Volunteer Work Exchanges
The short stay with indigenous people has a permanent impact on the life of those young volunteers who exchanged work for vacation in Taidong. In the process of adapting themselves to the new life in the mountains, they learned to look at the world and themselves with a humble heart and a brand new perspective. They began to see a different self and a brave new Taiwan.
Looking through the starry night into the remote Milky Way, she talked through the night with newly-made friends who shared the same passion and dream. Frogs were singing in chorus. Midsummer breeze was humming a soft lullaby. The music enchanted her and all creatures around into a slumber, sound and deep…. These are some of the pure happiness Ya-chi Lee experienced and the sweet memories she would treasure forever after 3 weeks of volunteer work exchange in Taidong.
In line with the increased attention to, and better appreciation of the local aboriginal cultures, Alliance has pioneered a volunteer work exchange program which, from July 1 to Aug. 31, 2012 and for a period ranging from 2 weeks to 2 months, offered 25 college students opportunities to stay in various aboriginal tribes such as Luanshan, Nan-Wang and Bixilian tribes in Taidong, Gangko tribe in Hualien and Bulau tribe in Yilang. Tasks involved varied, including tour guiding, farming, building, movie/video making, catering and food servicing. Through these experiences, volunteers furthered their insight and personal growth by tackling problems/issues that they never encountered before, better appreciating the aboriginal cultures and working with people from different cultural backgrounds.
Twenty five college students from all over Taiwan embarked on a journey of independence and unfamiliarity. They not only encountered unfamiliar landscape and cultures but also had many first-time experiences. Some of them never did laundry and cooking before which however is probably the easiest job for their life in the mountains. For some, this is the first solo trip that she/he has ever made. Depending on the unique nature and needs of different tribes, the challenges involved and the assistance required varied. A few of once-in-a-lifetime experiences: chopping woods, picking up bamboo sticks and building fires for meals/showers are some of the daily chores for those volunteers who worked in the Ruanshan Tribe Sazaza Rainforest Reserve. They also helped build/repair the roof of traditional Bunun houses using miscanthus and bamboo. Like it or not, they also butchered pigs and hand-cleaned the pigs’ intestines during the tribe festivals and celebration.
Those who helped out the dance group in Nanwan tribe were involved in documenting the local folk lore using the ancient Bei-nan language. They also assisted in the production and recording of the dance program that the dance group performed during the Festival of Austronesian Cultures.
Different skill sets are required for the volunteers working in the Bixilian tribe near Sanxiantai which has a more developed tourism industry, thanks to the popularity of Paw Paw Drum Orchestra and Aboriginal Cultural Center. The volunteers assisted in preparing local maps and advertisements for tourists, documenting the recipes of aboriginal cuisine, handcrafting cookware using alpinia zerumbet, sewing Kilaki (the small bells around the buttock) onto the men’s costume and stitching color balls to the embroidered umbrellas used in the Harvest Celebration.
Those who did exchanges in Gangkuo tribe had a chance to work with Yao-Zhong Chen, the chief chef at Earthware Lily Spring Restaurant and who is renowned for his creative aboriginal cuisine. In addition to usual restaurant jobs such as seating and serving guests and making appetizers and desserts, the volunteers had some unique experiences such as fishing using the traditional Amis fishing net.
Bulaubulau Aboriginal Village, renowned for its eco-friendly aboriginal tours, receives up to 30 guests per day in order to maintain the tour quality. Some of the tasks for volunteers here includes: farming in the orchard, hunting in the mountains, cleaning up sheep manure and chicken pens. At the Bulaubulau where no modern facilities such as TVs are available, the volunteers gain appreciation of the hardship and pleasure of living in the nature and also the essential skills of surviving in the mountains.
Yun-Ru Chen, a student from Department of Dance, Taipei National University of the Arts, is a typical city girl. She has tried lots of new things during her stay at Bixilian tribe. She thinks this experience has broadened her horizon and provided her with a brand new perspective to the land that she grows up on.
What Han Huang from Department of Post-Modern Agriculture, Mingdao University gained at his experience at Bulaubulau tribe is the changed attitude toward life. To him, life is now a half-full glass of water, full of surprises and joys as long as you change the lens through which you look at things.
Yu Tong, a student of Department of English, National Taitung University, enjoys the aboriginal folk lore that she helped documented. Her Beinan tribe experience taught her that, regardless of the nationality or races, elder people who possess life-long wisdom and experience are invaluable assets to the younger generation.
Jia-Wen Hu from English Department of Tamkang University learned from her aboriginal counterpart how to make best use of the limited resources provided by, and sustainable ways to co-exist with our Mother Nature. She realized that happiness is everywhere as long as you are willing to make changes to your deep-rooted habits and accept new experience as it is.
Without his parents’ knowing, Zhong-Xian Han of Takming University of Science and Technology sent in his application for work exchanges. He wanted to have a first-hand exposure to the traditional arts and cultures. Now with his dream coming true, he is so happy that, against all the odds, he made the decision to join the work exchange.
Eye-witnessing the hardship that Aliman, the curator of Ruanshan Tribe Sazaza Rainforest Reserve, and his tribal people face in eco-tour guiding and building the eco-friendly Bunun houses, Wei-ling Wang of National Chiayi University, saw Aliman’s determination in protecting the forest and his earnestness to share the beauty of his home town. She now learns to take problems easily and solve them patiently.
Yen-Tin Lin, Department of Multimedia Design, Takming University of Science and Technology, appreciated the unusual, dream-like experience of his stay. He was grateful that Alliance has provided him with this great opportunity to better appreciate the aboriginal cultures.
The project leaders of local exchange programs are happy with the volunteers’ performance. Aliman said, “The volunteers here faced different kinds of issues such as the lack of electricity or harassment of bugs/mosquitoes. Two typhoons came during their stay. Cleaning up the messes and the post-typhoon reconstruction are really testing the volunteers’ perseverance and resilience. They didn’t budge or give up. Now they are like part of our family. They promised that they will come back next year if this exchange program continues.” Ms. Chun-Mei Chen, a local community leader of the Sanxiantai area thinks that the volunteers’ involvement is integral to the success of the Harvest Celebration. The local map that they put together provided a complete documentation of the tribe attractions.
“You didn’t know how much you own in your life until this one-month experience in Taidong. In retrospect, you realized that it’s those people who helped and took care of you in the past month make you aware of the power in you. You are not the smartest, not capable of doing too many things. But whatever progress you have made, you bring forward some new-born energy with you. You experienced a paradigm shift - although you are exhausted physically, you feel content and thankful,” said Jun-Xuan Yang, Department of Public and Cultural Affairs, National Taitung University.
Looking through the starry night into the remote Milky Way, she talked through the night with newly-made friends who shared the same passion and dream. Frogs were singing in chorus. Midsummer breeze was humming a soft lullaby. The music enchanted her and all creatures around into a slumber, sound and deep…. These are some of the pure happiness Ya-chi Lee experienced and the sweet memories she would treasure forever after 3 weeks of volunteer work exchange in Taidong.
In line with the increased attention to, and better appreciation of the local aboriginal cultures, Alliance has pioneered a volunteer work exchange program which, from July 1 to Aug. 31, 2012 and for a period ranging from 2 weeks to 2 months, offered 25 college students opportunities to stay in various aboriginal tribes such as Luanshan, Nan-Wang and Bixilian tribes in Taidong, Gangko tribe in Hualien and Bulau tribe in Yilang. Tasks involved varied, including tour guiding, farming, building, movie/video making, catering and food servicing. Through these experiences, volunteers furthered their insight and personal growth by tackling problems/issues that they never encountered before, better appreciating the aboriginal cultures and working with people from different cultural backgrounds.
Twenty five college students from all over Taiwan embarked on a journey of independence and unfamiliarity. They not only encountered unfamiliar landscape and cultures but also had many first-time experiences. Some of them never did laundry and cooking before which however is probably the easiest job for their life in the mountains. For some, this is the first solo trip that she/he has ever made. Depending on the unique nature and needs of different tribes, the challenges involved and the assistance required varied. A few of once-in-a-lifetime experiences: chopping woods, picking up bamboo sticks and building fires for meals/showers are some of the daily chores for those volunteers who worked in the Ruanshan Tribe Sazaza Rainforest Reserve. They also helped build/repair the roof of traditional Bunun houses using miscanthus and bamboo. Like it or not, they also butchered pigs and hand-cleaned the pigs’ intestines during the tribe festivals and celebration.
Those who helped out the dance group in Nanwan tribe were involved in documenting the local folk lore using the ancient Bei-nan language. They also assisted in the production and recording of the dance program that the dance group performed during the Festival of Austronesian Cultures.
Different skill sets are required for the volunteers working in the Bixilian tribe near Sanxiantai which has a more developed tourism industry, thanks to the popularity of Paw Paw Drum Orchestra and Aboriginal Cultural Center. The volunteers assisted in preparing local maps and advertisements for tourists, documenting the recipes of aboriginal cuisine, handcrafting cookware using alpinia zerumbet, sewing Kilaki (the small bells around the buttock) onto the men’s costume and stitching color balls to the embroidered umbrellas used in the Harvest Celebration.
Those who did exchanges in Gangkuo tribe had a chance to work with Yao-Zhong Chen, the chief chef at Earthware Lily Spring Restaurant and who is renowned for his creative aboriginal cuisine. In addition to usual restaurant jobs such as seating and serving guests and making appetizers and desserts, the volunteers had some unique experiences such as fishing using the traditional Amis fishing net.
Bulaubulau Aboriginal Village, renowned for its eco-friendly aboriginal tours, receives up to 30 guests per day in order to maintain the tour quality. Some of the tasks for volunteers here includes: farming in the orchard, hunting in the mountains, cleaning up sheep manure and chicken pens. At the Bulaubulau where no modern facilities such as TVs are available, the volunteers gain appreciation of the hardship and pleasure of living in the nature and also the essential skills of surviving in the mountains.
Yun-Ru Chen, a student from Department of Dance, Taipei National University of the Arts, is a typical city girl. She has tried lots of new things during her stay at Bixilian tribe. She thinks this experience has broadened her horizon and provided her with a brand new perspective to the land that she grows up on.
What Han Huang from Department of Post-Modern Agriculture, Mingdao University gained at his experience at Bulaubulau tribe is the changed attitude toward life. To him, life is now a half-full glass of water, full of surprises and joys as long as you change the lens through which you look at things.
Yu Tong, a student of Department of English, National Taitung University, enjoys the aboriginal folk lore that she helped documented. Her Beinan tribe experience taught her that, regardless of the nationality or races, elder people who possess life-long wisdom and experience are invaluable assets to the younger generation.
Jia-Wen Hu from English Department of Tamkang University learned from her aboriginal counterpart how to make best use of the limited resources provided by, and sustainable ways to co-exist with our Mother Nature. She realized that happiness is everywhere as long as you are willing to make changes to your deep-rooted habits and accept new experience as it is.
Without his parents’ knowing, Zhong-Xian Han of Takming University of Science and Technology sent in his application for work exchanges. He wanted to have a first-hand exposure to the traditional arts and cultures. Now with his dream coming true, he is so happy that, against all the odds, he made the decision to join the work exchange.
Eye-witnessing the hardship that Aliman, the curator of Ruanshan Tribe Sazaza Rainforest Reserve, and his tribal people face in eco-tour guiding and building the eco-friendly Bunun houses, Wei-ling Wang of National Chiayi University, saw Aliman’s determination in protecting the forest and his earnestness to share the beauty of his home town. She now learns to take problems easily and solve them patiently.
Yen-Tin Lin, Department of Multimedia Design, Takming University of Science and Technology, appreciated the unusual, dream-like experience of his stay. He was grateful that Alliance has provided him with this great opportunity to better appreciate the aboriginal cultures.
The project leaders of local exchange programs are happy with the volunteers’ performance. Aliman said, “The volunteers here faced different kinds of issues such as the lack of electricity or harassment of bugs/mosquitoes. Two typhoons came during their stay. Cleaning up the messes and the post-typhoon reconstruction are really testing the volunteers’ perseverance and resilience. They didn’t budge or give up. Now they are like part of our family. They promised that they will come back next year if this exchange program continues.” Ms. Chun-Mei Chen, a local community leader of the Sanxiantai area thinks that the volunteers’ involvement is integral to the success of the Harvest Celebration. The local map that they put together provided a complete documentation of the tribe attractions.
“You didn’t know how much you own in your life until this one-month experience in Taidong. In retrospect, you realized that it’s those people who helped and took care of you in the past month make you aware of the power in you. You are not the smartest, not capable of doing too many things. But whatever progress you have made, you bring forward some new-born energy with you. You experienced a paradigm shift - although you are exhausted physically, you feel content and thankful,” said Jun-Xuan Yang, Department of Public and Cultural Affairs, National Taitung University.
