Text | Wu Yuqian

As night falls, the artists of Taiwan's traditional shadow puppetry hold the sticks with both hands and control the limbs of the puppets to make them come alive and grow souls as the plot develops. Through the thin white screen, the audience was fascinated, but at the other end of the shadow window, the artists had to endure the high temperature brought by the light source behind the scenes. After a scene, everyone is sweating profusely, and all kinds of heavy equipment always add a lot of restrictions and inconvenience to the tour.
In recent years, due to the active actions of one company, this situation has gradually begun to change. In order to understand the whole story in depth, we specially went to Kaohsiung to find out. Driving from Zuoying High-speed Railway Station to Qianzhen Science and Technology Industrial Park, the road became wider and wider as we walked, and the shops on both sides gradually disappeared from sight, replaced by giant factories and mountains of containers. In the distant background was the harbor and the magnificent scenery. , finally we saw the destination we were looking for - Radiant Opto-Electronics.
In Kaohsiung, Radiant Opto-Electronics is a large private enterprise, famous for its core technology of backlight modules, and is an important supplier to Apple, a well-known American manufacturer. In 2015, Chairman Wang Benran felt that as the company's 20th anniversary was equivalent to coming of age, it should shoulder more social responsibilities to the local area, and then established the Radiant Education Foundation the following year (2016) to invest more resources And more systematically implement social welfare affairs, focusing on "talent cultivation, community care, environmental education, culture and art" as the main axis, turning cultural education into light, illuminating the harbor of the science and technology park, caring for Kaohsiung where the company is located, and the relative resources Pingtung, Taitung and Penghu areas are lacking.

Zhang Wenxiang, Senior Vice President of Radiant Opto-Electronics Administration Center/Executive Director of the Foundation (Photography/Wu Yuqian)

Compared with the operating model of most foundations that are independent of the parent company, the relationship between the Radiant Education Foundation and the parent company is close. Zhang Wenxiang, senior vice president of Radiant Opto-Electronics Administrative Center and CEO of the foundation, said this in an interview Said: "The foundation and the enterprise breathe the same air and operate with the same thinking." The foundation is affiliated to the enterprise's General Affairs and Environmental Safety Department, and its working location is within the factory. In terms of operations, the main core members are led by the permanent Colleagues from the Department of Continuing serve concurrently, and professional talents are integrated to join according to different project attributes, and cross-departmental project teams are formed.

However, like most foundations, Radiant Education Foundation must face the realistic challenge of "many people in need of help, but limited funds." Under such conditions, how does the Radiant Education Foundation effectively use resources to maximize value and thereby exert influence on society?

Lighting up Taiwan’s shadow puppetry

One of the important projects promoted by Radiant Education Foundation is the "Light and Shadow Walking Together - Shadow Puppet Education Promotion" jointly launched in 2019 with the Kaohsiung Museum of History (hereinafter referred to as Kaohsiung Museum of History) and the Kaohsiung City Shadow Puppet Theater (hereinafter referred to as the Shadow Puppet Theater). Five-Year Plan".

When Zhang Wenxiang first heard about the shadow puppet show project proposed by his colleagues, he was very confused and asked, "The stage of shadow puppet show is small and the audience should be very small. Why should we invest in supporting it?" But later he learned that traditional shadow puppet show is Taiwan's intangible culture. Assets: The only three remaining traditional shadow puppet theater troupes in Taiwan happen to be in Kaohsiung. However, most of the artists in the troupes do not make a living in this way. Resources and inheritance are facing difficulties, and all aspects point to the scope of the foundation's ideal support. However, short-term plans were not enough to see results, so Zhang Wenxiang and his team set a five-year plan, hoping to produce a life-oriented script on the software that has local elements and can be performed in the long term; In terms of hardware, we help improve existing performance equipment so that artists can have a better and more convenient environment during performances.

R&D engineers and veteran traditional shadow puppet artists jointly tested the lighting effects.

Afterwards, the foundation reached a consensus on the plan with its partners, Kaohsiung Museum of History and the Shadow Puppet Theater, and gradually moved forward towards the set goals. First, Zhang Wenxiang dispatched manpower from the R&D team to set up a project team to use the core technology of the industry to improve the shadow puppet theater. For light source equipment, R&D engineers changed the lamps to LED cold light sources to improve the safety of operation after entering the performance venue for field investigation and exchanging opinions with veteran artists. They also used Radiant’s best surface light source technology to achieve the goal. The most important thing for the invisible performance effect is to modularize the lighting mechanism so that it can be flexibly applied to various stages. It is worth mentioning that this new and improved set of lamps has also attracted the attention of the Northwest Chinese School Association on the other side of the world. They took the initiative to contact the Radiant Education Foundation and expressed their hope to purchase it to facilitate the promotion of overseas shadow puppetry. For Radiant, this was unexpected feedback. She did not expect that by supporting traditional shadow puppetry, it could indirectly promote international cultural exchanges and connections.
The new and improved lamps are equipped with intuitive light control equipment, which can adjust the color, intensity and flashing effects of the light. (Provided by Kaohsiung Museum of History)

With the improvement of hardware, in order to allow shadow puppet performances to break away from the limitations of traditional repertoire and expand the audience, in terms of software, Radiant is also actively promoting the co-production of new plays with Kaohsiung Museum of History and the Shadow Puppet Theater. In terms of scripts, "Indispensable Theater", which is committed to developing Taiwan's contemporary original scripts, was invited to visit the traditional shadow puppet troupe in Kaohsiung to write "Path of Light". The story is set in the 1950s, the most glorious period of Taiwan's shadow puppetry, and tells the inheritance of shadow puppetry families, conflicts and close relationships between parents and children. Through the experiment of short plays, "Path of Light" gradually developed into a complete work. It was performed on the stage at the Kaohsiung Spring Arts Festival in March this year by the Yongxingle Shadow Puppet Troupe and the local modern theater group "Xiangzao Theater". A multi-level shadow puppet stage is used to perform cross-time and space performances with puppets on the same stage.

The five-year cooperation plan symbolizes the company's support and commitment to its partners, allowing the creative team to have ample time to create. In addition to the injection of funds, this action also encouraged the public sector, making its long-term efforts in promoting traditional skills visible and recognized. Enterprises and the public sector use their respective characteristics and expertise to set common goals and visions, establish a creative cooperation model, and push forward the inheritance and innovation of Taiwan's shadow puppetry.
Through a cross-border collaboration between tradition and modernity, "Path of Light" combines shadow puppetry, light and shadow, puppets and actors to bring the audience a multi-layered theater experience. (Provided by Kaohsiung Museum of History)

Read about the ocean-Sea You Again

However, not all of the foundation's projects can find focus as expected from the beginning, especially in the field of environmental education. The foundation is slowly exploring through trials to find the most suitable direction.

Located in Kaohsiung, the industrial capital, and with Radiant’s factory located next to the harbor, it is natural for the foundation to pay attention to ocean issues. In the early days, it attempted to improve the marine environment by supporting professional environmental charity organizations. However, after annual reviews by the foundation, it was realized that the cultivation and establishment of concepts is the long-term solution. Therefore, the foundation gradually integrates resources and invests in the "Sea You Again Love Sea Infinite Action Plan".

The "Sea You Again Action" extends to the campus.

"We don't do what others are already doing, nor do we do things that are easy." This is Zhang Wenxiang's insistence when promoting various projects. Therefore, the foundation once again stepped out of familiar fields and tried to cooperate with the Kaohsiung City Dandelion Story Reading Promotion Association and the charity bookstore "Little House Bookstore" to select marine-themed picture books as teaching materials, hire professional lecturers and picture book writers, and target Kaohsiung City Preschool teachers conduct knowledge workshops, teach lesson plans step by step, and conduct practical discussions.

In order to smoothly bring the spirit of ocean sustainability to the teaching site and expand the teaching resources of kindergartens, the foundation provides participating teachers with exclusive book boxes filled with ocean-themed picture books and teaching materials. The raw materials of the book boxes come from discarded pallets from companies. Made from recycling. This project is also combined with competitions to collect creative action lesson plans from teachers, trying to implement the ideal of protecting the environment in every link, allowing children to develop their imagination from the images in picture books, and through teacher-transformed lesson plans, the idea of ​​environmental protection is indirectly conveyed passed on to families, communities, and even society.

Book boxes designed using discarded pallets from companies allow early childhood teachers participating in the workshop to take away the concept of ocean sustainability.

The current promotional tool chosen for the plan is picture books that have been published in the market. Zhang Wenxiang envisions that the resources in the south should be used locally. Why not transform the experience accumulated over the years into picture books that belong to the environmental characteristics of southern Taiwan? During the interview, he also announced that the foundation is preparing for marine education in the next five years, planning picture books with the theme of lagoons, harbors, and ocean currents, so that parents and children can more truly connect with the daily environment through reading together.

Establish a corporate volunteer system to encourage giving back to society

While connecting externally with the professional fields of art and literature to carry out cooperation projects, the foundation does not forget to think about how to bring art and literature into the enterprise. The foundation cooperates with arts and cultural venues in Kaohsiung to regularly promote high-quality arts and cultural information to employees. During the epidemic, the foundation increased its support for local teams in Kaohsiung with potential and invited the teams to hold arts and cultural salons within the company. After the epidemic gradually eased, we combined internal employee benefits to design a mechanism for subsidy for art and cultural ticket purchases to encourage all employees to bring their relatives and friends to art and cultural venues after work.

This idea echoes the original intention of Wang Benran, chairman of Radiant Optoelectronics, in establishing the foundation. He hopes that the activities organized by the foundation will allow Radiant employees to participate, serve as volunteers, and even bring their families to participate. Through diverse life experiences, employees come into contact with people in different fields, expand their horizons, and give back to the work field.

Corporate volunteers join programming education camps in rural areas to lead children to experience programming and bicycles.

Institutionally, the foundation has obtained the formal operating unit qualification from the Kaohsiung City Social Affairs Bureau in accordance with the "Volunteer Service Law" of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, which means that Radiant's volunteer service hours are recognized by the government. With the full support of enterprises, in the foundation's many charity activities, Radiant employees can be seen devoting themselves to volunteer services after work, including: receiving program education training, and not being afraid of long distances to teach children in camps in remote areas. Writing programs; traveling around to conduct field inspections to improve the lamps for shadow puppet shows; organizing exclusive activities and scholarships for people with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); or providing routine blood donations, charity road runs, etc. Between the status of employees and volunteers, Radiant people have more adjustments in their lives. They also contribute to the society with their expertise through different tasks, enriching their life experiences.

Highly involved and promote the foundation with corporate thinking

In less than eight years since its establishment, the Radiant Education Foundation has implemented a number of projects of different scales. Among them, there are fewer cases of purely monetary sponsorship, and it prefers a cooperation model of active participation in projects. At first glance, plans and programs are independent of each other, but under the interactive influence of promotion activities, a unique corporate culture is gradually formed, and behind this lies many years of corporate management thinking.

The operation of the foundation continues the spirit of management, innovation and research and development of the parent company. The important projects promoted so far are not relying on others, but are entirely developed by colleagues, from ideation to proposals, after repeated internal discussions and debates, and then by The final decision is made only with the approval of the board of directors. To this end, the foundation implements regular monthly tracking, reporting, and goal setting, and gradually corrects and establishes a unique work process to produce art enterprise cooperation plans and public welfare activities that meet the needs of Radiant Optoelectronics.

Radiant Education Foundation reminds itself that "the purpose of operations is not to promote the image of the company," but to develop various possibilities during the cooperation process of actual investment projects, so that more people can jointly care for disadvantaged and rural students and pay attention to them. The environment supports the local arts and culture team to gradually grow stronger and feel the beauty of contact with art and culture.

From left to right: Huang Yuting (Senior Manager of the Sustainable Development Section/Foundation Specialist), Zhang Wenxiang (Senior Vice President of the Administrative Center/Foundation CEO), Xie Zhijie (Director of the General Affairs and Environmental Safety Department/Foundation Project Manager ), Wei Luyan (Chief Manager of the Sustainable Development Section/Foundation Specialist). (Photography/Wu Yuqian)

Source：https://anb.ncafroc.org.tw/case_detail?id=8a8082858e65b0cb018e746a11af0003