Since the 2017 trial project of USR till now, the team of the project has established strong relationship and close cooperation with the local community. Now based on the current foundation and linked to regional revitalization, the project adopts the approach of “fostering talents” and “connecting the region” to deal with the issues of the local communities.
In terms of “fostering talents,” in order to deal with the environmental pollution problems associated with the previous agricultural method in Guantian District and the issues of abandoned shells of water caltrop, this project has collaborated with numerous universities, ranging from the Dept. of Chemistry, and Dept. of Political Economy at National Cheng Kung University, to Dept. of Business and Management at National University of Tainan, and the interdisciplinary courses at our school. For example, the courses of Dept. of Chemistry introduce the theory of how water caltrop carbon is processed as well as its potential with catalyst and energy development, and students thus understand the concept of green catalyst through such courses; Dept. of Business Management, on the other hand, utilizes field trip games in a tourism factory so that visitors can not only have a better understanding of the production process of water caltrop shell carbon but also get to know the application of the water caltrop-related products.
Thanks to these games, visitors can understand the circular economy of Guan-tian District, its water caltrop shell carbon industry, together with the region’s distinctive local culture and history; meanwhile, collaborating with Dept. of Catering, the course “Eating with Agriculture” focuses the public’s attention on the delicacies of water caltrop. In addition, in cooperation with Guan-tian District Office, the project has held “creative water caltrop cooking contests” and “the contests on marketing and promoting water caltrop carbon,” both of which not only successfully promote the local produce of Guan-tian District but also allow students to learn by actually participating in the contests. Learning takes place while students undergo different stages: understanding real world issues, observing, exploring, and then working on the issues. Through such effective learning, students’ expertise expands while they have the opportunities to put theory into practice, which is very much in line with the expectations of vocational education, that is, students are capable of implementing what has been learned in reality.
As for “connecting to the region” and “regional revitalization,” the project helps develop a brand called “Guantian-black-gold,” which embodies being environmentally friendly and promotes circular economy. At present, a wide range of water caltrop carbon-related daily products have been launched, such as rice gifting package, carbon absorption package, essence soap, carbon chopsticks, Chinese angelica incense, handmade soap, handcrafted carbon tea cups, cool-feeling over sleeves, cool-feeling towels, anti-bacterial masks, burning incense, essence oil, etc. On the one hand, these water caltrop carbon products make a direct impact on the public’s life; on the other hand, cause-related marketing of these products further make circular economy a reality in a number of manifestations, such as air (cleansing of rehab buses), water (cleansing of water caltrop farms), soil (rice growing). Issues such as the commonly seen ecology crisis, waste disposal, rural manpower drain, and aging population, etc. are tackled in the current project from the perspectives of living, life, and ecology.
Besides the launch of innovative products and the transformation of circular economy, a youth entrepreneurship base, situated in front of Huai-en Temple in Guantian, has also been established in the hope that youths, whether local or from out of town, who are interested in regional revitalization can come and share their thoughts and opinions; it is also hoped that the environment and atmosphere beneficial to the youth startups can be fostered so that more and more young talents are willing to participate, thereby creating a paradigm shift; furthermore, working space of the startups is utilized to encourage startup gatherings, which allows locals and people from out of town to share information and resources, thus linking locals with different fields and backgrounds to collaborate and share experiences. Through such a series of endeavors, a new landscape of industry can be expected in Guantian.
From the above-mentioned, we not only introduce teachers and students from different universities and departments to address the real world issues in the community but also introduce partners from various fields to revitalize farming and create value-added industry. The outcome has been notable in a few ways: the living condition has been improved, younger generation can relate to the community and is attracted to come back to their hometown, conditions for work migration to their hometown or labor immigration have also been created and even widely discussed, all of which contribute to the regional euphoria that many people have been seeking. Combining curriculum and USR, the present project stems from “the needs of humans” and “creating local talents” in order to revitalize the region; moreover, as a promoter and a think tank for regional revitalization, we introduce partners from various fields off-campus to carry out regional revitalization plans. By doing so, not only does the project develop the ability of students and teachers at school but the project also helps the community. It is hoped that the students and teachers having undergone such training can become the future momentum for social practice, continuously providing constructive remarks and making practical contributions to critical social issues such as industry linking, economic sustainability, and regional revitalization.