“The Quest” is a documentarywhose main purpose is to allow the general public to gain an insight into theoverseas development process of the overseas Chinese in Kinmen and the storiesbehind the beautiful western-style buildings. Section Chief Huang Zi-juan ofthe Interpretation Section, Kinmen National Park Headquarters explained thereason for shooting this documentary. In addition to the exhibitions at scenicspots such as the Overseas Chinese Culture Exhibition Hall and JinshuiElementary School, through publicity via the film, the National Park, inaddition to the introduction of the development process of the Kinmen residentsworking overseas through an exhibition, has enabled the general public tobetter understand the painstaking process behind the buildings whileappreciating the western-style buildings.

Theoverseas Chinese culture is a feature of Kinmen. The Jinshui Elementary Schoolfunded and constructed by the residents of Shuitou Township and is the largestwestern-style school in Kinmen. Classes were interrupted after the school wasestablished and made into a military school during the war. Later, the Shuitousettlement population gradually relocated and the school was abandoned. Afterit was renovated by the Kinmen National Park Headquarters, its appearance wasrestored. The school is now used as an exhibition hall. The Overseas ChineseCulture Exhibition Hall also located in Shuitou has a complete setup of thehistorical data of the overseas Chinese in Kinmen. With the peripheralwestern-style building clusters, visitors can better gain an insight into theorigin of the Southern Fujian overseas Chinese society.

Owingto the great response for “The Quest” documentary, the Kinmen National ParkHeadquarters began researching and collecting information about the course ofthe wave of immigration to preserve and promote Kinmen’s development history.Kinmen has been listed as a location in Taiwan with world heritage potentialfor its battlefield, religion, traditional settlements, and other tangible andintangible assets. The “Quest Path” has not only contributed to theconstruction of magnificent western-style buildings, but has also made itpossible for future generations to learn about cultural preservation! TheKinmen National Park Headquarters strives to engage in all-round preparatorywork and constantly and innovatively promotes Southern Fujian culture, overseasChinese culture, battlefields, and diverse natural ecosystems to shine in theinternational stage.

Inaddition, the visitors’ center set up by the Kinmen National Park Headquartersprovides recreation and environmental education related services and activelypromotes environmental educational activities in the local schools to lay downroots for the concept of environmental education. Since 2001, the KinmenNational Park Headquarters has regularly held activities every year to4th-grade children from 19 elementary schools in Kinmen. The environmentaleducation activities in 2012 allow students to rediscover the natural environmentthrough DIY activities. Through activity participation, the children visitedthe scenic spots in the National Park and learned about the land and showedconcern for ecological conservation. Children can understand the purpose of theestablishment of the Kinmen National Park, the featured resources, the precioushumanities and cultures of Kinmen, and the war and natural resources throughenvironmental education related theme activities. They will be able tounderstand the beauty of the national park and reflect it in their perceivedbeauty of life.

TheOverseas Chinese Culture Exhibition Hall