To strengthen cultural policy vision and urban development strategy, Hsinchu County Magistrate Yang Wen-ke led a County Government education and cultural delegation on an inspection visit to Singapore. The trip covered topics such as STEAM education; cultural exhibition & fine art museum management; and sustainable governance. The mirror provided by this international experience will help advance Hsinchu County’s cultural governance capacity and help shape the County’s urban brand.
Hsinchu County is well known for its deep Hakka culture and melding of diverse populations. Singaporean society is equally built from diverse populations. More than 70% of Singapore’s population is ethnically Chinese, including Hokkien, Teochew, Hainan, and Hakka groups. Hakka people, in particular, are about 8% of the total. Magistrate Yang stated that, during the visit to the Peranakan Museum, the delegation learned how the Museum builds cultural narratives through curation. Using clothing, porcelain, wedding customs, and items from daily life, the Museum creates immersive exhibits that help visitors get a feel for multiple forms of cultural meaning and historical contexts. This has provided rich curatorial inspiration for reinterpreting ethnic culture and local stories in Hsinchu County’s future exhibitions.
The County Government delegation also visited the National Gallery Singapore. That museum was made by combining the historic Supreme Court and City Hall buildings into one unified whole. When the Gallery opened in 2015, it became a major hub for modern art in Southeast Asia. The Gallery includes more than 8000 pieces, covering the development of art in Southeast Asia from the 19th century to now. The new building has retained historic structures such as the Chief Justice’s courtroom seat, classical colonnades, and a passageway into the prisoner’s dock.
During the discussion and exchange period, Magistrate Yang focused on the Gallery’s operations and self-financing strategy. This included practices such as corporate sponsorships, brand collaborations, and educational outreach and merchandising. The Singapore side shared their successful model of using diverse income streams to support public services. Hsinchu County Councilors probed various aspects of the museum: Chiu Ching-ya expressed interest in how the museum collection was sourced and how their collections strategy works; Wu Hsu-chih focused on educational integration and service design; and Chen Ko-chien gave his attention to topics such as the museum’s organizational and operational models, and governance structures.
A spokesperson from the Hsinchu County Education Bureau noted that the expert questions asked by the delegation’s members – on topics ranging from museum management, to international collaboration, to cultural asset preservation, and museum systems – show the meticulous care and weight that the County Government is giving to cultural governance. They also made a deep impression on the Gallery staff, demonstrating the ambitions that Hsinchu County has for cultural governance.
The Sustainable Singapore Gallery at Marina Barrage is focused on water resource management, energy conservation, and waste treatment. The displays show how Singapore is implementing the “Zero Waste” policy; interactive exhibits help the public build environmental consciousness. The displays include how incinerator bottom ash (IBA) is transformed into paving material. The Gallery also explores how recycled sand materials are applied in 3D-printed construction, to address issues with a lack of sand resources. The Sustainable Singapore Gallery demonstrates how resource recycling and innovative R&D can exist side by side.
Magistrate Yang stated that in recent years, the County Government has implemented high-efficiency heat treatment facilities for waste. This is enhancing incineration efficiency and energy recovery; and these kinds of measures are helping build an environment that is more pleasant to live in and more sustainable. Together with culture, this shapes two drivers that mutually influence and form each other.
The County Government will continue to implement key educational innovation to develop the next generation. Building the art museum and other such major projects will deepen the fusion of education with culture, promote public participation, and place sustainability as a core value. Hsinchu County Government is making culture the energy that drives the future and connects with the world.