Sustainable Development Goals
Abstract/Objectives
With the implementation of the Paris Agreement under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, global sustainable environmental development continues to be a focal issue worldwide. This includes the use of energy and its derived environmental issues, which, amidst the complexities of the international political stage, present some of the most contentious environmental and developmental disputes in human history. Following the WTO's Doha Declaration, which called for the completion of multilateral negotiations on environment and trade by 2005, the issue of North-South confrontation has also led the world to actively reflect on how to harmonize the pursuit of a market economy with the sustainable ideals sought by multilateral environmental agreements. For Taiwan, fulfilling environmental responsibilities is an unavoidable duty as a member of the global village. However, as a trade-dependent nation, Taiwan has long built its economic growth on the environmental and natural resource costs of future generations. Today, participation in the WTO provides an opportunity to actively reflect on trade and environmental issues and the willingness to address these issues due to considerations of WTO participation. Taiwan must move beyond mere pollution control and actively engage in aligning with international norms, pursuing clean energy, its benefits, and a vision of environmental sustainability, to adjust policies and regulatory frameworks, thereby laying the foundation for the country's international involvement and the development of the green industry. This is precisely the emphasis of this course. For Taiwan, the most pressing issue is how to promote harmony between energy policies and environmental sustainability. With the initial resolution of the non-nuclear issue and environmental issues increasingly moving towards legal resolution, the issues of energy and resource management are largely presented but still unresolved. The root of the problem lies in the inadequate establishment of basic policies and regulations, leading to each department acting independently or even blaming each other. In addition to the highly controversial Electricity Act and amendments to the Renewable Energy Development Act, controversies such as the "Anti-Wind Turbine" dispute in land-based wind farms, the compensation for fisheries and conservation issues of the white dolphin in offshore wind farms, the "Rice Sugar Dispute" arising from solar power policies, and the preservation of indigenous traditional hunting culture and natural resource management have become new topics of concern across sectors. This course is designed from the understanding of the basic principles of energy physics, exploring the principles of energy transformation that originated from the Big Bang, understanding the laws of conservation of matter and the increase of entropy during transformations, and based on these, establishing the basic conditions for viewing energy management and natural resource conservation policies from scientific, biological, economic, and cultural perspectives. By leveraging the new concepts of the global policy development of the climate convention (Paris Agreement) and the experience of advanced countries, the course discusses the key issues in the effective execution of related laws and regulations influenced by the inherent policy concepts of our country's laws.
Results/Contributions

The course focuses on the importance of global sustainable environmental development, particularly under the framework of the United Nations Climate Convention and the Paris Agreement. It explores energy use and its derived environmental issues, as well as how these issues provoke complex developments and conflicts on the international political stage. Through the analysis of North-South confrontations and the multilateral negotiations on environment and trade proposed in the WTO's Doha Declaration, students learn how globalized free trade seeks a balance with multilateral environmental protection agreements.

Additionally, the course emphasizes Taiwan's environmental responsibilities as a trade-dependent nation, discussing how to shift from mere pollution control to actively integrating international norms, pursuing clean energy, its benefits, and sustainability. By analyzing Taiwan's participation in the WTO and adjusting relevant policies, the course aims to lay the foundation for Taiwan's international engagement and development of the green industry.

Another significant contribution of the course is the discussion on how to resolve the alignment between energy policy and environmental sustainability. As Taiwan faces a nuclear-free homeland and increasingly severe environmental issues, the course explores the necessity of policy and regulatory construction to improve interactions between policies and overcome the dilemma of departments working in isolation. By analyzing controversies such as the Electricity Act and the Renewable Energy Development Act, as well as environmental and social issues related to land-based and offshore wind turbines, the course highlights the need for a clear policy framework that aligns with international standards to support sustainable development.

Overall, this course not only provides an in-depth understanding of the basic principles of energy physics but also establishes a comprehensive framework for energy management and natural resource conservation policies from scientific, biological, economic, and cultural perspectives, providing students with a solid foundation for participation and contributions in the field of global environmental sustainability.

Keywords
Sustainable DevelopmentEnvironmental PolicyRenewable EnergyInternational NormsEnergy Transition
Contact Information
范建得
ctfan@mx.nthu.edu.tw