Over the course of Tsai Ing-wen’s presidency, Taiwan underwent seismic changes that will have an impact far beyond her 8 years in office. Yet, these accomplishments are not the work of a single politician. This is the story of Tsai’s core team and the epochal shifts they helped bring about, compiled from over thirty interviews with administration officials, political staffers, and leading figures in various fields.

The pandemic brought worldwide attention to Taiwan. It wasn’t just that Taiwan enjoyed success keeping COVID-19 at bay, but that Taiwan managed it while still marking up points on the economic scorecard. As the rest of the world suffered under the myriad blows of the virus, Taiwan’s outstanding performance attracted notice, and raised the question: how was this island nation thriving against the odds? Turning the spotlight on then-president Tsai Ing-wen and her inner circle, this book documents the remarkable success and transformation of Taiwan under the Tsai administration.

Holding office from 2016 to 2024, Tsai emerged victorious through two election cycles. A cool-headed rationalist, Tsai resisted the temptation to hoard political glory, instead attributed her successes to her policy team, a tendency which got her labeled an “atypical politician”. Under this unique brand of leadership, she was unrelenting in pushing forward a broad range of significant reforms: pension reform, energy restructuring, marriage equality, the Forward-looking Infrastructure Development Program, the domestic submarine program… Taiwanese society was visibly transformed in ways that will likely influence its future path for decades to come.

Targeting ten signature policies of the Tsai administration, the three authors of this book conducted over thirty interviews with political staffers, government officials, and influential figures of Taiwanese society to complete their research. Organized into ten chapters, the book coherently analyzes Tsai’s policies from a variety of perspectives – national defense, diplomacy, the economy, etc. – giving readers valuable insight this critical period in Taiwanese politics, while also serving as a case study of effective leadership in divisive and challenging times. The foreword, afterword, and a valuable timeline of key events further aid in situating readers within Taiwan’s unique political landscape.

In contrast to political retrospectives that focus on a single leader, How the Times Changed highlights the work of Tsai’s entire policy team, giving credit to the important contributions of administration officials and political staffers. Though it addresses Taiwan’s recent political history, the book adopts a distanced perspective, providing a complete record of a political era and demonstrating how the stage has been set for Taiwan’s future.