Environmental Policy Essay

Last month in the New York Times, Kate Galbraith noted that the campaigns of both Barack Obama and John McCain presented widely differing views on climate change and energy policy, particularly with regards to cap and trade schemes, market-based policy instruments intended to maneuver industrial sectors into reducing their greenhouse emissions. Cap and trade schemes have recently been gaining much currency within the discussions of environmental policy as a means to address the negative impacts which industry has upon the greenhouse problem. Such systems work by creating a financial incentive for emission reduction through the imposition of costs on emissions. By establishing a ‘cap’ which limits the total amount of emissions that can be made by a designated group of polluters and leaving them free to trade permits to pollute with one another, it encourages these polluters to meet or fall below the cap in a flexible market-based fashion, rather than forcing them to comply with stringent regulations that could needlessly compromise their business operations. Companies able to cut their emissions can further profit from selling their permits to those companies facing difficulty in reducing their own emissions. The incentive is that all the companies would choose to bring their emissions to cap levels and try to do so in the most cost-effective fashion. It encourages them to innovate the means to reduce emissions. Other governments have already taken action to introduce cap-and-trade schemes of their own: Australia has the New South Wales Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme; the Climate Change Response (Emissions Trading) Amendment Bill was recently enacted in New Zealand; and the European Parliament has its own system known as the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme. At present, no system similar to these exists in federal law, and representatives for both candidates – Dan Esty for Barack Obama, Douglas Holtz-Eakin for John McCain – maintained that this should be remedied as soon as possible. Where they disagree is how such a system should be structured. According to Esty, Obama favors distribution of emissions permits through auction, as this would force polluting businesses to pay competitively during initial distribution. Speaking for McCain, Holtz-Eakin advocates pre-determined distribution, limiting transactions to the permit trading market itself. The design of a cap and trade system is not a trivial matter. A poor design can wreck the efficacy of a cap and trade system as a policy instrument. If permits are distributed too generously, as Holtz-Eakin proposes, what could result is a situation in which industries have little incentive to expunge their business operations of greenhouse emissions, as they would effectively be operating in a trading market where permits are near worthless. Also, cap and trade systems cannot stand alone as an emission-reducing policy instrument, as there is a potential for traders to ‘game’ the market by deliberately holding out on purchasing permits until the last minute so as to reduce their value, making unreduced emissions affordable to even the worst emitter. Furthermore, cap and trade systems lack transparency and present opportunities for fraud. Worse still is that a poorly designed cap and trade system will not account for the geography of polluters, resulting in a NIMBY effect where pollution becomes localized to create ‘emissions ghettos. ’ As such, it should be recommended that any cap and trade system be designed to account for environmental justice, be subject to transparency, and should distribute permits at a market price, perhaps even stabilize such a price at a level high enough to incentivize the development of techniques and technologies to reduce emissions. Furthermore, a cap and trade system must be complemented by other policy instruments such as pollution zoning and carbon taxes. Works Cited Galbraith, Kate. â€Å"Candidates’ Advisers Spar Over Cap-and-Trade. † New York Times. 23 September 2008. Retrieved online November 9, 2008 from: http://greeninc. blogs. nytimes. com/2008/09/23/candidates-advisers-spar-over-cap-and-trade/? scp=3&sq=cap%20trade&st=cse Parker, David. â€Å"Historic climate change legislation passes. † New Zealand Government. 10 September 2008. Retrieved online November 9, 2008 from: http://www. beehive. govt. nz/release/historic+climate+change+legislation+passes Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme 2008, Introduction to the greenhouse gas reduction scheme, Greenhouse Gas Reduction Scheme. Retrieved online November 9, 2008 from: http://greenhousegas. nsw. gov. au/documents/Intro-GGAS. pdf Pearce, Fred. â€Å"European trading in carbon-emission permits begins. ’† New Scientist. 6 January 2005. Retrieved online November 9, 2008 from: http://environment. newscientist. com/channel/earth/dn6846-european-trading-in-carbonemission-permits-begins. html

Global Inequality Caused by Consumption

Core issue: consumption causes global inequality. Global inequality is the inequality in distribution of income and wealth between rich and poor countries. A concentration of wealth is in the hands of very small number of people. A study by the World Institute for Development Economics Research at United Nations University reports that the richest 1% of adults alone owned 40% of global assets in the year 2000, and that the richest 10% of adults accounted for 85% of the world total. The bottom half of the world adult population owned barely 1% of global wealth.According to the wealth concentration theory, those who already hold wealth have the means to invest in new sources of creating wealth or to otherwise leverage the accumulation of wealth, thus are the beneficiaries of the new wealth. Over time, wealth condensation can significantly contribute to the persistence of inequality within society. This correlation between being rich and earning more is also contributed by plutocracy: t he ability of the rich to influence government disproportionately to their favor thereby increasing their wealth. This unjust global trade regime as a primary cause in increasing global inequality ————– Wealth and poverty make life different in a host of ways. health, education, literacy, child labour, employment, gender, political participation, higher level in countries with higher income Compare their economic productivity–>classify countries.Gross Domestic Product (GDP) & Gross National Income (GNI) The World Bank uses GNI per person to classify countries. Low income (P559) For example, workforces in China, much of which is well trained and educated and now receive extremely low wages-sometimes less than one-twentieth of hat workers earn in comparable jobs in the developed countries. These institutionalised inequalities result in greater marginalisation within society. The report emphasises the inevitable social disintegration, vi olence and national and international terrorism that this inequality fosters. Ironically, the diversion of social development funds to national/international security and military operations produces further deprivation and marginalization, thus creating a vicious cycle.

Learning Theories and Instructional Design Essay

This article discusses the principles of adult learning theory. More specifically, Kimbarow relates adult learning theory to effective methodologies that can be employed in treating patients with aphasia. For Kimbarow, the major principles of adult learning theory are the ability to recognize that adults are self-directed individuals and that it is essential for instruction to be prepared such that it is culturally and socially sensitive in meeting the needs of the learner. Kimbarow also discusses the life participation approach, or LPAA. The life participation approach emphasizes the role of the patients’ overall quality of life in the care that the patient receives. This complements the adult learning theory as it further emphasizes the impact that patient involvement has in the treatment and planning of activity programs. The study offered these recommendations: A patient will have a better quality of life if the patient plays an active role in the planning of their course of treatment and if the instruction meets their cultural and social needs. By recognizing and planning instruction in this manner, the instructor will be successful in preparing activities that meet the needs of the adult patient. Review: This is an interesting and current article for those who want to explore the premise of adult learning theory. However, the article is limiting in its discussion of adult learning theory as it relates only to aphasia patients. The article would be more effective if it contained further discussion into the effectiveness of adult learning theory to patients or students with other conditions or in other learning environments. Lee, D. , Belifore, P. , Budin, S. (2008). Riding the Wave. Teaching Exceptional Children, 40(3), 65-70. Summary: In their article, Lee, Belifore and Budin discuss the importance of differentiating instruction to meet the needs of all students in the classroom begins with the planning process. The authors’ recognized that different teachers plan and deliver lesson plans in different ways. However, they recognize that the types of lesson plans utilized and implemented by classroom teachers can impact the way that the information in the lesson is disseminated to the students. The study offered these recommendations: According to the authors’, reducing student punishment should result in an increase in student accountability and responsibility. â€Å"High probability request sequences are positive interventions improve student compliance through increased student workload and the removal of negative consequences: (Lee, Belifore and Budin, 2008). It also creates an environment of problem solving, whereas students are accountable for their work no matter what. In doing this, the punishment for not turning in work does not result in a failed grade. Review: The article is an important tool for those individuals seeking an interesting perspective in the need for differentiating instruction. At the same time, the article offers an innovative perspective on the role of consequences in the education system. The recommendations made by the authors’ are best suited for the traditional classroom setting. Felder, R. M. , & Brent, R. (2005). Understanding student differences. Journal of Engineering Education, 94(1), 57-72 Summary: In their article, Felder and Brent discuss the different learning styles that must be taken into consideration in the development of course curriculum and evaluation methods. As the authors’ describe, these various methods are used to assess student understanding of subject material. Felder and Brent point out that students in the classroom setting tend to be very diverse in culture and have different levels of motivation to learn. The study offered these recommendations: Because students have different attitudes towards their instructor as well as other students, instruction must be designed to respond to the different â€Å"attitudes about teaching and learning, and different response to specific classroom environments and instructional practices† (Felder & Brent, 2005). Due to this, the instructor should understand learning differences to facilitate, structure, and validate successful learning. Review: The study offers an important perspective as to the diverse needs of individuals in the classroom setting. The study would be more effective if it made specific recommendations as to instructional design modifications that can be used to reach out to students in the learning environment. The article encourages further reading and investigation into the subject that can only better the instructor in planning instructor to meet the needs of students.

Investment Apprisl Techniques Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Investment Apprisl Techniques - Essay Example I will prticulrly provide literture review of few contemporry theoreticl pproches to the issue. Recent reserch (Steier & Greenwood, 2005) hs shown tht the due diligence process is n itertive one, where the first step is to ssess whether proposl meets the investment criteri of the venture fund (e.g., with respect to the investment stge, sector, or mgnitude of the investment proposl) nd whether the proposl is vible t first sight. forml vlution of compny will only be performed when the proposl psses this initil test. Other economic gents hve to vlue compnies in other settings; e.g., investment bnkers hve to determine the introduction price of new compny on stock mrket or they hve to pprise tke-over cndidte. Finncil nlysts hve to ssess whether the stock mrket vlue of compny is significntly higher or lower thn its 'true' economic vlue, in order to decide when to sell or buy stocks. The venture cpitlist's vlution process, however, is likely to differ from the ones used for these purposes, becuse of the very different nture of the compnies they hve to vlue. Investment proposls, recei ved by venture cpitl funds, re often very risky, due to the erly stge of development of the compny, the lck of trck record of the compny, or the degree of innovtion of products or mrkets. Moreover, the compnies re not quoted on stock mrket, so publicly vilble informtion is limited. The present study sheds light on this neglected re through n exmintion of how Europen venture cpitlists proceed in this difficult tsk. The vlution of investment proposls is importnt for venture cpitlists becuse the vlue of the compny determines the proportion of shres they receive in return for their investment nd thus their ultimte return. It is importnt for entrepreneurs, too, becuse vlution tht is too low will led to n excessive dilution of their shre in the compny. Moreover, when entrepreneurs know how venture cpitlists vlue investment proposls, they re better prepred to dpt their business pln to the needs of investors. They will be ble to produce the required informtion nd to understnd the wy venture cpitlists use the informtion. The vlution process consists of three sequentil steps. First, informtion is gthered on the venture, its mngement tem, nd its future prospects. Second, this informtion is used to pprise the risk of the venture nd hence the required return on the investment, nd to estimte the (future) csh flows nd profit potentil. Finlly, one or more vlution method is used, which combines the elements of risk, return, nd profits or csh flows in order to compute the vlue of the compny. Becuse non-public compnies hve few legl informtion requirements, the gthering of informtion is more difficult thn with public compnies. Due to dverse selection nd informtion symmetry problems, this is nonetheless one of the most crucil phses in coming to decision. One of the most importnt sources of informtion is the business pln, which projects the future of the compny, together with historic ccounting dt (especilly the blnce sheet nd profit nd loss sttement), nd future ccounting dt (especilly csh flow forecsts). mit et l. (2003) point to the fct tht the mngeril trck record of the entrepreneur nd his or her fmilirity with the product nd the sector my provide some hints s to the future success of the venture. However, venture cpitlists fce importnt informtion symmetries with respect to compny-specific dt, since the entrepreneurs my disclose only wht they deem necessry in

Why College Athletes Should Be Paid To Play Sports Research Paper

Why College Athletes Should Be Paid To Play Sports - Research Paper Example The NCAA is the body charged with the responsibility of governing every facet of college sports in the United States. Established in 1906, NCAA has evolved over the years in its activities which are to the best interest of student-athletes, member universities, and the general public. However, critics do not buy this as the body has been, lately, under the skeptic's attack concerning the standoff on paying college athletes. They ask the question to whose interest is NCAA working. Most writers on collegiate sports confirm that college athletes bring sizable revenue to their institutions. But what do they get in return? Woods, 65, reports that an athlete on full scholarship receives a four-year education that may be worth an upward of $50,000 per year on the higher side. This covers books, room, and tuition. It is true that Football and men’s’ basketball college athletes generate huge incomes to the tune of billions to the schools and NCAA, yet they receive stipends in th e form of scholarships.Unlike other students, college athletes are prohibited from engaging in part-time jobs that can earn them money as most of their time is spent preparing for the sport.This implies that student-athletes are disadvantaged in the financial arena for the time they can use to earn extra cash is utilized in the pitch. It is therefore proper that the athletes be paid beyond what they are paid in the form of scholarships, at least to cater for their miscellaneous expenses and an appreciation of their valuable talents.

Leaderhip and Management in Resusitation Essay - 1

Leaderhip and Management in Resusitation - Essay Example Loss of time and error in the Resuscitation Department are paid dearly by the patient’s increased risk of morbidity (Rosen et al., 2008). In this scenario, there is an incessant demand for the healthcare team in the ERD to hone not only their specific individual and professional skills, but that they should learn to coordinate and work effectively as a team (Cooper and Wakelam, 1999; Sarcevic, Marsic, Waterhouse, Stockwell, and Burd, 2011). The high stress scenario of ERD is not an imagined reality. In fact, it is an actuality that is encountered daily by the healthcare team that is assigned in the ERD. Typically, the healthcare team only has 20 minutes to work together to â€Å"(1) stabilize the patient by (2) rapidly identifying life-threatening injuries; (3) determine the extent of the injury; (4) develop a plan for definitive surgical management of the patient† (Sarcevic et al, 2011, p. 229). Generally, the team is composed of 7 -15 members and they include an attending surgeon, surgical residents or fellows, nurses, an orthopaedic surgeon, an anaesthesiologist, a respiratory therapist, a pharmacist and an X-ray technician (Sarcevic et al., 2011). Additional specialist may be added to the team depending on the need of the patient. In this regard, it can be inferred that the health care team in ERD is technically an interdisciplinary team that have come together for the primary purpose of providing the patient with the initial care that the patient crucially needs. With this perspective, this research will delve on the critical function of nurses-Resuscitation Officer in the ERD. Specifically, this research will focus on the impact of nursing leadership and management in the discharge of the functions of Resuscitation Officer in the Resuscitation Department. Nursing leadership and management in ERD is crucial not only

BUSINESS PROPOSAL FOR LEXILIAP FASHION BOUTIQUE Research Paper

BUSINESS PROPOSAL FOR LEXILIAP FASHION BOUTIQUE - Research Paper Example This proposal therefore illustrates the various economic factors that will influence the operations of Lexiliap Fashion Boutique. This report lays particular emphasis on the economic dynamics of the proposed fashion boutique by including assumptions about the elasticity of demand and the market structure in the operational environment. Revenue To begin, revenue is an important factor for the success of Lexiliap Fashion Boutique. Capozzi (2013) highlights the importance of looking at the revenue prospects of a fashion boutique by recognizing the challenges of setting up and deriving gains from one. Fashion boutiques present a challenge to owners because they should find a balance between attracting and retaining customers on one hand whereas striving to achieving or even surpassing the set revenue limits (Gerring, 2007). The fashion boutique intends to use multifaceted promotional campaign to ensure that it drives sales volumes that will surely lead to increased volumes. In particular , the boutique will have an active online presence that will make sure that many clients are targeted and are aware of the enterprise’s products (Ferguson, 2008). Market segmentation strategies will be used to ensure that promotions are custom made to target the youth, women, men and children separately. The shop will also offer competitive pricing so that customers from competing firms are attracted. Determining the Profit-Maximizing Quantity The boutique will deal with different fashion items and accessories. As such, the challenge is to constitute a viable and standard profit maximizing quantity for each of the items. Since items like jewelry and clothing may have defects especially when volume purchases are used to source for the products, the proposed structure relies on this conditionality to propose a standard quantity to be ascertained. Given a unit cost of 10 USD, each product’s price; is it a dress, pant, bangle or ring will be compared against the unit cost value. Taking into consideration that the more items are sold, the higher the revenue; the report then sets the revenue threshold at 100USD meaning ten unit items. As a result, the more valued the item in the boutique, the lower will be its profit maximizing quantity. The projected dollar value for the business is shown in Appendix 1. Profit Maximization Profit maximization is at the core of any enterprise’s operations (Mankiw, 2011). The proposed Fashion Boutique will ensure that there is value for customers on one hand, and value to the owner on the other. To be able to strike this delicate balance between satisfying the needs of the customer whilst maximizing the profits needed for business growth. The marginal cost and marginal revenue concept can be applied to illustrate the technique that will be used to ensure profit maximization. This will be done mainly in the area of stocking for some commodities. Given that fashion industry is dynamic, it is important to stock the current trends for profit maximization (Boyes & Melvin, 2011). As a result, the boutique will review fast moving products and stock them in large number to derive more gains from the sales volumes resulting from the trending items. This is in accordance with the concept that marginal revenue should always be equal to marginal cost for profit maximization (Taylor, 2006). Subsequently, the boutique will require market information on the trending products. This can be obtained from relevant agencies, the media and other

Evaluation of Course and Professor Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Evaluation of Course and Professor - Essay Example I also feel that topics that have practical applications need more comprehensive service learning initiatives to ensure that students understand and acculturate involved concepts. The curriculum should therefore incorporate a formal schedule for service learning. My opinion follows my experience in service learning that improved my understanding of theories of health education. I therefore believe that service learning in more specialized facilities such as nursing facilities or organizations that specializes in health education is necessary. More time should also be allowed for service learning because it is an effective strategy. Further, priority for service learning should be given to topics that are directly applicable care environments. Such topics include application of professional and ethical issues in provision of health education. The learning process has therefore been successful and I have identified the benefit of service learning. I therefore recommend that more attention be paid to service learning to facilitate understanding of practical application of concepts of the

Promoting recovery in mental health (case study) Essay

Promoting recovery in mental health (case study) - Essay Example The concept of psychiatric rehabilitation was introduced in mid-1970s and the concept slowly evolved to absorb more fresh air and democracy through the next decades (Pratt, Gill and Barret, 2007, p.13 of the preface). A more recent development that happened to this concept has been the notion of psychiatric recovery, which evolved in late 1980s (Deegan, 1988). Pratt, Gill and Barret (2007, p.111) have expressed the essence of this concept by saying, â€Å"the idea of recovery represents optimism about the future.† Recovery model in psychiatric treatment has been the product of the brave research work undertaken by persons who had walked through the dark alleys of mental illness, and had come out of them with a new spirit of freedom and self-determination (for e.g., Anonymous, 1989; Ralph, 2004; Unzicker, 1989; Deegan, 1988). It was based on the models of â€Å"recovery from physically handicapping conditions, a number of researchers and scholars have helped to develop a conce pt of recovery for severe mental illness† (Pratt, Gill and Barret, 2007, p.111). ... he mentally ill person is assisted to take command of his/her own situation and he/she is no more totally at the mercy of others, whether they be psychiatric professionals, friends, relatives or institutions. This is the first step towards accepting a mentally ill person as a person having equal rights with a ‘normal’ person. And this is where the recovery concept of social inclusion comes in as the most important factor. Brown (1981), Chamberlin (1984), Jacobson and Curtis (2000), and Everett (1994) have been the major theoreticians who had developed the concept of recovery into a practical psychiatric practice. The basic tenet, to which this concept owes its emergence, is the idea that human interaction, love and mutual understanding are the core values of existence. In curing a mental illness of a person, his/her friends, family, neighborhood, community and the society have a responsibility to share (Ramon, Healy and Renouf, 2007). Deegan (1988) has drawn attention to the fact that the notion of recovery from mental illness is now a twofold intervention where, the patient has to take up one’s own responsibility and all the same, professional help is available for him/her to further the recovery. In particular, customer involvement has been the most important segment of the concept of recovery. This customer-first theory was an outcome of an era when mentally ill patients were victims of superstition and where they were deprived even of the basic human rights (Jacobson and Curtis, 2000). Out of this bleak situation, the mentally disabled persons gradually learned to raise their voice and to initiate a social movement (Jacobson and Curtis, 2000). The collaboration approach is also part of the recovery model. The scope of this concept includes, â€Å"education,

Argue the case for and against Globalisation Essay Example for Free

Argue the case for and against Globalisation Essay This essay will concentrate on the factors of Globalisation and the effects it has on the world. Globalisation can be defined as something which has become spread across the globe. This includes all manner of objects such as people, money, technology and even ideas. The concept of globalisation has been going on for many centuries but it is only in recent years that it has become a major issue. The Roman Empire was a global society as the Romans ruled much of the known world. They used colonialism as an economic process in order to globalise themselves. From these colonised areas they obtained goods and raw materials which they could ship across the world. This still happens to this day and people also migrate causing multicultural countries. Cultural forms start to cross and become global forms. An example of this is sport. Many countries will play the same sport and even compete against each other. This was shown in the recent Commonwealth Games in Manchester. Cultures can be spread even through art and fiction. Novels and stories representing different peoples lives and experiences are read throughout the world spreading these cultures. In the process of Globalisation it is Decolonisation that takes place. In the past century many countries have gained independence. We now live in a new world order. Arjun Appadurai explains about Globalisation in the article Modernity at Large which is found on the website listed in the Bibliography. Appadurai has studied globalisation and has named a number of global flows. He describes the different ways in which Globalisation takes place. Ethnoscapes is the flow of people going around the world, for example tourism. It can also be seen when people migrate and is evident in modern society with refugees and asylum seekers. Trans-national class people are business and homogenous people who determine things like fashion and music. One of the most global items is money. Appadurai defines this as Financescapes. People send money across the world for their relatives and to pay for goods they have bought from a different country. There are many different ways for money to be transferred around the world, some are legitimate but there are also illegal ways such as drugs, arms and porn industries. These industries send vast amounts of money all over the world. The other big industry is that of Technology Technoscapes. In todays electronic age it is easier than ever for information to be moved from one place to another. The Internet, computers, mobile phones and other such electronic devices all provide consumers with the easiest form of the transferral of technology. Commodities around the world are becoming global. Products like Coca-cola, McDonalds, Microsoft and Nokia are now all recognised around the world. It is estimated that in 1990 the one hundred biggest transnational corporations produced 50% of the worlds output. So it is clear that globalisation is more than ever present in the modern world. All the above factors contribute to the increasing global nature of our society. However, what does all of it really mean? Does the fact that Globalisation is increasing result in the world getting better or worse? In order to answer these questions we must examine the benefits and disadvantages of living in a global culture. As mentioned before, one beneficial aspect of Globalisation is that of technology. Technological advances have resulted in the improved lives for millions of people around the world. This improvement was not restricted to just individuals but to communities, groups and even to the extent of countries at large. It cannot be denied that Globalisation has benefited businesses and companies in respect to technology and their target audience. However, some would argue that this mass technological advancement could lead to a lack in privacy. With the Internet in thousands of homes and with almost any kind of information available on it, some people feel that their privacy is invaded. Is Big Brother really looking at us at every opportunity? An obvious advantage of globalisation is that it brings together many different countries. The best example is probably the United Nations or the UN. This is a collection of some of the worlds most powerful countries and they have come together to become, arguably, the most powerful force on the planet. They are, however, a peaceful organisation who tries to uphold international laws. Perhaps one of the first steps to Globalisation was to name the different continents. This automatically places countries into groups and they can all be referred to by one name, for example Europe or Africa. Does this mean that everything is going to be the same? If the different countries are becoming recognised as one large continent then does it result in these countries being the same themselves? There isnt this much of lack of diversity. Globalisation may be more than ever present but every country has its own history, culture and way of living. This creates and upholds diversity in all countries. The immigration and emigration of people causes cultures and communities to spread all over the world which is another way of diversity being created. There are two main theories of the world. The first says that the world is becoming more American where as the second suggests that the world is becoming more diverse. The world being similar is known as homogeneity and the contrasting view of diversity is referred to as heterogeneity. So to conclude, it is clear that the world is becoming more and more globalised, especially in recent years. Globalisation is a man made feature of our world and it is unlikely that it will stop or even slow down in the foreseeable future. It does have a number of advantages and disadvantages, some of which highlighted in this essay. Globalisation may lead to a compression of the world and an intensification of consequences of the world as a whole but the benefits must surely outweigh the bad points as otherwise it would not have existed as long as it has. One thing this essay has concluded from researching the issue of Globalisation is that the world is so big and yet so small at the same time. We now live in a global village Marshall McLuhan. Bibliography R. Robertson, 1992 Globalisation N. Abercrombie A. Warde Contemporary British Society D. Cooper Power in struggle

Indian Hegemony in South Asia

Indian Hegemony in South Asia India has been given a tag as the Regional Hegemon of South Asia. If not formally,then atleast the intentions are tagged as possessing hegemonic tendencies. This paper looks at the concept of Hegemony, Regional, the various reasons responsible for such a view and the various outlooks. I also throw light on the foreign policy of India to stress on the non-hegemonic tendencies of India. India believes in peaceful coexistence. The most important aspect which I wish to bring out is the change in the international scenario that makes Indias hegemonic status tough to survive. SOUTH ASIA A general outlook and evolution South Asia is the southern region of the Asian continent. South Asia typically consists of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Some definitions may also include Afghanistan, Burma, Tibet, and the British Indian Ocean Territories. Iran is also included in the UN subregion of Southern Asia,  [i]  although many sources consider Iran as being part of West Asia. South Asia is home to well over one fifth of the worlds population, making it both the most populous and most densely populated geographical region in the world. The region has often seen conflicts and political instability, including wars between the regions two nuclear-armed states, Pakistan and India. While the South Asia had never been a coherent geopolitical region, it has a distinct geographical identity. The boundaries of South Asia vary based on how  [ii]  South Asia is defined. South Asias north, east, and west boundaries vary based on definitions used. South Asias southern bord er is the Indian Ocean. The UN subregion of Southern Asias northern boundary would be the Himalayas, its western boundary would be made up of the Iraq-Iran border, Turkey-Iran border, Armenia-Iran border, and the Azerbaijan-Iran border. Its eastern boundary would be the India-Burma border and the Bangladesh-Burma border. Most of this region is a subcontinent resting on the Indian Plate (the northerly portion of the Indo-Australian Plate) separated from the rest of Eurasia. It was once a small continent before colliding with the Eurasian Plate about 50-55 million years ago and giving birth to the Himalayan range and the Tibetan plateau. It is the peninsular region south of the Himalayas and Kuen Lun mountain ranges and east of the Indus River and the Iranian Plateau, extending southward into the Indian Ocean between the Arabian Sea (to the southwest) and the Bay of Bengal (to the southeast).The region is home to an astounding variety of geographical features, such as glaciers, rainforests, valleys, deserts, and grasslands that are typical of much larger continents. It is surrounded by three water bodies the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. Almost all South Asian countries were under direct or indirect European Colonial subjugation at some point. Much of modern India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar were gradually occupied by Great Britain starting from 1757, reaching their zenith in 1857 and ruling till 1947. Nepal and Bhutan were to some extent protectorates of Great Britain until after World War II. In the millennia long history of South Asia, this European occupation period is rather short, but its proximity to the present and its lasting impact on the region makes it prominent. The network of means of transportation and communication as well as banking and training of requisite workforce, and also the existing rail, post, telegraph, and education facilities have evolved out of the base established in the colonial era, often called the British Raj. As an aftermath of World War II, most of the region gained independence from Europe by the late 1940s.Tibet at times has governed itself as an independent state and at other times has had various levels of association with China. It came under Chinese control in the 18th century, in spite of British efforts to seize possession of this Chinese protectorate at the beginning of the 20th century. Since 1947, most South Asian countries have achieved tremendous progress in all spheres. Most notable achievements are in the fields of education; industry; health care; information technology and services based on its applications; research in the fields of cutting edge sciences and technologies; defence related self-relianc e projects; international/global trade and business enterprises and outsourcing of human resources. Areas of difficulty remain, however, including religious extremism, high levels of corruption, disagreements on political boundaries, and inequitable distribution of wealth. However,a combined effort by the nations has helped the nations in overcoming the various obstacles and settling the disputes peacefully. India has played a major role in the development of South Asia as a region of resources,technology and even as a power to some extent. However,at several occasions the actions of our nation have been seen as steps taken towards the goal of becoming the Regional Hegemon. HEGEMONY Hegemony is a term defined as the leadership(formal) especially of a state within a group of states. This is how any standard dictionary would define hegemony  [iii]  . In Hegemony and Socialist Strategy, political theorists Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe define hegemony as a type or form of political relation in which a given collectivity performs some kind of social task which is not natural to them  [iv]  .However, the term hegemon is generally used in a negative sense to signify dominance, coercion or influence in the vaious fields. India has often been accused of possessing hegemonic tendencies in its foreign affairs and policies by various writers and nations altogether. A countrys foreign policy, in general, aims to achieve three basic objectives-securities, stability, and status (George Liska ). George Modelski in his book A theory of Foreign Policy defined foreign policy as the system of activities evolved by communities for changing the behaviour of other states and adjusting their own activities to the international environment  [v]  . In this sense any country big or small, which endevours to further its policies to achieve its desired world order is hegemonistic. The word hegemony is pejoratively used when the great powers practice policies in seeking predominance over others. Literally hegemon means a leader who seeks predominance over others. This requires the existence of some subordinate states too, whose politics and policies hegemon would try to influence. In the Ancient World, Sparta was the hegemon (leader) city-state of the Peloponnesian League, in the 6th century BC, and King Philip II of Macedon was the hegemon of the League of Corinth, in 337 BC, (a kingship he willed to his son, Alexander the Great); in Eastern Asia, it occurred in China, during the Spring and Autumn Period ( 770-480 BC), when the weakened rule of the Zhou Dynasty lead to the relative autonomy of the Five Hegemons who were appointed, by feudal lord conferences, and were nominally obliged to uphold the Zhou dynastic imperium over the subordinate states. In late sixteenth- and early seventeenth-century-Japan, hegemon applies to its Three Unifiers   Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu   who exercised hegemony over most of the country. In the modern world hegemony has contours in imperialism. Imperialistic powers all over their empire had hegemony. After Second World War the beginning of cold war led to a grouping up of countries in t wo major camps. The groups had strong NATO countries as well as weak countries like Pakistan. Weak countries, which entered into such alliances to secure themselves from the hegemony of other countries, were subjected to veiled hegemony, and military bases of the stronger countries were often accommodated there. This has been an accusation for India too for several years. India has been accused of being influential in policies of different nations by making them dependent on it in terms of economy, military strength, resources and even in the political aspect. REGION AND REGIONAL What precisely is meant by the region which is specified in the term Regional Hegemony. We talk of South Asia as a region. Amitava Acharya in his Regional Worlds in a Post-hegemonic Era says Regional world subsumes regional order and regional institutions, as well as economic regionalization. Regional Worlds are not just material constructs.  [vi]  They offer sites for ideational and normative contestations, resistance and compromises, involving both states and civil societies which transcend regional boundaries and overlap into other regional and global spaces. Regional worlds are not autonomous entities, nor purely subsets of global dynamics. They create, absorb and repatriate ideational and material forces that make world politics and order. This definition brings out the important aspect of the term regional which are economic, ideational and so on. It is true that regional worlds are not autonomous entities since nations within a region are not only dependent on each other b ut are also affected by as small factors as the water problem which a any day take a bigger form. The policies of one nation affect the other in some way. Winston Churchill and Walter Lippmann were of the view that world order could best be attained by regional spheres of influence. Robert W.Cox in his Gramsci,Hegemony and International Relations: An essay in method, talks of the different phases in the world hegemony where he mentions the period of U.S hegemony from 1945-1965 and then mentions the phase which starts from 1965 which was characterized by the fall of the U.S hegemony with the rise of the third world and the fragmentation of the world economy  [vii]  . Amitava Acharya puts up a question asking whether the end of US hegemony might open the door to the rise of regional hegemonies such as East Asia under Chinese, South Asia under Indian, the Caucasus and Baltics under Russian, and southern Africa under South African, west Africa under Nigerian and south America under Brazilian, dominance. Would the end of American hegemony be replaced by such distinct or over-lapping regional hegemonies? Such questions have often come up and have forced the nations to think of any single nation progressing at a higher speed as a potential hegemon. In his Tragedy of Great Power Politics, John Mearshimer argues that great powers, including rising or aspiring great powers seek to achieve regional hegemony, a goal more necessary and attainable than global hegemony  [viii]  . It is true that in todays bigger than before world, global hegemony is a distant goal though some still vouch for the U.S hegemony. The point of concern comes to the fear of regio nal hegemons due to Hegemony often being understood as a first step towards imperialism. Regional imperialism of a kind in limited sense can not be avoided. If a country is bigger or stronger its foreign policy stakes would be higher and its objectives are to be set accordingly which may or may not be compatible with the interests of other regional states. South Asia as such did not have any real issues, however a psychological scare of big brother often posited smaller states in this region in defensive posture more as an over reaction. India is one such example of a state caught in a dilemna. INDIAS FOREIGN POLICY- non hegemonic When India got liberation from the imperialistic rule of British Empire in 1947, it was to adopt a policy, which should fulfill its aspirations of a changed world order and thereby confer a status, provide the country an economic stability and security to its borders. The ideological cover of non-alignment and panch sheel was best suited for this. One of the basic tenets of Panch sheel is peaceful co-existence, which implies non-interference in the internal matters of neighbors. In an effort to achieve its objective of word order where new nation states could progress together was to be the objective of Indias Foreign policy. Thus the hegemony over the neighboring states or in South Asia couldnot have been a part of Indias Foreign Policy. On the contrary it was against the policy of peaceful co-existence and Panch sheel. Indias efforts to allay the fears of its neighbors was one of the highlights in all these fora, be it NAM conferences or other international symposiums. Indias forei gn policy of non-alignment and its assumed role of third world leader however is one of its strength. But in a natural corollary to this surrounding countries felt weak and insecure due to natural fear lest India start acting as big brother in the region. Though Indias foreign policy of non alignment was more aimed at providing a new world order where the new states could survive without participating in the cold war between the super powers of post world war era, a big brother scare among the smaller countries is logical and could not have been avoided. There are various reasons that have led to these fears. WHY THE TAG? Countries that surround India, such as Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bagladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Burma are nowhere at par with India, be it in their size, population, economic development or skilled human resources. The natural resources available in theses countries also do not make these countries competitive. India dominates the whole area geographically. She is the only country that shares a large coast line with all the other six states while none of them have common borders with each other. China after the occupation on Tibet in 1950,reached the borders of the Asian subcontinent but faces problems of accessibility due to the difficulties of the northern terrain. K.M.Pannikar said Geography constitutes the permanent basis of every nations history. It is true since it is because of the rich geographical features that India possesses, landlocked nations like Nepal and Bhutan can hardly survive economically without Indias cooperation. Pakistan and Bangladesh too are dependent on India for water supply. Giantism as called by John.P.Lewis has its far reaching regional ramifications. The enmity with Pakistan continues since the partition days and is yet much behind India in all aspects other than nuclear status and that too is unclear. Three wars with Pakistan have almost established military supremacy of India in South Asia. In 1971 war India could successfully achieve its objective of dismembering Pakistan from various issues in spite of opposition of United States of America. Inspite of the various attempts of friendsihp including the recent cultural cross border efforts through Aman Ki Asha, Indo-Pak meetings always end up as what Nawaz Sharif had once described as zero meeting. Pakistan still doesnot grant India the status of MFN (most favoured nation) though SAFTA has been in force for some time now. Although Indias self-perception might be that it has acted with considerable restraint in prior crises with Pakistan, for example, in the 2002 standoff after the attacks on the Indian parliament, in the 1999 Kargil crisis and even in the1971 war, from the Pakis tani perspective the trauma of disintegration suffered in 1971-when India significantly assisted in the creation of Bangladesh-overshadows all Indian actions. China, though not a part of South Asia plays an important ole in the affairs of the region. China remains what Andrew Hurrell calls the best example of pragmatic accommodation  [ix]  and inspite of being a true friend and permanent member in the United Nations Security Council has often participated in discouraging Indias development in military, or as the permanent member of the United Nations Security Council or in the India-Pak wars or even the increasing friendly ties of India and U.S. India is a growing power and is a major market for Chinese goods as well as a major service provider at the global level. Hence, China has often displayed its displeasure at Indias hegemonic tendencies. Nepal is more or less dependent on India for its economic development. Nepals overtures with China in order to have an independence from the shadow of India could be an example of this over defensive posturing. India and Nepal have had a friend ship treaty since the days of King Tribhuvan. The treaty facilitated both countries to have trade across their borders without much of custom formalities. Nepals economic dependence on Indias economy and its geographical land locked position impelled Nepal to have this treaty. Nepal however never stopped searching for alternatives such as route to the sea through India and Bangladesh to increase its international trade. Invitation to China to build roads in Nepal was one such step to send a clear message that their country has other options too and as efforts to avoid dominance by one nation. Bangladesh came into being almost with the single handed initiative of India. Even their Mukti Bahini was trained by Indian Army. Soon after liberation from Pakistan, Bangla Desh started pursuing a policy to exert independence in its foreign policy. The fanatic elements in Bangla Desh however were not satisfied with this subtle and gradual posturing and assassinated their first President Sheikh Mujiburrahman for his being pro-Indian. Governments successively after his assassination had to pursue Controlled Anti Indian Stance in their Foreign policy in order to satisfy their domestic compulsion in expressing opposition to Indian hegemony. Sri Lankas foreign policy has been more independent in the region. However its domestic compulsion and gradual increase in the power of fanatic Buddhist elements in its politics and their pro-majority policies have complicated the domestic politics. This led to rise of Tamil resistant groups in Sri Lanka and then their establishment of a limited control over the Tamil majority areas in Northern and North eastern Sri Lanka. Indias limited role of sending IPKF to restore Sri Lankan control over these areas was also be seen as an effort to prove its hegemony in South Asia. Mohammed Ayoob wrote in India matters, that given its advantages in terms of both technically skilled manpower and command over the English language by a substantial section of the working population, India has the capacity to play an increasingly important role in the sphere of service industries. He also brought in another aspect which could have been responsible for the fear of Indias role as a regional hegemon  [x]  . It could be the strengthening ties between India and U.S. Ayoob brings in an interesting reason for the close bonds between India and U.S. He says Indian and U.S. concerns do not coincide merely on the issue of maintaining a stable and secure order in Asia in general and in South Asia in particular.A major threat to both regional and global stability and securitycomes from a particular variety of terrorism that has targeted both India and the United States. This is true that post the twin tower attacks in U.S,terrorism gained importance all over the world which owes it highlight to U.S because the 11 September attacks proved that terrorism could shake the super powers too. Hence,started the Indo-US friendship which continues and the signing of the nuclear deal was another step towards the friendship. That was another reason which made the neighbours uneasy about Indias increasing power. The question was whether India was trying its hand at friendship with the hegemon to follow it.  [xi]   Absence or weak democratic institutions in these countries, and Indias established democracy has further weakened the ties countries surrounding India. Nepal has had Monarchy for most of the part in last sixty years. The intervals of democratic governments there have so far not been able to establish a workable democracy. Pakistans army still calls the shots even if democratic governments come into power. Bangla Desh has had its own problems with democracy where the successive governments after being elected have tried to wipe out opposition, more of an inheritance from Pakistan. Sri Lanka has had democratic traditions which have weakened, off late, due to the rise of the fanatic elements in politics and government as well. Perhaps, Kants Perpetual Peace works here too in increasing the suspicions of other nations regarding India. The establishment of SAARC meant to have closer regional cooperation could not allay the fears of smaller states around India. It is more used as a forum for venting the feelings against India in a veiled manner. Before each SAARC meeting the diplomatic channels would have been working overtime to manage this in place of finding new avenues of regional cooperation. However the platform is often used to malign the Indian image by doing an all year roun survery of Indian intrevention in the affairs of other nations and that highlights the hegemonic tendencies of India. Indias role of being party to good offices and mediation in managing international crises could be another reason for the rising suspicions. Initially,oweing to the non-aligned status,India was accepted as a mediator by several belligerent states like in the Korean War,South African apartheid and so on. But the Bangladesh crisis was seen as an unnecessary intervention by Pakistan and even the Sri Lankan crisis which later led to the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. Many such interventions were seen as a display of unwanted disciplinary acts by India just like U.S played the role of a police man in the world scenario post world war. Indias new nuclear status has been seen as a disapproving move by Pakistan , China and several other nations of the world. The world today is basically divided on the basis of nuclear haves and have-nots. India joined the club with its first peaceful nuclear tests in 1974. India refused to sign the discriminatory treaties like NPT and CTBT and went ahead and signed the much criticised nuclear agreement with USA. USA came forward to accept India as a major global player and made an attempt to delink Indo-US relationhship from its relaionship with Pakistan. It was held that Indo-US civil nuclear deal was designed to serve Indian security needs and provide a basis for the development of bi-lateral relations with the USA. Though India declared its intention to sign similar nuclear cooperation treaties with other countries too and that her decision was not against any other nation, Indias nuclear status was not taken in good spirits by te neighbours and even beyond the neighbourhood. Indias role in Afganistan has often been seen as a hegemonic tendency. In the GIGA working papers,Melanie Hanif discussed the Indian involvement in Afganistan and said that India as a rising regional power is the only country in the region that might possess the capabilities,the willingness, and the legitimacy for a long-term engagement in Afghan security.  [xii]  India provides scholarships for Afghan students and fosters its commercial ties with the country, something which has, however,been hindered by Pakistans denial of direct access. India has also offered training to the Afghan National Security Forces, but this has not been realized due to Pakistani opposition.India is committed to development and infrastructure projects in various sectors in Afghanistan, especially the reconstruction of overland roads. In terms of soft power, Indias asset is the high popularity of Indian music, movies and television shows in Afghanistan. With a view to military capabilities, India has en hanced its presence in Central Asia through the establishment of its first airbase outside India, in Farkhor/Aini, Tajikistan.All this points to Indias willingness and preparedness to become more involved in the attempt to reconstruct and stabilize Afghanistan. Although most of the external parties are likely to accept a prominent role of India in Afghanistan,two important veto players remain, one within and one outside South Asia: Pakistan and China. IS INDIA A REGIONAL HEGEMON? All these reasons together see India as a regional hegemon. The tag has resulted in both seeing India as a leader as well as a threat. More than a threat, it is the suspicion and anxiety of other nations, which has given India the tag. Power is seen as a zero sum quality. The power gained by one nation is the loss of the other. India with all the resources and power is hence seen as an expansionist maybe not in the earlier imperialist ways but by means of soft power and mediation. However, it is highly doubtful to call India as the hegemon because hegemony would mean supremacy in decision making and policy making for all the other nations of the region. Pakistan is a major example of Indias faulty hegemony. Andrew Hurrell talks of the potential great powers in the world and calls them BRICs, i.e. Brazil, Russia, India and China.  [xiii]  He says that countries like Brazil, India and China are acquiring enough power to change the face of global politics and economics. However, he also brings out another aspect. He says that though these nations have the capacity to become great powers, these nations share certain uncertainties especially regarding the behaviour of the leader, United States. A second characteristic that these nations share is a sense of vulnerability. It is true for India too. Though the size may increase options and like every other nation, India too may have a belief in its natural right to an influential international role yet it is aware of its vulnerability. When Hurrell talks of India as a great power, he questions what would happen if the developing country identity of India comes into conflict with the aspiring great power identity. This argument brings the as pect of Indias aspirations for being a great power, which would be the aspirations of any nation. Any nation has the goal of being counted among the influential ones. That does not necessarily imply hegemonic tendencies. The most important aspect is the recognition. For India to be a regional hegemon, it is a precondition that other nations acknowledge the position desired. To be a hegemon, India would need the support and recognition by the entire region. This is highly unattainable in todays times of globalization and freedom. All the nations are sovereign and are free to take their decisions on the basis of their national interests. There is interdependence but not domination. There is the whole process of settlement of disputes by mediation but the mediator remains only that and nothing more. The world today is anarchic where there is no overarching authority. There are sections that advocate for some authority but there is no such authority present. Even United States, which could be called once the leader or the hegemon, is met with opposition now by developing nations like India. The Gulf War met with a massive opposition and international pressure. India is nowhere near USA in any development al field. In his book The Production of Space, Henri Lefebvre posits that geographic space is not a passive locus of social relations, but that it is trialectical   constituted by mental space, social space, and physical space   hence, hegemony is a spatial process influenced by geopolitics.  [xiv]  This is true because inspite of being a huge nation India is still behind Japan in the technology aspect. If we look at Asia, we have China as a competitor. Infact, though China is not a part of South Asia, it is very much a part of the decision making process. Whether we talk of the Indo-Pak relations or the Kashmir issue which had affected almost all the nations of South Asia in some way, China ha always had a say. It is quite powerful and enjoys a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council. It could always be called as the hegemon of Asia if we consider development and relations with U.S to be a criterion for the tag. China has for years maintained a balance in is re lation with the west in spite of it being a communist nation. In spite of being a communist nation, it enjoys a special place in the world. That is power. The benchmark for every Indian step is the Chinese strength. SOUTH ASIA: INDIAS RESPONSIBILITY? K.P.S.Gill in the article Freedom From Fear Regional Security India can redeem South Asia, called South Asia the most volatile area of the world, as the epicenter, the new locus of terrorism, as the venue of a resource-sapping and futile arms race and of a possible and devastating nuclear confrontation  [xv]  . Gill says India is the regional giant of South Asia and accepts that it has been thought of as an ambitious regional hegemon. India is the home to a resurgent economy, led by sections of the hi-tech manufacturing and information technologies sector, has attracted significant and growing international investments and multinational participation. Much of this globalization, though, is still within the category of speculation and predatory capitalism, rather than a deep structural reorientation or long-term commitment by international partners. India is also home to the largest pool of technical and skilled manpower in the world, though its quality may be somewhat uneven. Despite these drawbacks, the countrys potential to seize the opportunities of the new technological revolution is unquestionable. Gill says that India being on the way to the developed status has to take the responsibility of bringing up the entire region. To do this, it must accept the notion of its own centrality, not as hegemon or big brother, but in processes of genuine friendship and shared concerns with its neighbours. But, before doing that India would have to deal with the suspicions regarding Indias interventions and initiatives. This true because even the slightest initiatives taken by any nation for the progress of another nation, are looked at as expansionist and hegemonic tendencies. In the absence of direct imperialism and old forms of power, a new term has come up and that is Soft Power which has been discussed by Joseph Nye is what operates today. In todays times, power has changed its face. It is no more confined o traditional instruments like military and economic assistance, because they are rarely sufficient to deal with the new dilemmas of the world politics. Today multinationals are the ne w sources of the co-optive power. India has gained a lot from these multinationals. As India liberalized her economy, these multinational corporations entered t

Self reference Criterion and importance for International marketing

Self reference Criterion and importance for International marketing Self-reference Criterion and its importance for International marketing If you take a look around yourself you will find how many goods and services are solely produced in your own country around you? Your clothes might be produced in Pakistan, your cell phone from China, your computer in Singapore; your Coffee might be from Latin America. Whatever we talk about music, clothes, movies or our soft drinks for everything there are good chances that most of these products are produced in somewhere else in the globe. This is the global market place where good price and quality is welcomed by consumers irrespective of the region of its origination. In this scenario the need is to adopt the marketing practices that are effective beyond the borders so the importance of international marketing cannot be denied. International marketing is not an easy task. The international marketer has to face many obstacles in the way to achieve his goals. One of the primary obstacles is whenever we face a problem; we react abruptly and take decisions on the basis of values, meanings, behaviors and symbols that we have taken from our own culture. This type of decisions usually do not proved to be correct, as values, meanings and all other elements of culture usually differ from country to country. This is called self-reference criterion. According to Cateora at al (2007), the self-reference criterion is when decisions are taken on the basis of experiences, values and knowledge of ones own culture. The understanding of self-reference criterion is very much important for the marketing firm that plans to enter in international markets. In local markets on the basis of self-reference criterion; the marketer can predict the future responses of customers to a particular product but in the markets of some other country or culture the responses of customers will be based on their unique cultural environment. Even when the marketing strategy for international market is developed very carefully, chances of misunderstandings cannot be entirely vanished due to many un-avoidable factors. The intervention of self-reference criterion in international marketing practices can be easily understood with the help of following examples. In an advertisement created by Nestle corporation for their Kit Kat, a voice cover of local language was used for both countries UK and Italy. In that advertisement the quack, universal language of ducks, and duck callers were used by duck hunter to attract the ducks. Meanwhile in the commercial they became frustrated and to have a cheerful break they need a Kit Kat. That advertisement could not be succeeded because of the cultural differences between the consumers culture and marketers culture. In Italy the hunting is considered as a negative act and Italian also took Kit Kat as a luxury and product. From this example we can clearly say that the success of a marketing strategy is critically based on customer understandings and its important is raised more when we talk about international marketing. In 1996 McDonalds opened seven restaurants in India. The 40% population of India is vegetarian and they do not eat meat or animal proteins. The fish, frozen meat and spicy foods were also not frequently used by remaining meat eaters. So in order to be successful in new market the McDonalds had make many changes to its prime products and needed to use separate tools and kitchens to make burgers and other products according to the needs of Indian markets. This all created many problems for the company and company had also incurred many extra costs. This example shows that how companies have to face self-referencing criterion when expanding their business in new international markets. When Unilever started its operations in Brazil and wanted to introduce detergents, the biggest issues that company faced ware that people in Brazil dont have washing machines, in rural areas people used to wash their clothes at the river and most of the population of Brazil was poor and they were very much conscious about the products. So to avoid self-reference criterion the Unilever first developed a formula of soap, they made the plastic packing of soaps to conveniently use while washing clothes on rivers and they made small packing of detergents in order to low their prices and made them affordable for maximum number of population that have low incomes. This was the most successful tool used by the company to avoid the effects of self-reference criterion and recognized the existence of this influence in our behaviors. It is argued that one can never understand deeply each and every aspect of the culture but awareness about major aspects can be obtained, and he should ask bout that he does not know and should be open enough to accept the differences. The global awareness can be used as most effective tool to control the effects of self-reference criterion and ensure the success of an international marketing campaign. The global awareness is described by the Cateora et al as to be: Objective to understand the opportunities in correct manners make correct assessments of organizations potential and design responses to the expected problems. Mostly the western companies attracted towards India due to its huge market of more than one billion population and take it as a good opportunity and market with a lot of potential but they ignore the purchasing power and low income factors of the economy of India, the inefficient media, poor distribution, poor and low standard of infrastructures and many other factors that cause the reduction in potential of this huge markets for many kind of products. Tolerant towards the differences prevail among cultures. It is referred to the understanding of differences prevail among cultures and acceptance of these differences when working in a common working place with those who belongs to different cultural group. As in Romania when some Arab businessmen came to visit the country for opportunities and a local student was attached to them as translator. She spent two week with them to visit the different Romanian cities but she could not adjust herself with their eating habits and showed the behavior of lack of tolerance for other cultures. Knowledgeable of history, cultures, general trends and real potentials of markets. The awareness of culture is very much important if one wants to know the behaviors of some particular market place. The basic element of the environment in which the company is going to start its business is culture of that place and consumer behaviors are very much influenced by this. The history of that place is very much important to understand the behaviors of consumers as past events always have great effects on the way people behave in a particular case. By analyzing the history we can understand why British were not in favor of the channel tunnel between France and Britain and why Turkish products are not liked in Greek. The understanding of market potential is important because they are varying very fast. If we see now we will find many regions of the world that showing increasing potential, many markets have emerging trends and most of the European markets have been saturated. In next twenty y ears the emerging markets from Asia will show huge potentials for future businesses. The understandings of general trends like global political, economical and social trends are very much important because growth process of the market is depend upon these trends. A good marketer will identify the market opportunities before anyone else could know them. Now it is very much clear that the success of marketing firm is very much dependant on its ability to understand the customers and even more like a life blood for firms that are operating at international level. Following are some more examples given by Housden and Lewis to develop more understanding of the concept. In China green color is used to represent the people who sells vegetables so British racing green has no chances to be successful in China. In Brunei the Yellow color is considered as royal color and its public use is not appreciated. In order to show the sorrow of death purple color is used in Mexico. In china number 8 is taken as lucky number and considered as premium number to take as number of cars but number 4 is considered vice versa. The firms operating at international level must be very much conscious about the translations of their slogans, tag lines or brand names etc in local language of that place. If they dont take it seriously it can be very harmful for their marketing campaigns. Hundred of examples can be presented about the improper selection of Brand names and designs that caused failures because of self-referencing criterion. Superpiss that is a Scandinavian dicer it cannot be translated into English properly. Pschitt is lemonade from France and cannot be advertized in Germany as its proper translation is not possible in German. Bimbo bread and Bum Crisps are brands from Spain and their advertisement is not possible in United States as their names are not acceptable there. The slogan of Pepsi Cola Come Alive with Pepsi is not acceptable in china as in Chinese it means Pepsi raises relatives from the dead. In 1966 James Lee accepted the importance of self-reference criterion for marketing firms and provided an approach of four stages in order to mitigate the biases raised by this self-referencing criterion especially in international marketing. In first step the problem is defined on the basis of culture of home country. In second step the problem should be defined again on the basis of culture of the country in which company wants to start operations without involving value judgments. Control the effects of self-referencing criterion on problem definition and analyze the problem. Then problem is redefined without the self-referencing criterion. The importance to understand the effects of self-reference criterion cannot be overlooked by the marketing firm that wants to operate at international level. It can act as life blood for the success of the marketing campaigns designed by the company and their effectiveness is based on the understanding of the campaigns developers about the culture of the host country. Knowledge of sub-cultural groups and Market segmentation The segmentation of the market involves the dividing of entire market into small customers groups who have different type of responses for different marketing strategies for particular service or product. In this way the organization can design the marketing policies according to the particular needs and requirements of each segment in order to have more profitability by more generating favorable responses than by simply applying a single marketing policy for whole market. The market segmentation is mostly done at the level of customers. But in case of international marketing sometimes markets are also segmented on the basis of whole countries by considering the aspects that are common among countries. This type of segmentation is not proved that much successful as countries have great variation in them and it is difficult to take meaningful averages. The most suitable basis that is used to segment the markets is customers and their unique response behaviors or purchasing decisions. Many factors affect the purchasing decisions of customers that are uncontrollable by them but they have indirect or direct influences on the lifestyle of customers. Culture is one of these factors that affect the consumer behaviors. It represents the shared beliefs, behaviors and meanings among the members of a society. Whatever we do is based upon these shared behaviors that are transferred in a society from one member to another. It is a wide concept and has not as much importance for marketers as the groups within the culture or sub-cultures. The subculture is consisting of members who have their own values, beliefs and customs within the society that distinguish them from others in same society. Moreover they also obey the major values, beliefs and behaviors of dominant culture of the whole society. Subculture can be defined as a separate cultural group that prevails in a society as recognizable segment. There can be different types of subcultures prevail in a society like religious subcultures, ethnic subcultures, age subcultures and disabilities subcultures. So the knowledge of subcultures is very much important for marketers while segmenting their markets in smaller groups. Because the goal of all the efforts of marketers are to convince the customers to buy their brands and a very effective tool that is usually used by them to achieve this goal is cultural representations. By using this tool it is believed that when products relates to the cultural values the customers feel more comfortable. The marketers put a lot of efforts to understand the differences and similarities prevail in these sub cultural groups. They design their marketing policies for these cultural groups and try to attract them towards the product by aligning the product with the values and beliefs of their subculture. Although it is difficult to develop effective marketing policy for different subcultures, they must put their efforts to get sufficient knowledge about the similarities and differences among these groups in order to capitalize them. The importance of knowledge of subcultures for marketers while segmenting the markets can be very well understand by discussing the example of a Cigarette manufacturer who wants design the marketing policy for the subcultures groups of United States. The whole market of United States is divided in three sub-cultural groups of African American, Hispanics and Asians. The one big common factor in Hispanics, African Americans and Asians is that they are minorities in the United States. The first ever minority that migrated to United States is African Americans and after great struggle now they are considered as an important sub-cultural group of America because of their strong influence on politics and culture. The Hispanics is the largest minority of United Stated although they could not gain that much influence on American politics and culture as African Americans. This subculture has many similarities like language, food, political views and religion but this is a highly divided subculture. Just like Hispanics, Asians is also a subculture group that is highly divided but they dont have as much similarities as Hispanics has. A big challenge for the companys marketers is to design the marketing policies that best align with the norms and values of these subcultures by indentifying the differences and similarities of these sub-cultural groups. Differences Among subcultures African Americans: African American is most organized and strong sub-cultural group of United States. However they belong to different cultures of Africa but they lived many years under ethnic discrimination and efforts of many years have united them now. Today the presence of African Americans can be seen in Music, Sports and even in Politics with great influence. Now they are considered a strong group of America and they are showing their success not only politically but also by material possessions in the form of jewelry, luxury vehicles and recognition in public. Hispanics: This is a subculture group of United States with high diversities but according to CBS News, 2003 they also have a largest population of minority in United States. They belong to more than 20 different countries and cultures. They are more concerned with religion and families and most of them belong to Catholic thoughts. The number of Hispanics is increasing due to more immigrants every year and they want acceptance in the society as a strong influential group. Asians: The challenges faced by Asian are not different from Hispanics; Asian is even more diversified subculture group because they differ in religion, language, food and even in facial features. The members of this group belongs to the countries of China, Japan, India and Thailand and these all countries differ in languages, eating habits and even in facial features. One common thing that all Asians have who immigrate to United States is that want to achieve a better lifestyle so their more intentions are towards the achievement of success and they are mostly involved in entrepreneurial activities. Marketing Strategies to Target Subcultures The knowledge of sub-cultural groups for marketers has great significance while designing marketing strategies to target these groups. As the African Americans have goals to be most successful individuals the need of the cigarette marketers is to design the strategy that focuses on assigning a sense of uniqueness, class and sophistication for all those customers who will be smoking that cigarette. So the association of the brand with any public and highly successful African American will give a very much positive response for the brand. On other hand the Hispanics more concerned with belongingness and family so the strategy that more focuses on an image of traditions and trust factors will have more positive results. The thing that needs more attentions of marketers is that this group is highly diversified group and differs in status as well. The use of language will also be very much critical towards the success of campaign for this group. In case of Asians this subculture is consid ered as low profile group and strategy that will best suit for this group will be focused on respect of individual identity and traditions. The languages used for this group will more suitable if native language will be used. The success of an effective segmentation and a good marketing strategy is highly based on the knowledge of the marketer about the subcultures prevail in the society. People belongs to different subcultures differ from each others in many terms. They differ in their languages, their ages, their eating habits, beliefs, and even in facial features. So to design a well aligned marketing strategy the marketer should have sufficient knowledge of the sub cultural groups of the society.

Claudio and Heros Relationship in Shakespeares Much Ado About Nothing

Claudio and Hero are the idealised Elizabethan couple in the book because of the patriarchal society that the story is based on. This is because Hero is shown as a weak and powerless young woman while Claudio is described as a powerful and honourable man. In the wedding Claudio decides to shame her and says ‘There, Leonato, take her back again Give not this rotten orange to your friend’. Even when Hero is being insulted and accused of being a prostitute she does not defend herself and says ‘Is my lord well, that he doth speak so wide?’ Instead of defending herself she asks if Claudio is alright which displays a sign of weakness in her. Claudio and Hero’s relationship started off at love at first sight therefore they did not know each other when they fell in love which was bad because if only Claudio knew Hero better than he would not have to worry about the lies that entered his ear. When Claudio is tricked into believing Hero was going out with someone else he says ‘If I see any thing tonight why I should not marry her tomorrow in the congregation, where I should wed, there will...

Leveraging Mobile Device Applications for Boeing Travel and Expense Ser

Abstract—More companies are leveraging mobile device applications that integrate with their existing travel and expense systems to provide frequent business travelers with the necessary tools to efficiently book trips and expense their expenditures using mobile devices, thus allowing business travelers to be more productive, which saves the company money. Currently, almost twenty-three thousand Boeing employees have been issued BlackBerry Smartphones. Ninety-percent of these employees make more than one trip per month. Currently, Boeing is not maximizing the use of the BlackBerry Smartphones by using a mobile application for Boeing Travel and Expense management to decrease costs by allowing employees to be more productive. Since twenty-three thousand employees already have been issued BlackBerry Smartphones we can leverage these devices and implement a mobile device application that integrates with our current Travel and Expense Systems that we have purchased from Concur Travel. Purchasing a mobile applications solution from Concur Travel will allow Boeing travelers to save time; reduce costs; increase productivity; and better serve our customers. I. MOTIVATION Concur’s mobile capability will provide Boeing with the perfect solution for employees, managers and executive staff who no longer have to wait until they return to the ofï ¬ ce to complete or approve an expense report. Travelers will be able to use the mobile app to take pictures of their receipts and complete expense reports using their BlackBerrys. When they return to the ofï ¬ ce they don’t have to sit at a desk all day to do one expense report on paper or come back to the ofï ¬ ce just to approve an expense report [1]. The primary drivers for implementing a Concur Tr... ...al%20Report%20-%20Long%20Version.pdf. [2] Concur, "Concur Give Organization Best-in-Class Travel and Expense Experience," nd. [Online]. Available: http://assets.concur.com/case-studies/medium-large-business-travel-expense-cannon-cochran-management-services.pdf. [3] Aberdeen Group, "Mobile Technology: Filling the Gap in Modern Expense Management," March 2011. [Online]. Available: http://assets.concur.com/whitepaper/mobile-technology.pdf. [4] Concur, "Concur’s Mobile Solution Keeps Growing Motion Picture Exhibitor on the Go," April 2011. [Online]. Available: http://assets.concur.com/case-studies/cinemark-case-study.pdf. [5] Concur, "Building an Effective Business Case: Automating Travel Booking and Expense Reporting Processing," February 2009. [Online]. Available: http://www.travelwise.co.uk/business/downloads/CNQRWP-Building_an_Effective_Business_Case_NA.pdf.

Leopold the Land Ethic

â€Å"The Land Ethic† by Aldo Leopold â€Å"The Land Ethic†is an individual essay that was collected from the major publication â€Å"The Sand County Almanac† written by Aldo Leopold during his life time, and it was published one year after his death in 1949. This essay was read by many people during his lifetime and was a powerful force in ecological sphere for many years. Leopold collected all his knowledge in this major publication, and in â€Å"The Land Ethic† he calls for people's attention in order to preserve the environment, protect the land from changing, and protect species from the extinction.Aldo Leopold in â€Å"The Lend Ethic† explains to his readers what is meant by land ethic. It's a sort of combination of rules about what is right and what is wrong, and Leopold writes that it â€Å"is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community† and â€Å"is wrong when it tends otherwise†. In the chapter â€Å"The Ecological Conscience† Leopold writes that this ecological set of â€Å"rules† can not be written down on a paper as a book of laws, because â€Å"obligations have no meaning without conscience, and the problem we face is the extension of the social conscience from people to land†.What the author means is that people must take action by following the rules either written on paper or not. â€Å"Education must precede rules† writes Leopold in his essay. People should be more educated regarding the conservations they have and understand that without land ethic there is going to be no â€Å"place to compete for†. In my point of view, Leopold is absolutely right at this point and as a result, we can see thousands of species that are already extinct forever from the face of the planet. Our future generations will not have a chance to see them.As an example, Wikipedia Encyclopedia gives a wide variety of those species that were extinct and will never be seen on this planet. The tragic part is that most of those species disappeared as a result of mankind's unethical decisions. That is why it is so important to understand the idea and the whole point of the land ethic in order to truly follow the â€Å"unwritten† rules of ethic. Leopold raises one of the very important issues of the humanity today, and it is a land use. By mentioning the land Leopold means â€Å"soils, waters, plants, and animals†.He concerned about how people can abuse the land in nowadays and exterminate all resources that it provides. When the author talks about resources he says that lend ethic suppose to â€Å"affirm their right to continued existence†. The main ideology of the land ethic is that people should be responsible for their actions when they use land and keep it in the original condition like they received it when they came on this land. In my point of view, in order for people to establish the kind of l and ethic that Leopold describes, people should take action seriously on what is happening today.People should switch to a clean natural energy sources like wind, water, and sun. There should be stricter regulations on factorial’s waste, because still most of the factories dump into the close by river or ocean, which causes deaths of thousands of animals. Cars and trucks should minimize exhaust gases in a larger proportion then we see it today, because only very few people can afford driving expensive electric cars or hybrids. Those types of cars should be more accessible through cheaper prices and government help.As of today, our government doesn't help people who are concerned about the environment, and there is no budget for that. Government doesn't see any economical advantage in helping those people, because â€Å"the evidence had to be economic in order to be valid† – writes Leopold in â€Å"Substitutes for a Land Ethic†. In my point of view, this i s a critical mistake, and I agree with Leopold at his point, that â€Å"a system of conservation based solely on economic self-interest is hopelessly lopsided†. Today's ideology is if some species don’t have any economic value they will be exterminated.For example, timber crops â€Å"grow too slowly, or have too low a sale value to pay†. Moreover, it's not only some specific species that luck on economic value, but there are entire biotic communities, like â€Å"marshes, bogs, dunes, and deserts†. Is that mean that we should get rid of those things as well? Things like dunes and deserts are homes for millions of species. In order for people to develop a conscience with regard to their use and abuse of the land, they should clearly understand the land pyramid system.Leopold talks about the importance of the land pyramid in â€Å"The Land Ethic†. The land pyramid is a sort of a food chain structure, where mankind is tightly involved. Soil, plants, in sects, and animals are all tightly involved in this food chain and cannot survive without the existence of one another. Soil provides food for plants, plants for insects, insects for animals, and â€Å"man shares an intermediate layer with the bears, raccoons, and squirrels which eat both meat and vegetables†.At this point, people should clearly realize that by exterminating of one of these layers humankind exterminates itself. By abusing the land people can loose everything they have today, and it can be no future for people. Realizing people's position in the land pyramid can help people to understand how important it is to protect every single layer of the pyramid, and preserve what they have. In my point of view, people should follow land ethics and respect what the land gives them. People should be thankful to the land for what it gives them.For example, when it comes to the use of natural resources, people should think about the environment and not damage what was natur ally created. They should not interfere or destroy the natural cycle, otherwise it can lead to disastrous consequences. Even though people don't see from their perspective that some things such as dunes, deserts, and rocks can bring economical or financial value, it doesn't mean that they can get rid of them. They are valued beyond an economical standpoint; they can protect lands from flooding and prevent millions of species from extinction.When it comes to me personally and what I do in order to follow ethical values, I take responsibility for my actions. For example, I recycle plastic bottles and bags, or when I go out to the forest with my friends I never leave trash behind. Maybe my actions seem too little when it comes to a global issues, but I believe that anything big starts from a little. I really hope that more people will follow Leopold's ideas, and all together we can make a difference. | | Leopold the Land Ethic â€Å"The Land Ethic† by Aldo Leopold â€Å"The Land Ethic†is an individual essay that was collected from the major publication â€Å"The Sand County Almanac† written by Aldo Leopold during his life time, and it was published one year after his death in 1949. This essay was read by many people during his lifetime and was a powerful force in ecological sphere for many years. Leopold collected all his knowledge in this major publication, and in â€Å"The Land Ethic† he calls for people's attention in order to preserve the environment, protect the land from changing, and protect species from the extinction.Aldo Leopold in â€Å"The Lend Ethic† explains to his readers what is meant by land ethic. It's a sort of combination of rules about what is right and what is wrong, and Leopold writes that it â€Å"is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community† and â€Å"is wrong when it tends otherwise†. In the chapter â€Å"The Ecological Conscience† Leopold writes that this ecological set of â€Å"rules† can not be written down on a paper as a book of laws, because â€Å"obligations have no meaning without conscience, and the problem we face is the extension of the social conscience from people to land†.What the author means is that people must take action by following the rules either written on paper or not. â€Å"Education must precede rules† writes Leopold in his essay. People should be more educated regarding the conservations they have and understand that without land ethic there is going to be no â€Å"place to compete for†. In my point of view, Leopold is absolutely right at this point and as a result, we can see thousands of species that are already extinct forever from the face of the planet. Our future generations will not have a chance to see them.As an example, Wikipedia Encyclopedia gives a wide variety of those species that were extinct and will never be seen on this planet. The tragic part is that most of those species disappeared as a result of mankind's unethical decisions. That is why it is so important to understand the idea and the whole point of the land ethic in order to truly follow the â€Å"unwritten† rules of ethic. Leopold raises one of the very important issues of the humanity today, and it is a land use. By mentioning the land Leopold means â€Å"soils, waters, plants, and animals†.He concerned about how people can abuse the land in nowadays and exterminate all resources that it provides. When the author talks about resources he says that lend ethic suppose to â€Å"affirm their right to continued existence†. The main ideology of the land ethic is that people should be responsible for their actions when they use land and keep it in the original condition like they received it when they came on this land. In my point of view, in order for people to establish the kind of l and ethic that Leopold describes, people should take action seriously on what is happening today.People should switch to a clean natural energy sources like wind, water, and sun. There should be stricter regulations on factorial’s waste, because still most of the factories dump into the close by river or ocean, which causes deaths of thousands of animals. Cars and trucks should minimize exhaust gases in a larger proportion then we see it today, because only very few people can afford driving expensive electric cars or hybrids. Those types of cars should be more accessible through cheaper prices and government help.As of today, our government doesn't help people who are concerned about the environment, and there is no budget for that. Government doesn't see any economical advantage in helping those people, because â€Å"the evidence had to be economic in order to be valid† – writes Leopold in â€Å"Substitutes for a Land Ethic†. In my point of view, this i s a critical mistake, and I agree with Leopold at his point, that â€Å"a system of conservation based solely on economic self-interest is hopelessly lopsided†. Today's ideology is if some species don’t have any economic value they will be exterminated.For example, timber crops â€Å"grow too slowly, or have too low a sale value to pay†. Moreover, it's not only some specific species that luck on economic value, but there are entire biotic communities, like â€Å"marshes, bogs, dunes, and deserts†. Is that mean that we should get rid of those things as well? Things like dunes and deserts are homes for millions of species. In order for people to develop a conscience with regard to their use and abuse of the land, they should clearly understand the land pyramid system.Leopold talks about the importance of the land pyramid in â€Å"The Land Ethic†. The land pyramid is a sort of a food chain structure, where mankind is tightly involved. Soil, plants, in sects, and animals are all tightly involved in this food chain and cannot survive without the existence of one another. Soil provides food for plants, plants for insects, insects for animals, and â€Å"man shares an intermediate layer with the bears, raccoons, and squirrels which eat both meat and vegetables†.At this point, people should clearly realize that by exterminating of one of these layers humankind exterminates itself. By abusing the land people can loose everything they have today, and it can be no future for people. Realizing people's position in the land pyramid can help people to understand how important it is to protect every single layer of the pyramid, and preserve what they have. In my point of view, people should follow land ethics and respect what the land gives them. People should be thankful to the land for what it gives them.For example, when it comes to the use of natural resources, people should think about the environment and not damage what was natur ally created. They should not interfere or destroy the natural cycle, otherwise it can lead to disastrous consequences. Even though people don't see from their perspective that some things such as dunes, deserts, and rocks can bring economical or financial value, it doesn't mean that they can get rid of them. They are valued beyond an economical standpoint; they can protect lands from flooding and prevent millions of species from extinction.When it comes to me personally and what I do in order to follow ethical values, I take responsibility for my actions. For example, I recycle plastic bottles and bags, or when I go out to the forest with my friends I never leave trash behind. Maybe my actions seem too little when it comes to a global issues, but I believe that anything big starts from a little. I really hope that more people will follow Leopold's ideas, and all together we can make a difference. | |