Day Five Was Bittersweet

Our day started with a visit to the Certified Environmental Education Facility at Taijiang National Park. What a beautiful facility! We viewed a short film about the history of the park. It's only six years young! We learned about the plight of the Black-faced Spoonbill. There are only 2,000 birds in existence. I told them we have a Rosette Spoonbill in South Florida, which is related. After the film we were able to tour the facility and hear about the unique partnership the national park has with industry. They are able to maintain a sustainable oyster and salt industry within the national park. That is a first for me. I have never heard of such a partnership. She explained how the oyster are farmed and harvested. All practices are very efficient and sustainable. Next we were shuttled to the boat ramp, where we took a boat through the Green Tunnel. It really was a beautiful sight, almost dream like. It's amazing how similar Taiwan's environment is to South Florida. We actually saw Mangrove trees! However, they are called Sicao Mangroves. Oh, and Fiddler crabs! Of course, this day was bittersweet, since we knew it was our last day in Taiwan, with this amazing group of people. Our experience in Taiwan is one that we will never forget. Our hosts were so gracious and attentive. We learned so much about their culture, their environment, and their sustainability practices. We are going home with so much more than we came with. Thank you again, NWF (and our friends at Broward NatureScape), EPAT, and ESTCC for making this trip possible!

Broward County and our new friends in Taiwan. 

Jacque, Nicole, Christina, Ting, Milly, and Wen-feng.