專家系統下的地方知識：嘉邑行善團的造橋實作

Local Knowledge in the Context of Expert System of Knowledge: Chia-yi Charity Organization's Bridge-Building Practice

在嘉南平原沿山地帶造橋近四十年的嘉邑行善團，所建造橋樑並非一般意義下認定「高科技」知識動員下的橋樑。嘉邑行善團之中，除了已故早期領導者何明德於日治時期曾受教於「財團法人土木測量技術員養成所」之外，日後的協力造橋者，都是非專家的義工群。但在行善造橋多年過程中，這些義工群之中，分化出「準師傅義工」與「準義工師傅」之角色。這兩類角色以其實作技術之傳習，一方面緊緊追隨來自政府公部門的造橋技術，另方面形成自身地方知識的累積與創新。行善造橋以來，嘉邑行善團一方面以自身的技術實作場域邏輯來吸納、挪用專家系統的知識。另一面，嘉邑行善團的造橋師傅也因技術實作場域的獨特在地性，衍生一套對造橋所在地地形、水文與土質等要素的特殊地方知識。這些地方知識展現為「常識準則」、「在地分類」與「默會技能」等三種狀態。在同屬基層橋樑工程場域中，這樣的地方知識經常更能達成橋樑建造之穩固、安全與長遠效率，以及實現更好的工程倫理。

For the past forty years, Chia-yi Charity Organization has been constructing bridges in the mountainous area of Southern Taiwan. Except for the late director, Ming-te Ho, who received civil engineer training during the period of Japanese colonization, members of the charity are not formally trained in bridge building. During the building practices some of the members acquire more knowledge and techniques and become semi-craftsman volunteers and semi-volunteer craftsmen. Both acquire techniques from the government engineers while developing their own local knowledge and innovation. On the one hand, the craftsmen appropriate the expert engineering knowledge system in their own locally embedded logic of field practices; on the other hand, by following the logic craftsmen develop local knowledge of a working site, which is conceptualized as ’practical wisdom’, ’local categorization’, and ’tacit techniques’. Comparing to other bridges of similar scale, with the local knowledge the charity builds much endurable and safer bridges and provides a fine example of engineering ethics.