The Chiayi County Government’s “FY 2025 Chiayi County Community Planner” thematic workshop and hands-on practicum course held its final session on the 28th at the Xikou Tianshe Bamboo Weaving Development Association. Trainee community planners and alumni from previous cohorts gathered together to engage in hands-on participation and collaborative creation. The activities served as part of the early-stage preparations for the upcoming 2026 Taiwan Lantern Festival in Chiayi, while also marking an important milestone and phase achievement in this year’s community planner training program.

The Chiayi County Community Planner Program has been deeply rooted for more than 20 years. Through empowerment, long-term accompaniment, and practical implementation, it has gradually accumulated local knowledge and collective action capacity. This year, the program further responds to the national 2050 Net-Zero Carbon Emissions Policy by integrating carbon reduction thinking with community co-creation into hands-on practice, demonstrating the key role of community planners in local governance and sustainability issues.

This practicum course brought together many community planners who have long been engaged in community building and public affairs in Chiayi County. Starting from the core values of community planners, the course content included case studies of community development, reflecting on how local communities gradually build consensus and respond to needs, and further extending to how communities can practice net-zero carbon emissions in daily life and public spaces.

One of the key highlights of the workshop was the co-creation of the “Community Planner Lantern Zone.” Guided by advisory teams and professional crafts instructors, participants progressed from story collection to the completion of a light-and-shadow story wall symbolizing the imagery of Chiayi’s mountains, sea, and plains. They also worked together on bamboo weaving, material preparation, and lantern assembly. Centered on the Blue-bellied Pheasant, Chiayi County’s official bird, the lantern structures transform local ecology, culture, and community memory into a warm and meaningful lighting environment.

The Community Planner Lantern Zone, with the Blue-bellied Pheasant as its core visual motif, integrates local construction teams, diverse reused materials, and narrative contexts from various communities to create a public exhibition space that blends local culture, craftsmanship, and light-and-shadow art. Through the collective participation of community planners, local artisans, and community partners, the lighting becomes more than decoration—it serves as a medium carrying local memories, lived experiences, and intergenerational dialogue.

Chen Huang-cheng, Director of the Comprehensive Planning Department of the Chiayi County Government, also visited the workshop site to encourage both current trainees and alumni community planners. He affirmed the long-term efforts and achievements of Chiayi County’s community planners in deeply engaging with and supporting local communities, and personally experienced the collaborative co-creation process between planners and local work teams, demonstrating the county government’s strong commitment to community-building practices and the transmission of local craftsmanship.

Looking ahead, the Chiayi County Community Planner Lantern Zone will make its official debut at the 2026 Taiwan Lantern Festival, showcasing the resilience and creativity accumulated by Chiayi County’s communities over the years. Guided by the spirit of action “from small local landscapes to grand shared visions,” the initiative will continue to lead local communities toward shared prosperity and sustainable development.