| Kuma Academy | |
| Established: | --> |
| Founders: | Puma Shen[1] |
| Defunct: | --> |
| Vat Id: | (for European organizations) --> |
| Focus: | --> |
| Location Country: | Taiwan |
| Area Served: | or |
| Region: | --> |
| Product: | --> |
| Services: | Civil defense training |
| Method: | --> |
| Field: | --> |
| Languages: | --> |
| Owners: | --> |
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| Parent Organisation: | --> |
| Former Name: | --> |
Kuma Academy (Chinese: t=黑熊學院|s=黑熊学院|p=Hēxióng Xuéyuàn), also known as the Black Bear Academy, is a Taiwanese non-profit civil defense organization which provides training to civilians on a variety of topics.
Kuma Academy provides civil defense training to civilians in Taiwan.[2] Classes cover topics like first aid and media literacy to combat disinformation from China.[3]
Kuma Academy has also provided training in open-source intelligence and cybersecurity.[1] According to Kuma their goal is "to decentralise civil defence."[4]
Kuma Academy was founded by Puma Shen and Ho Cheng-Hui.[5]
Interest in the organization, and civil defense overall, dramatically increased following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[6] In September 2022, the Kuma Academy had a waitlist of more than 3,000 for its classes.[7]
In 2022, retired businessman Robert Tsao pledged NTD $600m to Kuma Academy.[8] In October 2024, the government of China's Taiwan Affairs Office said that it would sanction and "punish" Tsao and Puma Shen for their support of the academy.[9]