Motivation
Taiwan indigenous peoples are the earliest dwellers on this island, but only make up about 2.43% of the total population. There are sixteen officially recognized indigenous peoples, each of whom has their distinctive languages and customs. However, throughout the years of colonialism, Taiwan indigenous peoples have experienced the loss of their cultural heritage and precious tradition. What's worse, they even suffer from the stereotypes about their cultural identity. One of the interviewees has expressed, "Some people treat us differently for the typical view of indigenous people as often drunk and like to sing." Moreover, with the fast development of economy and technology, more and more indigenous people need to leave their tribes for better education and job opportunities. On the other hand, young generations growing up in the urbanized areas tend to receive bountiful inputs from foreign cultures. Thus, they lack attention to their own history and culture, let alone its preservation. Yet, indigenous cultures, full of diversity and dignity, are like treasures to Taiwan. Most important of all, they are deep-rooted in Taiwan but fading away. As a sub-chief has emphasized in the interview, only through the united efforts of all the races could the indigenous cultures be preserved. Therefore, we are moved and motivated to devote ourselves to helping carry indigenous voices to every corner in Taiwan. With the aid of an educational board game "Naluwan" along with the website, we further hope to open everyone's eyes to the indigenous world.
Purpose
Our goal of designing a board game "Naluwan" and setting up the website is to show the world the beauty of indigenous cultures in Taiwan. By playing the board game, people are expected to break their cultural barriers and begin to understand and respect the diversity of the indigenous people. In order to pass through the different game levels, people are encouraged to settle the cultural conflicts by cooperating and supporting each other. Moreover, throughout the process, people need to refer to the website for more information about the indigenous cultures, so that they can move on to the next stage. All in all, our product is created in the hope that indigenous cultures can be preserved and promoted to the world; then, indigenous people can strike the balance between the mainstream culture and their own tradition.