Chang Juu-en

Chang was born in 1951 and raised on a farm in Taiwan. After graduating from National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) with a B.S. and M.S., he earned a Ph.D. in civil engineering from Tohoku University in Japan. Chang began teaching at NCKU in 1982, and was named deputy minister of the Environmental Protection Administration under the leadership of Hau Lung-pin in April 2001.^[1]

Hau Lung-pin resigned from the Environmental Protection Administration on 1 October 2003, due to a disagreement on whether to implement referendum results despite concerns raised in a professional environmental impact assessment.^[2] Premier Yu Shyi-kun appointed Chang Juu-en to succeed Hau in an acting capacity after accepting Hau's resignation on 5 October.^[3]

Upon taking office, Chang pushed the government to build more incinerators,^[4] a recommendation that incited severe backlash across Taiwan.^[5][6] He made attempts to regulate the recycling of e-waste.^[7][8] Chang was criticized in 2004 for proposing an expensive three-year action plan during an election year, as it was not a guarantee that he would be retained.^[9] However, he kept his post after the election,^[10] and worked to clean the Fengshan River.^[11] Chang resigned in April 2005 and returned to teaching at National Cheng Kung University.^[12]