The Great Pivot: How Taiwan is Forging a Net-Zero, Resilient Future and Leading the World Out of the Linear Trap

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The Climate Abyss: A Call to Action

Since the establishment of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 30 years ago, global annual carbon emissions have not merely stabilized—they have surged. As the UN Secretary-General warns, "We are on a highway to climate hell with our foot still on the accelerator!" This "accelerator" is the linear economy, a model born of the Industrial Revolution that prioritizes profits and privatizes risks, treating costs as a necessary evil for economic stimulation.

But the planet faces a triple threat: high consumption, high pollution, and high carbon emissions. The traditional linear model—take, make, dispose—is not just unsustainable; it's a profound systemic failure. Just as treating a person's "three highs" (high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and high cholesterol) with medication alone fails to address the root cause, so too do piecemeal environmental efforts. We must fundamentally change our economic model.

Taiwan, an island nation densely populated and limited by a shortage of natural resources, understands this existential threat perhaps better than anyone. Nearly 260 million metric tons of raw materials are consumed annually, over 70% of which are imported. And every year, approximately 32 million metric tons of waste are generated.

The time for passive followership is over. It is time for proactive leadership.

The Transformation: Moving Beyond "Taiwan Can Help"

For the past sixty years, Taiwan played the role of a "follower," succeeding by reducing costs and improving efficiency in the global market. But in addressing the climate crisis, the opportunity is to transform from an efficiency engine into a global sustainability pioneer. The new rallying cry isn't just "Taiwan Can Help," it's "Taiwan Can Lead."

In 2017, the Executive Yuan launched the "5+2 Industrial Innovation Plan," signaling a crucial first step toward "circular economy" and "new agriculture" strategies. This national commitment has placed the transformation from the traditional linear model to a circular economy at the heart of its national policy, seeing it as the key to securing long-term environmental and economic competitiveness.

The Three-Pronged Strategy for Resource Circulation

Taiwan's Ministry of Environment, alongside the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Agriculture, has adopted a robust "three-major circulation strategies" and "two key facilitation pillars" to reshape its industrial landscape:

Green Designs: Advocating for source reduction and green design at the material usage phase.

Resource Circulation: Developing technologies to expand the potential for waste-to-resource conversion, maximizing resource use efficiency.

Waste Balance and Treatment: Streamlining the resource circulation network across all sectors—upstream, midstream, and downstream industries.

This shift is not merely compliance; it’s a massive economic opportunity. The resource circulation industry is thriving, creating billions in value and generating numerous job opportunities in high-value sectors like recycling systems and advanced manufacturing.

Agriculture: The Front Line of Circularity

Nowhere is the pivot more evident than in agriculture, which is adopting a four-pillar guideline to reduce carbon emissions, promote circular agriculture, enhance carbon sinks, and accelerate net zero by 2040.

Agricultural circularity—a "full cycle and zero waste" model—is the main goal. It is transforming waste streams into high-value resources:

Animal Waste: Converting poultry and livestock manure into biogas and digestate for energy and fertilizer.

Crop Residues: Using materials like rice straw, soybean pulp, and mushroom compost to create high-value products like feed or organic fertilizers.

High-Value Products: Converting soy pulp into raw materials for plant-based meat, and transforming waste into renewable energy sources.

The goal is to secure a win-win situation: a balanced economic benefit paired with environmental sustainability, proving that prosperity and responsibility are not mutually exclusive.

The Industry Revolution: Innovating Waste into Wealth

Across industries, Taiwan is demonstrating its leadership:

ITRI’s Breakthrough: The Industrial Technology Research Institute has perfected high-strength, rut-resistant asphalt concrete using combined waste asphalt and steel slag, extending the service life of roads.

BenQ Dialysis Technology: Improving the production and manufacturing of hemodialyzers using automatic rejection equipment to sort reusable materials.

CPC/VP Developments: Joining forces to implement resource recovery facilities to recycle discarded PP plastic from industrial scraps and household plastic waste into new pedals.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) is actively supporting this shift by promoting the effective utilization of resources through "turning waste into treasure" programs. This innovation is foundational to developing and expanding the circular economy's footprint in product design, manufacturing, consumption, and waste management.

A Future Forged in Resilience

In fact, Taiwan is already a global leader in many sectors, such as semiconductors and AI, and is among the best in the world in resource recycling and circulation. However, this is not a time for complacency.

We cannot afford to waste the opportunities presented by this crisis. We must leverage the successes and failures of the past to fundamentally change five crucial aspects of people’s lives: livelihood opportunities, production models, ecological balance, and value of life.

A circular economy is the collective effort of all sectors, a social contract that brings together the contributions of public, private, and civil society. Taiwan is extending an open hand, sharing its exemplary models and hard-won expertise to build a greener, more resilient, and sustainable world.

Let us embrace this future full of hope. Let us move forward, not as followers, but as the leaders who chose to leave the linear economy behind, ensuring a prosperous future for generations to come. Taiwan Can Lead.

DepEd reports 312 damaged schools; Bicol, CALABARZON schools heavily hit by ‘Uwan

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MAKATI CITY, 10 November 2025 — The Department of Education (DepEd) reported that at least 312 public schools sustained infrastructure damage following the onslaught of Super Typhoon Uwan, with Bicol and CALABARZON among the hardest hit regions.


The November 10, 12pm Situation Report from the DepEd Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Service (DRRMS) showed that 1,182 classrooms suffered minor damage, 366 classrooms were majorly damaged, and 261 were totally damaged. These figures are still being verified as additional reports continue to arrive from regional and division offices.


Echoing President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s call for all agencies to remain on full alert and safeguard the safety of their constituents, Education Secretary Sonny Angara assured affected communities that the department is committed to the immediate protection of students, teachers, and school personnel as well as the long-term continuity of learning.


“Mabigat ang pinagdadaanan ng ating mga guro, magulang, at mag-aaral sa nagdaang Bagyong Uwan at Tino. Nakikiramay tayo sa ating mga kababayan at tinitiyak namin sa DepEd na kasama ninyo kami sa bawat hakbang ng pagbangon at muling pagbuo ng pag-asa sa bawat silid-aralan,” Secretary Angara said.


Bicol, CALABARZON, and CAR recorded the highest numbers of damaged classrooms due to Uwan.


DepEd also reported that 5,572 classrooms in 1,072 schools across 11 regions are being used as evacuation centers, temporarily sheltering displaced families. The department continues to work closely with local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Councils (DRRMCs) for rapid assessment and relief coordination.


To address immediate recovery needs, DepEd has identified funding requirements of ₱20.2 million for clean-up and clearing operations and ₱57.9 million for minor repairs

PPC hosts storywriting workshop in Pangasinan

 

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The creative landscape of Pangasinan got a boost as the Pangasinan Polytechnic College, in partnership with the Film Development Council of the Philippines, hosted the Pangasinan Storywriting Workshop: Screenwriting for Multimedia Platforms from November 6 to 7 at the Sison Auditorium in Lingayen.

Designed as a micro-credential course within the Film and Video Production for Multimedia Platform Series, the workshop was tailored for aspiring storytellers, multimedia arts students, creative professionals, and content creators. It aims to enhance participants’ skills in crafting compelling stories.

Sharing his wealth of industry knowledge was two-time Palanca awardee and Creative Director of GMA Network, filmmaker and screenwriter Aloy Adlawan. Adlawan also armed the attendees with crucial skills in pitching their stories as part of a new initiative to nurture the region’s creative talent.

The event kicked off with a welcome message from Assoc. Prof. Christopher Gozum, PPC Bachelor of Multimedia Arts Program Chair and PPC Film Society adviser. Inspirational messages were delivered by PPC President Dr. Raymundo D. Rovillos and Community Affairs Officer IV Atty. Kandace Lorraine Palagud, who spoke on behalf of Pangasinan Gov. Ramon V. Guico III.

A significant highlight was the Memorandum of Agreement signing ceremony between the PPC and the FDCP, led by Dr. Rovillos and FDCP Technical Consultant for Academic Linkages Seymour Sanchez. They were joined by FDCP Project Development Officer Korina Dela Cruz, Atty. Palagud, and Gozum.

The workshop treated attendees, many of whom were PPC multimedia arts students, to a special screening of compelling films that explored themes of struggle, family, and discovery.

The coming-of-age comedy “Blooming!” by Ronnie Ramos tells the story of Nena (Annika Co), a young girl who becomes fascinated by the parts of a flower while working on a school assignment.

Louchielle Ashley Hael’s short animated film “Signal Pending” brought the participants to the amusing and frantic journey of Max the Bunny who scrambles to submit a thesis project on time.

Cedrick Valenzuela’s “When It Rained Malunggay Leaves,” winner of the Sine Kabataan Best Film, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing, made the audience reflect on family, grief, and reconciliation, as the drama follows a daughter, Ariel (Gabby Padilla), visiting her mother, Anita (Tanya Gomez), for Undas.

The classic film “Insiang” by the late National Artist Lino Brocka was also screened, allowing the audience to witness its raw, powerful portrait of urban struggle, betrayal, and resilience.

Filmmakers Ramos and Valenzuela also participated in a talkback session moderated by Sanchez.

Participants also learned about the many opportunities available in the industry. Dela Cruz presented the programs of the FDCP Academic Film Society, while FDCP Project Development Assistant Lemor Sobrevega covered the Student Film Assistance Program and Sine Kabataan.

Sanchez also shed light on different visual devices in storytelling for films.

The program was organized by Monika Labaupa, Director and Planning Officer III of the PPC Center for Lifelong Learning, with PPC School of Creativity and Design led by Gozum, PPC Film Society co-adviser Vanessa Millamor Baldueza, and the PPC Film Society, led by president Jannah Grace T. Umali.