SparkJam (www.sparkjam.net) – the culture and news blog founded in San Francisco – announced today that founders Yussef Milburn and Ian Thomas were selected to visit Taiwan this summer to blog about the island’s centennial events. Yussef and Ian will join approximately 250 international bloggers to travel throughout Taiwan to cover cultural events, music, arts, innovation and all things awesome.

The event, called “Say Taiwan” is organized by Taiwan’s Council for Culture Affairs and runs from August 12, 2011 to August 25, 2011. Participants, from over 100 countries as diverse as Botswana, Brazil, India, Oman and the Russian Federation will meet in Taiwan to publish their stories.

“We are honored and excited to take SparkJam to Taiwan to meet the locals and all the international bloggers. Taiwan is so rich with adventure, culture and ideas that will be great to share with everyone,” said Ian Thomas.

The Republic of China (Taiwan) replaced the Qing Dynasty in 1911 and ended over two thousand years of imperial rule in China. It is the oldest surviving republic in East Asia, and has endured a dynamic history over the last 100 years. There are hundreds of centennial celebrations throughout Taiwan in 2011 and 2012.

Yussef and Ian met while attending San Francisco State University, sharing an idea to spread information from multiple cultures that inspire thought and action. In their senior year at SF State, Yussef won the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship for studying abroad in Hong Kong and Ian was Editor-in-Chief of The Golden Gate [X]press newspaper and website. After graduating, the two friends reunited and founded SparkJam.

“Having the chance to travel to another country to document the culture and history is a really unique opportunity that we are thrilled to be a part of. This is what SparkJam is all about, said Yussef Milburn.”

About SparkJam: noun – a moment of highly-charged energetic thought or action that ignites a new and subsequent series of inspired thoughts and actions. Founded in 2009, SparkJam is a mashup culture blog of astonishing ideas, global perspectives, news, and stories. Our mission is to have a blast energizing thought, discourse, experience and action for a better, happier universe filled to the brim with perpetual goodness.

About Say Taiwan: In celebration of the 100th Anniversary since its establishment, the Republic of China (ROC) invites elite internationals aged 18 to 40 to visit Taiwan and participate in a series of activities to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ROC, and experience the diverse lifestyles in Taiwan.

Photo by Fishtail@Taipei: The Taipei skyline with the towering Taipei 101 skyscraper at right.