Site Visit - Tue, Oct. 21

This route covers a range of destinations, including farms, smart environmental control facilities, leisure farms, and food processing plants. Participants will learn how Taiwan is redesigning cultivation processes to reduce waste generation. The visit will also showcase how local surplus resources—such as fruit and vegetable residues, chicken manure, and food factory by-products—are transformed into fertilizers, animal feed, materials, and food products for diverse applications. Furthermore, the program emphasizes collaboration with local communities and utilizes experiential education to promote social communication, achieving a symbiotic relationship between "food, land, and people.

  • DaHan Enzyme: Dedicated to developing plant-based fermentation products, Dahan utilizes cosmetically imperfect fruits, trimmings from food processing, and surplus materials to create high-nutritional-value products.
  • Asia Plant Organic Farm: Adopting a zero-waste, symbiotic farming system of chickens and vegetables, the farm composts chicken manure, discarded leaves, and okara to create organic fertilizers used directly in the vegetable fields.
  • YesHealth iFarm: Using vertical hydroponics and an efficient water recirculation system, YesHealth significantly reduces water consumption. Reusable materials and modular designs extend the lifespan of equipment and reduce waste. Unsellable greens are repurposed as chicken feed, moving towards a zero-waste smart farm.
  • Toucheng Leisure Farm: A circular agriculture and tourism site that integrates forestry, food, and ecological cycles, creating a co-living environment for people, insects, animals, and plants.

This route delves into Taiwan’s textile design, R&D, and manufacturing processes. Participants will engage with designers, researchers, and manufacturers to see how circularity is embedded across product design, material development, and production. The route also highlights academia-industry collaborations driving circular textile innovation.

  • Shih Chien University – Fashion Design Department: Taiwan’s first higher education institute for fashion design. The campus showcases circular fashion creativity, such as zero-waste pattern design and upcycled clothing. Visitors can also experience smart textile sorting technology.
  • Textile Industry Research Institute: A premier R&D center offering textile technology, testing, certification, and recycling innovation. A one-stop introduction to Taiwan’s circular textile ecosystem.
  • Shen Tsai Fashion (TBC): A pioneer in sustainable performance apparel, Singtex transforms recycled PET bottles and used coffee grounds into functional coffee yarns for textiles with enhanced properties.
  • Hop Lion Feather Works Corp: A century-old feather and down company integrating recycling systems to regenerate used down and promoting service-oriented business models.

This route focuses on circular practices in Taiwan’s high-tech sector and supply chains, particularly around resource recirculation and waste reduction. Emphasis is placed on repair as a core strategy for innovation and value retention. Visits include sites for recycling, dismantling, regeneration, and repair, revealing how government, industry, and civil society collaborate to build a sustainable circular system.

  • TSMC Taichung Zero-Waste Manufacturing Center: TSMC, the world’s largest semiconductor foundry, has built the first global Circular Economy Demonstration Center. It collaborates with suppliers to recycle chemicals and sludge from semiconductor processes back into industrial use.
  • E&E Recycling (TBC): Taiwan’s largest electronic waste recycling company, co-founded by several appliance brands. Visitors can observe the dismantling process and understand Taiwan’s e-waste management system.
  • Bestyield: An internationally certified electronics repair service provider, showcasing chip-level repair technology and practical production line operations.

This route examines circular design and practices in buildings, interiors, and temporary facilities. It explores modular design, flexible space utilization, and material reuse to extend the lifecycle of structures. Participants will witness how interdisciplinary collaboration integrates material, design, and engineering systems for circular outcomes.

  • Bio-Architecture Formosana: A pioneer of circular architecture in Taiwan, their office features recycled materials, modular design, and furniture that’s easy to disassemble and reuse.
  • Kedge Construction Co., Ltd.: A temporary site office built for reuse, designed for quick assembly and disassembly through modular construction, preventing post-project waste.
  • Taipei 101 (TBC): An international green building icon. It houses the world’s first commercial furniture rental space in collaboration with IKEA and uses a cutting-edge waste collection system capable of efficiently processing garbage from over 80 floors.
  • Far Eastern BEONE Circular Hub: Once a spa and fitness center, the space is transformed into a sustainability-driven venue by repurposing old renovation materials and integrating circular construction principles.

This route centers on the development and application of circular materials in Taiwan, especially plastics. Participants will follow the recycling value chain—from collection and sorting to R&D, manufacturing, and brand implementation—to understand how Taiwan drives innovation and cross-sector collaboration to scale the use of recycled materials in diverse industries.

  • Sustainable Materials Library (SML): A curated library of nearly 800 recycled and sustainable material samples. It helps businesses incorporate circular materials throughout product development.
  • Dafong Environmental Technology (TBC): One of Taiwan’s largest recycling companies, Da Fon combines collection, sorting, and processing to shift from waste treatment to material supply, including recycled plastics.
  • Nan Ya Plastics (TBC): With long-term efforts in PET and plastic recycling, Nan Ya established the brand SAYA, which transforms plastic waste into high-performance yarns, enhancing the value and applications of recycled materials.

This route explores how local organizations integrate recycling, upcycling, space activation, and community participation into daily life and local culture. It focuses on sustainability-driven business models that bridge circular economy with place-based development through tourism, education, and industry collaboration.

  • REWOOD: In collaboration with local governments and industries, REWOOD recycles tree trimmings into high-value products and fosters job creation through carpentry workshops.
  • IMMA Village: A former military retail building repurposed into a community hub for secondhand goods and repair services. It promotes local employment and community bonding through circular economy initiatives.
  • Spring Pool Glass：Taiwan’s leader in glass recycling, Spring Pool develops recycled glass sand and beads for applications in construction, art, and tech, showcasing circular material innovation.
  • Tzu Chi Neihu Recycling Education Center: Tzu Chi is Taiwan’s largest Buddhist charity organization. With a wide network of volunteers across the island, it plays a key role in promoting waste sorting and achieving Taiwan’s high recycling rate. At the Neihu Recycling Education Center, visitors can experience hands-on sorting and upcycling, and observe how civil society drives environmental education in Taiwan.
  • The organizer reserves the right to make changes to the schedule and program as necessary.