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President Ma Ying-jeou Visited a Contemporary Noah's Ark - Dr. Cecilia Koo Botanic Conservation Center - and Praised its Achievements and Contributions
2015-05-02
Invited by Dr. Cecilia Koo Botanic Conservation and Environmental Protection Foundation (KBCEPF) and accompanied by Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Bao-ji, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Kao Jen-chuan, Ministry of Science and Technology Deputy Minister Chien Chung-liang, National Policy Advisor Hua Chia-chih, Southern Taiwan Joint Services Center of the Executive Yuan, CEO Chiang Lin-chun, and representatives from the International Cooperation and Development Fund, President Ma Ying-jeou paid a visit to Dr. Cecilia Dr. Cecilia Koo Botanic Conservation Center located in Gaoshu Township, Pingtung County. The President praised the Center for successfully breeding over 26,000 tropical plant species from all over the world. He also requested full support and joint efforts from relevant authorities for the conservation of the world animal and plant species.
President Ma affirmed the importance of the cooperation on agricultural species conservation from public and private sectors
President Ma stated that agriculture is the foundation of our country, and biological species are indispensable for maintaining the sustainable development of agriculture. In recent years, issues such as climate change and conservation of bio-diversity have been placed under the spotlight by governments around the world. Furthermore, language conservation should also be taken into consideration as well. For instance, indigenous tongues spoken in Taiwan dwindled from 40 in the past to only 20 being used nowadays. Without proper conservation, these indigenous dialects will eventually vanish forever. There are quite a lot of field researches and data that were preserved from the Japanese Colonial era; however, the KBCC was solely a Taiwanese initiative and it deserves our recognition. The President is confident that Taiwan and the world is headed for a better future as the government and the civilian sectors join forces in creating an Industry/Academia/Government alliance devoted to the breeding and conservation of tropical plants, phasianids and chelonians in Taiwan.
During President Ma's visit to the KBCC, the CEO of KBCEPF, Li Chia-wei, explained the conservation and sample collection from overseas by turning an esoteric scientific process into comprehensible anecdote. Li particularly mentioned that the center came into fruition by efforts and devotions of passionate entrepreneurs, young talents, environmental consciousness, and its exclusive geographic advantage. The KBCC is therefore one of the most suitable shelters for housing tropical plants from all over the world. He indicated that when the overseas species conservation project began 3 years ago, the KBCC established a base in the Solomon Islands to train and educate young locals to discover and protect their natural resources. Furthermore, duplication of the species are gathered and kept in the center. Next year, this successful project model in the Solomon Islands will be cloned for St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the Caribbean. Hopefully the project could be launched in South Asia and Africa soon. In the mean time, the President showed his admiration towards the staff's dedication as they shared their excitement, enthusiasm, and passion for this species restoration and preservation.
Taiwan as a world leader in agricultural biotech innovation
COA Minister Chen Bao-ji stated that with the rapid increase of global population, excessive exploitation and pollution, humans now cause more damages to nature than in the past. Many biological species might vanish from the surface of the Earth before humans had the chance to know them and learn about them. Germplasm is the root of agricultural development; thus, germplasm conservation is considered a crucial issue nowadays. In 1986, COA′s Agricultural Research Institute, Livestock Research Institute, Forestry Research Institute, and Fisheries Research Institute set up a national-level database to store important biological species of crops, farm animals, trees, and aquatic animals for breeding and biotech research purposes. Currently, there are over 600 species of cash crops, nearly 80 species of livestock and poultry, more than 226 species of trees, and hundreds of aquatic species collected.
Based on the abovementioned germplasm conservation, the COA has been dedicating to the preservation, research and application of grain crops, pharmaceutical plants, ornamental and forestry trees for many years. Taiwan is world-renowned for its orchid, rice, dragon fruit, and Indian jujube, especially the orchid varieties. Presently, Taiwan International Orchid Show, along with Japan Grand Prix International Orchid Festival and International Orchid Show are ranked as the top three orchid shows in the world. The export value of Taiwan's orchids has grown to NTD9.53 billion during the past 5 years.
The world-class modern-time Noah′s Ark - the KBCC
The COA explained that establishing and maintaining a germplasm database requires tremendous manpower and resources. The KBCC has embarked on the mission of preserving all tropical and subtropical plant species of the world. Funded solely by the private sector and sitting on property donated by the civilian sector, the KBCC devotes itself to conservation works with full effort. Under the leadership of its CEO Prof. Li Chia-wei, the KBCC has successfully collected 26,000 species of tropical plants from all over the world, with a total of nearly 90,000 plants. The orchids, bromeliads, and fern collection possess the most species per family gathered in the world. It is expected to exceed the number of 30,000 species in 20 years. On the other hand, the KBCC commenced its pheasant conservation projects in 2013, and has already collected 31 original species. Meanwhile, it works in cooperation with the Forestry Bureau of COA in sheltering and caring for illegally smuggled chelonians which in turn kick-started the initial phase of the chelonian germplasm project. Therefore, the KBCC is not merely a world-class conservation base but a modern-time Noah′s Ark.
Taiwan fulfilling its obligations as a responsible member of the international community
The COA further explained that non-governmental research institutions have always played a crucial role in moving Taiwan towards the international arena. Therefore, relevant government agencies are always in cooperation with the KBCC to conduct major international conservation projects. For example, the Living Collection of Global Tropical Plants Project administered by the Ministry of Science and Technology (former National Science Council), and the Census and Classification of Plant Resources in the Solomon Islands Project conducted by Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund among others. In addition, since the KBCC regularly introduces plant specimens from overseas which often involved quarantine inspection or required special permissions, the COA always requested its Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine issues import permits in accordance with regulations. In order to further facilitate related procedures and affairs, the Bureau had even set up a temporary desk in the KBCC to conduct inspection and quarantine. Through seminars and visits, researchers and professionals from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Mexico, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Oman, Saudi Arabia, El Salvador, Ivory Coast, São Tomé and Príncipe, Honduras, Colombia, Paraguay, Indonesia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, China, and Hong Kong would exchange their ideas and collaborate with the KBCC regularly. By exercising such significant soft power, Taiwan has successfully shown its significant influence in the world.
President Ma affirmed the importance of the cooperation on agricultural species conservation from public and private sectors
President Ma stated that agriculture is the foundation of our country, and biological species are indispensable for maintaining the sustainable development of agriculture. In recent years, issues such as climate change and conservation of bio-diversity have been placed under the spotlight by governments around the world. Furthermore, language conservation should also be taken into consideration as well. For instance, indigenous tongues spoken in Taiwan dwindled from 40 in the past to only 20 being used nowadays. Without proper conservation, these indigenous dialects will eventually vanish forever. There are quite a lot of field researches and data that were preserved from the Japanese Colonial era; however, the KBCC was solely a Taiwanese initiative and it deserves our recognition. The President is confident that Taiwan and the world is headed for a better future as the government and the civilian sectors join forces in creating an Industry/Academia/Government alliance devoted to the breeding and conservation of tropical plants, phasianids and chelonians in Taiwan.
During President Ma's visit to the KBCC, the CEO of KBCEPF, Li Chia-wei, explained the conservation and sample collection from overseas by turning an esoteric scientific process into comprehensible anecdote. Li particularly mentioned that the center came into fruition by efforts and devotions of passionate entrepreneurs, young talents, environmental consciousness, and its exclusive geographic advantage. The KBCC is therefore one of the most suitable shelters for housing tropical plants from all over the world. He indicated that when the overseas species conservation project began 3 years ago, the KBCC established a base in the Solomon Islands to train and educate young locals to discover and protect their natural resources. Furthermore, duplication of the species are gathered and kept in the center. Next year, this successful project model in the Solomon Islands will be cloned for St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the Caribbean. Hopefully the project could be launched in South Asia and Africa soon. In the mean time, the President showed his admiration towards the staff's dedication as they shared their excitement, enthusiasm, and passion for this species restoration and preservation.
Taiwan as a world leader in agricultural biotech innovation
COA Minister Chen Bao-ji stated that with the rapid increase of global population, excessive exploitation and pollution, humans now cause more damages to nature than in the past. Many biological species might vanish from the surface of the Earth before humans had the chance to know them and learn about them. Germplasm is the root of agricultural development; thus, germplasm conservation is considered a crucial issue nowadays. In 1986, COA′s Agricultural Research Institute, Livestock Research Institute, Forestry Research Institute, and Fisheries Research Institute set up a national-level database to store important biological species of crops, farm animals, trees, and aquatic animals for breeding and biotech research purposes. Currently, there are over 600 species of cash crops, nearly 80 species of livestock and poultry, more than 226 species of trees, and hundreds of aquatic species collected.
Based on the abovementioned germplasm conservation, the COA has been dedicating to the preservation, research and application of grain crops, pharmaceutical plants, ornamental and forestry trees for many years. Taiwan is world-renowned for its orchid, rice, dragon fruit, and Indian jujube, especially the orchid varieties. Presently, Taiwan International Orchid Show, along with Japan Grand Prix International Orchid Festival and International Orchid Show are ranked as the top three orchid shows in the world. The export value of Taiwan's orchids has grown to NTD9.53 billion during the past 5 years.
The world-class modern-time Noah′s Ark - the KBCC
The COA explained that establishing and maintaining a germplasm database requires tremendous manpower and resources. The KBCC has embarked on the mission of preserving all tropical and subtropical plant species of the world. Funded solely by the private sector and sitting on property donated by the civilian sector, the KBCC devotes itself to conservation works with full effort. Under the leadership of its CEO Prof. Li Chia-wei, the KBCC has successfully collected 26,000 species of tropical plants from all over the world, with a total of nearly 90,000 plants. The orchids, bromeliads, and fern collection possess the most species per family gathered in the world. It is expected to exceed the number of 30,000 species in 20 years. On the other hand, the KBCC commenced its pheasant conservation projects in 2013, and has already collected 31 original species. Meanwhile, it works in cooperation with the Forestry Bureau of COA in sheltering and caring for illegally smuggled chelonians which in turn kick-started the initial phase of the chelonian germplasm project. Therefore, the KBCC is not merely a world-class conservation base but a modern-time Noah′s Ark.
Taiwan fulfilling its obligations as a responsible member of the international community
The COA further explained that non-governmental research institutions have always played a crucial role in moving Taiwan towards the international arena. Therefore, relevant government agencies are always in cooperation with the KBCC to conduct major international conservation projects. For example, the Living Collection of Global Tropical Plants Project administered by the Ministry of Science and Technology (former National Science Council), and the Census and Classification of Plant Resources in the Solomon Islands Project conducted by Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund among others. In addition, since the KBCC regularly introduces plant specimens from overseas which often involved quarantine inspection or required special permissions, the COA always requested its Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine issues import permits in accordance with regulations. In order to further facilitate related procedures and affairs, the Bureau had even set up a temporary desk in the KBCC to conduct inspection and quarantine. Through seminars and visits, researchers and professionals from the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Mexico, Malaysia, Singapore, Japan, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Oman, Saudi Arabia, El Salvador, Ivory Coast, São Tomé and Príncipe, Honduras, Colombia, Paraguay, Indonesia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, China, and Hong Kong would exchange their ideas and collaborate with the KBCC regularly. By exercising such significant soft power, Taiwan has successfully shown its significant influence in the world.
