National Chengchi University (NCCU) professor Chang Tai-lin was honored by the French government Thursday in Taipei for his persistent efforts to promote French studies and encourage exchanges between the Taiwanese and the French. Chang was conferred with the 'Officier dans l'Ordre des Palmes Academiques' by Patrick Bonneville, director-general of the French Institute in Taipei, on behalf of the French government. Bonneville said the French high distinction was awarded to Chang in recognition of the excellence of his scientific work on Europe in general and France in particular, as well as his essential contributions to the promotion of the French language in Taiwan and the strengthening of academic and cultural relations between France and Taiwan. Chang, who has taught French for 20 years and is an expert on European integration, set up the Undergraduate Program in European Languages at NCCU in 2004 and has been in charge of its European Commission-subsidized European Modules program since 2006. Saying that he felt honored to receive the award, Chang, who received a Ph.D. from the Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne, added that 'it is important to encourage different languages and perspectives, just as the integrated European Union promotes language diversity internally.' 