Taiwan Climate Action Network research center convened energy, environmental and social-science experts to assess claims that nuclear power can drive a ‘nuclear renaissance.” Center Director Chao Chia-wei (趙家緯) said the referendum’s reference to the COP28 Declaration to Triple Nuclear Energy relies on assumptions far beyond current trends.

Citing a July report by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, Chao said reaching that target would require existing reactors to operate for as long as 100 years, and completion of all large reactor projects. It would also mean a major expansion of construction and large-scale commercialization of small modular reactors. Chao said: Several studies, including those from the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency, indicate that the cost of small modular nuclear power reactors will still be higher than that of large nuclear power plants. Even if small modular reactors begin to mature and are mass-produced now, by 2040, their power generation costs are expected to remain higher than the current prices of renewable energy.

Lin Cheng-yuan (林正原), a researcher at the Green Citizens' Action Alliance,  said Taiwan must address the ongoing challenges of nuclear waste and decommissioning before considering a new generation – a process that can take decades. Academics also warned that broad public support for nuclear energy does not equal local acceptance of facilities. They cited Fukushima’s prolonged decommissioning and cleanup as a cautionary example. 

The groups urged Taiwan to prioritize renewables, storage, and a flexible grid rather than spend scarce resources on nuclear projects that could delay its net-zero transition. 

A 2026 survey of 529 caregivers representing 5,000 older adults across Taiwan found that 93% believed older people lack proper food-storage knowledge. Nearly 92% cited insufficient nutrition knowledge, while almost 92% said chewing and swallowing difficulties affect older adults’ diets.

Chi Mei Medical Center’s Director of Preventive Medicine Dr. Tsai Meng-hsiu (蔡孟修) said repeatedly saving leftovers and relying on reheating can be risky. Some bacteria can multiply at low temperatures and certain heat-resistant toxins are not destroyed by reheating, he said at a news conference.

Nutritionist Huang Ching-hsiu (黃靖琇) of Dalin Tzu Chi Hospital advised dividing cooked meals into meal-sized portions, refrigerating food for use within one to two days and freezing portions for later. She also said oils, cereals, grain powders, and milk powders should be sealed, kept away from heat and sunlight, and labeled with opening dates.

A person fishing near a bridge in Cianjhen District discovered a plastic bag containing suspected bones and a dumbbell. Police collected evidence on November 6, and prosecutors immediately conducted an external examination before a forensic pathologist performed an autopsy and took DNA samples.

Kaohsiung prosecutors said DNA testing by the city police forensic center found the remains could belong to Chang’s sister-in-law, identified as Chang Huang (張黃). However, investigators still need further analysis to finalize the claim.

Prosecutors suspect Chang killed his 75-year-old sister-in-law in November 2024 after she repeatedly urged him to move out of a house owned by his nephew. He is accused of killing and dismembering three women, including Huang, and disposing of the remains in the Cianjhen No.5 ship canal.

The Kaohsiung District Court’s citizen-judge panel convicted him of murder, along with abuse of corpses and theft, and sentenced him to death in June. The case is now on appeal. 

When voting later in November, the CEC reminds citizens to bring their national ID, personal seal, and voting notification. Aside from those three identification materials, other items including cellphones, will not be allowed in polling stations.

CEC Chairman Michael You (游盈隆) also reminded voters to beware of deepfakes and AI manipulation, especially around voting information. Citizens should confirm information with multiple, and official sources, and never repost or share information before fact-checking.

CEC Chairman Michael You (游盈隆) collaborated with election ambassador and celebrity Kevin Tai (戴凱文) to film a PSA encouraging people ages 18 and up to vote. The video also tells people what to bring to polling stations and warns about AI information.

Tai said he was happy to participate in elections after obtaining Taiwanese residency. As a member of Taiwan’s new immigrant community, and after representing Taiwan in the Mister Global pageant, he said he’s happy to use his platform to encourage others to actively participate in Taiwan’s democracy. 

Taiwan’s election is on November 28, and includes votes for central and local politicians and referendums.

Speaking on the issue, on Monday, November 9, Overseas Community Affairs Council (OCAC) Acting Minister Elaine Lee (李姸慧) said that the OCAC, following the office’s withdrawal, will proactively provide assistance to businesses in the country. Lee noted that there are fewer than 100 Taiwanese in Papua New Guinea, and businesses there primarily operate in timber, seafood, and international trade.

However, Lee also pointed out that the OCAC does not have a dedicated overseas affairs official stationed in the country. Due to limited resources, council officials are typically stationed in communities with larger overseas Taiwanese populations. 

She said, “We are now stepping up our efforts to see if we can reach out to the local Taiwanese community, identify their needs, and proactively provide assistance as best we can.”

The TAIEX opened higher and rose more than 2,600 points intraday, returning above the 40,000-point mark at 42,349 . The rally followed the fund’s announcement Friday of its 10th historical market-stabilization intervention, along with a rebound in U.S. technology shares.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) led the advance, rising as much as NT$155 (over US$4) to NT$2,290 (nearly US$70) and contributing 1,227 points to the index. Other major stocks, including MediaTek, Delta Electronics, Yageo, and Alchip Technologies, also hit their daily trading limits.

The New Taiwan dollar moved in the opposite direction. It opened at NT$32.8 per U.S. dollar, then fell to a low of about NT$32.937, a decline of more than 1.6 cents. It later recovered somewhat, again trading around NT$32.8.

Currency traders said sustained foreign selling of Taiwanese shares had created delayed demand to move money offshore, putting downward pressure on the currency. They said the market’s near-term direction would depend on whether foreign investors return to buying, and whether exporters increase dollar sales. 

This would be Taiwan’s second shipment. The first 11 launchers arrived in 2024 and went to the army’s 58th Artillery Command in central Taiwan. The country is buying another 82 launchers, bringing the total across all three batches to 111. Deliveries of the third batch are expected to begin in 2030.

Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a division director at Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the new launchers would allow the southern unit to strike targets with greater precision at longer distances. He said they would complement Taiwan’s domestically made Thunderbolt 2000 systems, which can fire rockets over a wider area at shorter ranges.

Su said that with longer-range missiles, the launchers could extend Taiwan’s reach into the Bashi Channel, the waterway between Taiwan and the Philippines. He said their range could overlap with that of U.S. launchers if the U.S. deployed them in the northern Philippines. 

Trump said the United States had identified potential targets inside Iran, including 38 bridges. He said U.S. forces could destroy those bridges within an hour, but added that he would prefer to spare infrastructure that would take years to rebuild.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, told state television that mediators had stopped traveling since last week’s U.S. midterm elections, in which Trump’s Republican Party suffered heavy losses. Araghchi said it would take time before conditions were right for mediators to resume their visits.

Meanwhile, U.S. Central Command announced a task force to build on the naval blockade of Iranian ports. The roughly 20-person team will work with other U.S. agencies to disrupt shipments of weapons and sanctioned goods across Iran’s land borders and the Caspian Sea. Iran’s Fars news agency quoted a Revolutionary Guard spokesperson as saying the effort would fail.

In an email to employees published by Bloomberg, Huang admitted he had been unfaithful to his wife. He apologized to his family and colleagues and said he would cooperate fully with the investigation. The email did not name the other person.

The New York Times reported that Huang had a close relationship with Alice Huang (黄樂), a former executive at the Singapore-based data center company Megaspeed. The Times said U.S. intelligence officials concluded that China’s Ministry of State Security had recruited her. China’s Foreign Ministry dismissed the initial report as unsubstantiated.

Megaspeed came under U.S. scrutiny over whether it helped divert advanced Nvidia chips to China in violation of export controls. The Times also reported that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio oversaw a classified memo warning senior officials about the relationship before President Donald Trump’s May visit to Beijing.

Three U.S. House committee chairs have asked Jensen Huang to attend a closed-door briefing on Nov. 18. They want to hear about his interactions with Alice Huang and how Nvidia protects sensitive technology and information.