As a maritime nation, Taiwan is surrounded by the ocean, with a coastline over a thousand kilometers long. Despite Taiwan has vast coastal lands, it lacked the concept of ocean sustainability for long. Areas where land and sea intertwine have characteristics of both maritime and terrestrial ecosystems, which is why coast protection, safeguarding, and sustainable use are important. These also comprehend an important aspect of national land use planning and the pursuit of sustainable development. To promote the idea of sustainable development to the public and encourage its local implementation, the Construction and Planning Agency, Ministry of the Interior (CPA) intends to utilize documentaries to remind people of the importance of coastal resources and the environment through storytelling, thereby prompting the public to protect the ocean and the coastline.
In addition, the Coastal Zone Management Act and relevant sub-laws were announced (issued) and implemented in 2015 and 2016 respectively. The overall Coastal Zone Management Plan was also announced and implemented in 2017. While more comprehensive regulations and tools are having gradually been put in place, coastal zone management involves more diverse and complicated tasks; the CPA cannot handle all of these tasks on its own. It requires the cooperation of local governments and various institutions. More importantly, the CPA must understand and respect local needs, and work with local schools and community organizations to promote the sustainable development of coastal areas. To achieve this, the CPA has launched a series of See the Coast localized action plans, as an attempt to form close ties with local sectors. Yilan's coastal zone has diverse landscapes of sand dunes, wetlands, bays, and wave-cut platforms, all representative of coastal terrain. Moreover, Su'ao Township's local Yue Ming Elementary School places maritime education as its core development course. Therefore, Yilan was chosen as the CPA's first local partner.
The theme of the documentary is See the Yilan Coast. The film documents Yue Ming Elementary School's learning activities that include respecting the ocean, approaching the ocean, learning about the ocean, and protecting the ocean. It candidly presents the students' progress. They overcome their fears to eventually wish and act to protect the ocean. It also captures how the students influence their families and prompt local residents to dedicate their efforts and protect coastal zones. At the same time, the documentary shows plans, meetings, workshops, events, and interviews conducted by the government and local organizations to promote efforts and protect the ocean and coastal zones. It gently describes the importance of diverse coastal protection work and local forces. It is an honest portrayal of life experiences from both Yue Ming Elementary School's teachers and students and their intimate connection to the ocean. In addition, the documentary is a sincere invitation for the audience to act and make a difference to life and the ocean. It hopes to inspire more actions and generate more local momentum for the cause of coastal protection.
Two pre-screenings of the documentary were held at Yue Ming Elementary School and the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Yilan County. On both occasions, the film received great reviews and resounding praise. To promote and market the film, the CPA and a planning team (Glimmer Image) organized a presentation at the Eslite Xinyi Store on July 16, 2019. In addition to the documentary, the event also included aerial shots of beautiful landscapes like the Lanyang Plain, estuarine dunes, coastal forest, and the fault coast of Suhua. Over a hundred people attended the presentation that day, including the film director, as well as students, teachers, and others that participated in the documentary. The event included a choir performance from teachers and students of Yue Ming Elementary School, as well as speeches from representatives of the Ministry of Education, the Parents Association in Taipei, and cultural creative and corporations, thus creating a warm atmosphere of enthusiastic interactions. The CPA took the opportunity to explain that local schools, community organizations, and private enterprises are all important local forces. It also pledged to provide subsidies to help local governments gather local forces and organize initiatives that promote sustainable development of the land and sea. The CPA hopes to establish model local participation mechanisms that can be expanded upon to gradually reach the goal of sustainable development in coastal areas. The event was covered by Radio Taiwan International and Kamalan News Net. It successfully conveyed the concepts of coastal protection and localization, making the event successful.
Those interested in the documentary may view it on the Coastal Zone Management Webpage (Homepage/See the Yilan Coast Film Project - The Pursuit of Sustainable Land Development Research and Achievement Page).
