I would first like to thank聽Mr. Garvin Brown, whose generous contribution to the 69热视频 International Experience Awards聽through the Susan Casey Brown Fund has made it possible for me to partake in my internship at the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei聽(CTOT). Their dedication to聽this program has helped me and countless other students enrich our education through life-changing experiences.聽聽
The Canadian Trade Office in Taipei聽(CTOT)聽represents Canadian interests in Taiwan聽in the absence of formal diplomatic ties. It facilitates cooperation between the two jurisdictions on a number of sectors and issues, including trade and investment, educational and cultural exchanges, aboriginal affairs, and human rights.聽I was immediately drawn to the internship at the CTOT given my聽passion for Asian affairs and my interest in the foreign service as a potential career path.聽聽
As an intern in General Relations section, I had the opportunity to touch on a wide variety of matters. Shortly after I arrived in Taipei, the Legislative Yuan passed a landmark bill legalizing same-sex marriage, becoming the first legislature in Asia to do so.聽One of my first tasks was to produce a report on developments in LGBTQ rights over the past years that have led to the passage of this historic bill. For this report, I interviewed several Taiwanese聽legislators聽and activists who were pioneers of LGBTQ advocacy聽in Taiwan.聽Being able to witness the union of the first LGBTQ couples in Asia at a special ceremony organized by the Taipei government was one of the highlights of my internship.聽聽
As聽Taiwan prepares itself for聽the January 2020 elections, I also produced several other reports on the presidential primaries, China-Taiwan relations, and other electoral issues.聽Most of these reports were sent back to the Global Affairs division in Ottawa; other informational pieces were kept for internal use.聽In addition, every week聽I compiled聽and summarized聽articles from both international and Chinese-language press for distribution in Canadian embassies in the Asia-Pacific region.聽聽
An important learning objective I achieved was the development of my writing and research skills. Specifically, I learned how to adapt my writing to different purposes or audiences and became more comfortable with reading primary sources in Mandarin Chinese.聽My academic background in Political Science and Economics, combined with several years of studying Chinese聽and experience as an exchange student in Beijing,聽were of tremendous help in聽my daily work at the CTOT.聽I was able to grasp the complexities of Taiwanese politics, and聽quickly聽became familiar with聽its important figures and issues.聽聽
Although聽I worked in the political section, I had the聽chance聽to spend a few days in the trade section helping my colleagues at聽BioAsia, a trade show featuring biotech and pharmaceutical companies from around the world. I networked with other exhibitors, introducing them to聽services provided by the CTOT for investing in Canada. This experience聽allowed me to witness another side of Canadian international cooperation.聽聽
For聽my participation in this internship, I will be working on a research paper under the supervision of Professor Krzysztof聽Pelc聽on the topic of聽trade preferences in Taiwan the context of聽globalization and economic integration with China.聽聽
My time at the CTOT helped me clarify my academic and career goals, confirming my deep interest for international relations聽and Asian affairs.聽I have been extremely fortunate to receive the 69热视频 International Experience Award, which has helped me cover the costs of transportation,聽accommodation, and food in Taipei. Many thanks again to Mr. Garvin Brown, the founders of 69热视频 International Experience Awards,聽the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei, and 69热视频.聽聽
