Many people wonder why the Taiwan Cement Corporation (TCC) is willing to put such effort into conservation. After all, the company is a private enterprise.
“It’s related to the ideal of environmental protection that was established for TCC by my father.” Leslie Koo explains: “Most people regard the cement industry as a polluter; the media has even called us a major polluter. But the company’s former chairman—my father—set a goal to make this company a model of environmental protection for Taiwan.”
Even further, TCC has become involved in environmental protection—handling the garbage of 4.5 million people. “Many people will not know that the trash of one in five of Taiwan’s population is managed by TCC,” says Koo.
But the ecology of the Earth continues to deteriorate. Koo pondered what else the enterprise could do to improve global ecology. “We chose to invest in two major areas: carbon capture and ecological conservation.”
Blueprint for conservation
It was actually a series of coincidences that led to the Koo family providing land and financial backing for the Dr. Cecilia Koo Botanic Conservation Center (KBCC).
Koo had heard that a friend of more than two decades, Li Chia-wei, a professor at National Tsing Hua University, was planning to launch a botanic conservation program in Taiwan. As Koo was immediately captivated by the idea, they resolved to work together.
Koo pledged to invest in a 20-year program divided into four phases, with a NT$20 million annual investment in the first phase. The program is now in its second stage, with investment increasing gradually since the original funding.
Koo is not just the financier: he is also chairman of the conservation center and deeply involved in overseeing day-to-day operations, coordinating plant collections and planning for the future.
For the past seven years, the KBCC has not only exceeded expectations in terms of collections; it has also provided assistance abroad—but Koo can reveal a number of distressing tales from that sector.
For example, the reason they have a massive collection from the Solomon Islands is because the nation decided to sell its old-growth forests to loggers. Many plants growing on the top of 30–40-meter trees would have become extinct if the center hadn’t collected them.
Sustainable management
As plant conservation is a long-term endeavor, the KBCC has prepared its blueprint well. In their first decade, they dedicated all efforts towards plant collection and providing resources for relevant research institutions. Currently, their collections of Orchidaceae (the orchid family), ferns, Begoniaceae (the begonia family) and Bromeliaceae (the pineapple family) are rated top in the world. In fact the center has developed into a treasure-house for researchers, a place where experts have access to complete collections.
Koo is particularly enthused about the potential for new drugs. “About 70% of current medications have come from plants, and as plant diversity declines, it’s going to impact indirectly on people’s health. So the vital task of plant conservation becomes ever more urgent.”
Kaohsiung Medical University is currently working with the KBCC on a study to extract potentially valuable compounds from plants.
However, Koo stresses that another important task is to get these species back into the wild. “This was the original idea of funding the center, so it’s something we should never forget.”
Although he lives in the urban jungle, the range of Koo’s mind is vast. “It’s a great pleasure for me that at this age, I can still do things that I’m so interested in.” He welcomes people who want to follow in his footsteps, and doesn’t mind at all if people copy his ideas. “For the conservation of species, we need to welcome everyone to work together!”
The sulcata tortoise, from the southern rim of the Sahara Desert, is the world’s third largest tortoise. Due to habitat loss and constant poaching, its numbers have declined sharply.
Cochin chickens, with their curly feathers, are a popular ornamental species. The conservation center has been working with the Academia Sinica in a quest to unlock the genetic secret of their curls.
The KBCC is like an ark, sustaining people’s hopes for a revitalization of nature.
