Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 26

Human Resource Management - Essay Example This was because in my sociology studies I had learned that culture was something that occurred naturally and not necessarily a HRM practice. In reality, I did not think that organizational culture had anything to do with the success or failure of an organization and to me the insistence on culture was overrated. People from diverse cultures might understand the same situation in various ways. Productivity may rise in a multicultural work environment as each employee brings diverse talents and skills that can be used to solve challenges. One thing that I did not understand was how these differences could bring about conflict in the work place (Schizas, 2009). In order to understand exactly how culture is crucial to the success of an organization, I studied IBM. IBM is a multinational corporation that has over 400,000 employees and in various parts of the world. My major reason for choosing IBM is because the company has a big presence in Asia and this means that the business practices that are applied in the United States are not likely to be applicable in Asia or Africa and this call for a change in the organizational culture. My main reason for undertaking this study is to find out exactly if organizational culture is important to the organization in trying to achieve its financial goals. To achieve my objective, I will look at the existing literature on organizational culture and how it affects businesses. I will however pay close attention to IBM especially on the changes that they have made in their organizational culture with a view to establishing if this has borne any fruits or not. Along the way, I will also be looking at some of the changes that the company has undertaken in order to realign its HR practices and strategies to enable it to move away from its traditional methods and to adopt new approaches. In the research, I will also seek to establish some of the common errors that are

Theoretical Paradigms Essay Example for Free

Theoretical Paradigms Essay Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Theoretical paradigms allow sociologists to analyze effectively virtually any dimension of society.   It is a set of fundamental assumptions that guides thinking and research.   Two among the three paradigms in sociology that I want to compare and contrast in terms of their strengths and weaknesses of their explanatory value for social inequalities are the Conflict Approach and Functionalism Approach. The Conflict Approach is a theoretical framework based on the assumption that society is a complex system characterized by inequality and conflict that generate social change. This approach complements the functional approach by highlighting not integration but social division.   This approach strength is that it guides sociologists to investigate how factors such as social class, race, ethnicity, sex, and age are linked to unequal distribution of money, power, education, and social prestige.  Ã‚   Therefore, rather than identifying how social structure promotes the operation of society as a whole, this approach focuses on how these patterns benefit some people while being harmful to others.   Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, the functionalism Approach is a framework for building theory based on the assumption that society is a complex system whose parts work together to promote stability. The functional approach strength is that, it makes two assertions.   The first holds that society is composed of social structures, meaning relatively stable patterns of social behavior.   Social structures range from broad patterns, including the family and religious systems, to face-to-face behavior like waving hello.   The second is that each social structure has a social function, or consequences for the operation of society as a whole (Marx, 1984).   Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Moreover, the functionalism approach has long been influential in sociology.   The positivist root in this approach is the tendency to see the social world as stable and orderly.   The job of sociologists, from this point of view, is to employ scientific research to learn how society works. Despite its strong influence on the discipline of sociology, however, recent decades have revealed the weaknesses of this approach.   By assuming that society operates more or less â€Å"naturally,† critics point out, the functionalism approach tends to overlook how social patterns vary form place to place and change over time.   Thus, the notion that any particular arrangement is natural seems hazardous at best.   By focusing attention on societal unity, critics point out, functionalism tends to overlook divisions based on social class, race, ethnicity, and gender, and to downplay how such division can generate tension and conflict. In addition to its weaknesses, functionalism emphasis on stability and tends to minimize important processes of social change.   Further, by emphasizing social integration, the functionalism approach tends to pay less attention to divisions based on social class, race, ethnicity, and gender and to downplay how such divisions often generate tension and conflict.   Overall, then, this approach takes a conservative stance toward society. The conflict approach, on the other hand, has developed rapidly in recent decades.   Yet, like functionalism, it has a number of weaknesses.   One, this approach highlights power struggles, it gives little attention to social unity based on functional interdependence and shared values.   Another, the conflict approach advocates explicitly political goals in its drive for a more egalitarian society, thereby giving up claim to scientific objectivity.   Supporters of this approach counter that all social approaches have political consequences, albeit different ones. An additional weakness, which applies equally to both the functionalism and conflict approach, is that they paint society with broad strokes, describing our lives as a composite of â€Å"family,† â€Å"social class,† â€Å"gender,† â€Å"ethnic group,† â€Å"race,† and so on. Hence, both functionalism and conflict approach share a macro-level orientation, meaning a concern with large-scale patterns that characterize society as a whole.   They take in the big picture, as one might investigate a city from the vantage point of a helicopter high above the ground, noting how highways facilitate traffic flow from one place to another or the striking contrasts between rich and poor neighborhoods. These approaches limit their attention to large-scale structures and processes while overlooking the details of everyday life (such as the interactions that occur in a particular bar on a particular day at a particular hour).   Macro-level orientation takes various forms: those who adopt a conflict approach see large-scale social patterns in terms of how they impose themselves on the behavior of individuals.   That is, they try to describe characteristics of society as a whole in ways that illuminate patterns of interaction among individuals. Those who adopt a functionalism approach ask how the large-scale patterns of society as a whole contribute to the integration of society. Conflict sociologists find that the distribution of people among position (or statuses) affects decisions even as â€Å"personal† as the choice of a marriage partner.   Tepperman Curtis (2004) use two characteristics of society—heterogeneity and inequality—to predict rates of intermarriage (that is, the frequency of marriage involving people from different racial, ethnic, or religious groups).     Ã‚  Heterogeneity refers to the level of sameness or differentiation within a population:   heterogeneity is high if a population is divided into many different racial, ethnic, or religious groups; it is low if most of the people are the same in these respects. Inequality refers to the distribution of valued resources such as wealth or education.   In a society with high inequality, such resources are concentrated in the hands of the few, while the majority has very little left to divide among themselves; inequality is lower when these resources are divided more evenly among people in a society.   According to Tepperman Curtis, higher rates of heterogeneity and inequality encourage people to interact with people different from themselves, and this interaction in turn increases the rate of intermarriage.    It follows that higher rates of heterogeneity and inequality generally promote rather than discourage intergroup relations of all kinds.   The behavior is predicted from the structure of the society itself rather than from the beliefs and attitudes of individuals.   The level of integration of a society is a consequence of the distribution of people among social positions (that is, of the amount of heterogeneity and inequality). The functionalists take a different perspective on the large-scale integration of society.   These sociologists see society as composed of specialized institutions: patterned behaviors and status/role relationships that fulfill basic societal needs.   For example, economic institutions are responsible for mobilizing scarce resources in order to produce and distribute goods and services that people need.   Dissimilar institutions are held together in an ordered whole because each is assigned the task of satisfying a particular societal need; each contributes to the overall functional integration of the society itself.   Without families, for example, new generation would not be socialized to the dominant values and norms of the society.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   As a conclusion, both the Conflict Approach and Functionalism Approach envision society in abstract terms, which sometimes seem quite distant from our everyday experience. References Marx, K. (1984).   Selected Writings in Sociology and Social Philosophy. T. B.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Bottomore, Trans.     McGraw-Hill, New York. Tepperman, L. Curtis, J. (2004).   Sociology: A Canadian Perspective. Oxford   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   University Press, Canada.

Theory And Evidence Of Microfinance And Poverty Economics Essay

Theory And Evidence Of Microfinance And Poverty Economics Essay 2.0 Introduction It is widely believed that, together with improvement in their geographical surroundings, micro finance is a powerful tool to alleviate poverty and empower women in their development. However these facilities are not restricted to women only. It is also extended to all those who are struggling to combat poverty or to indulge in their own entrepreneurship. Therefore, this chapter will review definitions in the field of microfinance and poverty. To enlighten further the study, empirical evidence are being analysed and discussed more appropriately below. 2.1 What Is Microfinance? image1.png The idea of microfinance started in Bangladesh around 1976 with Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank who has recently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his achievement. Microfinance refers to the supply of loans, savings and other basic financial services to poor. With innovative means and development microfinance has been adopted and practiced in most developing countries where it has gained unbelievable success. Moreover, from December 1997 till December 2005 the number of microfinance institutions increased from 618 to 3,133. Supplementary evidences regarding its developments have been attached at Appendix I. However, different people have different views and opinions in respect of Microfinance. For instance, Otero (1999) classifies Microfinance as the provision of financial services to low income, poor and very poor self-employed people. Whilst Ledgerwood (1999) believes that it is a sustainable poverty solution and it includes savings, credit and other financial services such as insurance and payment services, on the other hand Schreiner and Colombet (2001) described it as an attempt to phase out poverty by improving the access to small deposits and loans for poor households who were being neglected by formal banks and financial institutions, mostly because of their poor credit worthiness. Generally speaking microfinance is becoming an imminent economic tool to politicians to up bring those people who are vulnerable or beyond the minimal level of income holders. It is a way to extract the arts, qualities and skills that these people possess in front of the society by upgrading their enterprise, image and standard levels. In some countries, during the financial crisis that hit the global economy, governments have emphasised heavily on these instruments to combat a way out of this turmoil. Such facilities, inclusive of small loans with low interest rates, counselling and bumper advertising campaign to promulgate the concept of microfinance were brought to the poorest, especially in rural areas. Microfinance involves short term savings and lending which are different to that of formal banks. Such facilities bear low interest rates and repayments facilities with the aim to cover the delivery costs only. The costs of capital are recouped upon maturity and whole administrative and transactions cost are ignored. Counselling is done through direct marketing where the cost involved in creation of awareness is low as these institutions target mostly low or no profit at all. Their main objective is to improve the living conditions of those being afflicted by the curse of poverty. 2.2 Historical Background on Poverty Poverty is a complex issue which has always existed at different levels of society and in various forms across the world. Poverty has always existed but the fundamental question what causes it. However, according to the western conception, poor people are themselves accountable for their precarious situation. As the source of poverty lies in the socioeconomic system, the solution also must be at the societal level. A brief sketch of povertys history is given in Appendix II. It is difficult to define poverty as there are various dimensions of poverty. Hulme and Mosley (1996) stated that microfinance is not a panacea for poverty alleviation and in some cases the poorest people were made worse off by microfinance institutions. On the other hand Rogaly (1996) argued that Microfinance Institutions had encouraged single sector approach to distribute resources to fight poverty. It did not prove to be beneficial to poor people as there was inadequate learning and change taking place. At times they even failed to reach the poor, the more so as they had a limited impact on income. They encouraged women to greater dependence on their husbands but were unable to provide additional services which were desperately required. Therefore, poverty is a growing concern for all governments. They have taken a multi-dimensional approach to reducing poverty, with efforts including: promotion of economic growth; delivery of public services to all; transfer of assets to poor people and introduction of a social protection system. Thus, the persistence of poverty and inequality is clearly a key concern for government policy. 2.2.1 Poverty Approaches The literature on poverty is divided into two categories namely the monetary approach supported by utilitarian, and the non-monetary approach supported by the non- utilitarian. This utilitarian approach places the conceptualization of welfare in the utility space where satisfaction determines the level of welfare. But since utility is not directly observable, resources .i.e. income has been used to measure welfare whereas the non-utilitarian view consists of the faith based, livelihood and capability approach. This is illustrated below. Figure 2.1: Poverty Approach Source: Adapted by International Development Research Centre From the above diagram, the monetary approach identifies poverty as a shortfall in consumption or income. An income below what is considered necessary to consume a minimum basket of basic goods would then be defined as the poverty line. The main assumption made by this approach is that consumers objective is to maximize their utility and that the ensuing welfare can be measured by their total consumption whereas the livelihood approaches emerged in the 1990s as a holistic framework for analyzing the factors that influence men and women in fulfilling their livelihoods, reflecting their perceptions of poverty and well-being. It also refers to the participatory approach of getting poor themselves to be able to understudy the root, causes and the victims of poverty. Poverty is not a modern day phenomenon. It has been around almost since the beginning of civilization from the time man was expelled from the Garden of Eden whereby he had had to start providing for himself. Poverty has always existed in human societies for thousands of years. This is all about the faith based approach of poverty. Moreover, the capability approach, pioneered by Sen in the 1980s and 1990s, argues that monetary poverty approach measures individuals well-being but fails to address the utility that individuals gain from others, their welfare. For Sen, capabilities are the abilities to satisfy certain crucial functioning up to certain minimally adequate levels. Thus according to him, poverty is the malfunction of some basic capability. The concept of poverty is universally regarded as a multidimensional one. There is no unique formulation but it may consist in any form of inequity, which is a source of social exclusion from the basic essentialities of human dignity. Thus, the Oxford Poverty Human Development Initiative (OPHI) uses an index namely the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)  [1]  index which complements a traditional focus on income to reflect the deprivations that a poor person faces with regard to education, health and living standard. It is the first international measure of its kind, and offers a valuable complement to income poverty measures because it measures deprivations directly. According to me, a multifaceted definition of poverty would be:- the lack of, and inability to afford, basic human needs, such as clean water, nutrition, health care, education, clothing and shelter; and the scarcity of opportunities that are important in improving human capital and facilitating social mobility. Thus, to address the dramatic effects resulting from poverty, various multilateral organizations such as the United Nations have left no stone unturned to combat this destitution. Moreover, different poverty reduction strategies and instruments have been developed in order to improve the poors standard of living and help them sever the vicious cycle of poverty. Moreover these approaches can be broken further. This can be shown in the following diagram. Figure 2.2: Factors Affecting the Poverty Approach Source: Adapted by International Development Research Centre (IDRC) The monetary approach includes all income in money metric and in practice omits social goods. Under this approach mainly income and consumption are affected. Whereas, the livelihood approach comprises the capabilities, assets and activities required for a means of living. It enhances livelihood opportunities and shows how they relate to one another. The faith-based approach consists of religious faith. Religious faith and humans have coexisted since the beginning of civilization and have played a very important role in human life. The religious attitude is always based on the belief that there exists an all embracing, transcendental, moral law and that we human beings are bound to submit to its commands. Moreover, capabilities included not only basic individual ones such as nourishment and health but also more complex social ones, such as taking part in the community and achieving self-respect. Health and education, for example, are both functioning achievements in themselves as well as capabilities that allow people to achieve other valued and crucial performance. For instance, a woman can have a monetary income but, because of gender discrimination, can be unable to buy food for her family: She lacks the capability to achieve a basic functioning for life. A capability seems to combine the concepts of ability and capacity. The main focus of the dissertation is based on this approach. 2.3 Conceptual Theory Since microfinance can make a contribution to eradicate poverty, to better understand its significance, each of the poverty approaches is considered below. 2.3.1 Link between Microfinance and Monetary Approach In terms of economic policy, it recommends the reduction of poverty by increasing labor productivity, through interventions of a general nature. Therefore, microfinance has evolved as an economic development approach intended to benefit low-income groups. These programs are an effective way to provide lowà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ cost financial services to poor individuals and families as claimed by Miller and Martinez, (2006); Stephens and Tazi (2006). Once they benefit from microfinance services, they will be able to earn more, save more ultimately smooth consumption. In turn they will enjoy a good health conditions among family members. 2.3.2 Link between Microfinance and Non- Monetary Approach From the economic policy standpoint, the non-monetary approach usually proposes targeted interventions which have the advantage of reducing the selection bias in favor of the poor relative to general kinds of interventions. Each non monetary approach has been considered below. 2.3.2.1 Microfinance and faith based Poverty and prosperity were considered to be the will of God. Thus religion is defined as an all round movement in the light of faith in one God and a sense of responsibility for the formation of thought and belief, for the promotion of high principles of human morality for the establishment of good relations among members of the society and the elimination of every sort of undue discrimination and injustices including poverty. Thus with the help of microfinance, people are able to have a decent earning. 2.3.2.2 Microfinance and Livelihood Microfinance can help to establish or expand family enterprises, potentially making the difference between grinding poverty and economically secure life. Furthermore, these programs increase access to healthcare, making preventative healthcare measures more affordable to the poor. Alternatively, more children are sent to school and stay enrolled for longer periods. 2.3.2.3 Microfinance and Capability Approach Given that microfinance services are primarily focused on women, it is argued that women were empowered, through opportunities to take on leadership roles and responsibilities, breaking down of gender inequalities. Small loans can transform lives, especially those of women and children. The poor can become empowered instead of disenfranchised. Homes can be built, jobs can be created, businesses can be launched, and individuals can feel a sense of worth again. Woman are able to participate in the society, they are recognised for their help in their families. This in turn increases the monthly income for the family which ultimately increases standard of living. Generally, the most important crisis and the main reason for failure to repay loans by poor families is illness. However, households of microfinance clients appear to have better nutrition, health practices, and health outcomes than comparable non-client households. Larger and more stable incomes generally lead to better nutrition, living conditions, and preventive health care. Increased earnings and financial management options also allow clients to treat health problems promptly rather than waiting for conditions to deteriorate. Along with financial services, some microfinance institutions also provide health education, usually in the form of short, simple preventive care messages on immunization, safe drinking water, and pre-natal and post-natal care while other programs provide credit products for water, sanitation, and housing. A growing number of microfinance institutions have forged partnerships with insurance providers to offer health insurance to clients. Moreover, another use of the microfinance services among the poor people is to invest in childrens education. Children of microfinance clients are more likely to go to school and study longer ultimately student drop-out rates are much lower. Hence there is no disparity in education. Thus, it is clear that what microfinance can do for the poor depends on the poors ability to utilize what micro-finance offers them. In many countries, micro-finance provides a window of opportunity for the poor to access a borrowing. These facilities also provide organizational help, training, safety nets, empowerment, and financial and other help during crises. Once they benefit from these services, they will be able to make decisions that are better informed, smooth the consumption pattern, increase the expenditure on medical, education and other social occasions. 2.4 Empirical Evidence Most of these studies were carried out in least developed countries and developing countries where poverty is really a root problem for the country. These findings are the clearest evidence that micro finance is working in the way intended to bring sustained aid to those suffering from hardship cases. Thus the following sub sections are empirical studies performed in least developed country, developing countries and small island economies. They are classified by their corresponding approach of poverty namely the monetary and capability. 2.4.1 Developing Countries 2.4.1.1 Monetary Approach Joy M Kiiru, John Mburu, Klaus Flohberg (2007) attempted to measure the impact of microfinance on household incomes. They used a pooled data set collected from the south western part of Makueni district in Kenya to study the households access to microfinance credit and how the credit affects their incomes as Cross sectional analysis fails to show any significant positive impact of microfinance on poverty reduction. They found a weak positive significance of microfinance on household incomes, education and household head. Furthermore, in the research of Gertler et al. (2003), he found more positive conclusions in terms of the ability of micro finance to reduce vulnerability who find access to micro finance that helps households to smooth consumption despite declines in health of adult family members. These authors have tried to find a relation between access to a financial institution and consumption shortfalls associated with ill health. They used geographic distance as a measure of access and find that for households in an area with a BRI branch; health shocks have no effect on consumption. 2.4.1.2 Capability Approach K. Rajendran and R.P. Raya (2010) study the impact of microfinance on the empowerment in psychological, economic and social aspects and managerial skills of leaders of SHGs and their attitude in Vellore district. They surveyed 90 leaders and 90 animators of SHGs. Using the OLS they found that microfinance and SHGs are effective in reducing poverty, empowering women, creating awareness and ensure sustainability of environment which finally result in sustainable development of the nation. But age and education does not have any influence on empowerment among the rural women. Moreover, the case study carried out in 2007 by Eduardo C. Jimenez and Pia Bernadette Roman in Philippines found on average 96.2% of the people who borrow in groups pay back their loans on time. More than 160 microfinance institutions have adopted the principle of no collateral but weekly repayment of loans with lending at commercial rates so that they can cover their costs; and they were allowed to make a profit. During that period, they have been able to target 436, 000 clients, 98% being women. The loan repayment rates of 96.2% were far higher than that recovered by most commercial banks. Luckily the project had increased the clients income by more than 28%. Their spending was mostly on school and food. So, for Philippines, this had an impact on its economy, thereby enhancing the life span, the literacy rate and also improving the standard of living of those people. 2.4.2 Least Developed Countries 2.4.2.1 Monetary Approach Khandker (2005) reported the direct effects of microfinance programs on poverty. He examined 1,638 households that participated in two waves of the BIDS World Bank 1991/92 and 1998/99 surveys in Bangladesh and found that moderate poverty in the sample villages declined by 17% between the two waves of the survey, and extreme poverty declined by 13%. Among those households that participated in the microfinance programs, the poverty rate declined by 20% in the same period, with more than half of the nearly 3% annual moderate poverty decline among participants attributed to the microfinance programs alone. He further found that access to microfinance programs contributed to the reduction of both moderate and extreme poverty of individuals particularly women as well as for the village as a whole where inflow of microfinance funds to rural areas impacted the local economy and raised per capita household consumption for both participants and nonparticipants. Morduch (1998) attempted to look specifically at the role microfinance plays in helping the poor, and reported mixed results, including some positive and some negative impacts of microfinance in alleviating poverty and helping the poor. He used survey data collected in 1991/92 by the Bangladesh Institute for Development Studies, in collaboration with the World Bank, covering 87 villages and nearly 1800 households. Survey data was collected at three points during the collection period to capture seasonal variations in household circumstances and found that the microfinance programs benefited the moderately poor more than the destitute. Further, he found that households that are eligible to borrow and have access to the programs do not have notably higher consumption levels that control households. Additionally, he found that households eligible for programs have substantially lower variation in consumption and labour supply across seasons. Thus the most important potential impacts of microfinance programs are with reducing ones financial vulnerability, and not necessarily poverty. 2.4.2.2 Capability Approach Morris and Barnes (2005) attempted to provide an overall assessment of the impact of microfinance, and examined the impacts of three microfinance programs in Uganda. Baseline data was first collected in the winter of 1997 following a survey via random sample in respect of three program areas from programs clients and nonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ clients. To assess the impact thereof, the survey was repeated in the winter of 1999. The researchers found that microfinance programs did not help to alleviate poverty in program areas, though results from these impact studies indicated positive impacts on participants entrepreneurial business endeavours and within their own households. The authors further found that microfinance programs help to reduce financial vulnerability of poor individuals through the diversification of available income sources and the accumulation of assets. 2.4.3 Small Island Developing State (SIDS) 2.4.3.1 Livelihood Approach Paul B McGuire (1996) has provided an assessment of microfinance in the Pacific Island Countries (PICs) namely Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Western Samoa. Thus, he concluded that these people faced a number of constraints to sustainable microfinance, including low and highly dispersed populations, the lack of transport and communications infrastructure in many areas, and the continuing importance of the non-monetised subsistence economy in many countries. Apparently, the stylised fact is less than clear. Despite the huge number of studies on microfinance and poverty alleviation in the developing countries, there exists little studies for small island economies. Thus this study attempts to fill the gaps by analyzing the impact microfinance on poverty and the welfare of households in Mauritius. As argued above, the facts and findings that were used have clearly indicated that microfinance is becoming a phenomenal contribution in building those economies that were previously struck by wars, natural calamities and turmoil. 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Copestake, J. Bhalotra, S. and S. Johnson, 2001. Assessing the impact of micro-credit: A Zambian case study, Journal of Development Studies, 37(4), pp. 81-100. Dean Karlan, Martin Valdivia, 2010. Teaching Entrepreneurship: Impact of Business Training on Microfinance Clients and Institutions, pp. 1-45 Essentials, 1999. Microfinance, a synthesis of lessons learned. Gertler, Paul, Levine, David I., Moretti, Enrico, 2002. Do Microfinance Programs Help Families Insure Consumption against Illness?, California Center for population research online working paper series. Guush Berhane and Cornelis Gardebroek, 2009. Does microfinance reduce rural poverty? Evidence based on a household panel data from Northern Ethiopia, International association of Agricultural economists Conference, Beijing, China, 16-22 August 2009. J.T.O Oke, R. Adeyemo and M.U Agbonlahor, 2007. An empirical analysis of microcredit repayment in South-western Nigeria, Humanities and Social Sciences Journal, 2(1), pp. 63- 73. Jon Westover, 2008. The record of microfinance: the effectiveness/ ineffectiveness of microfinance program as a means of alleviating poverty, Electronic Journal of Sociology, pp.1-8. Joy M Kiiru, John Mburu, Klaus Flohberg, 2007. Does participant in microfinance program improve household incomes: Empirical evidence from Makueni District, Kenya, Centre for development Research, Bonn University, pp. 405-410. K. Rajendra and R. P. Raya, 2010. Impact of microfinance- An empirical study on the attitude of SHG leaders in Vellore District:Tamil Nadu, India, Global Journal of Finance and Management, 2(1), pp. 59-68. Maldonado, Jorge H. and Claudio Gonzalez-Vega, 2008. Impact of Microfinance on Schooling: Evidence from Poor Rural Households in Bolivia, World Development Matthew Ruben, 2007. The discovery of microfinance for poverty relief in the developing world, Discovery Guides. Available from: http://www.csa.com/discoveryguides/discovery guides-main.php (accessed 14 October 2010) McIntosh, Craig and Bruce Wydick, 2005. Competition and Microfinance, Journal of Development Economics, Vol. 78, pp. 271-298. Morduch, J., 1999, The microfinance promise, Journal of Economic Literature 37(4), pp. 1569-1614. Morduch, Jonathan and Barbara Haley, 2002. Analysis of effects of microfinance on poverty reduction, NYU Working paper 1014, 28 June 2002. Morris, Gayle and Barnes, Carolyn, 2007. An assessment of the impact of microfinance, Journal of microfinance, 7(1), pp. 40-45. Nicolas Gachet, Virginie Staehli, 2006. Formalisation through micro-finance:an empirical study in Egypt, Working paper 52. Perumal Koshy and V.N Parsad, 2007. Small and micro enterprises: a tool in the fight against poverty, Munich Personal REPEC Archieve, paper number 22827. Rajesh Kumar Shastri, 2009. Microfinance and poverty reduction in India: a comparative study on Asian countries, African Journal of Business Management, 3(4), pp. 136-140. S. Khandker, 2001. Does microfinance really benefit the poor- Evidence from Bangladesh, Asia and Pacific Forum on Poverty. Schreiner, Mark, 2000. Credit Scoring for Microfinance. Can It Work? Journal of Microfinance, 2(2), pp. 105-117. Susan Johnson, 2004, The dynamics of competition in Karatinas financial markets: assessing the impact of microfinance in Kenya, Institute for Development studies, Imp-Act Working Paper 9, pp. 1-31. Tara. S. Nair, 2001. Institutionalising microfinance in India: an overview of strategic issues, Economic and Political Weekly, 36(4), pp. 399-404. Tassel E Van, 2004. Household bargaining and microfinance, Journal of Development Economics , pp. 449-468 Tiyas Biswas, Women empowernment through microfinance: a boon for development

Free College Admissions Essays: Leadership Qualities :: College Admissions Essays

Leadership Qualities  Ã‚   The most meaningful and challenging experiences in my life have been through sports and the 4-H club. They have instilled the values of perseverance, confidence, and teamwork within me. I feel that my peers and others could learn valuable life lessons through participating in these organizations. They are not just clubs, but a guiding light for life. For example in sports I have had the opportunity to play on both losing and winning teams. This has given me a different perspective of looking at things. I now realize that even if you fail or lose that is no reason to give up, you still have to get right back up. Just realize your mistakes and errors. Then come back the next time, mentally and physically, ready to meet the challenge. To often in life youth and adults alike fail at something and automatically think that they cannot do it, and give up. Instead of just pushing themselves to run another lap, lift another set, study for another hour, or learn another theorem. Imagine a worl d if the early American settlers had given in to the British, if the North had given in to the South after the first loss of the civil war, or if Michael Jordan had given up after being cut from the team in high school. People just need to learn to have perseverance and believe in themselves. 4-H has been a series of stepping-stones for me. When I first started out at age four I was shy and afraid to do things that I had not done before, but now I have blossomed into a confident and outgoing young man. I no longer fear getting up in front of large groups and speaking because of the experiences I've had in public speaking events. In addition, 4-H has given me the chance to develop myself as a leader. Over the years I have held various leadership positions on the club, county, and district levels. Also, 4-H has given me the chance to go into the community and help people by leading youth in workshops, assisting the handicap and elderly, and also learn from what others have to teach. I n both of these organizations I learned the need for teamwork. For example last year my football team went 0-11 and the main reason because of that was we were not a team.

Ethics Essay

In comparing the similarities and differences in ethical theories, the goals of each theory and the morals and values that can be observed in the process. While the following ethical theories appear similar on the surface virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological ethical will be discussed and their differences will be defined. Virtue Theory relates to the pursuit of excellence in everything you do. As one commercial put it, â€Å"Be all that you can be† (U. S. Army 1981). One must have the idea that if they want to maximize their greatest potential, they must work hard to produce it. To the Utilitarian this may appear selfish, but self-discipline and self-determination is key to achieving the goal. Oxford dictionary describes utilitarianism as one who practices the doctrine that produces the greatest happiness of the greatest number. For example, a busy mother gives great sacrifice of putting her needs aside to take care of her three children who are home sick with the flu. At this moment, the mother, who is also sick with a temperature of 102 F, is not practicing virtue theory because; the mother has currently put her needs aside. The mother is practicing patience and compassion to assure that her children get the care that they need. Boylan (page 171) describes Deontological ethics as a moral theory that emphasizes one’s duty to do a particular action just because it is right and not through any other sort of calculations. An example of this would include presenting an inventory sheet to authorities proving that fraudulent activity has occurred buy a company that has been charging customers extra for supplies. The distinct difference of these theories suggests that virtual theory focuses attention toward creating greatness within one’s self. Utilitarianism focuses attention by creating greatness toward the masses. Deontological ethics relates to doing what is right whether it be for one’s self or for the masses with the understanding that happiness is not the goal but a moral responsibility is. A personal experience explaining the relationship between virtue, values, and moral concepts includes a deontological experience that I had several years ago. One Friday afternoon I walked into a bank to cash a check in the amount of $527. 28. The teller cashed my check, but I did not bother to double check the money until I got home. After checking and double-checking the money that evening, I came to the realization that I had 627. 28 cash in my envelope. The teller accidently gave me an additional $100 dollar bill. I could not go back to the bank to address the problem because the bank had closed for the day. I could not with good conscious keep the money because my family has instilled strong morals and values of honesty, integrity, and dignity within me. The money must be returned for it is the morally right thing to do. Saturday morning I drove back to the bank and asked for the manager and explained what had happened. I handed over the entire envelope as it was presented to me and I explained that two very crisp one hundred dollar bills were so tightly stuck together that it appeared as one bill. The manager surprised at what had transpired the day before, thanked me for my honesty and determination to see that the money was returned. I told the manager that I appreciate her kind words but it was truly the right thing to do. Though comparing the similarities and differences with these moral standards, ethical theories along with morals and values can be observed in the process. While it is clear that these theories may appear similar in nature the following ethical theories, virtue theory, utilitarianism, and deontological ethical will be discussed and their differences will be defined.

UFOs And Aliens On Earth Essays - Roswell UFO Incident, Roswell

UFOs And Aliens On Earth Essays - Roswell UFO Incident, Roswell UFOs and Aliens on Earth If you had mentioned seeing a Unidentified Flying Object (UFO), or spaceship from another planet 100 years ago, you would probably be thought of as a raving lunatic. If you had mentioned one 50 years ago, the case would be thought about, but with much suspicion. Today, many people would believe you, and, if you had evidence to prove it, the government would take a very close interest in your case, yet many people would call you an idiot. Despite all the evidence that indicates UFO's exist, there are still many people who will not listen to any evidence, and the government covers up evidence and alters news releases on the subject. The Roswell case is one of the best documented, and most controversial UFO cases ever. In July of 1949, at a small airforce base in Roswell, New Mexico, a small, brightly glowing object was observed to crash land at about 11:30 P.M. There were many people who had seen the crash, and they had described that it was "brighter, and fell much slower than any meteors" they had ever seen. At St. Mary's Hospital in Roswell, two Catholic nuns, saw the crash, directly north of them, and logged the crash to have occurred on July 4, between 10:00 and 11:30 PM. Southwest of the base, Corporal E. L. Pyles looked to see what at first he thought was a shooting star, only it seemed to be to large to be one. He testifies that the crash happened about 11:00 PM also. There were many Military officers in the area who had seen the object as well. The object was appearing on military radars for many days before the crash. Before the crash, on July 1, all of the officers and technicians at the base had been tracking an unidentified object on their radars. Starting on July 2nd, Steve MacKenzie, who was stationed at Roswell, was ordered to report to the White Sands Proving Ground radar sites and report directly to the brigadier general at the base. The Brigadier General's orders were to inform him of all the movements the object made. At White Sands, there had been doubt as to whether this object was a malfunction of radar equipment, or, if it was in fact, real. So , the airforce had other radar sites in Albuquerque and Roswell look at the area on their radars. It was shown that they had, in fact, a real object. During the evening of July 4, the object changed. It was growing bigger, then shrinking back to it's original size, the blip was pulsating, then the blip grew quite large, and disappeared from the screen. Because sites in Albuquerque, White Sands and Roswell were tracking the object, the airforce had a vague location about where it crashed. The airforce then decided to launch a comprehensive search the following morning. The airforce, however, was the last to arrive at the site. A group of archaeologists being led by Dr. W. Curry Holden, had arrived earlier. One of the students recorded the object as "a crashed wingless plane, with a flat fuselage." The archaeologists then left to inform local authorities of an aircraft accident. When the airforce arrived at the Roswell crash site, there were two other people exploring, a man named Ragsdale and a woman named Truelove. They had been collecting pieces of metal from the site, tossing it into their jeep . But, what they saw after that was much more significant. There were bodies, lying about. There were several of them, about four or five feet long. There were five in total, obviously not human. There were three dead bodies, one in critical condition, and one, apparently fine. They threw the debris clear of their jeep when the airforce started driving up, and got out of there as fast as they could because of fear of being arrested. When the airforce arrived, they looked around, and they saw the large craft in the side of the mountain, partly buried, leaning at about a 30 degree angle, with large pieces of debris scattered about. After the airforce had searched and photographed the area, they began cleaning up. The bodies were loaded into ambulances

hmm essays

hmm essays This year as a member of the Rondell Robins 4-H club was very hectic. This summer I worked at Beverly Health Care in Groton between work and 4-H meetings I had to miss one or the other. I was the Secretary of the 4-H club. I enjoyed being the secretary because I like to write even if I didnt have much time to write the reports I still enjoyed it. After 9 years as a member this is my first time being secretary. I was a little nervous at first speaking in front of the club, but after the first couple meetings I got more comfortable speaking in front of everyone. The year went by so fast, when it got time to have projects judged, I was disappointed in myself that I hadnt made as many projects that I had done in the past. I only made 3 projects this year. I placed 2 purples and 1 red. However this year I am happy to admit that I helped in my community as much as a could. We cleaned the road ditches around Stratford. The day before Easter we put on an Easter egg hunt for the kids in ou r community. I really enjoy seeing the smiles on the little kids faces when they found the prize eggs hidden in the sneakiest hiding spot. Also I helped with the Halloween party, I remember when I was younger being so excited to go to the party and getting candy with out going door to door to get it. At the Halloween party they also had fun games where you could win prizes. It made me feel good knowing I was part of that. I really enjoy doing what I can when I can for the community thats why I love being part of the Rondell Robins 4-H club. Unfortunately with the busy schedule this will be my last years as a member. I had many years of fun times as a member of the club. ...

12 Steps to Writing a Research Proposal

12 Steps to Writing a Research Proposal A guideline on writing a research proposal. Follow 12 steps described in the article below to write a research proposal effectively. There is a number of useful tips that can be used for writing an effective thesis proposal. First, remember that a thesis proposal is generally written in a present or future tense. When you write your actual master’s thesis, you will need to use past tense. Below you will find the main steps that will show you how to write a research proposal. Want to know more about what a research proposal is? Below is the article explaining what a research proposal is: WHAT IS A RESEARCH PROPOSAL? A Guideline on Writing a Research Proposal Step 1: Make a great introduction.  The part that is designed to capture your reader’s attention is the introduction to your master thesis proposal. It is a good idea to write it last, that way it is more likely to become interesting and you will sound like you know what to do. This recommendation might seem strange at first; however, it’s perfectly logical because once everything has been researched, written and checked, you will have a good picture of what the end product is like. With this picture in mind, it’s best to work on the introductory part of your paper last. Step 2: State the problem.  Voice your research question. You might want to restate it in the form of the sentence so that your reader understands it better. Step 3: Provide background.  Explain how the problem emerged. Give some background information on the issue you are going to research to substantiate the need for the problem resolution. Step 4: Declare the purpose.  You should necessarily mention the purpose of your dissertation in the thesis proposal. Step 5: State significance.  Mentioning the significance of the problem will add value to your research project. Step 6:  Explain methods.  Your reader should be aware of the methods your research project is going to utilize. Step 7: Review literature.  A master’s research proposal is unthinkable without reviewing literature that is relevant to the topic of research. A thorough analysis of the literature sources should be conducted and clearly explained in the proposal. Do not forget to mention any alternative viewpoints on the topic; they might be useful in researching your question. Step 8: Formulate a clear hypothesis.  Hypothesis section sets the goal for the thesis. If it is clear and understandable, the entire research project will become clear and easy to carry out. Step 9: Define your terms.  Your proposal will be read by people who might not fully understand your dissertation and the terms it uses. You will need to provide a definition for every term you are using in your master’s thesis. Step 10: Tell your reader about your research assumptions.  The research proposal for your master’s thesis should contain the basic assumptions you are making while working on the essay. Step 11: Define scope and limitations.  Any research has its scope and limitations; you just can’t cover everything with just one research project. Clearly, state the limitations and scope for your study and outline possibility for subsequent research. Step 12: Explain the procedure.  Your reader should be aware of the procedure you are going to follow in the writing process. You will need to explain what and how will be done within the framework of your research. These simple steps will allow you to come up with a research proposal that will high chances of getting approved either by your advisor or the board of advisors. Once the research proposal is completed and approved, we can move on to reviewing the basic thesis structure. Here is a great list of research proposal topics: 50 RESEARCH PROPOSAL TOPICS FOR MASTERS DISSERTATION In case you want our writers to create a custom-written research proposal for you, let us know. All the outlined steps have proven their efficiency for getting the research proposal approved. We are also open to revising your research proposal outline and format until it becomes truly effective. Our writers can also review, revise and proofread your essay in case you have completed it yourself and want to have it reviewed by a professional writer. Whatever the case please visit the order page and we will start working on your research proposal.

Consider the claims that Baudelaire makes and the points of argument Assignment

Consider the claims that Baudelaire makes and the points of argument that he makes - Assignment Example Instead, it posits the popular sense of being a mirror of the physical, visible world. However, at the same time to a fine artist, the photograph would depict a sensational piece of artwork depending to the title that it is given. If the title in totally sums up all the elements of the photograph without exaggeration or assumption, then it would much the fine art that Baudelaire talks about. The photograph does not show the element of surprise that would also symbolize a sense of beauty that comes with it. The photograph seems more or less dry, lacks taste and a sense of humor or wonder (85). This is due to lack of beauty that goes hand in hand with wonder and enthusiasm of scrutiny at the image as an image of mental reflection by the artist and the art lovers. As such the photograph is a qualification of the fact that photography cannot be allowed to deputize arts activities as it will altogether corrupt the good work of art. Photographs in many instances serve as a reminder of the many memories that the photographer would prefer to keep. The consideration of photography as an important part of the art does not reflect wholly on what fine art ought to be. Photographs in terms of artwork do not depict the amount of creativity of the photographer as much as painting would (86). This is because in photography, in most cases there is no a predetermined kind of thoughts and imagery that runs in ones mind as is mostly seen in the art of painting. As time goes by the scene of art has been corrupted as more and more elements are being considered as a piece of art so long as it is beautiful to the eye of the public. As a result, "art is losing in self-respect, is prostrating itself before external reality," (88) while the artists have become more inclined to works that are not driven by dream but what is appealing to the physical eye. The creativity of an

You have to Give a reasons for transfering and the objectives you to Essay

You have to Give a reasons for transfering and the objectives you to achieve in the university - Essay Example Due to the testimonies of friends, relatives and acquaintances, I have chosen the Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business which was specifically referred and advised for reasons ranging from offering selected courses, being academically reputable, using multidimensional approaches in teaching, providing a conducive learning environment, and ensuring that one who graduates would get immediate employment. Aside from these reasons, one considers proximity to one’s residence as a plus factor for the choice. This way, one would not need to be away from the support of parents and thereby, do not need to entail additional costs for lodging and other instrumental expenses related to studying in a university that is miles away from home. Another crucial factor for transferring to Georgetown University is that the course modules for the International Business degree program and requirements that address personal and professional goals. I am interested to delve into the areas of global financial markets, international trade, and intercultural communications, to name a few. These courses would prepare one in meeting the challenges of global organizations where one plans to apply in the future. In this regard, Georgetown University likewise determines one’s credentials and qualifications to determine if they would cater to one’s distinct needs and requirements. Georgetown University has sets of requirements for admitting students’ applications. Aside from having completed the pre-requisites for theoretical and academic backgrounds, Georgetown considers evaluating the past academic performance, level of knowledge, abilities and skills in communication. By effectively completing personal statements or essays, the McDonough School of Business would be able to gauge one’s writing and communication skills. Through passing entrance examinations and completing the required submission

Internal refusal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Internal refusal - Essay Example I would like to inform you that at the moment the company is going through a lot of challenges and, therefore, at the moment we are unable to attend to that request. I really appreciate your creativity and innovativeness by coming up with such a proposal as we know knowledge is power and, therefore, it should always be pursued at all stages in career development. Currently we are opening up a new branch and in addition a lot of funds have been set aside for the setting up of ten automatic teller machines within the state. Therefore, with all these plans in place, it is virtually impossible to set up such an innovative program as it requires quite a considerable amount of funds to establish. As the human resource manager, I would try and talk with the managing director and see what measures can be set up to implement the program in the coming financial year. I would like to let you that your annual appraisal has matured and you can pick it from the accounts department anytime from next week. We are looking forward to your continued

Role NATO in the world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Role NATO in the world - Essay Example A "North Atlantic" area which includes both Point Barrow, far above the Arctic Circle, and Mount Ararat, deep in the Turkish Caucasus, is, indeed, an anomaly. The term "North Atlantic area" appears several times in the text of the treaty but is nowhere defined explicitly. However, the treaty does contain a definition of the area within which an armed attack from without will bring its guarantees into operation.( James Kurth, 36) These guarantees extend to the territories of all member states in Europe and North America, to the Mediterranean and North Sea, and to the Atlantic Ocean north of the Tropic of Cancer. They also cover the Algerian Departments of France as well as all of Turkey's territories in Asia, plus two segments of Africa and Asia, and all of North America north of the Rio Grande, together with the seas and ocean lying between them.The success of the NATO Alliance over the past four decades has been extraordinary. The mere survival of the Alliance for forty years is not eworthy; that those forty years have been unbroken by war among the major powers is unprecedented in the modern era. To be sure, factors other than NATO have contributed to the absence of war in Europe-the most important being the advent of the "nuclear revolution" in warfare. Nonetheless, NATO has made an important contribution to the maintenance of peace among the major powers. ... nt on the nature of the threats to the fundamental interests of the Alliance members; the evolution of a collective response to those threats that meets the political, economic, and military requirements of the allies; and the absence of any politically acceptable alternatives to the current structure of the Alliance. The central question facing NATO forty years after its creation, however, is whether the Alliance, as currently structured, equipped, and funded, will continue to play an effective role in meeting the vital security needs of its members. Despite the attention given to disputes among Alliance members, it is unlikely that NATO will collapse with a bang sparked by internal friction, but it could fade with a whimper of irrelevance in the face of shifting economic, political, technological, and military realities. NATO will almost certainly be alive on the eve of the twenty-first century to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary. However, unless the Alliance has the resilience t o respond to emerging challenges, by the turn of the century it may be less relevant to the central security concerns of its members. Our Alliance has come far on its way to transformation. Its relevance today does not derive from its original and immediate purpose but from what it has become over time. It has evolved into a community of values and destiny, and a forum of political consultation on vital issues of foreign policy and security. It has evolved into an agent of change. It will become the core security organization of a future Euro-Atlantic architecture in which all states, irrespective of their size or geographical location, must enjoy the same freedom, cooperation and security. We must not be satisfied with having won the Cold War. We have to win the future. - NATO Secretary

External and Internal Environmental Analysis on Medtronic's Essay

External and Internal Environmental Analysis on Medtronic's - Essay Example External Environment The Health Care Environment The most important external environmental factor for Medtronic is government regulation. It is mandatory to comply with their regulations, and the government is involved in setting the quality standards and liability laws. The government in the US has increasingly become involved in health care since the creation of Medicaid and Medicaid in the 60s (Medtronic, 2013). Their implementation started a trend of increased medical spending with Medicare expanding the reimbursement for cardiac defibrillators. This has caused the system to move to a strategy of predict and manage from one of diagnose and treat under initiatives for health care expenditure control. Fortunately for the organization, there seems to have been little accomplishment with chronic diseases like diabetes and obesity increasing, whereas an aging population has ensured that there is a steady demand for their products like defibrillators and vascular tents, which Medtronic and their competitors manufacture (Medtronic, 2 013). Because of the government’s immense power, there is an active attempt to influence it with the American Medical Association having been the most powerful, although this is no longer the case (Medtronic, 2013). The entire health care system has come to be defined by special interests. The government also heavily regulates facility providers with some of Medtronic’s competitors closing down due to decreased profits. Because of this, health care facility organizations have been lobbying for improved reimbursement, as well as reimbursement of new research protocols and technology. Medtronic stands to benefit from both of them. In addition, Medtronic is also affected by accrediting bodies. They may have the ability to add facility management value through facilitation and demonstration of quality improvement (Medtronic, 2013). Managed care organizations and 3rd party payer organizations also have lobbying groups that all seek to lower prices offered by Medtronic. Internal S trengths and Weaknesses The greatest strength that Medtronic has historically possessed is strong leadership. The current CEO has been at the organization for 20 years with the average tenure of board members being ten years (The Associated Press, 2013). Medtronic has used this core of committed leaders to sustain industry leadership as the organization has navigated the ever-changing technological world, coupled to constrained health care budgets. Underlying strength for the company is a futuristic business plan that has been born out of a well-established and strong team of leaders. In addition, the company has accomplished the task through other strengths like disciplined approaches to marketing, as well as R&D. Through maintenance of a keen awareness of trends in healthcare and biotechnology, the company has capitalized on R&D from smaller firms via mergers and acquisitions. The company has also been able to establish a recognized brand name, which is essential since health prov iders normally utilize

The importance of the British Council in Britain's cultural diplomacy Essay

The importance of the British Council in Britain's cultural diplomacy - Essay Example Cultural diplomacy is imperative for states in order to achieve opportunities and broader prospects of business, education etc. from different parts of the world. It will not be incorrect to state that cultural diplomacy is as important for a country as its foreign policy. It is due to the fact that both maintain peaceful international relationship of a respective country with other countries in terms of politics, economics, education etc. British Council is one of the renowned cultural diplomacy tools of United Kingdom that has had a prestigious history of marinating peaceful relationship of UK with other countries. This paper aims to discuss the role of British Council in conducting cultural diplomacy for UK. The analysis would be done by closely looking at the historical highlights and achievements of British Council. Furthermore, its significance would also be studied in the paper within the context of its foreign policy. British Council is referred to the international cultural body of United Kingdom that was initiated in order to represent UK’s culture in different parts of the world. British Council is basically an independent council which is public in its scope. It should be noted that British Council is closely working with government. The role of government in administrating British Council is in terms of selecting countries where cultural diplomatic activities can be undertaken (Taylor, Cultural Diplomacy and the British Council:). The goals and missions of British Council have common agenda of conducting cultural diplomacy for UK in international world order to develop a positive image of UK (Ager). British Council is also considered as an intermediary of foreign policy department of United Kingdom as its concept was discussed and passed at the foreign diplomatic organization of UK. British Council was initiated at the time when many other cultural organizations from France and counterparts of Europe were actually becoming victorious in conducting cultural diplomacy across the globe. It can be said that British Council was initiated as an inspired project from the existing cultural organizations of French and Germans in late 1920s (Hecht and Donfried). In actual terms, British Council was initiated in 1934 in order to introduce different countries with Britain’s standard of education and its culture. The core goals of representing education and cultural standing of Britain were achieved by organizing expedition tasks, concerts, art exhibitions, tutorials and lectures etc (Hecht and Donfried). The primary focus of British Council in the initial stages was to give coverage to the Middle Eastern countries and underdeveloped countries of Europe where much assistance for education was needed during 1950s (Thomas). The working process of British Council was majorly indirect in its initial stages until it started to operate in its own offices. Earlier, a number of consulates were being worked through by British Council which relatively slowed down its working mechanism. Obviously, it was a very crucial stage for British Council to begin operating from its own offices in different locations of the world (Levermore and Budd). It was for this reason that the organization collected information regarding different communities of the world at the first place to give preference to location. After getting an augment idea through research regarding different communities, British Council resumed its operation through offices opened abroad. In this series, the first office of British Council was opened at Egypt. It should be noted that the working criteria of British Council got complicated as international politics was heading towards World War II (Levermore and Budd). A great deal of barriers was noted in the working process of British Council as World War II led in the closure of most of its offices in Middle East and Mediterranean countries. It should be not

Role NATO in the world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Role NATO in the world - Essay Example A "North Atlantic" area which includes both Point Barrow, far above the Arctic Circle, and Mount Ararat, deep in the Turkish Caucasus, is, indeed, an anomaly. The term "North Atlantic area" appears several times in the text of the treaty but is nowhere defined explicitly. However, the treaty does contain a definition of the area within which an armed attack from without will bring its guarantees into operation.( James Kurth, 36) These guarantees extend to the territories of all member states in Europe and North America, to the Mediterranean and North Sea, and to the Atlantic Ocean north of the Tropic of Cancer. They also cover the Algerian Departments of France as well as all of Turkey's territories in Asia, plus two segments of Africa and Asia, and all of North America north of the Rio Grande, together with the seas and ocean lying between them.The success of the NATO Alliance over the past four decades has been extraordinary. The mere survival of the Alliance for forty years is not eworthy; that those forty years have been unbroken by war among the major powers is unprecedented in the modern era. To be sure, factors other than NATO have contributed to the absence of war in Europe-the most important being the advent of the "nuclear revolution" in warfare. Nonetheless, NATO has made an important contribution to the maintenance of peace among the major powers. ... nt on the nature of the threats to the fundamental interests of the Alliance members; the evolution of a collective response to those threats that meets the political, economic, and military requirements of the allies; and the absence of any politically acceptable alternatives to the current structure of the Alliance. The central question facing NATO forty years after its creation, however, is whether the Alliance, as currently structured, equipped, and funded, will continue to play an effective role in meeting the vital security needs of its members. Despite the attention given to disputes among Alliance members, it is unlikely that NATO will collapse with a bang sparked by internal friction, but it could fade with a whimper of irrelevance in the face of shifting economic, political, technological, and military realities. NATO will almost certainly be alive on the eve of the twenty-first century to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary. However, unless the Alliance has the resilience t o respond to emerging challenges, by the turn of the century it may be less relevant to the central security concerns of its members. Our Alliance has come far on its way to transformation. Its relevance today does not derive from its original and immediate purpose but from what it has become over time. It has evolved into a community of values and destiny, and a forum of political consultation on vital issues of foreign policy and security. It has evolved into an agent of change. It will become the core security organization of a future Euro-Atlantic architecture in which all states, irrespective of their size or geographical location, must enjoy the same freedom, cooperation and security. We must not be satisfied with having won the Cold War. We have to win the future. - NATO Secretary

The importance of the British Council in Britain's cultural diplomacy Essay

The importance of the British Council in Britain's cultural diplomacy - Essay Example Cultural diplomacy is imperative for states in order to achieve opportunities and broader prospects of business, education etc. from different parts of the world. It will not be incorrect to state that cultural diplomacy is as important for a country as its foreign policy. It is due to the fact that both maintain peaceful international relationship of a respective country with other countries in terms of politics, economics, education etc. British Council is one of the renowned cultural diplomacy tools of United Kingdom that has had a prestigious history of marinating peaceful relationship of UK with other countries. This paper aims to discuss the role of British Council in conducting cultural diplomacy for UK. The analysis would be done by closely looking at the historical highlights and achievements of British Council. Furthermore, its significance would also be studied in the paper within the context of its foreign policy. British Council is referred to the international cultural body of United Kingdom that was initiated in order to represent UK’s culture in different parts of the world. British Council is basically an independent council which is public in its scope. It should be noted that British Council is closely working with government. The role of government in administrating British Council is in terms of selecting countries where cultural diplomatic activities can be undertaken (Taylor, Cultural Diplomacy and the British Council:). The goals and missions of British Council have common agenda of conducting cultural diplomacy for UK in international world order to develop a positive image of UK (Ager). British Council is also considered as an intermediary of foreign policy department of United Kingdom as its concept was discussed and passed at the foreign diplomatic organization of UK. British Council was initiated at the time when many other cultural organizations from France and counterparts of Europe were actually becoming victorious in conducting cultural diplomacy across the globe. It can be said that British Council was initiated as an inspired project from the existing cultural organizations of French and Germans in late 1920s (Hecht and Donfried). In actual terms, British Council was initiated in 1934 in order to introduce different countries with Britain’s standard of education and its culture. The core goals of representing education and cultural standing of Britain were achieved by organizing expedition tasks, concerts, art exhibitions, tutorials and lectures etc (Hecht and Donfried). The primary focus of British Council in the initial stages was to give coverage to the Middle Eastern countries and underdeveloped countries of Europe where much assistance for education was needed during 1950s (Thomas). The working process of British Council was majorly indirect in its initial stages until it started to operate in its own offices. Earlier, a number of consulates were being worked through by British Council which relatively slowed down its working mechanism. Obviously, it was a very crucial stage for British Council to begin operating from its own offices in different locations of the world (Levermore and Budd). It was for this reason that the organization collected information regarding different communities of the world at the first place to give preference to location. After getting an augment idea through research regarding different communities, British Council resumed its operation through offices opened abroad. In this series, the first office of British Council was opened at Egypt. It should be noted that the working criteria of British Council got complicated as international politics was heading towards World War II (Levermore and Budd). A great deal of barriers was noted in the working process of British Council as World War II led in the closure of most of its offices in Middle East and Mediterranean countries. It should be not

The Endless Recovery Essay Example for Free

The Endless Recovery Essay 559 Testing Your Comprehension 1.Fossil fuels are abundant on our planet today and can be used to create many sources of energy which is why they are so prevalent. They are considered nonrenewable sources of energy because they take millions of years to form and because humans are rapidly depleting our fossil fuels faster then they can be created, which makes these fuels nonrenewable. 2.Fossil fuels were formed from the tissues of organisms that lived 100-500 million years ago. The energy these fuels contain came originally from the sun and was converted to chemical-bond energy as a result of photosynthesis. Environmental conditions determine what type of fossil fuel is formed because of the chemical composition of the starting material, the temperatures and pressures to which the material is subjects, the presence or absence of anaerobic decomposers, and the passage of time. Fossil fuels are often concentrated in localized deposits because some regions have substantial reserves of fossil fuels whereas others have very few. 3.Net energy expresses the difference between energy returned and energy invested. EROI is the ratio determined by dividing the quantity of energy returned from a process by the quantity pf energy invested in the process. These are important when evaluating energy sources because these ratios are always changing. 4.Coal is combusted and converted to water which turns to steam, this starts a turbine; this is how coal generates electricity. 5.Geologists have estimated the total amount of oil beneath the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge 1002 Area by drilling cores and conducting ground, air, and seismic surveys to map underground rock formations. This amount differs from the â€Å"technically recoverable† and â€Å"economically recoverable† because the â€Å"technically recoverable† ranges from 4.3-11.8 billion barrels, while the estimated amount ranges from 11.6-31.5 billion barrels. 6.We create petroleum products by refining hydrocarbon molecules that are separated into different size classes and are chemically transformed to create specialized f uels for heating, cooking and transportation, and to create lubricating oils, asphalts, and the production of plastics and other petroleum products. 7.Peak oil is when the rate of production of oil comes to its peak and begins to decline. Many experts believe we will soon pass the global production peak for oil because we are using it at a faster pace and are not finding new concentrations of oil. If we do not shift to  renewable energy sources, our society will meet its demise because we will run out of fossil fuels. 8.Fossil fuel production and consumption drive climate change, they pollute water as well as air, and they devastate natural systems. Drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would impact life in that area tremendously because that area would be quickly polluted and the wildlife would pay the price. Scientists are not even sure if this area has enough oil worth drilling for which is why it should not be touched. 9.An example of clean coal technology would be to use dry coal with high water contents. This approach would make is a cleaner-burning. Carbon capture technologies intend to remove carbon dioxide from power plants or other emissions, while carbon storage technologies try to sequester, or store, carbon dioxide from industrial emissions (underground under pressure in locations where it will not seep out). Both carbon capture and storage are in an effort to mitigate global climate change. 10.10. Two main approaches to energy conservation: as individuals, we can make conscious choices to reduce our own energy consumption by driving less, turning off lights when rooms are not being used, dialing down thermostats and cutting back on the use of energy-intensive machines and appliances. As a society we can conserve energy by making our energy consuming devices and processes more efficient. Consumers need to purchase energy efficiency appliances. Pg 587 Testing your comprehension 1. Of our global energy they contribute: Nuclear 20.9 %; Hydro 2.2%; Bio 9.8%. Of our global electricity they generate: Nuclear 13.8%; Hydro 15.6%; Bio 2.6%. 2. Nuclear fission occurs when the nuclei of large, heavy atoms, such as uranium or plutonium, are bombarded with neutrons. Neutrons tend to move too quickly for their nuclei to split when they collide, so the neutrons need to be slowed down. Each split nucleus emits energy in the form of heat, light and radiation. It also releases multiple neutrons. These neutrons, bombard other nearby uranium-235 atoms, which result in a self sustaining chain reaction. Engineers control fission in nuclear reactors by using control rods, which absorb neutrons. They are placed into the reactor among the water-bathed fuel rods. The engineers move these rods into and out of the water to maintain the fission reaction at the desired rate. 3. In  terms of greenhouse gas emission, nuclear, compared to coal, oil and natural gas, has less to none greenhouse emission. Hydropower and bioenergy compare 4. The incident at the Three Mile Island differed from that at Chernobyl because the Three Mile Island emergency was brought under control within days and the reactor was shut down quickly. This was due to a combination of mechanical failure and human error. The residents of the area were not as affected by the meltdown as those in Chernobyl. Chernobyl occurred because engineers had turned off safety systems to conduct tests, human error, and the unsafe reactor design caused an explosion. Many people were exposed to radiation; residents of the area were highly affected and till this day are still severely ill due to exposure. The accident killed 31 people. Radioactive fallout reached most of the Northern Hemisphere. 5. Some concerns about the disposal of radioactive waste are that if it’s dumped in the ocean it poses threat to fisheries, people and marine systems. If it’s kept in the power plants, the power plants are running out of space to hold the waste. If it is sent to Yucca Mountain, while being transported there can be an accident that exposes people to the radioactive waste. As of now the waste is being kept in storage areas within the nuclear power plant. The United States chose Yucca Mountain as a place to dump the nuclear waste but so far the project has not taken place. The waste will remain in their current locations. 6. Sources for bioenergy include the waste products of existing industries or processes, residue from agricultural crops, animal waste and organic waste. Bioenergy use differs between developed and developing nations because 7. The two primary biofules are ethanol and biodiesel. Ethanol is the alcohol in beer, wine and liquor. It is produced by fermenting biomass. In fermentation, carbohydrates are converted to sugar and then to ethanol. Gasoline engines run with gasoline blended with 10% of ethanol. Biodiesel , a fuel produced from vegetable oil, used cooking grease or animal fat. It is also used in vehicles and can be mixed with conventional petrodiesel. In North America and in Europe, cars are being filled with biodiesel and some buses and recycling trucks as well. 8. Bioenergy is from carbon neutral which releases no net carbon into the atmosphereif bioenergy replaced the use of fossilfuels we could help mitigate the problems of climate change. Burning bioenergy is not carbon neutral for the fact that plants need to be cut down in order to plant  bioenergy plants. 9. Storage type of hydroelectricity this type is the most widely used. It holds water back behind concrete dams that block the flow of water and just letting it flow out in smaller amounts through pipes that feed into a turbine. B. The other type of hydroelectricity generating plant is by implementing run-of-river approach.it generates electricity without greatly disrupting the flow of the river. Although it is not as damaging as damming the river, it doesn’t guarantee the same amount of water flow as by damming does. 10. two advantages with hydroelectric power are that the energy source is renewable and no carbon is emitted in the production of energy from this source. B. T wo negative impacts of hydroelectricity is that the area behind dams are flooded destroying habitat and the areas below dams are usually starved of water. The other negative is the thermal pollution. Areas behind the dam gat colder that natural and the areas in front of the dam become warmer than natural. Pg 614 Testing your comprehension 1.About 13% of our world’s energy is renewable and new renewable counts for 1%. The most prevalent form of renewable energy we use is biomass which accounts for 50% and hydroelectric which accounts for 35%. The form of energy most used to generate electricity is hydro power. 2.The diminishing amounts of fossil fuels have people concerned about our energy future. This is causing people to look for new renewable resources of energy. Solar and wind power are the new renewables that are experiencing the most rapid growth. 3.Passive solar heating is in the design of a building. It involves the installation of low south facing windows to capture sun, over hangs to shade windows in the summer, and the use of construction materials that capture the suns heat and release it throughout the day. Active solar heating is the use of technologies to heat water and air in structures. It involves installing flat-plate solar collectors on rooftops. Water, air or antifreeze passes through the panel and gets heated by the sun which in-turns transfers its heat to the building or to water tanks. 4.The photoelectric effect is when light reaches the PV cell and strikes one of a pair which is made of the semiconductor silicone. The light causes one plate to release electrons which are attracted by electrostatic forces to the opposing plate. Photovoltaic cells work when you attach wires to the plates  and allow the electrons to pass from one plate to the other freely. This causes an electric current or DC current which then can be converted to AC currents used in home and businesses. 5.Environmental and economic advantages of solar power are that the PV cells use no fuel, are quiet and safe, contain no moving parts, require little maintenance, and do not require a

The Lifecycle Of Pidgins And Creoles English Language Essay

The Lifecycle Of Pidgins And Creoles English Language Essay In reference to Hall, normal languages do not have life cycles, however, defining normal can be quite a complex and challenging task, especially when correctly categorising what language is normal. Hall attempts to define normal language as follows: One handed down from generation to generation through transference to children who learn it as their first language. (Quoted in Romaine, 1988, p 115) Pidgins tend to differ from this particular definition as in contrast to normal languages a pidgin usually comes into existence for a specific reason, lasts just as long as the situation that called in into being and then quickly goes out of use (Hall, p 115). A pidgin has the potential to gain a longer lifespan by evolving into a native language or becoming creolized and therefore acquiring the status of a normal language. When studying pidgins and creoles in detail, it rapidly becomes apparent that it is much more testing to study pidgins and creoles as two separate processes, rather than as two aspects of the same linguistic process, just at different stages. It has proven to be quite problematic for many researchers to specify accurately when a pidgin becomes a fully developed creole with a significant community of nativized speakers; however academics have developed a fairly precise continuum which states that a pidgin must traditionally experience four phases of development before winning the status of a creole. Throughout each phase, the language becomes much more complex and sophisticated, indicating features of a normal language. The developmental continuum is as follows: Jargon Stable Pidgin Expanded Pidgin Creole The first phase of the developmental continuum is the Jargon stage or prepidgin stage where vocabulary is extremely limited. The Jargon phase is the very beginning of the life cycle, where the purpose of the makeshift language is to merely form communication between two incomprehensible languages and is used in very limited domains, commonly trade and labour. Robertson (1948, Quoted in Romaine, 1988, p 118) however, suggests the idea that there is a pre-jargon stage where makeshift languages are instantly constructed on the spot out of a combination of gestures and speech. The example given to demonstrate this theory is the arrival of a European trade ship in Tahiti in 1767; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦we made all the friendly signs that we could think of, and showed them several trinkets in order to get some of them on-boardà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦they paddled all round the ship and made signs of friendship to us by holding up Branches of Plantain trees, and making a long speech of near fifteen minutesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦but non of us could understand themà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦we made signs to them, to bring of Hogs, Fowls and fruit and showed them some coarse cloth, Knives sheers Beeds Ribons etc., and made them understand that we was willing to barter with them. (Robertson, 1948 as quoted in Romaine, 1988, p 118) The jargon phase itself is not a huge progression from the pre-jargon stage suggested by Robertson as sentences are only minimal; one or two words in length at maximum. Lexicon is exceptionally small and the sound system is very basic (Romaine, p 117). Labov (1970/1977) defines this phase as an ingenious and original mode of expression which combines knowledge of the native vernacular with an imperfect grasp of the other languages in the new environment (Labov, as quoted in Romaine, 1988, p 118-119). There is evidence of considerable variation throughout the jargon phase as it is a newly constructed pidgin with no set linguistic rules, often resulting in confusion and a near incomprehensible language. For example, instances have shown how different syntactical structures can be used to the lexical items employed. The illustration given by Romaine is one of a Japanese woman who travelled to Hawaii, speaking her own form of expression as quite an isolated individual, never acquiring th e Hawaii Pidgin English. The language which she chose to adopt under these circumstances consisted of a primarily Japanese syntax with both Japanese and English lexical items. Furthermore, in the jargon stage, there is what Silverstein (1972) (quoted by Romaine, 1988:120) labelled a double illusion a contact language relatable to both parties native languages. The example illustrated by Silverstein is as follows; à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦there is a particular jargon between the French and the Indians, which is neither French nor Indian, and nevertheless when the French use it, they think they are speaking Indian, and the Indians in taking it up think they are speaking good French. (Jeune, 1633) This jargon is described by Silverstein as one with an unsystematic nature and lack[s] independent grammatical norms, (Silverstein, as quoted by Romaine, 1988:120) though other scholars disagreed with this somewhat negative interpretation and insisted that it was a vital trade component. The following period of the pidgin-creole lifecycle is the Stable Pidgin phase, where language is used not only for communication but for self-expression also. There is a stronger sense of linguistic complexity at this stage as both simple and complex sentences are applied. The most suitable example of a pidgin that falls under this category is Russenorsk (Russo-Norwegian); a trade pidgin which was used in Northern Norway by Russian merchants and Norwegian fisherman during the Pomor trade. (Romaine, 1988:124) Russenorsk is unique when compared against other pidgin languages, considering its lifespan. Generally speaking, a pidgin lasts as long as its required and then becomes obsolete. The alternative possibility is for the pidgin to become creolized and acquire a community of native speakers. However, Russenorsk is an exceptional instance and unlike normal pidgins has existed for such a long period of time without creolizing. The time between the first attested occurrence of the lang uage (in a lawsuit in 1785) until its extinction at the time of the First World War and the Russian revolution is 141 years (Romaine, p 125). The most obvious cause for this anomaly is the fact that it was merely used as a seasonal trade language in the summer months; it never became a fully-functioning native language, nor did it fall out of use (until WW1). A stable pidgins lexicon remains fairly small in size; Russenorsks vocabulary consisted of a total of approximately 390 words, however, half of which only occurred once, resulting in a key vocabulary of about 150-200 words. It was a very concise language, showing no signs of any inflections or categories such as gender, number or tense. Also absent is the verb to have. As a result of this and the fact that terminology remarkably originated from a wide variety of languages such as Dutch, German, French, Swedish and Lappish as well as Russian and Norwegian, there was evidence of many doublets or parallel forms. For example; good/well could be spoken as bra, good, dobra, dobro or korosjo further adding confusion (Fox, 1973, as quoted by Romaine, 1988:126-7). Fascinatingly, Slobin (1977, as quoted by Romaine, p 129) uses Russenorsk as a prime example of a language extremely close to universal grammar. Universal grammar is a linguistic concept proposed by Chomsky that suggests the idea that the capability to learn and understand grammar can happen without being taught that it is a cognitive process that happens naturally. According to Bickertons language bioprogram theory (1996), the principle of Universal Grammar is linked to pidgin and creole languages because specific characteristics are common in all different languages, allowing foreign speakers of language to interact and form a new language (pidgin). One of the characteristics, given by example by Bickerton, is the way in which an interrogative sentence can be transformed into a declarative sentence through purely altering intonation. Like the jargon phase, there is still a degree of variation in the stable pidgin stage, especially in pronunciation, according to Broch and Jahr (1984, quoted by Romaine, p 129) who said that pronunciation varied depending on the language and dialect background of individual speakers. The penultimate stage of the pidgin-creole lifecycle is the Expanded Pidgin phase. Here, grammar becomes much more complex and speech tempo is increased. Language and discourse becomes evidently much more cohesive and consistent. It is used not only as a simple means of communication for trade purposes, but in everyday life for self-expression and literature. (Romaine 1988:138) Sankoff (1977, as quoted by Romaine, p 139) was interested in the comparison between normal languages and pidgins when investigating speech tempo. Her data showed that pidgins are vocalized at a slower rate than normal languages, largely due to the fact that pidgins are used merely as a second language to users and not as a first. It is only when a speaker becomes fluent in the language, does the tempo increase. Data that explores features of Tok Pisin (perhaps one of the most well-known expanded pidgins) shows that one of the features that separate a childs speech from adults is phonology. For instance, a child might condense syllables. The example given by Sankoff and Laberge (1973) is the phrase Mi go long haus (pronounced using four syllables by adults). However, they noticed that in comparison, a child is more likely to say Mi go l:aus, using only three syllable by shifting stress patterns. The concluding stage of the life-cycle is when the pidgin becomes creolized and takes on the identity of its dominant parent. However, according to Muhlhausler (1980), creolization does not necessarily have to take place at the final stage of the life-cycle, but can occur at any stage in the developmental continuum from jargon to expanded pidgin (as quoted by Romaine, p 154). He suggests that there are three possible varieties of creolization: Type 1: Jargon Creole Type 2: Jargon Stabilized pidgin Creole Type 3: Jargon Stabilized pidgin Expanded pidgin Creole Most known instances fall under Type 3 and are wide-spread creoles that are still fully-functioning and in use today such as Tok Pisin (spoken largely in Papua New Guinea as an official language and the most broadly used in that country) and West African Pidgin English. Some known instances fall under Type 2, however is much less common. Examples of Type 2 creoles include North Australian creoles and Torres Strait creoles (Romaine, p. 155). Cases of Type 1 creoles are currently non-existent. In contrast, Bickerton proposes an alternate view and suggests that creolization after stabilization of a pidgin is rare and in the majority of circumstances, pidgins have creolized whilst still being highly unstable in the early stages of development. So far, we have discussed the idea that creoles are formed from a pidgin which stabilizes. However, Bickerton goes even further to controversially suggest that there is no such link between pidgin and creole and that the development of a creole has more to do with the innate devices of a first language acquisition than with a gradual evolution from a pidgin. For example; Tok Pisin the lingua franca of Papua New Guinea had developed whilst co-existing alongside another language, therefore integrating many of its characteristics. However, what Bickerton labels the classic creole situation (where creole-speakers have been torn from their native cultures) differs from Tok Pisin as the majority of speakers could still rely on another langu age. (Bickerton, 1981, as quoted by Singh, 2000:52-53) DeCamp (1971) focuses his research on the fate of a creole upon reaching the end of the creole continuum. This particular area is not as thoroughly researched as earlier stages; however, DeCamp makes some attempt at outlining the potential routes a creole may take. These are: May well continue its status as a creole and remain unaffected, much like the Haitian Creole seems to have done. It may become obsolete. It may take on the identity of its dominant parent as a normal language. It may progressively combine with the national language as is happening in Jamaica (decreolization). (DeCamp, 1971, as quoted by Romaine, p 157). The post-creole continuum is as follows: Basilect Mesolect Acrolect The creole is what is meant by basilect, the national corresponding language is what is meant by acrolect and any transitional varieties in-between is what is referred to as the mesolect (Romaine, p 158). To go back to the question of the entire paper, is there a point at which a creole stops being a creole and takes on the identity of its dominant parent? We must look at the work of ODonnell and Todd (1980, as quoted by Romaine, p158), who points out that at the end of the continuum, we are not dealing with two distinct systems, but an unbroken spectrum between the pidgin or creole on the one hand, and the prestigious standard on the other. There is no point of the continuum where we find a sharp break between the varieties. Word Count: 2,120