Ep 144 | Taiwan's Green Parties and Alternative Politics in Taiwan: A Discussion with Author Dr. Dafydd Fell

A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin:

Dr. Dafydd Fell is the author of Taiwan's Green Parties Alternative Politics in Taiwan. He spoke with me about his book, which he started working on in 2012. Topics covered in this episode include the Green Party concept, and the impact that Taiwan's Green Parties have had on Taiwan's other political parties and social movements. Dr. Fell's not only talks about some of the most his most interesting research findings, but how he was personally impacted by the subject matter of his book.

He's also the Director of the SOAS Centre of Taiwan Studies at the University of London and we'll have him back on another episode to talk about the SOAS Centre of Taiwan Studies.

Here's a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode:

• How Dr. Fell got interested in Taiwan's politics
• The Green Party concept and origin
• Global Greens Network
• When Taiwan's Green Party was established
• Dr. Fell's bookParty Politics in Taiwan
• The focus groups with Green Party activists that led Dr. Fell to write Taiwan's Green Parties
• How Dr. Fell is working on a Chinese language version of his book, Taiwan's Green Parties
• The main accomplishments and impact of Taiwan's Green Party
• How Taiwan's Green Party compares to other Green Parties around the world
• The role of Taiwan's Green Party in the anti-nuclear movement in Taiwan
• How Taiwan's Green Party was the first party to advocate same sex marriage and nominate openly LGBT candidates
• How Taiwan's Green Party raises alternative issues (death penalty, euthanasia for terminally ill)
• The Taiwan Green Party's influence on mainstream political parties
• How the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has poached figures from the Green party
• The Taiwan Green Party's electoral performance
• Taiwan's alternative parties
• The splinter Green Parties, the Trees Party and GPT-Social Democratic Alliance
• The most surprising or interesting finding that Dr. Fell discovered in his research for his book, Taiwan's Green Parties
• How Taiwan could participate in the Green Party's global network and gain some international visibility
• The Asia Pacific Greens network
• Keli Yen, Global Greens Convenor (2017-2020)
• How England and Wales Green Party Leader Penny Kemp went to Taiwan in 1996 to show support
• The current status of Taiwan's Green Party
• How Dr. Fell's book offers a different perspective on Taiwan's history through the lens of small political parties and social movements
• How Dr. Fell is now working on the Chinese language version of his book, Taiwan's Green Parties with three Taiwanese scholars who were formerly leaders of Taiwan's Green Party
• How Dr. Fell started working on the book, Taiwan's Green Partiesin 2012

Related Links:

Taiwan's Green Parties by Dr. Dafydd Fell: https://www.routledge.com/Taiwans-Green-Parties-Alternative-Politics-in-Taiwan/Fell/p/book/9780367650315

Dr. Dafydd Fell on Twitter: https://twitter.com/dafyddfell

Facebook Page for Taiwan's Green Parties: https://www.facebook.com/Taiwans-Green-Parties-Alternative-Politics-in-Taiwan-101639718636953

Wild Lily Student Movement: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Lily_student_movement

https://oftaiwan.org/social-movements/wild-lily-student-movement/

1989 Elections in Taiwan: https://www.nytimes.com/1989/12/03/world/nationalists-lead-taiwan-elections.html

Global Greens Network: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Greens

Taiwan's Green Party: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Party_Taiwan

Taiwan's first direct presidential election (1996): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1996_Taiwanese_presidential_election

Taiwan's cross strait missile crisis of 1995-1996: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Taiwan_Strait_Crisis#:~:text=The%20Third%20Taiwan%20Strait%20Crisis,1995%20to%2023%20March%201996.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/2626754

Party Politics in Taiwan by Dr. Dafydd Fell: https://www.routledge.com/Party-Politics-in-Taiwan-Partay-Change-and-the-Democratic-Evolution-of-Taiwan/Fell/p/book/9780415650700

Blocking of Taiwan's fourth nuclear power plant: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_power_in_Taiwan

Reuters article, "Taiwan to halt construction of fourth nuclear power plant": https://www.reuters.com/article/taiwan-nuclear/taiwan-to-halt-construction-of-fourth-nuclear-power-plant-idUKL3N0NJ08C20140427

Keli Yen, Global Greens Convenor (2017-2020): https://www.asiapacificgreens.org/profile/keli-yen

England and Wales Green Party Leader Penny Kemp: https://greenworld.org.uk/article/obituary-penny-kemp-1949-2021

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Progressive_Party

https://www.dpp.org.tw/en/about

Ko Wen-je: https://en.xn--wikipeadia-65a.org/wiki/Ko_Wen-je

Taiwan's People Party: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_People%27s_Party

Kuomintang (KMT): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuomintang