At home, they take five-minute showers, use the air conditioner less, and sort their waste properly. Outdoors, they walk more, ride bicycles, and take public transportation. Out of love for polar bears, children drew colorful artworks depicting sustainable lifestyle tips they had observed in everyday life.
On December 7, the multi-concept vegetarian brand plantārium hosted a “Sustainable Christmas” celebration, inviting around 20 children from orphanages and disadvantaged families connected through the Chinese Christian Relief Association (CCSA). They took part in a Christmas fruit-and-vegetable party, a “Help the Polar Bear Find a Home” activity, and an adventure challenge. Through showing kindness and love to all living species, the children discovered not only how to enjoy the holiday season, but also how to find shortcuts to a sustainable diet and way of life.
We Love Celebrations, but We Love Polar Bears More — A Cycle of Love in Green Living
The story began with a little boy’s family unexpectedly taking in a polar bear. In the scorching summer, the bear stayed in a bathtub filled with ice; in autumn, it lived inside a large refrigerator; only in the snowy winter could it run freely outside. As the polar bear grew, the boy — who had once asked Santa Claus for a polar bear and had his wish come true — picked up his pen again. This time, he wrote:
“Please help me send the polar bear back home.”
The polar bear eventually returned to the Arctic. Years later, the boy, now grown up, followed the aurora to the Arctic and found his polar bear friend with its cub. Listening to the story, children in the audience said they would also make the same wish to Santa — but they also had another concern.
What was it? They pointed at the projected image, where the grown boy stood on a small piece of ice:
“Because the ice is getting smaller and smaller.”
This was part of the picture book reading session at Plantārium’s “Sustainable Christmas.” Children, who had taken the MRT to the event, listened to the story and learned that Arctic sea ice could vanish completely by September 2030 — nearly a decade earlier than scientists once predicted. Inspired, they thought of creative everyday actions to help combat global warming.
For example: using the air conditioner less, conserving water, sorting waste properly at home; walking, cycling, or taking public transportation when going out. They also drew their own versions of a “Sustainable Christmas for Polar Bears,” turning their love for them into concrete green actions — protecting the bears, themselves, and the planet in a continuous cycle of care.
From Caring to Action — Extending Sustainable Christmas into Everyday Life
In the adventure challenge, the children identified small “environmental leaks” in daily life:
- Air conditioning set too low
- Forgetting to turn off the lights
- Not closing the fridge door tightly
- Buying too much food, leading to waste
- Using too many single-use plastic bags
When asked in the water conservation station whether shower time should be reduced to 15, 10, or just 5 minutes, the children — who had been quick to answer other questions — paused in hesitation. On hearing that five minutes was enough, they asked:
“If we shower for only five minutes, will we still be clean?”
Such questions show that children are beginning to care about the environment, take responsibility, and be ready for sustainable action. This reflects the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12: Responsible Consumption and Production.
Why are vegetarian meals, purple rice, and locally sourced food more eco-friendly? Because the carbon footprint of our meals lies in food production, processing, and transportation. If everyone in Taiwan chose vegetarian food for just one day, it could reduce emissions from livestock by 57,000 metric tons — equivalent to the carbon absorption of 146 Daan Forest Parks. Eating unprocessed purple rice lowers carbon emissions and improves health, while choosing local ingredients reduces transportation-related emissions.
When challenged to design their own meal plates from a set of food cards, children immediately picked purple rice, carrots, broccoli, tofu skin, and Taiwanese guava. This met nutritional needs for starch, vegetables, and protein, while also lowering carbon emissions through vegetarian choices and local sourcing.
In waste sorting activities, children learned the “Bottles, Cans, Paper; Electronics on 1, 3, 5, 7” ten-finger recycling rule — how to separate plastic bottles, glass bottles, aluminum cans, tin cans, paper, batteries, clothes, electronics, hardware, and other waste types. These “Sustainable Christmas Adventure” activities encouraged them to make sustainability a year-round habit, not just for the holidays.
We May Be Small, but We Have Infinite Potential — Giving Roses, Leaving Fragrance in Our Hands
plantārium’s operations manager and event host Fang Yihua shared her own sustainable habit of carrying a hand towel every day:
“Don’t underestimate yourself. Everyone has infinite potential, and each person can make a difference in tackling global warming.”
A hand towel reduces paper towel use and is always handy for wiping sweat — like giving someone a rose, with the fragrance lingering on your own hands.
Mr. Yeh, a social work supervisor from the Ai-Tzu Foundation, who accompanied the children, observed:
“Children love stories. This event introduced environmental concepts through storytelling and then reinforced them with interactive games, creating an immersive experience that lets them try things not easily explored in formal education.”
A Sustainable Christmas Feast
At the Christmas party, the children were most drawn to:
Christmas Tree Focaccia topped with dairy- and egg-free mayonnaise and cheese
Snowman Dishes made of mashed potatoes, broccoli, and carrots
All tableware was reusable, with brown spoons and forks made from recycled sugarcane fiber (a byproduct of agriculture).
At the end of the party, the children received handmade activity cards from the games as keepsakes, along with cookies, cupcakes, and polar bear–shaped reusable lunchboxes — reminders to carry the warmth of the holiday into daily sustainable action.
This event was made possible with the support of CCSA, which has been caring for Taiwan’s “homeless youth” for 22 years — including children forced to live independently due to major family crises, orphans, and those leaving institutions — through its “Independent Living Services” program. Ten participants came from the Ai-Tzu Foundation, which provides long-term care for children with special needs in a “family-like” environment, serving over 110 infants and 26 children in its 20 years of operation.
Linking to the “GO VEG” Exhibition
The event also coincided with the opening of the “plantārium: A Bite of Sustainability” exhibition, encouraging the public to care for the environment by making better choices — from a bite, to a plate, to a whole meal — for their own future and the planet’s future.
Founded in June 2023, plantārium is dedicated to building a green economy, youth empowerment, sustainable advocacy, and low-carbon vegetarian living. Through events and lectures, and in collaboration with VEGANala Restaurant, Noemí Supermarket, and Jingsi Books & Café, it continues to promote sustainable living.