Tainan Sprout
社團法人臺南市台南新芽協會
In 2016, a child of Tainan who was educated and worked in Taipei returned to her hometown and encountered the Meinong Earthquake in Kaohsiung. At the time, on Facebook, she formed a "Help Tainan Volunteer Group" on Facebook, to help spread accurate information and coordinate supply distribution. She was quite moved, finding that the volunteers came from all over, and supported different political parties, but had the same concern for their hometown.
In the latter half of that year, she connected with a group of young people, from students, NGO workers, scholars of history and literature, and political workers who were very passionate about public affairs in their hometown. This led to the establishment of the Tainan Sprout. They hoped that through their differing specializations, they could bring their different experiences and perspectives to jointly promote civic participation in Tainan.
Tainan had a deep history of civic participation. For example, Tainan has many cultural and historical societies that aim to excavate and preserve the history of their hometown. But Tainan lacks groups that are directly focused on politics and social issues. As such, the Tainan Sprout seeks to provide oversight over the city council, through organizing policy materials, meeting reports, and data, to allow city residents to provide oversight over the city government and council.
So after the formation of the Tainan Sprout, there has been the organizing of reading groups, talks, and oversight workshops regarding the city council, the "Tainan Sprout Annual Forum” for Tainan municipal issue and local human rights guided tours. During election season, we also organize "Ask the Tainan legislators?", "Ask the Tainan mayor?", and other activities. Not only that, but Tainan Sprout also participates in various social issues, such as demonstrations in support of Hong Kong, and the Tainan Rainbow parade, and focuses on issues such as the preservation of the Old Tainan Fish Market, Optoelectronics development, national land planning, and others.
Establishment of the Tainan Sprout
In 2018, we released the Report to help Tainan citizens understand councilors' priorities.
On September 19, we held the March with over 2,000 participants demonstrating the solidarity between Taiwan and Hong Kong in their shared pursuit of democracy, freedom, and human rights.
The Forum was held in 2021 to discuss the city's development over the past decade and its future prospects, engaging with citizens in discussions on livable cities, cultural heritage preservation, and the development of local NGOs.
Tainan's history of group conflicts and unaddressed human rights abuses prompted this Forum. Using deliberative democracy, we aimed to deepen citizen participation and root local transitional justice efforts.
The website offers a digital platform for citizens to explore council member interpellations, fostering informed discussions and a stronger civil society.
