TECO New York’s Education Division Hosts Seminar on Education Diplomacy
The Education Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in New York and the Federation of Taiwanese Student Associations in New York jointly organized a Let New York See Taiwan seminar, on December 7, 2019. The seminar was designed to give students in the greater New York area a better understanding of the Taiwan–United States relationship, raise Taiwan’s visibility, and develop the international perspective of the Taiwanese students.
The Director-General of TECO New York, Lily L.W. Hsu, was the keynote speaker. She discussed the work she does alongside colleagues at TECO, promoting Taiwan in New York. She pointed out that 2019 saw the 40th anniversary of America’s Taiwan Relations Act and outlined some of the friendly exchanges that characterize the close bilateral relationship between Taiwan and the U.S. She cited the recent launch of the first Chinese Overseas Flagship Center in Taiwan, being hosted by National Taiwan University, as an example of a key Taiwan–U.S. education collaboration project.
This center, launched in September 2019, is part of a broader program operated by the Language Flagship. This is an initiative funded by the U.S. National Security Education Program (NSEP), to train American students to achieve professional proficiency in select foreign languages deemed critical to U.S. security and economic competitiveness. It’s anticipated that more than 100 American students will study for one year at the Taiwan center within the next three years.
This was followed by Ed, the creator of SeaFormosa (海味鮮台派), a YouTube channel talking about his experience interviewing with Taiwanese-Americans living in New York for documentaries. Huang Yi-Miao, the Executive Administrator of STUF United Fund, a nonprofit organization registered in the U.S. that supports international charity work then discussed the organization’s international charity projects and the opportunities these provide for increasing Taiwan’s visibility.