Sustainable Cities: Between Progress and Tradition

The project “Sustainable Cities: Between Progress and Tradition” focused on the cultural and artistic exchange between Trier University of Applied Sciences and the Taiwanese partner universities National Taipei University of Education (NTUE) and Ming Chi University of Technology (MCUT). The exchange took place in alternating visits between the countries and a variety of workshops.

As part of the project, 15 students and three lecturers from the two Taiwanese partner universities visited Trier University of Applied Sciences' Design campus for a project week in June 2024. The universities have been partners for a long time and regularly visit each other, for example in the form of summer schools. The project focused on the creative use of water, a resource that will become increasingly valuable in the future, in a construction context. In addition, the renewable raw material wood, such as bamboo and logs, was discussed in Europe and Taiwan, including in the workshop “The Flow - Wood Water Exchange” under the direction of Prof. Jörg Obergfell.

In this project, the students developed a solar-powered well using collected branches, trunks and roots as building materials. The students first went in search of materials in the nearby Weißhauswald forest. They then selected the found material together, processed some of it with tools and assembled it into an artistic fountain sculpture. The fountain's water circuit is powered by a solar-powered module panel. The resulting works were presented at the end of the week in the form of an exhibition.

In November 2024, eight students and two teachers from Trier then traveled to Taiwan for a return visit. The delegation from Trier was warmly welcomed by colleagues and students in Taipei and well looked after throughout the week. The program began with visits to the two partner universities. Prof. Dr. Sieveke gave lectures on the topics of sustainable building and the Bauhaus, while Prof. Jörg Obergfell presented the Trier Design Campus and the courses on offer for international students. During subsequent campus tours, the guests were given an insight into the excellently equipped workshops, including areas such as 3D printing, woodworking and goldsmithing. At the same time, there was plenty of opportunity to exchange ideas with teaching staff and students from both universities.

The core of the exchange was a bamboo workshop at the National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute. The participants started with a visit to a bamboo forest, where the growth processes of this versatile material were clearly explained. Over the following three days, they learned various processing techniques such as weaving, cutting and joining. In individual and joint projects, works such as flying kites, animal models and a model of Taipei 101 were created, combining solid pieces of bamboo and fine, flexible strips. Due to the positive experience with the workshop, further, more in-depth collaboration with the National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute is already being planned for the future.