Chung Yuan Christian University works with the local community on environmental planning, and its reach extends beyond the Taoyuan area to international partnerships. Examples include:
Co-Creating Local Aesthetics: CYCU Students and Daxi Community Revitalize Century-Old Washing Spot
In 2025, more than 30 students and faculty members from the Departments of Architecture, Interior Design, and Landscape Architecture at Chung Yuan Christian University, led by Professor Chen Hsuan-Cheng, worked with the Taoyuan City Cultural Affairs Bureau and the Daxi Yide Community to revitalize the century-old “Laundry Pit” (Xishan Keng) through USR projects and coursework. After gathering field observations and mapping the local topography, the team created a “Water Memory Map.” They turned the dark, run-down, leaking site into a new timber-slatted structure that blends in with the neighboring bamboo grove, incorporates pipe storage, and adds public seating. Besides restoring the site’s role as a place for washing clothes and socializing, the renewed space now serves as a model for improving the look and feel of community spaces, and it shows what interdisciplinary education and local co-creation can achieve.
CYCU Collaborates with Taoyuan City Government on International Forum: Executing Spatial Renewal Planning for Taoyuan’s Old Downtown
The College of Design at Chung Yuan Christian University (CYCU) worked with the Taoyuan City Government to host the “Taoyuan Historic Urban Renewal International Forum,” a key part of the “Taoyuan Old Downtown Spatial Renewal Strategy Research and Preliminary Planning Project.” Under the leadership of Dean Chia-Lin Chao, experts from around the world shared ideas on people-centered urban revitalization. Dean Chao spoke about the shift from car-centered to pedestrian-friendly spaces, and Mayor San-Cheng Chang stressed the need to balance heritage preservation with long-term growth. With students from the CYCU-OBU program taking part, CYCU applied its expertise in architecture and spatial design to support Taoyuan’s urban transformation.
CYCU Hosts International Workcamp: Global Youth Gather in Zhongli Old Town to Experience Hakka Craftsmanship and House Revitalization
The Service Learning Center at Chung Yuan Christian University (CYCU), together with Vision YouthAction, hosted the “2025 International Workcamp: UNVEIL THE OLD TOWN.” Seven international volunteers from Spain, Japan, Thailand, and other countries joined eight CYCU students for a week-long service project at Zhongli’s “Lane 46 Cultural Space.” Participants helped restore the 60-year-old house, tried traditional Hakka ceiling bamboo weaving, explored local markets, and ran a cross-cultural kitchen. The camp helped bring a piece of local history back to life, encouraged community engagement, and strengthened collaboration among young people from around the world.
