▲Qingtiangang Grassland, Yangmingshan National Park. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)
姊妹淘-2020-10-15 19:04:57
【看CP學英文】當近半成世界人口皆住在都市環境的情況下，毫無噪音污染的「安靜區」更為難能可貴。
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With more than half of the world population living in urban areas, “quiet places,” meaning locations void of man-made noises, are becoming increasingly difficult to find.
For this reason, American scientist Gordon Hempton decided to launch the “Quiet Parks International” （QPI） in 2018, with Taiwan’s Yangmingshan National Park awarded the “World’s first Urban Quiet Park” in 2020.
▲Purple hydrangea flowers in Yangmingshan National Park. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)Hempton表示，QPI主要是透過噪音計、錄音檔和兩位專業人員在此地從早到晚總共觀察三天，目的為將沒有受到噪音污染的地區紀錄及保存。
According to Hempton, by “using sound level meters, sound recordings and two trained observers for three days, 24/7,” QPI aims to identify places free of man-made noise to certify and preserve them.
▲Gordon Hempton is pictured in this file photo. (Photo courtesy of @MOTA-Museum of Transitory Art/Facebook)根據QPI網站，「安靜園區」總共分為六大類：野外安靜園區、都市安靜園區、安靜步道、海洋安靜園區、安靜社區以及安靜旅舍。
The “Quiet Places” are compiled into six categories: Wilderness quiet parks, urban quiet parks, quiet trails, marine quiet parks, quiet residences and communities and quiet stays.
After losing and regaining his hearing between 2003 and 2004, Hempton became extremely aware of what the world would be like if “quiet” disappeared.
▲Gordon Hempton reportedly lost and regained his hearing between 2003 and 2004. (Photo courtesy of @ClimateLeave/Facebook)「我知道這聽起來很奇怪，不過我回去請教『安靜』，而『安靜』也給我答案。它告訴我『安靜』是大家都應有的。」Hempton解釋。於是，QPI就此誕生。
“I know it sounds strange but I went back to the quiet to ask questions and for advice. The quiet immediately answered. It told me that quiet should be for everyone,” he says. Thus, QPI was born.
The need for quiet spaces in urban areas has become increasingly important, according to Singapore-based blogger Michelle Lim, who deem Yangmingshan a sanctuary where one doesn’t have to travel far to “head to somewhere peaceful and quiet.”
▲Singapore-based blogger Michelle Lim views Yangmingshan as the perfect place to recharge without traveling too far. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock)目前，QPI已認證262個安靜園區，也有許多其他地區尚待檢核。
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As of press time, QPI has identified 262 spaces across the world with many still awaiting evaluation and protection from noise.