Green Campuses: A Dozen Years in the Making(a)

The earthquake of September 21, 1999 damaged over 200 schools in central and southern Taiwan, causing heavy losses. The crisis was a turning point because it was the right time for campus reconstruction projects to incorporate the concept of sustainability, a process that's been a dozen years in the making.

"The idea of the sustainable campus in Taiwan is similar to that of the EcoCampus and Green Campus initiatives in Europe and North America. They're all about building a campus environment that focuses on ecology and utilizes green building technology," says Chiang Che-ming, promoter of the Ministry of Education's Sustainable Campus program and a professor of architecture at National Cheng Kung University. The concept was introduced to Taiwan in 1998, the year before the 921 earthquake struck. The original plan followed the eco-community example of the European and North American experience, but as it encountered many obstacles, such as legal restrictions, the need to conduct cadastral surveys, and differences in the opinions of community residents, the focus was turned to primary and secondary school campuses in disaster areas in hopes of producing model campuses first. Afterwards, the idea would be expanded into the community. Other schools not in disaster areas have also undergone partial improvements.

The three principal facets of the initiative are carbon reduction, health, and safety. Carbon reduction includes conservation of water, power, and other resources. Health involves the use of non-toxic, pollution-free building materials and minimizing harmful pollutants. Safety includes preparing for possible calamities triggered by global climate change in living environments. The safety principle should include the use of lightweight structures, basic public amenities, disaster preparedness, and rescue capabilities.

绿校园 10年鸟瞰

　　犹记，1999年 921 大地震造成台湾中南部 2 百多所校舍扭曲变形，毁坏严重，然而，危机亦是转机，校园重建计划适时把『永续』观念注入，如今 10 多年有成。

　　『台湾的「永续校园」和欧美称的「生态」、「绿色」校园内涵相似，都是在营造一个注重生态和运用绿建筑技术的校园环境，』教育部永续校园总召集人、成大建筑系教授江哲铭说，这个概念在 1998 年（921 大地震发生的前一年）引进台湾，原本比照欧美经验，要和永续小区一起推动，但期间遭遇许多阻力，如法令限制、重新测量地籍、小区居民意见分歧等等，重心才转至灾区的中、小学校园，希望首次塑造出模范校园，之后再扩大到小区。其他非灾区的学校则做局部改善。

　　推动主轴包括减碳、健康、安全 3 大面向：『减碳』如省水省电、省资源等措施；『健康』如使用无毒无污染的建材、控制有害污染物；『安全』则是因应全球气候变迁可能引发的居住环境灾害，而纳入建筑结构轻量化、公共基础建设、防灾救灾的软件建设等。