Putting “ESG Water Farmer” Sustainability Action into Practice with Sijhou Autumn Rice Harvest

Volunteers from Alpha Networks took part in the Sijhou Autumn Harvest event in Changhua organized by the BenQ Foundation of the Qisda Group. Ideals were put into practice under the warm winter sun of Sijhou in central Taiwan. A total of 150 volunteers from the Group were mixed together for the first time to complete the ESG Water Farmer” mission together in the rice paddies. With every stroke of their sickles, the volunteers turned sustainability into joint action. Despite the short duration of the event, by putting sustainability into practice the volunteers made it more than just a slogan.

Plastic reduction was practiced at lunch as well after a hard day’s work by the volunteers to keep the environment "trim.” The Water Farmer team reached out to friendly merchants in Sijhou for the supply of local ingredients and lunch boxes. By enjoying meals brimming with local ingredients and culture after physical labor, volunteers could sense in every mouthful the power of being friendly to the land and eco-system of Sijhou.

The event was well received by Alpha Network volunteers. Their labors showed everyone the work involved in rice production. In many eco-themed events, you really had to get your hands dirty to realize just how much knowledge Mother Nature has to offer. Such experiences also help to convince more people on the importance of environmental sustainability.

A day in the paddies and orchards limit just how far we can go and see. Being surrounded by nature brought volunteers closer together, so they were greeting and interacting each other like farming communities of the old days. We will treasure every grain of rice produced by the sweat of our brows from this day onwards.