Women Spearhead the Ecology Movement

It is impossible to say whether the female sex is really more aware and more sentimental concerning the natural environment, but it can be said that virtually every environmental and ecological movement in America and Japan so far has been spurred by women. Two Taiwan women are engaged in such efforts, determined to make the entire country conscious of nature's vital role in human life.

Ma Yi-kung, who studied city planning in New Jersey after obtaining her degree in architecture, on her return, was shaken by the side effects of Taiwan's rapid economic growth: "This country is moving so fast technologically that, at the same time, it is leaving its formerly tranquil life style and pure environment far behind."

Taiwan's economic growth is rapid. The traffic snarls, pollution, noise, and other accompanying elements of a modern, mechanized life style are pressing in on us all at once, making it harder and harder to live naturally. Ma was heartbroken to discover how easily the beauties of nature--perhaps millions of years in the making--can be destroyed by human ignorance. In 1979, with Echo magazine, she published the two-volume work National Travelogue, focusing on Taiwan's mountains, seas, forests, history, and cultural products. Recently, she produced the book, The Beauty of Nature, for the governmental Council for Cultural Planning and Development. In both cases, she was motivated to lead people, through appreciation and knowledge of nature, to actively help preserve their green environment.

She quotes an ancient sage: "Chuang Tzu has said, 'Our cosmos has a great and inexplicable beauty.' We have no right to destroy any part of it, for we are only the trustees of our surroundings, not the masters."

In 1981 she and Han Han, another prominent woman author, produced a collection of articles on environmental and ecological issues in Taiwan. Entitled We Have Only One Earth, and carried by the United Daily News, the series drew widespread attention and, in 1982, won a journalism award.

Since she became editor-in-chief of Grand Nature magazine, Han Han has been submerged in work from morning until night. Her husband, Dr. Chen Tien-hsiu, director of the rehabilitation unit of Chang Keng Hospital, takes time out from his own hectic schedule to take nature photos for her. He recently photographed apple snails and snail eggs, then traveled to Chitou to record squirrel damage to a forest.

Both Ma Yi-kung and Han Han go on the lecture circuit, produce television shows--and even write ecological songs, make records, and appear with a dedicated singing group. They hope to be a "bridge" between people and their environment, helping the people of the island to reach harmony with nature.

[Picture Caption]

Top--Ma Yi-kung says: "Each individual must adopt the concept of 'Duty to the Environmant'." Bottom--Since accepting the editorship of Great Nature, Han Han, despite a hectic work schedule, has found it happy and rewarding.

Bottom--Since accepting the editorship of Great Nature, Han Han, despite a hectic work schedule, has found it happy and rewarding.