臺北產經資訊網

The Taipei Expo event, which was organized by the Taipei City Government, was held in the Expo Dome in the Taipei Expo Park from August 27^th to September 11^th. The exhibition area was divided into the following six zones: Sustainable Development, Urban Regeneration, Open Taipei, Inclusive Society, Innovative Entrepreneurship, and Smart City. This event held simultaneously on- and offline presented the new face of the city in form of a large-scale urban exposition and aimed to give residents a glimpse of Taipei’s future-oriented goals. Achievements were displayed in six major exhibition zones. In addition to unveiling major transformations in recent years to city residents, the organizer planned an exhibit titled 2030 Sustainable Development Goals based on the SDGs proposed by the United Nations to demonstrate the eclectic spirit of the city. The ultimate goal is to shape a bright future based on guiding principles and join hands in promoting a grand vision of long-term urban development.

Taipei Expo｜Highlights of the six major exhibition zones

●Sustainable Development

Taipei City Government has made an unwavering commitment to transforming Taipei City into a most livable, sustainable city. Valuable contributions in the field of sustainable development encompass clean green energy, social housing built with recycled materials, low-carbon green transportation, smart urban farming on rooftops through water resource gathering, sound development of Shezidao and accelerated alignment with the 2050 Net-Zero Carbon roadmap of sustainable urban planning. The goal is to achieve optimal use of limited resources through public-private partnerships (PPP) and build lush green, sustainable urban environments through an ingenious symbiosis of urbanity and nature.

●Urban Regeneration

The City Government initiated a partnership with National Housing and Urban Regeneration Center in 2014 to step up its efforts in the fields of Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) and Ecology-Oriented Development (EOD) based on the integrated use of municipal land and buildings. It therefore launched the East and West District Gateway Projects, which aimed to create economic areas and business opportunities by relying on embarkation/disembarkation points of public transportation systems and provide city residents with all-around transportation experiences to every location by harnessing the UBike rental and sharing service. The primary goal is to revitalize and invigorate regional economies in Taipei City.

The Urban Renewal Gateway Project for the East District, which is centered around Nangang Station, focuses on the five major dimensions of transportation & transit, software industry, convention & exhibition center, biotechnology research park and cultural & creative center development with the goal of turning the East District into an indispensable gathering point of this metropolis. The West District Project, on the other hand, prioritizes the “National Gateway” and the linkage of Taipei Main Station (the starting point) to Taipei Port and Taoyuan International Airport. The chief objective is to leave a deep impression on international tourists by relying on regional planning and reconstruction initiatives.

●Open Taipei

Taipei is a city of many tales and stories. The City Government pro-actively applies diverse methods to promote citizen participation and enable city residents to give free rein to their creativity through self-expression by condensing Taipei stories of the present and past. The government renovates old buildings in the context of and the Taipei Eco-Museum (“museum without walls”) project. The goal is to provide city residents with five historical and cultural areas (Beitou hot springs, Dihua Street in Dadaocheng area, Bangka in Wanhua District, the Northern art corridor and the NTU area in the south), three new art & culture venues (Taipei Performing Arts Center, Taipei Music Center and Songshan Cultural and Creative Park), two mountain and forest trails (Taipei Grand Trail, Sanmao Project) and one ecological & artistic farm and nature park area (Guandu Eco-Farm) and thereby enable them to explore the multiple faces of this fascinating city.

In addition to daytime events, the government also organizes nighttime events such as Nuit Blanche, Taipei Lantern Festival and Lunar New Year to give city residents a chance to experience another facet of urban life in Taipei. Since 2020, the City Government has utilized public spaces in downtown Taipei in a flexible manner to create multi-layered light and shadow effects centered around different themes for its annual Lantern Festival event.

●Inclusive Society

Since Taipei City is a melting pot of international and local culture, the creation of shared public spaces for diverse ethnic groups is one of the most pressing tasks of the government. The ultimate goal is to provide the best care possible for young people who move up north in search for employment as well as seniors and neonates. With a view to realizing housing justice 2.0, the City Government has adopted welfare measures involving affordable housing, care for underprivileged groups, pre-school educational allowances and establishment of public kindergartens to ensure improved equality for all residents through new social models. In addition, the concept of pets as family members has also turned into a key link of municipal service offerings. The government therefore strives to expand the scope of public welfare for our friends through the creation of animal homes and animal-friendly spaces in Taipei City.

Furthermore, Taipei City has clearly demonstrated its ability to host large-scale international competitions through the organization of the 2017 Universiade, which also serves as an excellent reference for the planning and organization of the 2025 Summer World Masters Games. By hosting grand international events in Taipei City, the City Government enables residents to gain a first-hand experience of the vigor and vitality of international sports competitions.

●Innovative Entrepreneurship

Innovative Entrepreneurship is one of the main driving forces of ongoing advances and upgrades. Taipei City Government has earned international recognition for its tireless efforts in the promotion of relevant policies. The city ranked 41 globally and 15 in the Asia-Pacific region in the Global Startup Ecosystem Index compiled by StartupBlink in 2021. The StartUP@Taipei platform, which was launched by the Taipei City Department of Economic Development in 2015, focuses on the promotion of policies in the following four major dimensions: talent cultivation, financial assistance, market links, and field support. Statistics from 2015 to the end of June 2022 reveal that the platform has provided over NT$ 2 billion in subsidies and 2.6 billion in funding to entrepreneurs in the context of the Subsidies & Incentives for Taipei Industry Program (SITI) and the Five Major Loan and Financing Initiatives. In addition, Taipei City Government plans to create a total of 23 startup hubs for entrepreneurs to conduct Proof of Concept (PoC) testing in emerging technology fields such as AI, ICT, IoT, AR/VR, FinTech, Biotechnology, and Biomedicine. As of June 2022, fifteen hubs have been put into operation and another eight hubs are currently in the planning stage. These hubs will serve as multifunctional spaces for entrepreneurs and enable Taipei City to make strides on the path toward its goal to turn into a city that perfectly meets the needs of domestic entrepreneurs.

In the other hand, traditional markets have been considered as the perfect portrayal of the lives of Taipei residents. Through updating hardware equipment of markets can improve consumer environment in Huannan Market, The First Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market, Nanmen Market, Chenggong Market and Dalong Market. The beautification and reorganization of street vendor areas by integrating elements of traditional culture are also highly conducive to the systematic development of markets, in Shilin Night Market, Gongguan Night Market, Cisheng Food Street. The modernization is expected to generate new business opportunities.

●Smart City

In recent years, Taipei City has persisted in its efforts to promote the digital transformation of the city. The city therefore ranked 4th globally and 2nd in Asia in the IMD Smart City Index compiled by the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne in 2021. As a result of these efforts, the city continues to shine on the international stage. Taipei City is also actively committed to urban smartification. A “Taipei City 1+7 Fields” framework has been developed and deployed through PoC testing. The goal lies in the expansion of the scope of PoC in smart technology fields including smart building, smart transportation, smart education, smart healthcare, smart environment, smart safety, and smart economy with smart government as the cornerstone and thereby realize diverse smart city concepts.

The City Government garnered an innovative application award at the Smart City Summit & Expo in 2022 for its TaipeiPASS, TAIPEION and CooC Apps, which bear clear testimony to the soft power of Taipei in the realm of smart city development. It strives to create a highly efficient smart city through the adoption of PPP mechanisms and big data applications. Future initiatives include the development of Beitou Shilin Technology Park as a key region of the Taipei Technology Corridor and advancement of the smart healthcare industry through the injection of available government-industry-academe resources with the ultimate goal of expanding smart living spheres in Taipei through meticulous planning in a highly constructive manner.

The City Government strives to highlight recent reform achievements through the display of brilliant accomplishments in the six exhibition zones. In the seven-year period from 2015 to 2021, the city has earned 18 international awards and its dedicated efforts have been widely recognized and acknowledged on the international stage. In addition to showcasing the efforts of the City Government in recent years, Taipei Expo also aimed to lay out a blueprint for the future of Taipei and demonstrate the strong commitment of the city to adopting the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations as the guiding principles for its sustainable development initiatives. The City Government is steadfastly committed to laying the foundation for future development trends in the fields of gender equality, responsible production and consumption and climate action on the basis of the aforementioned guiding principles underpinned by a spirit of “The Future is Now.” The goal lies in the realization of the 2030 Sustainable Development Roadmap through concerted efforts and sound decision-making processes.