Taiwan’s Contested Survival in an Era of Shrinking Globalization

Abstract

Hitherto renowned for its economic and political development, Taiwan has lately come under a harsher spotlight as a possible victim of invasion based on an analogy to Ukraine. Yet, Taiwan is also challenged by a slew of other problems too long neglected. These environmental, industrial, agricultural, demographic, trade, and economic security problems altogether form a “polycrisis” that makes it difficult to solve one set of problems without aggravating the others, and the democratic electoral process has unfortunately so far been unable to table a comprehensive “polysolution.”