Department of Psychology, Asia University

Community Mental Health and Social Justice: 1095 Culture Studio

  • 2019-04-24
  • Admin Admin

    Dr. Blake Suen, Dr. Hsiu-Chen Lin, Dr. Hung Chiao, Dr. Chen-Min Yu, , and students in the Community Mental Health class visited 1095 Culture Studio in downtown Taichung City on April 15, 2019. The founder of 1095 Cultural Studio, Ms. Annie Kuan introduced students the challenges that migrant workers in Taiwan encountered during their cross-cultural transition process as well as in their daily life. The Studio’s missions and services aim to provide support and to empower migrant workers and international residents. Besides Ms. Kuan’s presentation, students also took a walk at the ASEAN Square and had a relaxing lunch there. Students enjoyed their home food and conversations with their international and Taiwanese friends.

    Many students expressed their gratitude and excitement about this site-visit experiences. They also shared their own observation and expressed willingness to involve in relevant work. For example, one of our students, Maria Jamora said, “I truly admire what 1095 has been doing since its establishment as it resulted a considerable positive impact for both migrant workers and the local residents. Their works surely helped a lot of people to fight for inclusivity and labor rights, connect people, make the resources available at the same time, helped those undocumented workers to follow the the legal process.” Another student, Nguyen Thuy Dung, said, “It’s such a great chance for me to understand more about migrant workers in Taiwan through 1095. I have learnt their difficulties when coming to Taiwan as well as the efforts of NGOs and POs for assisting migrant workers in Taiwan. Hearing their sad stories encourages me to look for solutions to support their better lives in Taiwan. As a Vietnamese, I seek to find the reasons for such a high fee of Vietnamese migrant workers, and then I also want to design a guideline for workers to find a good company and have better preparations before coming to Taiwan.”

    The Psychology Department hopes to seek more collaboration with 1095 Cultural Studio in near future. We also expect our students to uncover social injustice and to use their knowledge and skills in psychology to contribute back to their people and communities.

  • 1095 Culture Studio has been a shelter for many migrant workers in Taichung.
    1095 Culture Studio has been a shelter for many migrant workers in Taichung.
  • Students listened carefully to Ms. Kuan’s presentation.
    Students listened carefully to Ms. Kuan’s presentation.
  • Students took a look at the table game created by 1095 Culture Studio.
    Students took a look at the table game created by 1095 Culture Studio.
  • Ms. Kuan took students to visit ASEAN Square and talked about its history.
    Ms. Kuan took students to visit ASEAN Square and talked about its history.
  • Ms. Kuan took students for a street tour in old Taichung streets.
    Ms. Kuan took students for a street tour in old Taichung streets.
  • Dr. Chiao translated for the Vietnamese speaker for the class.
    Dr. Chiao translated for the Vietnamese speaker for the class.
  • A group photo for a fabulous ending of the day.
    A group photo for a fabulous ending of the day.