Talking Taiwan

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: On March 9th Taiwan Post will be issuing a stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Canadian missionary George Leslie Mackay in Northern Taiwan. Mackay was unlike most 19th century missionaries. He has been referred to as the "son-in-law of Taiwan," and was a forward thinker. He was one of the first to oppose the Head Tax imposed on Chinese in Canada. To help understand who George Leslie Mackay was and the significance of his contributions, I'll be speaking with Reverend Michael Stainton, the founder of the Canadian Mackay Committee. Reverend Stainton has worked for the last 25 years to promote the recognition of Mackay in Canada and on several campaigns for Canada Post to issue a stamp to commemorate George Leslie Mackay. Those interested in contacting the Canadian Mackay Committee can email Canadianmackay@gmail.com This episode of Talking Taiwan has been sponsored by the Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社 and the Taiwanese United Fund. The Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社 was established in 2000 to promote Taiwanese and Taiwanese American arts and literature, and to protect and enhance the human rights, freedom and democracy of the people in Taiwan. The Taiwanese United Fund is an arts and culture foundation that celebrates the cultural heritages of Taiwanese Americans. Established in 1986, the foundation's mission is to facilitate cultural exchange between the Taiwanese American community and other American cultural communities, hoping to enrich and expand our cultural experiences. To learn more about TUF visit their website http://www.tufusa.org/ Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: How and when Reverent Stainton first learned about Dr. George Leslie Mackay How Reverend Stainton was a student radical at York University and was involved in the anti-Vietnam War movement and interested in China How Reverend Stainton became disillusioned with the friendship work with China that he was doing How Reverend Stainton was initially reluctant to go to Taiwan to work with the Presbyterian Church in 1979 How the Kuomintang had cancelled elections in response to U.S. President Jimmy Carter's switch in recognition from the Republic of China to the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China (in 1978) The Tangwai movement in 1979 How Reverend Kao Chun-ming, who was the guarantor on Reverend Stainton's visa to Taiwan (in 1979) had gotten arrested for helping to hide Shih Ming-teh How things in Taiwan were in chaos when Reverend Stainton arrived there in 1980 Upon arriving in Taiwan Reverend Stainton was assigned to the Aboriginal Student Center At the time the Kuomintang believed the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan was a cat's paw of the Chinese Communist Party Reverend Stainton was warned that he would be watched and under surveillance with his phone calls tapped and letters opened How Reverend Stainton was asked to play the part of Dr. George Leslie Mackay in a play was put on for the 100th anniversary of the Mackay Memorial Hospital in 1981 In 1992 after Reverent Stainton had returned to Canada, he saw the importance of promoting the recognition of Dr. George Leslie Mackay in Canada How Dr. George Leslie Mackay breaks the stereotypes of 19th century missionaries How Joseph Steere a professor of Zoology at the University of Michigan who met Mackay in Taiwan in 1873 wrote that he observed that Mackay treated the Chinese as equals rather than an inferior race How Mackay learned Taiwanese culture and language from his students How Mackay accepted his students' suggestion and arrangement for him to marry a Taiwanese woman, Tiuⁿ Chhang-miâ (aka Minnie) How Mackay was criticized about his marriage and why he got married at the British Consulate How Mackay told the Foreign Mission Board of his marriage only after he had already gotten married Why Mackay is so beloved in Taiwan and is called the "son-in-law of Taiwan" How Mackay's upbringing influenced his values Mackay was the youngest son of a Scottish Evangelical Presbyterian family Mackay and his family had gone to Canada as refugees from the Sutherland Highland Clearances in northern Scotland because aristocratic landlords had pushed peasants off their land due to the English Industrial Revolution Mackay along with other refugees had been sent to Oxford county which is present-day South Central Ontario in Canada How highlanders (people from northern Scotland) were also looked down upon in Canada because they weren't civilized Scots from the south How the early injustice Mackay and his family experienced shaped him How he learned frontier medicine and developed strong resilience from growing up in the frontier The Zorra pioneers and how Zorra refers to part of the province of Ontario How Mackay became known for pulling teeth and was able to gain the trust of local people in Taiwan but he was not a dentist or doctor Mackay was given an honorary doctorate degree in 1881 Misconceptions about Mackay How Mackay discouraged foreign women missionaries from coming to teach (sewing and English) in favor of having local Taiwanese women converts teach in his school The great numbers of the Kavalan indigenous people who converted and joined Mackay's mission The ethnic revitalization among the Kavalan How the Kavalan used a patronymic name system, rather than surnames, but under Chinese rule they were assigned Chinese names and surnames, so some Kavalan adopted Mackay's Taiwanese surname "Kai" (偕) as their own What has changed in terms of what is known about Mackay Up until the 1990s much of what had been written about Mackay was hagiography The first international academic conference on Dr. George Leslie Mackay that Reverend Stainton organized in 1997 and how it boosted the study of Mackay How Mackay ended up in Taiwan and settling near Tamsui How the Taiwanese called foreigners like Mackay and indigenous people "barbarians," and this created camaraderie between Mackay and the Kavalan people Reverend Stainton's efforts to try to get Canada Post to issue a stamp commemorating George Leslie Mackay which have included two previous campaigns in 2001 and 2022 Comparisons between getting a stamp approved by Canada Post vs. Taiwan Post In 2001 a stamp commemorating Mackay was issued in Taiwan Why Canada Post didn't approve a stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of George Leslie Mackay's arrival in Taiwan The issues that Reverend Stainton has with the stamp that Taiwan Post is issuing on March 9 Why Mackay's wife was given the English name Minnie Mackay's lasting contributions in Taiwan Mackay's title of doctor was due to an honorary doctor of divinity Mackay's opposition of the Head Tax Mackay's lasting contributions in/to Canada Woodstock, Ontario's sister city relationship with Tamsui, Taiwan Mackay's intellectual curiosity and love of nature, astronomy, and botany Mackay's use of traditional Chinese medicine in his medical work The complete Kavalan people's bridal outfit on display at the Royal Ontario Museum, which was among the 16 crates of artifacts that Mackay brought back from Taiwan to Canada in 1893 Many of the items that Mackay collected are among the oldest collection of indigenous artifacts from Taiwan in the world Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/george-leslie-mackay-canadian-missionary-iconoclast-and-his-contributions-to-taiwan-with-rev-michael-stainton-ep-173/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: Dr. Michi Fu and Dr. Tsuann Kuo are helping 228 Survivors deal with trauma. This year marks 75 years since the 228 Massacre and this week we continue our discussion on the topic. 228 refers to February 28, 1947, which could be argued is a misnomer because tensions leading up to the massacre of tens of thousands of people had been building for quite some time before February 28th, ever since the Chinese Nationalists (the Kuomintang) had fled from China to Taiwan in 1945. Some Taiwanese dissidents have used the term March Massacre instead of 228 since the massacres that happened were mostly in March of 1947. Last week we talked about the lasting impact of 228. Under the subsequent authoritarian rule of the Chiang regime, there was 38 years of martial law and the White Terror era. Anyone could be disappeared, executed or worse for just saying or doing the wrong thing, or for what was seemingly wrong in the eyes of the authorities. The people of Taiwan were horrified and terrified. Generations dared not speak of 228. If you haven't already listened to last week's episode, I encourage you to listen to it first to understand the trauma that 228 has inflicted on generations of Taiwanese. My guests on this week's episode will talk about some of the ways they have helped 228 survivors and their relatives to start to heal their trauma. I am welcoming back Dr. Michi Fu and Dr. Tsuann Kuo to talk about the work they did with the Transitional Justice Commission's "caring projects" that were set up specifically to help 228 survivors and their relatives. Three sites were set up for the "caring projects" and Tsuann and Michi were at the Taichung site at the end of 2020 up until February 28, 2021. Please note that the comments and experiences they share are limited to the work that they did through the "caring project" in Taichung and their personal opinions. They are not representing the Transitional Justice Commission, which as you'll hear in the interview, has a much broader scope with five main objectives. The Transitional Justice Commission was set up in 2018 to investigate the actions taken by the Kuomintang between 15 August 1945 and 6 November 1992 (This includes 228, the martial law era and White Terror era). Special thanks to Michi for her help in assembling all the guests for this episode and the previous one, both dedicated to discussing the topic of 228. This episode of Talking Taiwan has been sponsored by the Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社 and the Taiwanese United Fund. The Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社was established in 2000 to promote Taiwanese and Taiwanese American arts and literature, and to protect and enhance the human rights, freedom and democracy of the people in Taiwan. The Taiwanese United Fund is an arts and culture foundation that celebrates the cultural heritages of Taiwanese Americans. Established in 1986, the foundation's mission is to facilitate cultural exchange between the Taiwanese American community and other American cultural communities, hoping to enrich and expand our cultural experiences. To learn more about TUF visit their website http://www.tufusa.org/ About this episode's guests Dr. Michi Fu is a second-generation Taiwanese American and a NATWA II member. She became a Taiwanese citizen after spending a sabbatical year as a mid-life adult. As a Taiwanese returnee, identity politics was an inevitable part of the ethnic identity development process. As such, she has been educating herself on Taiwanese history, including the 228 Massacre, that her family has traditionally remained silent about. Tsuann Kuo, Ph.D. was trained as a gerontologist and has had both clinical and managerial work experiences in the United States before returning to Taiwan. Currently, Dr. Kuo works as an Associate Professor at the School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University in Taichung City, Taiwan. She is actively involved in a number of organizations as the President of Taiwan Association of Family Caregivers, the Executive Director of Taichung Dementia Integrated Care Center and the President of Red Cross in Taichung City. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: The five objectives of the Transitional Justice Commission How Tsuann and Michi got involved with the Transitional Justice Commission The caring projects that extended help to the survivors of 228 and their descendants at three sites (Taipei, Taichung and Kaohsiung) Michi's related work with the Museum of Tolerance and survivors of the Armenian genocide The challenges and difficulties in gaining the trust and cooperation of 228 survivors How survivors and their relatives were impacted by 228 How the program's activities helped survivors to reflect on their past and to make sense of it, and to build their social networks How 228 survivors tried to make sense of why their fathers were killed or jailed The workshops that Michi and Tsuann conducted to help 228 survivors deal with their trauma by discussing what PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and post traumatic growth is How they used art as a creative form of expression How difficult it was for the 228 survivors to see something good in their lives that they could appreciate in their lives How they were able to get the 228 survivors to be more expressive The changes they saw in 228 survivors at the end of the program Michi's comparisons between the survivors of 228 and the Armenian genocide What Tsuann and Michi learned from the experience of working with 228 survivors How 228 survivors and their relatives struggled to be accepted in society What types of documents were made public and how they impacted the relatives of 228 survivors or victims If the Transitional Justice Commission has achieved its goals How the work of the Transitional Justice Commission is temporary The proposition by some legislators to continue the work of the Transitional Justice Committee as a Human Rights Committee The debate over the Chiang Kai-shek memorial Green Island, where political prisoners were sent Green Island prison museum The Jing-mei Human Rights Museum in Taipei The 228 Peace Park in Taipei How the work of the Transitional Justice Commission in Taiwan compares to transitional justice work done in South Africa The question of who should be held responsible to apologize for the atrocities that happened as a result and connected to 228 The challenge for people in Taiwan who are not able to face or identify the perpetrators of crimes related to 228 What can we learn from the 228 Massacre How Michi and Tsuann's families have reacted to their work with 228 survivors through the Transitional Justice Commission Tsuann's work with the Chinese veterans that came to Taiwan with Chiang Kai-shek and the Kuomintang after World War II Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/helping-228-survivors-deal-with-trauma-dr-muci-fu-and-dr-sueanne-kuo-work-with-the-transitional-justice-commission-ep-172/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: The 228 Massacre has been a subject of taboo for those who have had family who lived through it and the White Terror Era that followed. The Lunar New Year holiday and celebrations in Taiwan have just ended, but another national holiday will soon be here, the 228 Peace Memorial Day. But what is 228? It's been, 75 years and as you'll hear from my guests on today's show, it's still a touchy topic. And frankly it's not something that can be easily boiled down to a single date, February 28, 1947. The first thing to know is that 228 is actually a misnomer because the events thought to have ignited the conflicts and that led to the massacring of tens of thousands actually happened the night before on February 27th, 1947. Also, tensions had already been mounting for quite some time before then. Two years earlier in 1945, at the end of World War II, the Chinese Nationalists (the Kuomintang) had fled from China to Taiwan bringing with them the Republic of China framework. On the night of February 27th, Tobacco Monopoly Bureau agents tried to confiscate contraband cigarettes from a 40-year-old woman and brutally knocked her out. When an angry crowd gathered in protest, one of the agents fired a shot into the crowd killing a bystander. Within 24 hours, the incident had escalated into bloody violence and massacres. Under the authoritarian Chiang regime, what followed was 38 years of martial law and the White Terror era. Anyone could be disappeared, executed or worse for just saying or doing the wrong thing or for what was seemingly wrong in the eyes of the authorities. The people of Taiwan were horrified and terrified. Generations dared not speak of 228. 228 was absent from high school textbooks until relatively recently. Denial, distrust, suppression, and the passage of time have made it hard for many to come to terms with 228. What I've presented is of course not the entire story but is meant to provide you with some basic background for the discussion in this episode of Talking Taiwan. If you were previously unfamiliar with 228, I hope that this has piqued your interest, and that you do some further research for yourself on the topic History is not about an isolated date like 228 but understanding its deeper context, significance and repercussions. Since it's the 75th anniversary of the 228 massacre we will be dedicating two episodes to this topic. In this first episode today, my guests Wei-Wei Chang, Michi Fu, TsuAnn Kuo and Josephine Pan represent different backgrounds and generations of Taiwanese women. Each will share their personal perspectives and experiences related to 228, thoughts on the societal impact of 228. Next week Michi and TsuAnn will return to discuss their work with 228 survivors and their families through the Transitional Justice Commission. Special thanks to Michi for her help in assembling all the guests for these two episodes. This episode of Talking Taiwan has been sponsored by the Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社 and the Taiwanese United Fund. The Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社was established in 2000 to promote Taiwanese and Taiwanese American arts and literature, and to protect and enhance the human rights, freedom and democracy of the people in Taiwan. The Taiwanese United Fund is an arts and culture foundation that celebrates the cultural heritages of Taiwanese Americans. Established in 1986, the foundation's mission is to facilitate cultural exchange between the Taiwanese American community and other American cultural communities, hoping to enrich and expand our cultural experiences. To learn more about TUF visit their website http://www.tufusa.org/ About this episode's guests Weiwei Chang was born and raised in Taiwan during the martial law era. Her parents retreated from China to Taiwan as refugees after World War II. She has been living in the U.S. for over 40 years. Six years ago she retired from her job as registered nurse. Michi Fu is a second-generation Taiwanese American and a NATWA II member. She became a Taiwanese citizen after spending a sabbatical year as a mid-life adult. As a Taiwanese returnee, identity politics was an inevitable part of the ethnic identity development process. As such, she has been educating herself on Taiwanese history, including the 228 Massacre, that her family has traditionally remained silent about. Tsuann Kuo, Ph. D. was trained as a gerontologist and had both clinical and managerial work experiences in the United States before returning to Taiwan. Currently, Dr. Kuo works as an Associate Professor at the School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University in Taichung City, Taiwan. She is actively involved in a number of organizations as the President of Taiwan Association of Family Caregivers, the Executive Director of Taichung Dementia Integrated Care Center and the President of Red Cross in Taichung City. Josephine Pan is a proud Taiwanese Hakka from Hsinchu. She immigrated to the US in 1980 after graduating from college, and worked as Immigration Consultant/Paralegal for 25+ years. Currently, she is a business owner of JT & TEA (which imports and distributes several varieties of tea). Josephine is also Founder of Taiwan Elite Alliance, a registered nonprofit corporation in California since 2000, Board Director/Cultural Night Committee Chair/Former President (2011 - 2013) of Taiwanese United Fund (TUF), Coordinator for the Annual 2-28 Commemorative Concert, Community participation for LA River Clean Up and other cultural events promoting Taiwanese American culture. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: How each guest first heard of or learned about 228 How the 228 was a forbidden topic of discussion How my guests and their families were personally impacted by 228 The Formosa Incident aka Kaohsiung Incident The White Terror and Martial Law era of Taiwan The writer who was sent to prison because of his Chinese-language translation of a Popeye comic Why the topic of 228 has been so taboo TsuAnn's grandfather who was a political prisoner during the White Terror era Post-traumatic stress What TsuAnn's relatives experienced and witnessed about 228 Why TsuAnn decided to try to help 228 victims and their families Green Island, the place where political prisoners were exiled The case of a 15-year-old girl who was jailed How political prisoners, after being released were ostracized by society How things banned during the Martial Law era included books, music, art or any medium related to communism or that was critical of the Kuomintang Personal accounts of people persecuted during the Martial Law era The families whose husbands and fathers disappeared due to 228 The privileges and overrepresentation granted to the Chinese vs. local Taiwanese under KMT rule The injustices in Taiwan's society under the initial rule of the Kuomintang Why it's important to remember and understand 228 The importance of healing from historic trauma Canada's residential schools What TsuAnn discovered about 228 survivors through her work with the Transitional Justice Committee Why Josephine started organizing an annual concert to commemorate 228 How 228 became a national holiday in 1998 but has almost been cancelled as a holiday My guests thought on whether or not 228 remains a national holiday Indigenous Peoples Day How to commemorate 228 What young people in Taiwan know about 228 What was previously taught to Josephine TsuAnn and Wei-Wei about Taiwan in their textbooks when they were high school students in Taiwan The Jing Mei Prison Museum in Taipei Music that was banned during the White Terror era Experiential ways ro learn about 228 Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/the-228-massacre-taboos-scars-stigmas-and-an-essential-lesson-in-taiwan-history-ep-171/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: David Kilgour recently wrote an article that appeared in the Ottawa Citizen, Winter Olympics — here's why we're calling them the China Genocide Olympics. For nearly 20 years, he has been outspoken about the human rights abuses and organ trafficking in China. When he and David Matas were asked in 2006 to investigate allegations that the organs of Falun Gong practitioners were being harvested, the disturbing truth was revealed. Following the investigation, Kilgour and Matas co-wrote, Bloody Harvest-The Killing of Falun Gong for their Organs. Mr. Kilgour is a former Member of Canada's Parliament, having served in the House of Commons for nearly 27 years, Secretary of State for Latin America & Africa from 1997-2002, and Secretary of State for Asia-Pacific from 2002-2003. Prior to his political career he was a prosecutor. In this interview Mr. Kilgour reflected on his career in politics and as a prosecutor, and shared his thoughts on Taiwan. This episode of Talking Taiwan has been sponsored by the Taiwan Elite Alliance 優社 which was established in 2000 to promote Taiwanese and Taiwanese American arts and literature, and to protect and enhance the human rights, freedom and democracy of the people in Taiwan. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: Why he's calling the 2022 Winter Olympic Games the Genocide Games The protest held in Ottawa of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing How he became aware of persecution of the Falun Gong and the harvesting of their organs for involuntary transplants The International Coalition to Investigate the Persecution of the Falun Gong approached David Kilgour and David Matas about looking into the allegations of organ harvesting of Falun Gong practitioners The book that he wrote with David Matas, Bloody Harvest Ethan Gutmann who also wrote a book about organ harvesting in China The update on organ harvesting done by David Kilgour, David Matas and Ethan Gutmann The China Tribunal in London chaired by Sir Geoffrey Nice The Uyghur Tribunal How there are 9-10 countries that have banned organ tourism Mr. Kilgour's efforts to lobby the Canadian Parliament to enact legislation against organ trafficking Accounts from doctors who performed surgeries for involuntary organ transplants How Uyghurs have been persecuted in China The persecution of Falun Gong practitioners in China How Mr. Kilgour is a voluntary advisor to two Uyghur organizations Mr. Kilgour's recollection of his first visit to China His work to get goods produced by slave labor banned internationally How the U.S. has strengthened laws on importing goods produced by slave labor Volkswagen's plants in Xinjiang with parts being made by forced labor in China The diplomatic boycotts of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing Why the International Olympic Committee would award the Olympics to Beijing a second time Taiwan's early response to COVID-19 The last time Mr. Kilgour visited China on a trade mission under Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien The Chinese surgeon who removed the cornea of thousands of Falun Gong Who is profiting from the organ harvesting and transplant business in China Comparing the 2022 Olympics in Beijing to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin What the average person can do about the human rights abuses in China What Mr. Kilgour enjoyed about his political career Where his sense of social justice and activism came from Mr. Kilgour's position as State Secretary of Asia Pacific Taiwan has laws banning organ trafficking Ryszard Paszkowski, a Soviet-trained spy that Mr. Kilgour wrote a book about Mr. Kilgour's past visits to Taiwan The trucker protests and Freedom Convoy in Ottawa The Taiwanese politicians that he's met His work with the Ottawa Mission How the National People's Congress of China has 91 billionaires Billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya's comments about the Uyghurs The hate email that Mr. Kilgour has received Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/david-kilgour-author-and-human-rightd-advocate-why-2022-is-the-china-genocide-olympics-ep-170/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: Michael Cannings is the Publisher at Camphor Press, a British-Taiwanese publishing house focused on East Asia, that he co-founded with John Grant Ross and Mark Swofford, in 2014. Profit was not the motive for setting up Camphor Press, but promoting books, especially those about Taiwan was. Michael spoke with me about how they weathered the challenging, early years of Camphor Press, and shared some insights about the publishing industry. Camphor Press has been responsible for rescuing notable books such as Formosa Betrayed and A Pail of Oysters- among the must-read books for those wishing to understand Taiwan. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: What brought Michael to Taiwan Michael's time in Taiwan How Michael met is Camphor Press co-founders What motivated him personally to start Camphor Press and why he saw the need for a publishing company that focused on books about Taiwan How he witnessed the re-election of Chen Shui-bian as President of Taiwan and the Sunflower Movement during the time he lived in Taiwan The Red Shirts Movement after the re-election of Chen Shui-bian in 2006 The book that led to the idea to start a publishing company How they choose the name of the publishing company Michael's co-founders John Grant Ross, Mark Swofford and how they work together Advice on how to work with your friends on a business The initial challenges after setting up Camphor Press in 2014 How Michael has been working on Camphor Press full-time since the beginning of the pandemic How the pandemic has affected Camphor Press How Camphor went from publishing e-books to also publishing print books How Camphor Press acquiredEastBridge Books and the rights to several previously out-of-print books about Taiwan including Formosa Betrayed The oldest book in Camphor Press' catalog How Michael and his co-founders were able to persist with Camphor Press during the most challenging first years Michael's book recommendations for people interested in learning more about Taiwan Joe Henley's book Migrante The new Taiwan-related books that Camphor Press will be publishing Discount code: talktw for Talking Taiwan listeners to get 15% off any online purchase from Camphor Press: https://camphorpress.com/ Tin Gate, the hybrid publishing company that Michael is starting and how it is different from Camphor Press Michael's advice for authors wanting to get their books published The changing stigma of self-published books The podcast Formosa Files that John Ross co-hosts with Eryk Michael Smith Mark Swofford's website: http://pinyin.info/and his work with the Sino-Platonic Papers Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/michael-cannings-of-camphor-press-publisher-rescues-notable-books-about-taiwan-and-east-asia-ep-169/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: My guests on this episode of Talking Taiwan are serial solo entrepreneurs Ramon Ray and Paolo Lising. Ramon has started 5 companies and sold 2 of them. He is the author of Grow Your Solo, a book about how to grow a solo business. Paolo Lising is founder of MillionDC.com, a learning platform for entrepreneurs from developing countries. He is the author of Startup Taiwan, a comprehensive guide for foreigners and global Taiwanese who wish to start a business in Taiwan. Ramon and Paolo talked about their experiences running a solo business, why they have chosen to be solopreneurs and what it takes to be successful as a solopreneur. About Ramon Ray Ramon is a US based serial entrepreneur focused on making the world a better place. He's started 5 companies and sold 2 of them. Ramon has authored several books, including Grow Your Solo about how to grow a solo business, and Celebrity CEO, all about personal branding. Ramon has testified to the United States Congress, interviewed President Obama, been fired from the United Nations and graduated from the FBI Citizens Academy. He's never been to Taiwan but hopes to travel there, one day! About Paolo Lising Paolo Lising is founder of MillionDC.com, a learning platform for entrepreneurs from developing countries. Lising is a digital marketing expert with a decade of experience working for listed tech companies and finance firms in Taiwan. He has won awards as a business journalist and book author in the Philippines. He recently published his book Startup Taiwan: Foreigners Business Guide as the first comprehensive and unbiased guide for foreigners and global Taiwanese who wish to start their business in Taiwan. Paolo took his Masters in Business Administration from National Taiwan University with extensive training in strategy consulting under a joint program at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: Ramon's background and current solo business Paolo's background and current solo business Ramon's definition of what a solo business is The pros and cons of running a solo business What Ramon and Paolo like about running a solo business How studies show that businesses started by a solo founder are more likely to be successful than a business started by several co-founders What it takes to be a successful and long-lasting solopreneur Advice for people wanting to start a solo business Paolo's first small business A hundred-thousand-dollar business vs. a million-dollar business What types of business ideas might be better suited for a hundred-thousand-dollar business Taiwan as a place to start a business and do business The challenges of doing business in Taiwan Resources offered by Paolo's website: www.startupintaiwan.com How Taiwan is focused on building itself as a tech hub Taiwanese culture and customs as they relate to gift giving The importance of "guanxi" when it comes to doing business in Taiwan How Taiwan compares as a place to do business in the world Tips that Paolo has for foreigners wanting to have a business in Taiwan Banking in Taiwan Ramon's invitation for people to visit www.SmartHustle.com Ramon's invitation for people to visit www.GrowYourSolo.com The 5 businesses that Ramon has started including the latest one, Zone of Genius And how Ramon sold 2 of his small businesses Flippa, a company that specializes in selling online companies How to create a business that is more saleable Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/ramon-ray-and-paolo-lising-how-to-become-a-solopreneur-in-taiwan-and-the-u-s-ep-168/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: This year, the Lunar New Year falls on February 1st and it's the year of the tiger. For those of you familiar with Lunar New year celebrations, you may recall some of the traditions, which might include: wearing the color red, receiving or giving red envelopes, eating special foods, lion dances and firecrackers My guest on this episode of Talking Taiwan is not going to talk about any of that. Charlie Wu is the Managing Director of the Asian-Canadian Special Events Association, which organizes Taiwanfest and Lunarfest. The Lunarfest is a twist on celebrating the Lunar New Year, inspired by the Lantern Festival which marks the end of the Lunar New Year celebrations. Charlie talked about how Lunarfest has evolved over the course of a decade and engages with local indigenous communities in Canada. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: Charlie's background and upbringing in Taiwan Charlie's experience assimilating to life in the U.S. The differences between Canadians and Americans Why he wrote an article about being Taiwanese Canadian, not Chinese Canadian Why Charlie was named one of the top 100 influential Chinese Canadians in B.C. What happened when a group of Chinese Canadians asked Charlie to support their fight against anti-Asian and anti-Chinese racism at the beginning of the pandemic When Lunarfest started and its connection to the 2010 Winter Olympics hosted by Vancouver How Lunarfest is the only legacy event from the 2010 Winter Olympics that has continued until present day How Lunarfest has evolved over time and been able to sustain for a decade The challenges in changing the perception from Chinese New Year to Lunar New Year This year's Lunarfest events in B.C. How the Lunarfest is different from most traditional Lunar New Year celebrations How Lunarfest has engaged the local community by inviting participation of indigenous people The artists who have created the lanterns for Lunarfest There will be a celebration planned on February 5thand 6th at the ---art gallery The Lunarfest installation in association with the Taiwanese Canadian Association of Toronto in Markham The endangered Formosa leopard The Lunarfest's annual arts and crafts programs for 2000 school-aged kids in the Greater Vancouver Area Past Lunarfest programs and how Lunarfest has changed due to COVID How the Panjabi community is participating in Lunarfest Vancouver Cirque de Soleil's participation on Lunarfest Vancouver Lunarfest lanterns will be on Granville Island for the first time Indigenous artist Susan Point's participation in Lunarfest Vancouver How you can participate and see photos of Lunarfest online using the hashtags #lunarfest #lanterncity The Lunarfest lanterns have audio descriptions about the artists accompanied by pipa music in the composition, "Woven Melodies" Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/charlie-wu-of-lunarfest-celebrates-the-year-of-the-tiger-ep-167/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: I'm always interested in listening to other podcasts and to learn about Taiwan-related ones. Late last year I heard about the Bilingual aka Bailingguo (百靈果) News Podcast because there was an episode that generated some heated discussion on Forumosa.com, among English-speaking foreigners in Taiwan. Forumosa is an online discussion forum for English-speakers about Taiwan and in full disclosure, they have been a sponsor of Talking Taiwan. I was wondering what all the controversy was about so I spoke to my friend Cindy about it and this led to a discussion about how foreigners are viewed in Taiwan and oddly enough the discrimination that overseas Taiwanese sometimes experience in Taiwan. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: One of the most popular podcasts in Taiwan the 百靈果(Bilingual) News Podcast How an episode of the 百靈果(Bailingguo) News Podcast generated a lot of discussion amongst the English-speaking expat community in an online discussion forum on Forumosa.com What the discussion on Forumosa.com was about If the slang term lao wai (老外) that refers to foreigners in Taiwan is insulting What makes the 百靈果(Bailingguo) News Podcast so controversial How people have compared the style of the hosts of the 百靈果(Bilingual) News Podcast to Joe Rogan and Howard Stern Why the English-speaking expat community on Forumosa.com were upset by the episode People's opinions of the 百靈果(Bailingguo) News Podcast The discrimination that foreigners experience in Taiwan The discrimination that some overseas Taiwanese experience in Taiwan Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/bilingual-podcast-discrimination-that-overseas-taiwanese-experience-in-taiwan-talking-with-cindy-wu-ep-166/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: Cindy Wu is an English and Mandarin Chinese bilingual performer, speaker, and music educator based in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. She loves and enjoys all aspects of life, travel, and culture. I met Cindy years ago when I lived in Kaohsiung. I've invited her on to Talking Taiwan to speak about her music career and how she's dealt with the setbacks and challenges that she's faced along the way. When asked about how she's been able to impact the lives of her students, she responded that it's her students who have impacted and inspired her with their love support. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: • How Cindy and I met in Taiwan • Cindy's background and connection to Taiwan • When she immigrated to the United States • What brought Cindy back to Kaohsiung, Taiwan in 2005 from the U.S. • ORIENTED.com and how Felicia organized ORIENTED.com Happy Hours in Kaohsiung • Where Cindy's love of music came from • How Cindy first learned piano by attending Yahama classes • How the time she spent at Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY affected her • How Cindy uses music to educate kids • How Cindy began teaching piano, violin and singing in Taiwan • How the perception of the Taiwanese language has changed over time • What Cindy's done in her music career • The challenges that Cindy deals with as a vocalist • The voiceover work that she does • How Cindy started her first livestream show • Why she stopped doing her livestream show for a year • Cindy's approach to her livestream shows and how she deals with criticism, haters and trolls • Cindy's children's book, Sunny Girl's Dream World • Cindy's approach to teaching junior high and high school students • The opportunities that Cindy's livestream show has brought her • How Cindy works with the Oxford Institute and is on the board the Global Leadership and Learning Association • How Cindy helps students get a dual high school diploma Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/cindy-wu-music-educator-in-taiwan-speaks-about-her-music-career-and-positivity-ep-165/

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin: My guest on this episode of Talking Taiwan is Amazin LeThi, a global LGBTQIA+ advocate and one of the first Asian ambassadors for WorldPride at Copenhagen 2021. She reached out to me not long after hearing that Taiwan would be hosing WorldPride 2025. She spoke with me about the challenges she's faced as an Asian and LGBTQ youth, and how her sports training and deep sense of purpose helped to pull her out of homelessness. About Amazin LeThi: Amazin LêThi was born in Saigon where she was left in an orphanage by her mother. Amazin was bullied constantly as a young child because of her ethnicity and sexuality and it was because of this she went into bodybuilding at the tender age of 6 going onto become a competitive natural bodybuilder in her teens then qualifying as a strength and conditioning coach. As a young adult, she was homeless for a number of years and it was at this lowest point, contemplating suicide, Amazin realized her passion and love for sport could help her survive. Gaining physical and mental strength and confidence, from her personal journey of homelessness and against all the odds she has overcome enormous barriers to become one of the most visible and influential leading global rainbow (LGBTQIA+) advocate in the world. She is also a TV/Film star, entertainment executive and the first Vietnamese internationally published health and fitness author. Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode: Why Amazin travels so much What it means to Amazin personally that WorldPride will be hosted in East Asia for the first time in 2025 Her struggles growing up in a predominantly white culture after being adopted from Vietnam What is has been like for her to re-connect with her Asian identity and visit Vietnam How WorldPride 2021 was held in 2 cities, Copanhagen and Malmö It was the first time that WorldPride and Eurogames coincided How many of the WorldPride 2021 events were held virtually How COVID has impacted Amazin personally Amazin's thought on the prevalence of Asian Hate What advice she has for the WorldPride 2025 Taiwan team How she ended up homeless and what that was like being homeless How she had a mental breakdown as she tried to get out of homelessness Amazin's struggle with mental health What people can do about homelessness The importance of having a sense of purpose in life How sports have helped her to be more resilient The high percentage of Asian LGBTQ youth that become homeless How Amazin was not able to be "out" in the world of bodybuilding The Amazin LeThi Foundation How 10 states in the United States have banned transgender and nonbinary kids from playing sports The work that Amazin does and how she's worked with President Obama and President Biden What Amazin is currently working on Amazin's Olympic ambitions Related Links: To view all related links for this article, click link below: https://talkingtaiwan.com/amazin-lethi-her-journey-from-homelessness-to-world-lgbtq-ambassador-ep-164/