Day Three

Our day started bright and early to head back to the nature park in search of monkeys. We arrived as the park was opening and we were lucky enough to be the only ones in the park. As we were walking we heard the sound of something hitting the ground. After more careful investigation we came across a group of monkeys. What a great way to start the day! After our monkey encounter we drove to Taidong to visit Junyi School for Innovative Learning, whose mission is to create a student centered, diverse, and safe learning environment based on the Leader in Me model to inspire each child to become a respectful, knowledgeable, skillful and exuberant global citizen. We were fortunate enough to be able to speak with and learn from one of the founding members, Mr. Stanley Yen, who is also the Chairman of the Alliance Cultural Foundation. He shared his passion for education reform and retaining the culture of the indigenous tribes of Taiwan. The school had vast arrays of solar panels, an extensive recycling program, and utilized day light for classroom lighting. Also, they are in the process of expanding the campus with sustainable buildings and landscaping. It was such a pleasure and honor to visit with this amazing staff and school. After our school visit we enjoyed a typical Taiwanese lunch and headed on a train ride to Tainan.