Pursuing Dreams: Sustainable Service and Learning in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and Mongolia | Feng Chia University Department of Environmental Engineering and Science, Chia-Yu Lin

Realizing the Dream of Going Abroad: First Stop, Malaysia

Reflecting on my time at Feng Chia University, my dream has always been to go abroad. My first opportunity came in my freshman year when the General Education Center organized an international travel program led by Professors Ben-Ruei Chai and Shu-Hui Chen. The destination was India, a country where chaos and order coexist, and corruption and prosperity are neighbors. Unfortunately, the pandemic broke out a month before departure, and the trip was indefinitely postponed.

YSD's Climate Action Festival

This wait lasted three years until November 2022, when I finally embarked on this life-changing journey. At that time, the pandemic was easing, and the university was still conducting online classes. It was my final year of university, and I was determined not to let the pandemic define my college experience. I decided to join Professor Chi-Hou Lai's Ministry of Education "New Southbound Dream Building" program and intern in Malaysia. This decision was unconventional, as applying in the first semester of my senior year meant delaying graduation. Despite overwhelming opposition and seeing my classmates apply for graduate school, I made this difficult choice as a student with student loans. I am grateful to Professor Chi-Hou Lai from the Master's Program in Green Energy Technology, Professor Cheng-Shu Kao, and senior Man-Ching Lin for their encouragement, and to Professor Fan Chang for being both a mentor and a friend. Special thanks to Professor Chia-Hsuan Hsueh from the Student Achievement Center for her assistance. This may have been just part of her job, but it profoundly impacted my life.

Now, I can confidently say: this was the best decision I have ever made!

If I were to title my journey over the past two years, it would be "The Journey of Sustainability." As an environmental engineering student, I was thrilled to enhance my professional skills while broadening my horizons abroad. After overcoming numerous challenges, I arrived at my first destination, the Yayasan Sime Darby (YSD) internship at the National University of Malaysia (UKM). YSD supports UKM's research projects, particularly in environmental and sustainable development. I owe this opportunity to Professor Shih-Yi Wu from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Feng Chia University, who once chaired YSD.

At YSD, I researched the application of biodegradable composite materials in bone plates, learning alongside doctoral students and assisting with their research. This experience taught me the broad applications of environmental engineering, extending even to medical fields. My friend Lupus from the Department of Chemical Engineering studied the decomposition of palm tree bark by microorganisms to produce methane, a crucial topic for Malaysia, a major palm oil producer. Research on handling related by-products is vital for YSD's goal of zero waste technology. For students dedicated to sustainability, YSD is an eye-opening internship base.

Friends I met at UKM

Before this, I had never been abroad, and I felt incredibly fortunate to start at UKM. The rich array of activities for exchange students initially triggered my social anxiety. However, the warmth of Southeast Asia and like-minded friends gradually opened my heart.

I encourage fellow students with dreams of going abroad but lacking fluent English: no one is born with perfect English. Let go of your worries, open your heart, and dare to make mistakes. No one can mock us for trying.

Flying to the Turkey-Syria Border

In my third month in Malaysia, I saw that the School of Social Innovation (s.School) was recruiting students to serve in Turkey, also under the Ministry of Education's "Dream Building" program. The service location was the Turkey-Syria border, serving Syrian refugees.

Seizing this rare opportunity, Lupus and I actively applied. The process was lengthy and convoluted, but eventually, we split the project funds and embarked on a semi-self-funded trip to Turkey. This journey was made possible by the support of many benefactors, including Professor Chen-Hua Hsueh from the Office of Sustainable Development and Social Responsibility, Chih-Yu Chiu, the executive director of the Taiwan Reyhanli World Citizen Center (Taiwan Center), and Professors Huang-Chih Lu and Cheng-Yung Chu from the Green Energy Research Center.

Feng Chia University team meeting with Taiwan Center partners

My task was to build an aquaponics system for the local community. Reyhanli receives little rainfall, and refugees lack land for farming. Aquaponics creates a stable, balanced system through the mutual benefits of fish, vegetables, and microorganisms. It saves money on chemical fertilizers, avoids environmental pollution, and recycles water resources. I collaborated with Executive Director Chiu, Turkish architect Recep, Syrian worker Halil, electricians, and Syrian women to complete the system.

This experience sparked my interest in international service, especially working with children, and I hope to use my professional skills to serve others.

However, this journey also taught me that professional skills determine a project's sustainability, while economic value determines its success. As an undergraduate, I could propose ideas but lacked the ability to solve complex, significant problems, a realization that deeply impacted me.

Hosting a fair with NTU volunteers

Returning to Dubai for the Climate Change Conference

I feel particularly blessed. Two months after returning from Turkey, I had the opportunity to attend the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) in Dubai. Special thanks to Lara, a volunteer and teacher at the Taiwan Center in Turkey, and my companion Sally for the introduction. I also thank Professors Ben-Ruei Chai and Hsueh for their efforts, and Professor Chu for the University Social Responsibility (USR) program funding that enabled us to participate in this important international conference.

If Reyhanli is a wild horse, then Dubai is a Puma. This comparison may seem absurd, but it aptly describes the contrast between the two. Both struggle for water resources—one builds majestic waterfalls in the desert, while the other spends days searching for tilapia. The stark contrast made me question which is more surreal: the desert empire or the homeless refugees.

In this bustling city, I witnessed the achievements of governments, companies, and universities in sustainability. The application of composite materials left the deepest impression on me. For example, Tetra Pak uses renewable recycled materials to make bottles and combines 3D printing to create furniture. ArchiREEF applies similar technology to coral reef restoration plates, expanding my imagination of environmental engineering.

Experiencing a mini United Nations at COP28 in Dubai

Returning to Asia: Enchanted by the Simplicity of Cambodia

After witnessing the grandeur of skyscrapers and dazzling performances, I and a few like-minded partners joined the Overseas Volunteer Service Team program by the Youth Development Agency to serve at the "CTEP" in Cambodia. In rural Cambodia, there are no high-end restaurants or flashy neon buildings, but everything felt tangibly real. Children herding cattle, tree root power poles, and haystacks like hills—all these simple scenes captivated me.

This journey was made possible by the assistance of Peter, Alice, and their team at CTEP. Over the past 13 years, CTEP has established dozens of educational centers in rural areas, educating over 100,000 children, a deeply admirable achievement. Cambodia is not a wealthy country, and many children must help with farming. The opportunity for educational transformation does not come equally, especially disadvantaging children from poorer families. CTEP acts as a social safety net, enhancing children's skills in English, computers, and programming, bridging them to employment.

Tonle Sap, Southeast Asia's largest freshwater lake, is home to Vietnamese immigrants living on the water. In their crowded, chaotic environment, they struggle to survive. Land is too expensive, so they spend their lives floating on water. The children do not learn English because it is not needed in their daily lives.

Here, the system and environment are both unfair accomplices, making educational transformation seem mythical. If stepping onto land represents resources and opportunities, I believe English is the bridge to this path. However, for this generation of children, no one has yet built or guided them towards this bridge. In this impoverished environment, I truly understood the significance and weight of the phrase "learning English is important."

Becoming a "king of children" again at CTEP in Cambodia

Heading to Europe: The Romance of Italy

A month later, I traveled to the romantic country of Italy, thanks to the assistance of Professor Cheng-Yung Chu and the USR program funding. I interned at the Consiglio Nazionale Delle Ricerche (CNR) in Rome, Italy's largest public research institution, covering a wide range of fields including biomedical, earth sciences, and environmental sciences. CNR actively participates in international cooperation, executing many international scientific projects.

During my internship at CNR, I focused on product life cycle assessment research, particularly on evaluating carbon dioxide emissions in the hydrogen energy production process in Europe. Under the guidance of my professor, I learned about CNR's wastewater treatment projects in Ethiopia and energy projects on Indonesian islands. I realized the capabilities required for national-level projects and my own professional knowledge gaps. These insights changed my future direction, inspiring me to gain more professional experience and academic knowledge in the coming years, especially in the field of energy transition.

Feng Chia University members interning at CNR in late 2023

Graduation Trip: Planting Trees in Mongolia

In July 2024, I embarked on the final journey of my university years, heading to the grassland country of Mongolia. Our team's goal was to plant 1,000 trees in Mongolia. The planting was divided into two phases. The first phase was in collaboration with the Tse-Xin Organic Agriculture Foundation, using their developed water-saving planting method to increase tree survival rates. The second phase was in collaboration with Feng Chia alumna Indira, who provided the planting land, and Professor Chu's USR program, which provided the seedlings. We completed the planting in early July.

Mongolia has one of the highest per capita carbon emissions and severe air pollution in the capital. The dual pressures of nomadic culture and economic development have led to massive deforestation, soil desertification, and insufficient soil water retention, causing severe flooding with just a little rain. This tree-planting trip was part of the Ministry of Education's "Dream Building" program led by Professor Ming-Shih Lin. Several classmates also actively participated at their own expense, enabling us to achieve our planting goal in three days. Special thanks to Professors Ben-Ruei Chai, Chih-Chao Wu, and photographer Lucky Lin for their assistance, ensuring the smooth execution of this project.

Feng Chia University team members in Mongolia

There are too many people to thank during my university years! Special thanks to the director and assistants of the Department of Environmental Engineering and Science at Feng Chia University for providing advice and assisting with school communication, and to my class advisor, Professor Chih-Ming Liang, for his constant encouragement. I am grateful to the friends I met along the way for their tolerance and for making the process of executing these projects unforgettable.