Becoming integrated into the global society

In 2004, Taiwan suffered from its most distressed election since we started to elect our president directly in 1996. At that time, I studied in Boston. Struck by the information on Internet, I asked my friend how I can help. My friend told me to contact Portnoy, and he may find some work for me (laugh).

After joining the translation team of Global Voice, I wrote my first post in Global Voices in 2007. Since then, I have written articles related to Taiwan for global voices irregularly. When I write these articles, I keep asking myself why people from other countries would be interested in what happens on this island (to be specific, ‘on these islands’). Because Taiwan is not a member of United Nation and less than 30 countries recognize Taiwan as an independent country, we always feel that we are not connected to the rest of the world.

I attended my first GV summit in Budapest in 2008. During that meeting, someone came to me and said, ‘Oh, I like your post about Matsu and other culture events in Taiwan.’ That is the magic moment; I was convinced that it is worth sharing our stories with other people (thanks to the translation teams all over the world!). Working with other members in Global Voices gives me a good opportunity to know the local voices around the world. By acknowledging the local voices, I am surprised to find that we share a lot of things in common: the difficult situation that indigenous people face, the forced eviction of people and animals due to economic growth, how media is influenced by the government and enterprises, the pursuit of equal right for people despite their gender and social status, etc.

I am not sure whether we are able to make the world a better place, but I am confident that as long as the local voices are connected, we can enjoy the life together and learn from each other. Global Voices, happy 10th anniversary.

3 comments

  • […] I-Fan Lin (Taiwan): “I wrote my first post in Global Voices in 2007…. When I wrote these articles, I kept asking myself why people from other countries would be interested in what happens on this island…. I attended my first GV summit in Budapest in 2008. During that meeting, someone came to me and said, ‘Oh, I like your post about Matsu and other culture events in Taiwan.’ That is the magic moment: I was convinced that it is worth sharing our stories with other people.” (Read full post here) […]

  • […] I-Fan Lin (Taiwan): “I wrote my first post in Global Voices in 2007…. When I wrote these articles, I kept asking myself why people from other countries would be interested in what happens on this island…. I attended my first GV summit in Budapest in 2008. During that meeting, someone came to me and said, ‘Oh, I like your post about Matsu and other culture events in Taiwan.’ That is the magic moment: I was convinced that it is worth sharing our stories with other people.” (Read full post here) […]

  • I-Fan, really interesting – especially your concern about whether the rest of the world is interested in Taiwan – the experience of individuals living in Taiwan has always been fascinating for me, both because I worked in China and experienced aspirations for expression, and because so much of what happens in Taiwan has little to do with China – or so it seems from the outside. I always enjoy your posts, and the insight you provide. Also – was studying in Boston in 1996 too – I wonder if we could have crossed paths?

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