Hsieh Yi-hung, who goes by the English name Samuel Morpheus, has a dream.
He wants to help bring about an independent and democratic republic that will safeguard and protect the 23 million people who currently call Taiwan home.
He calls it Formosa, an old name for the island used by Portuguese colonists that means "beautiful," and which has been reclaimed by some independence activists wanting to emphasize the island's unique heritage and history.
Hsieh, born into Taiwan's Paiwan indigenous community, lives on contested land.
In recent centuries, Taiwan has been settled by Fujianese and Hakka farmers and fishing communities, colonized by Japan, and claimed by neighboring China, which has recently ratcheted up its military incursions around the island, while working with every political tool in its arsenal to bring Taiwanese around to Beijing's way of thinking.
Hsieh's response to the threat of a Chinese invasion has been simple -- get ready to defend his home, and help get others ready too.
"We are promoting the resilience of small communities in every part of Taiwan, so that each community is more sustainable," Hsieh told RFA Mandarin in a recent interview. "In this way, when war breaks out, morale in Taiwan won't collapse, and the people won't put pressure on the government to sign a peace agreement."
To that end, his organization trains civilians in resilience and civil defense, as well as offering military training to reserves.
Ukraine sparks readiness efforts
Hsieh is also a committed Presbyterian and partners with its 1,300 churches in Taiwan to build local systems ensuring people will still have access to food, clean water, medical care and power, should the People's Liberation Army try to annex the island.
He sees his work as akin to the building of Noah’s Ark.
"The church can play a role in [those things] as well as in maintaining communications when war breaks out, helping to maintain local stability and order," he said.
Ever since Russian tanks poured across the border into Ukraine in February 2022, meeting with stronger-than-expected military resistance and the mobilization of civilians throughout the country, people in democratic Taiwan have been focusing on the island's own defenses against a possible Chinese invasion.
As the government extends compulsory military service for men to one year and Taiwanese soldiers volunteer to defend freedom and democracy in Ukraine, civilians across the island are also organizing -- holding regular training sessions teaching fitness, first aid and disaster awareness.
Hsieh's organization is taking a hybrid approach, working with professional tactical companies to train reservists using legal air guns, while training community leaders in local resilience strategies.
Take the eastern county of Hualien, for example, whose Chiashan Air Force Base, radar station and missile base make it a likely target for Chinese missiles.
"If a Chinese aircraft carrier launches missiles to attack the military base, and the church is within the error range of the attack, it is best to have a plan for the evacuation of the entire church in advance," Hsieh said. "It's very different from the situation in Taipei -- it's based on the situation on the ground."
"We are hoping to promote [this approach] beyond the church, to individuals, families and corporations," he said.
Invasion between 2024 and 2028?
Hsieh himself has done his own military training, and feels ready to lead reservists in defending his homeland.
He has also enlisted the help of a number of friends, including retired U.S. Air Force officer Guermantes Lailari, who uses the nickname G-man.
Asked why he agreed to help, G-man said: "He's built up a community of all of the defenders of Taiwan, and the spiritual defenders of Taiwan. The second is the idea of freedom that he's promoting."
"The goal of the Academia Formosana is to prevent the next terrorist incident -- the red terror," he said.
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Hsieh thinks an invasion could come any time between 2024 and 2028.
"We have a sense of urgency, and are trying hard to prepare as much as we can in a short space of time," he said. "Only God knows if war will happen, but we can't take any chances."
"This is the way to safeguard Taiwan," Hsieh said, adding that many analysts he spoke to at government agencies and think tanks on a recent visit to the United States asked him whether Taiwan is ready and determined enough to defend itself.
"If Taiwan lacks the determination to defend itself, then will Americans sacrifice their own lives to protect cowardly Taiwanese who are unwilling to make a sacrifice for their country?" he said.
"But if Taiwan can show that it's fully prepared, it will make Chinese leader Xi Jinping think twice before attacking Taiwan, or wake up in the morning and think, no, not today," Hsieh said. "Continuous deterrence can delay the start of a war."
"Our preparations are as powerful as nuclear weapons," he said.
Translated by Luisetta Mudie.