Ambassador Eugene Chien: Aligning with Global Sustainability Trends to Enhance the International Competitiveness of Taiwan’s Universities

The event opened with remarks by TAISE Chairman Ambassador Eugene Chien. Reflecting on TAISE’s 19 years of dedication to sustainability, Ambassador Chien highlighted Taiwan’s outstanding performance in international sustainability rankings, noting that Taiwanese enterprises have become global benchmarks. He further emphasized that universities also bear critical responsibilities, as the essence of evaluation lies not only in academic publications, but also in societal contribution and impact. Ambassador Chien particularly praised National Tsing Hua University and National Yunlin University of Science and Technology for demonstrating exemplary sustainability governance in the fields of traditional universities and technological universities respectively. He expressed confidence that through continued efforts and alignment with international standards, Taiwan’s universities will showcase remarkable achievements on the global stage in the coming years.

TAISE Chairman Ambassador Eugene Chien delivers opening remarks.

Benchmark Sharing: Best Practices in Sustainability Governance

The workshop also invited representatives from two benchmark universities to share their experiences. Director Fu-Jen Lin, Sustainability Director of National Tsing Hua University, shared how the university established dedicated sustainability units, strengthened interdisciplinary collaboration, and formulated mid- to long-term sustainability plans to gradually integrate sustainability into the core of university governance. Director Yi-Pin Lin of National Yunlin University of Science and Technology introduced the university’s practical experiences in encouraging colleges to produce sustainability reports and promoting energy conservation, carbon reduction, and green lifestyle culture. He emphasized that “campus-wide participation and institutionalized integration” are key to sustainable transformation.

Director Fu-Jen Lin of National Tsing Hua University shares sustainability development and university governance practices.

Director Yi-Pin Lin of National Yunlin University of Science and Technology shares sustainability transformation and industry-academia collaboration experiences in technological universities.

Connecting with Global Standards: Five Major Upgrades to the Evaluation Framework

During the workshop, TAISE Secretary-General Tsai Chi Kuo unveiled the upgraded evaluation directions for 2026. This year’s framework references internationally recognized standards, including THE Impact Rankings, QS Sustainability Rankings, UI GreenMetric, and AASHE STARS, optimizing the evaluation system into five core dimensions covering governance mechanisms, research and education, campus operations, and social impact and contribution.

Secretary-General Tsai noted that through a systematic sustainability governance framework, universities will be able to more effectively demonstrate their institutional特色 and long-term competitiveness.

TAISE Secretary-General Tsai Chi Kuo explains the upgraded evaluation directions for the 2026 Taiwan Sustainability University Awards.

The Q&A session featured active discussions on topics such as carbon inventories, net-zero pathway planning, and campus communication mechanisms. TAISE stated that it will continue refining its evaluation tools to support Taiwan’s higher education institutions in deepening sustainability governance and expanding their impact, laying a stronger foundation for sustainable higher education development.