. Through the promotion of environmental education ambassadors, the environmental literacy of Hualien people will be enhanced regarding "Agricultural and Food Education," "Marine Conservation," "Air Quality," "River Water Quality," "Environmental Hygiene," and "Energy Conservation and Carbon Reduction."
3.4 Environmental Education Volunteer Meeting: This year, 2 volunteer contact reports and 3 meetings for officers have been held, through which environmental education volunteers can understand the operation of the volunteer team through open discussion. The important achievements of this year are: (1) electing the 4th captain; (2) discussing and revising the mechanism for leaving the team; (3) revising the rotation method.
3.5 Environmental Education Volunteer Teaching, Performance Assessment and Recruitment Selection: (1) One teaching performance assessment has been completed this year, and 3 ambassadors have passed the assessment; (2) This year's recruitment selection has recruited 5 new ambassadors of environmental education.
4. Environmental Knowledge Competition
4.1 Proposal Part: Based on the content of the video announced by the Environmental Protection Agency, recent important environmental issues in domestic and foreign countries have been analyzed and listed as a reference for the local competition proposals by the Hualien County Environmental Education Counseling Group, ensuring that all topics have environmental literacy.
4.2 Local preliminary competition: Completed on September 17, 2022 at the National Dong Hwa University in Hualien County Environmental Education Organization, 20 players were selected to represent Hualien County in the national competition, marking the first time that the county's environmental education counseling group and environmental education organization have organized the local preliminary competition.
4.3 National competition: Hualien County sent a total of 20 players, and finally, the social group teacher, Li Zhaoxiang, won the third place in the national competition for the social group on behalf of Hualien County.
5. National Environmental Volunteer Environmental Protection Competition Project
5.1 Local preliminary schedule: In response to the COVID-19 epidemic, this year's environmental cheerleading team will adopt video review, and the physical competition of Environmental Brain, Environmental Defencne Battle and Resource Classification King will be held on August 13, 2022 at the Zhong Hua Elementary School.
5.2 Local preliminary results: This year, 9 environmental volunteer teams participated in 4 competitions, and the results are as follows: Environmental cheerleading team won first place by the Wuhe Environmental Volunteer Team; Environmental Brain competition, Resource Classification King competition were won by the Environmental Education Ambassador Service Team; and Environmental Protection Campaign was won by the Ruimei Environmental Volunteer Team.
5.3 National competition: The Hualien County team won 2 special awards in Environmental Brain and Environmental Defencne Battle, and first-class in Resource Classification King.
6. 2022 Hualien County Environmental Education Picture Book Selection and Promotion Plan
6.1 Selection schedule: From February 25, 2022 to June 30, 2022, the selection outline will be discussed and revised through the February 21, 2022 guideline meeting and announced on the Hualien County Environmental Protection Bureau website and Hualien Environmental Disney website. The selection qualifications are: individuals or groups who are interested in environmental education picture books for 2 to 7 year-old children, and it is hoped that the creators will combine the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and use Hualien's local environmental features to create, inspiring children to understand the importance of environmental sustainability.
6.2 Evaluation Results: A selection meeting was held on July 19, 2022, to review the 9 submitted works for this year. The following results were selected: 1st Place: "A Bite from Bugs"; 2nd Place: "The Travel of Plastic Bags"; 3rd Place: "Where Have the Fish Gone?"; Merit: "The Transformation of the Sky Tree." It was decided to adapt "A Bite from Bugs" into a theatrical play. On September 17, 2022, a ceremony was held to award the authors of the winning works, who were invited to attend.
6.3 Environmental Education Picture Book Workshop: Completed on March 12th and March 26th, 2022 at Zhongyuan Elementary School with 91.15% of students feeling very satisfied and 8.85% feeling satisfied. Based on the results of pre-test learning sheets, 41.74% of students were able to answer correctly, and 89.13% of students were able to answer correctly on the post-test learning sheets, indicating that participating students have improved their learning outcomes. In terms of improving their own environmental literacy, 99.34% of students felt that they have acquired relevant environmental literacy on "Hualien Environmental Issues."
6.4 Results of Award-Winning Works Promotion: Four excellent works were selected from the 2022 Environmental Education Picture Book Selection and Promotion project to represent Hualien County in the Environmental Education Picture Book Carnival hosted by the Executive Yuan's Environmental Protection Administration. Hualien County's first prize in Environmental Education Picture Book - "A Bite from Bugs" was promoted for two days by exhibition personnel and demonstrated by environmental education ambassadors, which earned the award for the most popular environmental education picture book in the 2022 voting. In the future, it can be entrusted to environmental education ambassadors to perform in various locations in Hualien County, promoting public awareness of the importance of environmental protection and inciting the intention to participate in solving environmental problems.
7. Summer Environmental Education Camp Plan
7.1 To promote students' understanding of the local environment in Hualien, two environmental education camps have been organized at the quality environmental education facility - the Yiyuan Woods Field.
7.2 This year, SDGs and environmental education facilities have been linked, and 60 people participated in the environmental education experience course of the Yiyuan Woods Field. Overall, in terms of environmental literacy, 81.2% of people agreed that the event enhanced their environmental literacy, while 18.8% agreed; the overall satisfaction of the event was 80.41% of people who were very satisfied and 19.59% were satisfied, and all qualitative feedback was positive. This allows people in the stage of national education to understand the importance of environmental sustainability for the natural ecology and human activities from local environmental concern and implement environmentally friendly behaviors in their daily lives.
8. Environmental Awareness Education
8.1 In order to deepen students' understanding of the local indigenous culture and Taiwan's rich natural environment, a 3-day, 2-night program was held in Taitung with a total of 40 participants.
8.2 This year, activities were carried out in high-quality environmental education sites such as the Eastern Coast National Scenic Area, Taitung County environmental education facilities, and indigenous tribes. In terms of environmental awareness, 81.20% of participants very much agreed that the activity enhanced their environmental awareness, 18.80% agreed; overall satisfaction was expressed by 80.41% of participants who were very satisfied and 19.59% who were satisfied, with qualitative feedback being positive. This will trigger students to further understand the landscapes and indigenous cultures of Hualien, which will contribute to the sustainable development of Hualien's natural and cultural environment.
9. Environmental Seminars Plan
This year, 5 environmental education campaigns and activities were held, with a clearance rate of: new cases 97.67%, old cases 60.47%, and off-site lectures 100%. The year's contract target has been achieved.
10. Environmental Education Consultative Committee Meeting and Environmental Education Action Plan
10.1 Hualien County Environmental Education Consultative Committee Meeting and Cross-Departmental Meeting: It was held on June 6, 2022 at the "Hualien Sugar Factory Environmental Education Center". A total of 36 people attended and reviewed the execution results of the environmental education in various departments in the county in 110th year and the contents submitted for the promotion of environmental education plan in 2022. The meeting also proposed that for the sites under the jurisdiction of each department, if interested in certifying environmental education facilities or interested, they are welcome to contact the Environmental Protection Bureau and there will be professional members to provide counseling and assistance.
10.2 Hualien County Environmental Education Consultative Committee Meeting: The meeting was held on November 14, 2022 at the "Azure Hotel," with 36 participants. The meeting discussed "Environmental Education and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)" and "Environmental Education and Zero-carbon Green Living." It is hoped that each department can incorporate sustainable development goals and zero-carbon emissions into their business promotion while promoting environmental education.
10.3 The Environmental Education Action Plan aims to promote environmental education among government agencies, schools, civil groups, and businesses. According to the 10 major environmental education action strategies of the county, the important implementation results in 2021 include:
10.3.1 Quality certification strategy: To assist private enterprises, citizens and businesses in promoting environmental education. With the efforts of all parties, the "Irubu Agricultural Tribe Environmental Education Center" and "Hualien Sugar Factory Environmental Education Center" were certified as environmental education facilities on March 8 and November 3, 2021, respectively.
10.3.2 Organizational cooperation strategy: Combining the efforts of various departments of the Hualien County Government through the Environmental Education Consultative Committee Meeting to discuss the SDGs of 2021 and prepare for the 2022 Sustainable Plan.
10.3.3 Assessment and evaluation strategy: The Hualien County Environmental Protection Bureau implements environmental education policies based on the Environmental Protection Administration's environmental education assessment and received special recognition in 2021.
10.3.4 Guidance and reward strategy: To identify potential units and reward those who excel in promoting environmental education. In 2021, 7 groups of national environmental education award contestants were rewarded and 5 of them were selected to represent Hualien in the national competition (5 groups were selected in the final selection in May 2022).
11. Environmental Education Facility Certification Counseling and National Environmental Education Award Candidate Counseling
11.1 The 8th National Education Award National Final Counseling: The 8th nominee list is (1) Private Enterprise Group: Turumoan whale watching & water entertainment company; (2) Individual Group: Secretary-General of the Chuing Mountain Cultural Industry Exchange Association, Jhong Bao-Jhu; (3) Community Group: Bi-Yun-Zhuang Community Development Association; (4) Group Group: Tzu Chi Foundation; (5) School Group: Tzu Chi Senior High School Affiliated with Tzu Chi University. The above-mentioned nominee units have invited Mr. Sun Yimin to conduct 6 counseling sessions. Finally, on June 28, 2022, the "8th National Environmental Education Award" was awarded and the best performance was created in Hualien County in history, including five top prizes.
11.2 National Education Award, 9th Edition National Competition Counseling: Potential participating units have been consulted for their willingness to participate, and the units with intention to participate are: (1) Individual Group: Dongi Kacaw (Principal of Indigenous Wild Vegetable School); (2) Private Enterprise Group: Hoping Industrial Port Corporation; (3) Government Agency Group: The 9th River Management Office; (4) School Group: Xinshe Elementary School. Principal Sun Yimin has been invited to provide individual counseling.
11.3 Environmental Education Facility Accreditation Assistance: 6 counseling sessions have been completed, including Dongqu Service Center of Cai Cai Seeds Association, Fish Bar, Bi-Yun-Zhuang Local Recycling Picture Book Reading Education Park, Hualien County Hakka Culture Hall, Port of Hualien and Qilai Organic Farm. Among them, Fish Bar and Bi-Yun-Zhuang have submitted environmental education facility accreditation applications.
11.4 Follow-up Assistance for Existing Environmental Education Facilities: Hualien County has a total of 7 environmental education facilities, all of which have been followed up. The follow-up situation is described as follows:
11.4.1 Environmental Education Human Resources: 7 facilities have dedicated environmental education certification personnel, with the most being 5 at Chihnan Nature Center.
11.4.2 Environmental Education Course Implementation: 7 facilities are committed to promoting approved courses, and Yiyuan Woods Field and Taroko National Park are actively developing new courses.
11.4.3 Operating Management Planning: 7 facilities have dedicated environmental education certification personnel who continue to promote environmental education courses and can also offer customized courses for class groups. They also have external cooperation units, which are beneficial for forming regional alliances and working together to root environmental education in the local area.
12. Implementation of the 2022 Hualien County Low-carbon Curriculum Development and Teaching Work Plan
12.1 Low-carbon environment education curriculum development: The curriculum "New Life of Energy Conservation and Carbon Reduction" has been developed and will be used as the environmental education ambassador's promotional curriculum this year and in the future by the Hualien County Environmental Education Digital Center.
12.2 Low-carbon environment education notebook: The notebooks have been completed and 1,000 of them were delivered to the office on September 28, 2022.
12.3 Low-carbon environment education promotion: 8 promotional events have been completed and received enthusiastic responses from the community and recognition from the applying units.
12.4 Maintenance and management of the digital low-carbon environment education collection website: 2 pieces of environmental education news and articles are updated every week, allowing the public to quickly understand the current situation of Hualien County's environmental education and international environmental issues.