Dickens’ Hard Times: His Penchant for Romantic Principles Essay

Hard Times is a rare example of fiction spun out of very prosaic materials. Yet it possesses certain romantic characteristics of brooding tenderness and deep sympathy for the neglected and the underprivileged which became hall mark of Charles Dickens’ novels. It also displays a grieving melancholy, a mournful reflectiveness and a quantity of self-indulgent sentimentality. The American scholar A. O. Lovejoy argues that â€Å"the word ‘romantic’ has come to mean so many things that, by itself, it means nothing at all. It may seem that repetition has wrung the life out of the term, yet it still appears to be as potentially sustaining as a twist of pemmican. It is a word at once indispensable and useless. F. L. Lucas has counted 11,396 definitions of romanticism. (Cuddon. 767). But we are more concerned with the definition of â€Å"a tendency to exalt the individual and his needs and emphasis on the need for a freer and more personal expression. †(Cuddon. 769-70) The entire novel in three parts is built up on the romantic and nature imagery of sowing reaping and garnering of harvest. It is an illustration of the biblical saying â€Å"As you sow, so your reap. † The first book of â€Å"sowing† begins with the seeds of wrong education by Mr. Thomas Gradgrind: â€Å"In this life, we want nothing but Facts, sir; nothing but Facts! † (Hard Times. 3) But as the story develops, we find that it is this education of hard facts which runs riot and destroys the happiness of his own children, Tom and Louisa. Dickens creates a poignant novel out of misplaced affections and social exploitations. Ironically, his son and daughter, Tom and Louisa, are misled by their father’s unimaginative education. They get along with the wretched Sissy Jupe, the daughter of a poor circus worker and suffer at the hands of the hard-hearted school master. Sissy is forced by circumstances to leave school and work as a household companion to Tom and Louisa who prefer the world of imagination so vehemently denounced by their father. Louisa’s first blunder is to run into an incompatible marriage with a man of fifty when she is just eighteen. It turns out to be a marriage of convenience with a highbrow aristocrat named Joshia Bounderby who unabashedly declares: â€Å"I have watched her bringing-up, and I believe she is worthy of me. At the same time – not to deceive you—I believe I am worthy of her. † (Hard Times. 84) The reason for such odd marriage is her brother Tom who seeks a position in Bounderby’s bank. Dickens exposes the hypocrisy behind the veneer of Victorian idealism. Interwoven with it is the sub-plot of unfortunate Mr.  Stephen Blackpool who jumps from the frying pan into the fire by his attempt to run away from his alcoholic wife. His love for Rachel is frustrated as he gets no help from anyone to divorce his wife. Moreover, he is witch hunted for a false charge of robbing the bank which is actually masterminded by than Tom. Throughout the novel Dickens explores the conflict between the world of facts and imagination in children and its effects in their later life, as the New Testament says: â€Å"by their fruits ye shall know them.† (Matthew 7. 20) Being a drop-out Sissy is lucky to have escape Gradgrind’s soul-destroying education and proves its futility. Dickens’ story depicts the suffering of victims, especially women, for whom we feel great sympathy. The underdogs include Sissy and his poor father Mr. Jupe, the unhappy Blackpool and Mrs Pegler. Rachael is romantically attached to Blackpool and spends sleepless night to be with him, but it is an irony of fate that she has to serve Stephen’s sick wife in impoverished lodgings. Like Sissy, she is an angel who lives for others. In Victorian society her relationship with a married man can hardly be expected to be respectable. In a moving speech she reveals her feeling of guilt for her misjudgment. Mrs Gradgrind first carries out her husband’s philosophy only to realize late its folly and advices Louisa to pay heed to Sissy. Mrs. Pegler is another victim of wrong education. Her megalomaniac son, Bounderby, tries to prove how he has succeeded despite his neglected childhood, but his allegations are proved to be false. The romantic interest in the story is sustained in Hard Times by Louisa Gradgrind. Against her father’s warning, she peeps at the circus and comes to her brother’s defense by asserting her curiosity. Because of her immaturity she is exploited by James Harthouse; yet she shows considerable wisdom by being very sensitive to her mother in death bed. Harthouse has his charm of personality, particularly for the people he likes. Mr. Harthouse’s romantic affair with Louisa is marred by the jealousy and suspicion of Mrs Sparsit. Sissy Jupe is associated with the heavenly ‘ray of sunlight’. In spite of the halo, she is down-to-earth and she makes a last attempt to hide Tom in the circus when he is implicated in robbery. It is touching to see her consoling Rachael when she waits for Blackpool. There are also victims of incompatible marriage like Louisa and Bounderby, as well as Blackpool and his drunken wife. Louisa’s marriage is a sacrifice to provide her brother with a job, but he repays this sacrifice with utter ingratitude by robbing the bank that provides him with livelihood. Most of them are victims of wrong education imparted by Thomas Gradgrind’s ‘model school’. Failed marriage is a recurrent theme in Dickens’ novels. In David Copperfield, for example, the marriage with the sweet doll-like Dora crumbles to make way for a sensible marriage with mature Agnes. Dickens himself was romantic like his hero and had an incompatible marriage with Maria which broke up in 1833 when he became free to marry Catherine Hogarth in 1836. Though she bore thirteen children, her marriage broke up in 1858 when Dickens developed a romantic affair with actress Ellen Ternan. Dickens spins a memorable tale out of the sordid industrialized life of nineteenth century England – Coketown with its blackened factories, downtrodden workers and polluted environment. Dickens gives a vivid picture: â€Å"It was a town of red brick, or brick that would have been red if the smoke and ashes had allowed it; but as matters stood it was a town of unnatural red and black like the painted face of a savage. .. It has a black canal in it, and a river that ran purple with ill-smelling dye, and vast piles of building full of windows where there was a rattling and trembling all day long..†(Hard Times. 18) His concern for Nature being substituted by man-made machines is expressed in no uncertain terms: â€Å"A special contrast, as every man was in the forest of looms where Stephen worked, to the crashing, smashing, tearing piece of mechanism at which he laboured. Never fear, good people of an anxious turn of mind, that Art will consign Nature to oblivion. † (Hard Times. 54) This horrid picture of an industrialized town presupposes a romantic nostalgia for the natural beauty of the pre-industrialized era. The plot of Hard Times hinges on the ‘stick-to-hard-facts’ education imparted by Mr.  Gradgrind: â€Å"Herein lay the spring of the mechanical art and mystery of educating the reason without stooping to the cultivation of the sentiments and affections. Never wonder. †(Hard Times. 39) But his philosophy is defeated by his own children who secretly wondered â€Å"about human nature, human passions, human hopes and fears, the struggles, triumphs and defeats, the cares and joys and sorrows, the lives of death of common men and women! †(Hard Times. 39) Herein lies dickens’ romanticism – the triumph of the mind over matter.

Writing the Memo

WRITING AN OFFICE MEMORANDUM If you work as a paralegal or law clerk after your first or second year of law school, you will most likely spend some of your time researching and writing objective memoranda, or interoffice memos. Typically, an attorney asks you to provide a realistic analysis of the law as it applies to the facts of a client’s case. The purpose is to inform – not persuade. Although you should remember which conclusion favors your client, also keep in mind that you will represent the client most effectively by being objective and realistic.The memo might be read many times – possibly, over a period of months or years by several different attorneys, including the writer, who may use it as a resource long after it is drafted. The attorney will use the information contained in the memo to advise the client and may use it to prepare a document that will ultimately be filed in court. For example, a partner may be asking you whether a particular client ha s a valid legal claim. If you conclude that the answer is â€Å"yes,† then this will probably turn into a lawsuit. At that point, some parts of the memo may be incorporated when the complaint is drafted.The memo might me consulted a third time when the attorney responds to a motion to dismiss; a fourth time while drafting interrogatories; a fifth time before making a motion for summary judgment; a sixth time before trial; and a seventh during an appeal; and so on. PARTS OF MEMO[1] 1. A memorandum heading 2. The Issue (sometimes called Question Presented) states the question(s) that the memorandum resolves. The Issue also itemizes the few facts that you predict to be crucial to the answer. (Such as travel expenses to out-of-state, keeping child out of danger, and commission of crime).The reader should understand the question without having to refer to the facts. 3. Brief Answer (sometimes called Conclusion) states the writer’s prediction and summarizes concisely why it is likely to happen. Some writers begin with a direct response such as â€Å"yes† or â€Å"probably not. † Our book says that they do not prefer this. Sometimes this is client or partner driven. Also, some questions lend themselves to answers such as â€Å"yes† or â€Å"no. † Allusion to determinative facts and rules. Do not omit key facts. Begin by just re-stating your issue as a declarative sentence. Do not omit the reasoning.Do not include citation to authority or application of relevant law. Many attorneys only read this part. 4. Facts set out the facts on which the prediction is based. 5. Discussion is the largest and most complex part of memo. It proves the conclusion set out in brief answer. If the discussion is highly detailed or analyzes several issues, it should be broken down into subheadings. Here is what the memo will look like and more information on each section. MEMORANDUM TO:Senior Partner [Please block-indent so that the information line s up, as demonstrated] FROM:Your Name DATE:(date assignment is submitted)RE:(A concise label for the issue considered: mention the parties; your firm will file your Memo by names and cause of action–and, perhaps, by jurisdiction) The proper format is always double-spaced. Do not double-double space between sections. Plain old, regular double-space is sufficient. FACTS Here, recite all material facts, usually in chronological order. A â€Å"material† fact is a â€Å"dispositive† fact, or one upon which the outcome will depend. It is a fact that will affect the outcome in one way or another. Please include all material procedural facts as well as all material substantive facts.This means that it is essential to include all relevant times, dates, and places. You should begin with an â€Å"overview† sentence that sets the full context and begins to describe the problem presented. Please review your reading and as many samples as possible to understand both th e range and scope of what is acceptable as professional practice. Remember your role Watch for the tendency to try to â€Å"prove† something by the way you tell the story. NO LEGAL ANALYSIS! 1) USE NEUTRAL LANGUAGE AND OBJECTIVE CHARACTERIZATIONS. Rather than writing â€Å"the D was speeding through the school zone,† write â€Å"the D was traveling 50 MPH through the school zone. Rather than writing â€Å"The D brutally beat the victim,† write â€Å"The D struck the P on the head, resulting in a cut over his left eye. † 2) Include unfavorable and favorable facts. QUESTION PRESENTED Phrased as a question and ending with a question mark, state the specific issue or issues you will address. One method is to use the technique: under? (describe the law); does? (state the issue); what? (give the legally relevant or â€Å"dispositive† facts). Some memoranda use the commonly seen style of: â€Å"Whether . . . .† As always, discuss with your profess or to see which he or she prefers.But whatever the method, the following advice applies: †¢ Should be concise single sentences that include relevant facts and general propositions of law. †¢ Don’t say, â€Å"Whether a niece can recover for negligent infliction of emotional distress,† when you can say, â€Å"Whether, under Iowa law, a niece who witnesses the aftermath of an automobile accident involving her uncle from a block away can recover for negligent infliction of emotional distress when she observes his severe injuries upon arrival at the scene. † BRIEF ANSWER You phrased (or asked) a question in the section above. Answer it here: â€Å"Yes. † â€Å"No. â€Å"Probably not. † Use a period. Your Brief Answer follows the same formula and sequence as your Question Presented. It answers the questions â€Å"under? does? what? † except, the Brief Answer should include a brief statement of your reasons beginning with the word  "because. † DISCUSSION The heart of a Memorandum, this section asks you to explain the law and explain the facts. Getting it â€Å"right† will take time. Be patient. Your goal is to â€Å"synthesize† the cases and extract a common rule of law. To do this, you will need to identify the common elements that allow you to analyze and discuss several cases at once.A common mistake, legal writers frequently engage in â€Å"listing behavior. † They treat each case independently and sequentially, beginning each paragraph with â€Å"In†Ã¢â‚¬â€œfor example, â€Å"In Callow v. Thomas† or â€Å"In Brown v. Brown. † Looking down a written page, the lawyer will see a ladder-like effect, the â€Å"in-ladder,† where each succeeding paragraph begins with the word â€Å"in† followed by a case title. Often â€Å"listing behavior† culminates in â€Å"dump-trucking† when the lawyer saves up and â€Å"dumps† all the legal analysis into the last paragraph.In addition, lawyers will frequently â€Å"front-load,† squeezing all the legal rules of law into the very first paragraph. To avoid these pitfalls, begin your discussion with a general overview in a thesis or â€Å"roadmap† paragraph. Your thesis paragraph is the first paragraph in the Memorandum – and the first paragraph in a Discussion section. Always begin your thesis paragraph with a sentence to anticipate–and announce–your ultimate conclusion. Tell the reader where you are headed and be a tour-guide to your argument or analysis. Then, taking one point at a time, write a thesis sentence that answers the questions of â€Å"what-is-your-point? of this particular paragraph. Next, set forth the legal Rule that applies. Include the proper citation. Next, Analyze (explain) what the law or legal rule means. Next, Analyze (explain) how the relevant facts fit (or do not fit) the legal or factual standard. Finally, Conc lude each paragraph with a summarizing statement and each sub-issue with a specific sub-issue summary. Sometimes, this method is referred to as a variation of the acronym: IRAC. Other legal writing professors have some other acronym such as REAAC or FIRAC. Still, others simply refer to it as the 5-step process. Keep in ind that these are all â€Å"formulas† that legal writing professionals are using to introduce you to presenting a legal argument. Ultimately, you will use a style or formula that works best for your particular argument. But virtually every aspect of every legal argument must contain a 1) Statement of Rule or Applicable Law; 2) Analysis of the law and how it Applies to your relevant facts; and 3) a Conclusion on each of these sub-issues. Similarly, when a discussion requires several paragraphs, the writer may not reproduce the exact IRAC structure within each and every paragraph, but may require several paragraphs to develop fully the full set.As always, know y our audience and talk about the method of legal analysis that your professor, or in the future, your employer, prefers. And remember that learning how to synthesize statutes, cases, and secondary sources and then presenting them in a clear, concise, and logical manner takes time and practice. A FEW IDEAS ABOUT WRITING — MEMORANDA[2] Many students, approaching memo writing for the first time, are often unsure of how to proceed. We have put together a few tips for first (and second and third) time memo writers that we hope will be helpful.Note: No single set of guidelines could possibly address all the matters related to memo writing. If you have questions about a particular assignment, be sure to check with your professor. 1. Find the test(s). In assigning a memorandum, professors are generally evaluating you on parsing a particular statute or test. In other words, they want you to use other cases to explain how your case either does or does not satisfy a test laid out in a ca se or a statute. For example, let’s say your case involves a niece (Mary) who witnessed her uncle (Jack) being injured in an automobile accident.Mary wants to bring suit for negligent infliction of emotional distress as a result of witnessing that accident. In Burger v. McDonald, the Supreme Court of Iowa laid out a three part test to determine whether a bystander’s injury was reasonably foreseeable and, thus, legally actionable: 1. Whether the bystander was located near the accident. 2. Whether the injury resulted from sensory and contemporaneous observance of the accident, as opposed to hearing about it from others after its occurrence. 3. Whether the bystander and the victim were closely related.NOTE: If the memo involves more than one issue, your memorandum may involve more than one test. 2. Use the test as your outline. Tests come in two parts, or three (as above), often with subsections. Ideal for an outline. Use the major parts of the test as your major points, the subparts as sub-sections. Paragraph Structure 3. Begin paragraphs with affirmative propositions that parallel the test. In the above example, your first sentence should say something like: â€Å"Mary was located near the scene of her uncle’s accident, satisfying the first part of the Burger test. † 4.Support your affirmative propositions. All propositions of a legal nature must have legal support. Where is your authority for your proposition? Cite it. For example: â€Å"See Burger, 606 N. W. 2d at 321 (bystander must be located near accident to recover for negligent infliction of emotional distress). † 5. Discuss the facts of your support. What happened in the case you just cited? Explain in a concise and relevant way. For example: â€Å"In Burger, the court held that a mother who witnessed an accident on the street from the front door of her house was located near the scene of an accident. 6. Discuss the relevant facts of your case. Point to the facts that are similar to the facts of the authority you’ve just discussed. For example, you could continue from above as follows: â€Å"Mary was standing a block from the accident, heard the crash, and saw her uncle being pulled, bleeding, from the car. † 7. Analogize/Conclude. What conclusions do you think the court will draw from the similarity between your facts and the facts of your authority? For example: â€Å"Although Mary did not see the accident, she was close enough to hear it and witness her uncle being pulled from the car.Thus, a court will likely conclude that she was located near the accident. † Alternative Paragraph Structure 8. Discuss other relevant authority. Once you’ve opened the previous paragraph with your affirmative proposition, your subsequent paragraphs can discuss the facts of other relevant cases without repeating the proposition as your opening sentence. For example, you could begin the next paragraph: â€Å"In Cameron v. Jones, the C ourt of Appeals held that a mother who was twenty-five feet away from her child when she heard a metal sculpture fall on him was located near the scene of the accident. 9.Discuss contrary authority. Are there cases that go against your position (or the position the partner/judge/etc. would like you to hold)? Another subsequent paragraph could open with: â€Å"But, in Alfred v. Stern, the court held that a father did not have a valid cause of action for negligent infliction of emotional distress. † Then follow steps 5, 6, and 7, above, except this time, when concluding, tell the reader why the court won’t follow or give much weight to this contrary authority (e. g. , the facts are different). 10. Move on to the next part of the test. Follow steps 3-9 above for the next section of your test.Remember, a memorandum also includes issues presented, a brief answer (which usually follows the issues presented), and a statement of facts. These are often best written after youâ⠂¬â„¢ve written the body of the memorandum, since you’ll have a better idea of the issues once you’ve tackled the problem (though a tentative draft might help to get you started). Here is a checklist for those introductory sections of an office memorandum: Heading 1. Have you included the name of the requesting attorney (or professor), your name, the date, the client’s name, and a phrase identifying the particular legal matter or issue?Facts 2. Have you included all legally significant facts? 3. Have you included sufficient factual context? 4. Have you included any major emotional facts? 5. Have you avoided including discussion of legal authority? 6. Have you avoided â€Å"arguing† the facts or drawing legal conclusions? 7. Have you identified the client and the client’s situation at the beginning of the Fact Statement? 8. Have you selected an appropriate organization (chronological, topical) for the facts? 9. Have you maintained neutral language a nd objective characterizations? 10.Have you included both favorable and unfavorable facts? Question Presented 11. Have you stated the legal question and the significant facts? 12. Have you edited to achieve one readable sentence? 13. Have you maintained an objective perspective? Brief Answer 14. Have you stated the answer in the first several words? 15. Have you included a statement of the rule? 16. Have you stated a summary of the reasoning leading to the answer? 17. Have you kept the BA to a maximum of one-third to one-half a double-spaced page? 18. Have you taken a position, even if you are not sure? ———————– 1] Be sure to keep in mind that an office memo is an internal document for law firms; therefore, each particular firm is likely to have a preferred format. For example, the firm may use different words for different sections title, may order sections differently than described here, or it may include other sections not described in this manual. If your reader (whether it be your professor or your employer) has a preferred format, obviously use it. If you are not sure if your reader has a particular preference, then ask! [2] Many of these tips were originally created by Writing Resource Center, University of Iowa College of Law.

Path-Goal Style Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Path-Goal Style - Assignment Example Path-Goal theory is also acknowledged as contingency theory which suggests that efficient leadership must be contingent in nature and comprise specific styles as well as attitudes in providing active support to the subordinates in accomplishing their respective work objectives (House, 1996). Thesis Statement This paper intends to discuss about Path-Goal theory relating to leadership style which implements by various organization in order to attain work objectives successfully. Moreover, the identification of the Path-Goal leadership style used in the situation of proving the tasks and the subordinates’ characteristics will also be discussed in the paper. Identification of the Path-Goal Leadership Style Used In Different Situations According to the Path-Goal theory, subordinates as well as task characteristics fundamentally creates an effective impact upon motivating the subordinates within the workplace. In this context, task characteristics comprise the design of formal autho rity arrangement of the organization and job structure of subordinates within the place of work. ... In relation to identify the leadership style of Path-Goal especially in the situation of subordinates’ characteristics, it has been viewed that the attributes of the subordinates of a specific organization decides how and which way the work objectives can be attained. In this context, the leadership style of Path-Goal signifies that the subordinates who possess effective qualities of association as well as cooperation can successfully accomplish their predetermined work targets. For instance if the business leaders understand the characteristics of the subordinates in every aspect of their working activities, then both the organizations as well as the subordinates can attain their expected work objectives (House, 1996; Northouse, 2009). Appropriateness and Effectiveness of Action Taken According to the theory of Path-Goal, subordinate characteristics and offering effective tasks to them can effectively influence the overall operations of the organizations by a greater extent. In order to determine the action of applying leadership style or theory of Path-Goal in the situations like providing tasks and subordinates’ characteristics, it has been apparently observed that this leadership style assists the subordinates by delivering them with appropriate directions and minimizing any ambiguous situation (Northouse, 2009). By considering the situation of subordinate characteristics, Path-Goal style always intend to provide assistance to the subordinates in order to overcome any sort of job uncertainties. In this regard, job uncertainties can deteriorate the operational performance or the work activities of the subordinates by a considerable level (Northouse, 2009). Thus, on the basis of the above discussion, it can broadly be stated that the aspect

How the marriage changed in my culture due to the discovery of oil Essay

How the marriage changed in my culture due to the discovery of oil - Essay Example However, before marrying, he had to find a new residence where he could move with his wife. Looking for a new residence was never an issue 20 years ago when my father got married. My father lived with his parents even after marriage until his family got bigger. The family only moved to a new place more than five years later because my father’s large family could not be accommodated further. Illustration given shows how our culture transformed from a patrilocality residence to neo-locality residence in the Emirates culture. Economic reasons caused the change in the residence in the UAE. Economic soundness in the Emirates culture enabled newly married couples to live independently. Unlike olden days when the UAE culture encouraged traditional businesses such as fishing and livestock farming that were held as family businesses, most of the modern families are currently employed in the oil industry. Traditionally, an extended family could own a particular business collectively but discovery of oil in the region led to foreign labor that saw everyone going for independent job. Family members no longer remained with their families because they would move freely to seek greener pastures without worrying about family business. In a nutshell, oil discovery led to economic growth that eventually provided labor to many young people who no longer cared about their family businesses. Married couples can now move to their chosen areas of residence because funds are available to sustain them. UAE’s oil discovery has seen family status changing from an extended to a nuclear

Proto-Miob Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

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Blogs Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Blogs - Article Example The consumer knowledge leads to active role of the consumers in putting forward relevant queries on the products sold and also clears any confusion that may be present in the minds of the purchasers. China, for example has overtaken the US in the automobile market sales in 2009. This is due to the fact that with the spread of globalization, the Chinese consumers have become increasingly knowledgeable and aware about the automobile products. The tastes and preferences in the market have become rationale due to the aspect of consumer knowledge. The availability of information with the customers prior to the point of transaction provides an idea on the value of the product and also judges the aspects of price, economy, efficiency and product safety. Thus consumer knowledge enables to take informed decisions and influences the purchase behavior. Is impulse buying really impulsive? There are many instances happening around us where it could be observed that customers take decisions of pur chase just by looking at the product. It apparently looks as if the customer had no intentions of purchase just a few moments back but suddenly decides to buy the product. Researches on impulse buying suggest that these impulses exhibited by the customers are primarily the effects of underlying emotions and feelings or sentiments that are instigated at the occurrence of a specific event. This means that the intentions of obtaining the product features are hidden which comes out due to the impulse of a certain incident. It would be unreasonable to think that the customers have never experienced such emotions or feelings before and that sudden flow of emotion and feeling has led to the purchase of the product. The marketing specialists look to utilize the impulse buying behavior of the consumers in order to increase the sell of their products. For example, a customer going to purchase clothes and garments is not likely to buy cakes and chocolates. However, marketers adopt the techniqu es to bring out the basic needs and desires of the customers in order to influence impulse buying. The chocolates, cakes, fashionable toys are displayed in the counters. The electronic items and accessories may be wrapped up with national flags of a particular country. By looking at these items, some customers experience sudden flow of emotions and passion. This leads to the intent of purchase and thus influences the purchase decision. Market segmentation methods vary from one company to another The companies are better off in targeting a segment of the market rather than focusing on the entire market. This would lead to a more profitable and sustainable business as the product and services offered by a company may not fulfill the needs of the broader market (Kotler 15). In order to narrow down on the market segment whose needs are fulfilled by its products and services, an analysis of the target market segment is necessary. The cost of the marketing and promotion of its products an d services are reduced and increased revenues are earned by the company from the identified market segment. The companies undertake market segmentation based on the features of their offered products. For example, a merchant selling umbrellas and water-proof jackets may divide the market based on

Bicycle Thieves Movie Review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Bicycle Thieves - Movie Review Example In many ways, the young boy represents a purity and moral fortitude that elders around him have difficulty to master. The young boy accompanies his father through his long, arduous and ultimately futile attempt to locate his stolen bicycle. But throughout these travails, he hardly betrays his immaturity. The poise and understated maturity of young Bruno is pleasing to see. I believe it is upon De Sica’s directorial discretion that Bruno’s character was drawn on those lines. There is one scene in particular where the young boy’s maturity comes to light. It was when his frayed and tired father slaps him on the cheek out of his own inner frustrations. Bruno was hurt and he starts to cry. He moves away from his father and sulks. Yet, when his repentant father comes to him to console and cajole, he does not rebuke him. Instead of playing truant and throwing a tantrum, young Bruno allows his dad to make peace with him. Eventually, his father takes him to a restaurant t o buy him a luxurious cake. In a subtle irony, De Sica showcases how the young can sometimes lead the old and display more maturity. Neo-realist cinema might be passe for modern audiences, but when De Sica gave it full expression in Bicycle Thieves it was fresh and inventive. In fact, poverty as a theme for commercial cinema was thought unviable by many producers. Consequently, De Sica had difficulty garnering funding for his project. The fact of the availability of only a limited funding actually accentuated the neo-realist feel in the film. For example, the lead actors are all amateurs who barely had any acting experience prior to the film. The scenes were all shot on location without using any studio settings. The material reality of poverty was well captured too. After all, it doesn’t require expensive props to execute a film based on the ordeals of poverty. Consistent with the neo-realist style the background music for the film is minimal. The idea is to let the story cr eate its own sense of drama and poignancy without the aid of music. Moreover, an austere production philosophy resonates with the poverty and frugality at display onscreen. (Wakeman, 1988) The film is good material for philosophical inquiry. In my view, the essence of the film is the last scene where the victim decides to become the victimizer. When Antonio Ricci (the protagonist) decides out of desperation that he would steal a bicycle to recompense what had been stolen from him, the title Bicycle Thieves takes on an added dimension. What was till that point in film a reference to the gang of burglars who steal bicycles and resell them in the market, now includes the aggrieved loser himself. This is a powerful political statement on part of De Sica about the nature of poverty and the evaluation of morality in this economic realm. In other words, the film can be seen as an early exploration on the vicious cycle of poverty and crime. There is little doubt that the director’s t ake on these twin blights of society are rather sympathetic. This much is evident from the overall tone and effect of the film. In this sense, the film is a powerful social and political comment – something that is apt for further study from sociological perspectives. (Ratner, 2005) In sum, Bicycle Thieves is an important work in the history of world cinema. Its appeal is universal because its theme is universal and based on humanism. Bicycle Thieves is an intense film that has an underlying engagement with humanist

PepsiCo Strategic Analysis Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

PepsiCo Strategic Analysis - Case Study Example Anthony Rossi founded Tropicana in 1947. Business Segments Frito-Lay, Inc was funded in 1961, by merging of The Frito Company and H.W. Lay Company. Today, Frito-Lay brands account for 40% of the world, snack chip industry, and 56% of the U.S. industry. Brand Pepsi and other Pepsi-Cola products account for nearly one-third of total soft drink sales in the United States, a consumer market totalling about $58 billion. Outside the United States, Pepsi-Cola beverages are available in about 160 countries. Today Pepsi-Cola products account for about a quarter of all soft drinks sold internationally. The company has also established operations in the emerging markets of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Russia, where Pepsi-Cola was the first U.S. consumer product to be marketed. Pepsi-Cola provides advertising, marketing, sales and promotional support to Pepsi-Cola bottlers and food service customers. This includes some of the world's best and most recognized advertising. New advertising and exciting promotions keep Pepsi-Cola brands young. Pepsi-Cola Company products: - Pepsi-Cola - Diet Pepsi - Pepsi One - Mountain Dew - Slice - Mug Root Beer - Mug Crme - All Sport - Lipton Teas (Partnership) - Aquafina Water - Frappucci no Coffee Drink - Miranda 7UP (outside the U.S. only) - Fruit Works - Pepsi Max Tropicana Anthony Rossi founded Tropicana in 1947. ... Tropicana products: - Tropicana Pure Premium - Tropicana Season's Best - Dole Juices - Tropicana Twister. - Hitchcock - Looza - Copella. PepsiCo gave corporation image, which is committed with subjects like racial and sex discrimination, and environmental problems. All that through the special programs focused on each area. General In the last four year PepsiCo has suffered radical changes in its internal structure and in its market strategies. All these changes were propitiated by the arrival in the direction of R. Enrico, who implemented a radical change in PepsiCo's mentality. He made very important decisions like to come off the restaurants (Pizza Hut & KFC) and the bottlers, due to they were a heavy weight for the company. Although they were come off them, they follow linked to PepsiCo through strategic alliances, it is to say, that the restaurants still sell PepsiCo products and the bottlers follow bottling Pepsi. Moreover PepsiCo has a minority percent of share of these companies. Other important decisions that Enrico made were the strategic acquisitions of leader companies in related markets, like Tropicana an d Mountain Drew. These acquired companies have given to PepsiCo as much profit as stronger company brand image of New PepsiCo. Company Analysis External Analysis PEST Analysis: The Pest Analysis identifies the political, economical, social a technological influences on an organization. Political influences: - The production distribution and use of many of PepsiCo product are subject to various federal laws, such as the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act ad the Americans with Disabilities. - The businesses are also subject to state, local and foreign laws. - The international

International Business Management - Eastern Europe Essay

International Business Management - Eastern Europe - Essay Example 2. The maximum rate of Income tax that could be levied after the tax holiday period of 10 years should be fixed at not more than 20 percent of the taxable earnings: In addition to benefit of the tax holiday period the developing countries normally offer concessional rates income tax for any joint venture arrangements. 3. Free conversion and free transferability of funds from and to Hungary to European or US destinations2: Though these facilities were available at the time of negotiation the Hungarian government should make a commitment for the uninterrupted continuance of these facilities, which is very important for the profitable functioning of the join venture arrangement. 4. Concessional duty rates on the import of engines and reduction in the VAT (Value Added Tax) being charged by the Hungarian Government: The import duty on engines depending on the size of the vehicle varied from 10 to 40 percent and there was an additional VAT of 25 percent charged by the Hungarian government. Though Hungary is a signatory to the GATT (General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) the country was free to vary the duty and VAT structures as it may deem fit in the case of automobiles. Hence there is the need to get the government committed on the basic duty structures which is advantageous to GM Europe. In addition to the tax incentives it is also important that the Hungarian government should provide basic infrastructural facilities to fac... Hence there is the need to get the government committed on the basic duty structures which is advantageous to GM Europe. (ii) Provision of Infrastructural Facilities: In addition to the tax incentives it is also important that the Hungarian government should provide basic infrastructural facilities to facilitate the successful operation of the project. Such infrastructural facilities may include the provision of natural gas to the site in addition to the provision of water, electrical power as may be required, well maintained roads for easy transportation and hassle-free physical movement of engines, components and cars during import and export. (iii) Protection from Competition: In order to gain a distinct competitive advantage there should be a commitment from the Hungarian government that at least for an initial period of 5 years or so the import of cars needs to be banned. Since the Hungarian market was small and the affordability of Hungarian population was also less there is the need for this condition. The country could get other advantages in the form of generation of additional employment and development of local suppliers which need to be traded against the protection needed by the GM Europe for its joint venture in Hungary. Though at the start, the GM plant would be small the facility could be enlarged with modernizing and restructuring of the economy. This is usually the case with any developing economy where there are going to be economic reforms the local industry would naturally develop along with the measures for economic reforms. b. Issues to be raised with RABA: The following issues are to be discussed with RABA for possible acceptance as

Oil trade btween china and saudi arabia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Oil trade btween china and saudi arabia - Essay Example China’s oil use improved from 4.7 million barrels per day to roughly 7 million barrels between 2000 and 2005. She derived Forty-three per cent of this oil from imports. China is the world’s second leading net importer of oil after the US, having surpassed Japan in 2008. Within the energy division, China today is capable of absorbing rising amounts of Saudi (heavy) oil in contrast to a decade ago. This is because it is importing huge quantities of oil as well as due to the alteration and expansion of its refining power. This has made Saudi Arabia to be China’s principal foreign source of oil. At the same time, it is making China the Kingdom’s foremost crude oil customer. The most striking development however is China’s economic growth, which arrived at over 9 percent per annum between the year 1978 and 2005 (Sfakianakis 2009). With slight intelligibility at the uppermost levels of government and discretion, Saudi Arabia and China are both mysterious states. Both states are overriding in their own regions. China is a key actor all through East Asia while Saudi Arabia is the motivating force behind the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Both states are also frequently lone actors on the world phase, regional and worldwide coalitions as well as group discretion. This happens when they consider their own welfare not to be entirely allied with those of other states. This is owing to their ideological underpinnings in addition to their important planned positions (Matthews, 2010). There are prospects that China will supply Saudi Arabia with a growing quantity of weapons systems, probably together with nuclear technology due to this new tactical framework of oil trade. Saudi Arabia’s move to China as a main military weapon provider will come about due to two reasons: First, it will result from price contemplation, and secondly, it will result from anxiety

Fire Protection Systems-Bachelor of Science Essay Example for Free

Fire Protection Systems-Bachelor of Science Essay 1. Specifications for a dry pipe sprinkler system in a cold storage warehouse The fire protection system to be supplied based on these specifications is dry pipe sprinkler Related works include electrical installations, walls penetrations sealing as well as the relevant drawings and calculations. To assure quality, all materials designs and works shall be supervised by qualified person (NICET level III certificate). Calculations are to be based on NFPA 13 and no detail shall be left or assumed. Sprinklers shall be availed in elevators and stairwells. The sprinkler performance shall be tested after installation. The new system of sprinkling design should meet all pre-set codes and standards for effective performance. The system components and devices shall be recommended by under writer Lab in ULFPE directory. Minimum experience of the contractor is 5 years. Layout must be supervised by experienced person and quality assurance done by a different qualified person. Submittals shall be done in one package, reviewed and then signed as required. The system drawings with all relevant required information by NFPA shall be provided. Calculations for the system’s remote areas with regard to one critical light hazard and ordinary hazard areas shall be done as requires by NFPA. Relevant compliance certificates shall be submitted. They include certificate of quality assurance, experience, test certificate for contractor and the various respective NICET III certificates. Again, all design and installation documents shall be required as issued by NFPA as well as the contract drawings. The dry pipe system sprinkler shall be piped in accordance with NFIA 13. All valves (control, drain, alarm and check valves) should meet the fine specifications as listed in UL. The sprinkler installed shall UL listed, its location strategic and its temperature appropriate for the room in is installed. Listing of each sprinkler shall be based on the classification of the room in which it is installed. The rooms are classified based on their occupancy. The dry systems switch and all tamper switches have to be linked to the fire alarm control panel as required by NFPA code 71 and 72 (Zalosh, 2003, pp. 166-168). 2. The reasons why a builder or architect might give a sprinkler contractor an incomplete set of contract drawings. There are a number of reasons that have been placed to explain why an architect may end up giving a contractor for sprinklers incomplete contract drawings. First, the builder or the architect may lack the competence in the engineering field. He may not the capacity to make workable designs for fire fighting equipment and for sprinklers in particular. Again, the architect may not have the relevant experience with respect to designing various systems for buildings that are of varying sizes and that may have varying needs for fire fighting systems. Through experience, a builder is capable of easily spotting an incomplete drawing. This is because most experienced architects have customized their expertise by developing check lists for the various requirements that make a contact drawing complete. In case they are in hurry, these check lists can fruitfully assist them in ensuring all important components in a contract drawn for a sprinkler contractor is complete. It is true to say that most architects specialize in designing houses and most leave minimum provisions for structures that are installed long after the house is competed. This is because most architects do not have an idea for what purpose the house they are designing shall be used. The fire fighting systems are installed as the need arise depending on the use for which the house shall be used. Sometimes, although rarely, some architects once they spot errors they had made in their designs, they may distort the designs to cover up their errors and this way, they evade possible blame for such errors (Gagnon, 1998, p. 107). This blame is avoided because it can cause serious impacts on the company contracted to design, given that they are in business and they need to keep their reputation. However, this action is against the requirements of the Code of Conduct for engineers. 3. The response time for the Californian fire department According to the Californian fire control and suppression department, the response time for this department vary considerably. This was evident from the various reports obtained from the department. The response time as discussed here denotes the period from the time when the department is informed about a fire incident through the preparation for take off until the time they reach the fire site. The major explanation given for this difference in response time was due to the various circumstances surrounding each fire break case. This could range from issues like distance, accessibility, appropriateness of the equipment available and the preparedness of the fire fighting crew in the given station. Response time Based on the principles of effective fire control, suppression and management, there is no specified time which can be termed as the ideal response time. The ideal response time is the best time possible within which a crew will get to the burning site and start acting upon the fire, in the given circumstances. For this ideal response time to be gotten there is need of strong spirit of team work from all parties concerned, starting with the commanders at the station to the fire fighters in action (Ammons, 2001, p. 157). Communication has to be most effective and the message about the incidence must be clearly and coherently communicated and information about what, where and when should be precisely given for response time to be as short as possible. Accessibility will be determined by the location of the burning property. Air crafts may be used where the fire is deep in the forests and land vehicles may be used where the site is accessible by road. Response time is usually prolonged in cases where fire is in a slum or where the estate planning was too poor as to allow accessibility in times of emergency. Some times, the planning could have provided for this but poor management of the available structures such as bridges could be the barrier. Generally, an exponential function is the result of correlating the damage caused by fire with the time it takes before suppression efforts begin. This means the more time you take, the little you should expect to rescue. Therefore, it is essentially basic to respond within the first few minutes from the time you receive the signal and the approach should of course avoid panic. The fire should be fought professionally. Although the response time for this department appear to be timely, it is advisable for companies relying on this facility for fire management to install their sprinkler fire fighting systems to avoid any loss that can result to delayed response from the fire department. Although this may not fully content the fire, it can substantially suppress the fire before the crew from the department arrives, therefore preventing total losses. 4. Measure the height of your house from ground level to the highest ceiling. What water supply must be available to supply 35 psi for a sprinkler at the highest ceiling? Pressure A= Pressure B+ Pressure C , Force ‘B’ must correspondingly increase to maintain the equilibrium balance of forces which in turn translates to an outlet pressure rise. Therefore a maximum water supply pressure of 100 psi is required. 5. Actions taken by the fire service when fighting flammable liquid storage tank fires with fixed water spray protection installed and without fixed water spray protection installed. The fire brigade commander professionally and quickly determines the kind of flammable liquid that is burning, its immediate properties such as density as compared to that of water. In cases where the water is denser, it is mostly avoided because it can potentially worsen the situation. The commander expertly and in no time determines the flash point of the burning fluid. If the liquid has the potential of burning when it mixes with air upon ignition, the commander may command the use of water to prevent reaching the flash point of that liquid. When the fire is detected in time, the spraying of water using the fixed apparatus will but not in large quantities will lower the temperature in the room and thus reduce the potential of the ambient room temperature to cause the ignition as this has been known to cause the ignition of most flammable liquids whose flash point is low. It is necessary to close the container from which the vapors are coming from as the ignited vapor can burn back to the liquid, thus resulting to a fatal explosion. In cases where there is no fixed water spray, the portable water sprayers can be used to spray water (but not to pour because the fluid will float on water and even burn more) to the atmosphere and even near the liquid containers to lower the temperature. It is important to assess the risk in both cases by referring to the flammability characteristics of the fluid in question. Again, both cases require a person to first wear personal protection gear such as eye protection equipment, gloves on hands to prevent burning in case you come in contact with the flammable liquid, and also additional protective clothing for the whole body. Safety shield is useful in cases where a potential explosion is most likely or an exothermic reaction is most likely. Generally, the actions done here include the transfer of the flammable liquid to a working fume board if possible. Any potential source of ignition should be completely eliminated (Fitzgerald, 2004, pp. 422-424). Then locate all the safety equipment. Use appropriate mode of alerting the nearby people. The use of water as a fire extinguisher in case the fire has been ignited should not be attempted but instead, the use of dry chemical extinguishers can be suitably used. Alternatively, the use of liquefied carbon dioxide can be effective on these flammable liquid fires. Ask for assistance from the nearby fire facility by calling the emergency numbers. 6. Fire alarm systems in a factory Fire alarms noted in the factory were of various kinds. First, the M-Fire Alarm system which had manual call points. They were placed mostly near escape routes and they largely lacked an automatic way of detecting fire. It mainly relied on a person raising alarm. In case of fire disaster L-Fire alarm system which was designed to preserve life. It could enable non affected people in a factory on fire to safely escape unhurt. It had automatic sensors of a possible fire disaster, beacons and sirens. The third kind is P fire alarm system which is designed such that it can simultaneously protect life of building occupants; protect the property inside and most importantly the building itself by having the ability to automatically dial out the emergency number of the fire brigade. The available fire alarm systems identified could also be classified either as single stage system or double stage system. The single stage system when activated could transmit a signal in the whole building such that all the occupants in the building become aware of the fire danger the soonest possible. The two stage system could first release a characteristic alert signal to all occupying staff. If the staffs confirm the existence of the fire, they activate the alarm signal. In case the component alert is false, the alarm can be silenced and the system reset. According to the fire protection engineer, the M fire alarm system was used because it could serve the whole chain of factory buildings. L fire alarm system was to ensure timely evacuation and that there was no loss of life as a result of inconveniences. The system requires use of fire resistant materials in the factory to avoid fast spread of fire in the factory which is common in most factories. On the other approach to identifying the alarm system in the factory, the two stage system was installed based on the fact that most industrial workers especially those in the offices may panic very easily if they abruptly learn about a fire in the building they are in. This system was seen a necessary measure to reduce the possible effects of false alarms. Finally, the installation of single stage alarm systems in the factory sites where most machines are in operation was based on the idea that the fuel for running the machines could easily catch fire and lead to a very rapid spread and therefore this form of alarm would avoid any form of delay (Gill, 1997, p. 97). The performance objectives of the company in using these systems is to attain fastest response to fire break in industry while keeping the panic associated with raising fire alarms as minimum as possible to the senior management and other support staff in the factory offices. 7. How the first Montreal Protocol agreement has been modified since 1987. The Montreal protocol meant to address the issues related to the production of substances that result to depletion of the critical ozone layer has been modified several times. Since its signing in 1987 by only 25 nations, the membership tally has rose up to one hundred and sixty eight nations as of now. Much of these changes are as a result of more awareness of the effects of the various halogen substances and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) on the ozone layer. This has been obtained through intensive scientific research. The major changes in this original protocol were noted in the year 1990 in London, 1992 in Copenhagen, 1995 in Vienna and the most recent was done in 1997 in the city of Montreal. The amendments were made to speed up the withdrawal and abstinence from the production of substances that deplete the ozone layer. First, the production and the use of halogen matter have a phase-out completely on the first day of January, 1994. Exactly two years later, the production and use of other ozone depleting substances was phased out. These substances include CFCs, tetra chlorides of carbon, methyl chloroform and others like complex compounds of hydrogen, bromine, fluorine and carbon (hydrobromofluorocarbons). It is important to note that some companies in certain nations were exempted from the above discussed bans while compounds of H, Cl, F and carbon are to be phased by the year 2020. As more knowledge continue to be obtained from scientific research, the current ozone depleting potentials of various substances shall continue to reviewed from time to time and the best standards shall be used. The Montreal Protocol has resulted to a decline of chlorinated hydrocarbons while the controlled use of hydrocarbons has resulted to leveled trend in emission levels. They have been predicted to begin declining by 2020 (Newton, 1995, p. 1). 8. Aqueous and non-aqueous agents are employed by the Californian fire service, Aqueous agents used First, the most commonly used aqueous substance in fire fighting is water itself. It can either be pure or salty but mostly pure water is rarely used. Ice has been sparingly used but it is effective in keeping room temperature low below the flash point of most flammable liquids. However, an array of hydrated chemicals has been developed for use in the fire fighting exercise. Most of the agents that are used in this chemical formulations include chlorinated metaxylenol, some forms of Urea, heteropolysaccharide-7 substance, aqueous solution of equal amount of sodium decylsulfate and sodium octylsulfate (both used in equal amounts in terms of their molar masses, other compounds like monobutyl ether made of diethylene glycol as well as the hydrated form of isopropyl mixture. Other chemicals used may vary narrowly from this typical composition to contain fewer compounds than these or include a few more compounds such as ammonia and magnesium sulfate. Non aqueous agents used The most commonly used non water agents in fighting fire in this fire service was Liquefied carbon dioxide which is packed in sturdy metallic cylinders and let out through some nozzles at the top of the cylinders. It is popularly known for its effectiveness in fighting and suppressing fires on flammable liquid tanks and containers. It acts by cutting off the oxygen supply from the atmosphere by forming a blanket like layer over the fire. In additions, these kinds of fires can also be handled by the use of dry chemical extinguishers. Fire beaters are commonly used in the grassland wildfires in California and they are used by trained fire beating crew who must wear appropriate garments and gears that are not only resistant to the fire itself but also protective from the painful burning characteristic of open-fire fighting. The criteria for determining the kind of agent to be used is based on the kind of fire (in the open or in a building), the kind of material burning (flammable liquid or wood or plastic or any other) and also on the resources available. Curbed fires can be suppressed by adequate water spray while fire from a fuel tank can be suppressed by used of liquid carbon dioxide. The agent selected should be the most appropriate under the prevailing conditions (Schwartz Perry, 2007, p. 334). 9. Gift from a client or other person with whom one has a professional relationship, which must be reported to an employer, those if accepted could create a conflict of interest and state the justification. a. A pen with promotional advertising on it. It should be reported because if kept as a secret, other parties with similar interest as this client may see this as a campaign for this particular client’s company. b. A promotional videotape- it should be reported but it has no potential for causing conflict of interest. Reporting will allow for analyzing of the message in the tape and whether it is acceptable or not. c. A book of engineering data – this should be reported because the information contained in this book has not been established to be in conformity with the applicable standards for engineering. If not reported, it can cause a conflict of interest because if an engineer beliefs in the data, he is likely to have conflicts with others who use the preset standards. d. An engraved briefcase – it should also be reported because the material used to make it may be unsafe. Since briefcases are carried at work, the engraved briefcase may act as a source of irradiations which can potentially form a source of ignition for liquids with low splash points. e. A car – This should be reported because if not reported, it may be perceived as a reward for favor done before which is not acceptable according to the engineering code of ethics. This client may also be malicious and implant explosive materials in the car, and set it to explode when parked near the factory. Reporting will give room for inspection to avoid such terrorism minded clients or persons. f. A calendar- This should not be reported and cannot be a source of conflict if reported because it does not feature any where within the codes of ethics. However, if it contains advertisements of a company with which you have business relations, it should be reported because it has the potential of influencing the decisions of the engineer and may be seen as unfair by other companies with which you have similar business ties. g. A sterling silver pen with your name engraved on it- it should not be accepted if the person is involved in fraudulent enterprise as stipulated in the Rules of Practice number 1d. The engraved material may be radioactive and thus form a hazard especially when working in factories with highly flammable liquid tanks. h. An encyclopedia. This should be accepted and never reported because it has general information and the information contained is usually standardized and can be believed to be true. In case it is not reliable, the publisher can be held responsible (NSPE, 2003, pp. 1-2). 10. About an article related to unethical conduct The article is about a company that was involved in corrupt tendering process. The way it obtained road construction tenders was questionable by its competitors. This unethical engineering conduct has led to several impacts. First, there has been pressure from the other registered road constructors to de-register this constructor and soon, this individual company may be out of business. The engineers directly involved in the scandal may as well be deregistered. Since this has been highlighted by the press, the whole society may lose the trust they had on the engineering society unless a stern action is taken. This is against the professionalism of engineering and it is ‘staining’ the profession. This act is against the code of conduct for engineers since they are required to execute their duties honestly. The law also requires them to conduct themselves honorably and ethically and always act within the law. This is meant to retain the reputation and most importantly the usefulness of the profession. The ethical actions that should be taken against the perpetrators of this act include appearing for questioning to prove the misconduct, and if found guilty, the perpetrators should be sentenced as per the law (NSPE, 2003, pp. 1-2). The engineers involved should also be de-registered from the society for engineers for ‘staining’ the society and violating the rules they know very well. References Ammons, D. (2001). Assessing Municipal Performance. US: Sage. Fitzgerald, W. (2004). Building Fire Performance Analysis. New York: J. Wiley and Sons. Gagnon, R. M. (1998). Special Hazard Design. New York: Thomson Delmar. Gill, P. (1997). Factory Management and Maintenance. Michigan: McGraw Hill. National humanity of skilled engineers (NSPE). (2003). Code of Ethics for Engineers. Alexandria: NSPE. Newton, D. C. (1995). ‘The Ozone Dilemma’, The Columbia Encyclopedia. Columbia: Columbia University press.

Examining and Evaluating the Globalization of Globacon Nigeria

Examining and Evaluating the Globalization of Globacon Nigeria Modern global businesses have to satisfy a myriad of conflicting demands coming from different directions. In a competitive world, firms use integrated controls to preserve corporate standards and strategies, which help attain economies of scale. They also make certain innovative decisions that help in sustaining the growth of the business and create competitive edge over the other firms in the industry. Some of these core decisions is on participating more actively in the local and global market, while bearing in mind that to operate efficiently and effectively on the global platform needs sensitivity to indigenous market situations, adaptability under varying circumstances, and responsiveness to new prospect. Multinational companies increasingly face intense competition globally. In these emerging situations, companies seek to implement strategies that will improve and sustain the growth of their business. Because of this, multinational companies are changing the way they structure their businesses, changing their modus operandi in order to conform to todays business environment. For todays business managers the need to understand this strategic motivation for change is of utmost importance. For they to be responsive, there must be concern not just for the now, but also for the companys unforeseen future. This entails planning, organizing, directing, and controlling resources and managing a diverse labour force in a way that will be beneficial to all structures of businesses internationally. Overview of Globacom Nigeria Limited Globacom Limited is a Nigerian multinational telecommunications company headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, a privately owned company and one of Africas fastest growing telecommunications company. Globacom is the market leading mobile service provider in Nigeria and operates in the neighbouring West African states (Globacom Limited n.d.). According to (Globacom Limited n.d.) it is reputed to be one of the fastest growing mobile service providers in the world, and aims to be the biggest and best mobile network in Africa. The telecommunication industry in Nigeria in particular and the world at large characterized by huge investments in technology and is exposed to rapid fluctuations in the market environment, such as consolidation of both telecom operators and network providers. The providers are competing for the limited number of customers, present on the global stage. Competitors can be either large multinational companies, such as Vodafone, or small regional companies, such as MTN, Za in etc. The global industry performance is largely dependent on continued growth in mobile and fixed communication in terms of both number of subscriptions and usage per subscriber. Moreover, the current merging of the telecom, data, and media industries changes the conditions in which the telecom operators do business. Consequently, the competitive environment is changing and novel strategies, addressing the new market conditions, are developed. Now in its bid to meet the organisational aims and objectives, the company wants to know the possibility of increasing its participation in the local and global market. Thus, this paper seeks to outline the key issues involved in localisation and globalisation, strategic decisions involved and implementation challenges with Globacom as reference. THE CONCEPTS OF GLOBALISATION AND LOCALISATION Globalisation is a term that denotes the process of strengthening political, economic, social and cultural relations across the world. Different authors and scholars have tried to define or explain globalisation. (Ohabunwa 1999), understands globalisation as a development which is analytically reforming interactions among different countries by eliminating bottlenecks in the areas of communication, commerce, culture. According to (Ohiorhenuan 1998), globalisation is the widening and deepening relations of national economies into a worldwide market for goods and services, especially capital. (David 2009) Sees globalisation as international way of doing business using strategic decisions based on global profitability rather than local considerations. Generally, globalisation is the integrated and co-ordinated approach by which industries evolve from multi-national to global competitive structures through trade, financial transactions, and exchange of information, ideas, technology, and the movement of people. Localisation on the other hand is the opposite of globalisation. Localisation entails that multinational companies recognises national economic issues and are locally responsive in meeting local demands. With this perspective in mind, (Meyer and B.D.Wit 2004) opined that managers in the international departments of multinational companies, should then be permitted to be responsive to particular local conditions. Arguing a case for localisation, (Chen Jun 2008), stated that companies localise their operations because of the various differences and political obstacles between different local markets, and that the cost of neglecting or disregarding local uniqueness in preference to that of global setting is too high. The choice of increased participation in the local and international market has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantages of global are cost-based, maximizing economies of scale and reducing repetition of processes and materials, thereby rea lizing efficiency. The advantages of localization are on the other hand are revenue-based, promoting variation to reach all customer positions and customer satisfaction (Buckley Ghauri, 2004). Porter,(1989) a proponent of global convergence perspective, argued from an international integration angle in his article The competitive advantage of nations that the world is becoming globally integrated but that the competitive advantage of a company is dependent on a combination of both its national circumstance and its strategy of harnessing it. He further opined that it behoves on the company to seize the opportunity of competitive advantage existing in its country. However, a globalisation perspective that is becoming more globally accepted by both the academic world and decision makers of multinational companies is that of Douglas and Wind who does not agree with the principal assumptions of the global standardization philosophy. Firstly, they opine that there is absence of evidence about uniformity in global customer taste, as there is diverse customer behaviour and taste even within the same country. Secondly, Differentiation as against low price strategy is more profitable and can reduce over competition in the industry. Thirdly, economies of scale of product is not the only credible reason for global convergence, research and development, marketing and after sale service sometimes are even more important than production. There is a consensus that multinational companies should not just focus on one side of the divide, but try to adjust the balance between localization and globalization. Multinational companies should deal with the problem differently according to different strategic contexts. (Douglas and Wind n.d.). Consequently, from the analysis, it is clear that the study of the dilemma of localization and globalization is approachable from different angles. The magnitude of globalization is different from country to country and there is no one best organizational response to globalization, every organization should balance those factors dynamically and find the strategy best suited to their company. PARADOXES For a firm to participate in local and global environment, some underlying internally and externally issues have to be analysed, rationalised and dealt with according the situation on ground. Meyer highlighted some paradoxes that exist and are instrumental to final strategic decisions by multinational companies. Globalization and localization Multinational companies are facing the paradox of globalization and localization in breaking into each emerging market. Generally, there are various ways on how multinational companies organise its global activities: The first according to (Chen Jun 2008) is global convergence perspective, which lays emphasis on taking advantage of their corporate resources and attaining global interactions, while the other is international diversity perspective, which lays focuses on adapting to local difficulties. According to (Tallman and Yipp 2001), the three basic strategic issues involved in multinational companies operating globally are geographic spread, localisation and global integration. The question here lies in whether companies should consider the global market in its entirety or recognise the local market structure as its main stream of business. Profitability and Responsibility The dichotomy (globalisation and localisation) pushes the companies into understanding their purpose in business. Different businesses have different visions and mission as seen in their various statements. According to (Meyer and B.D.Wit 2004), some of their motives is to maximise profit for the owners (a shareholder value approach), or to meet the requirements of the general populace (a stakeholders values approach). In deciding on increased participation in the market, Globacom will have to decide which is more germane to its core values. Why Firms Globalise From the discussion, companies that decide to globalise, or use global strategies will have some beneficial consequences such as gaining new customers for their products and services, other advantages are: According to (Yip, Mintzberg and Quinn 1991), companies can reduce costs by pooling production or other activities for multiple countries. They further opined that other methods such as exploiting lowers factor cost i.e. moving manufacturing activities to countries with low costs, moving production between countries to take advantage of lowest costs at a particular time, also reduces costs. Excess capacity and economic risks can be absorbed through foreign operations (David 2009) There will be increased competitive advantage as companies will act as checks and balances on each other. With joint venture programs, companies will learn the culture, technology, and business practises of the host nation. Global savings distributed more efficiently as countries higher productive capacity for capital e.g. UK, can borrow from countries with excess fund. (David 2009), also stated that economies of scale can be achieved as large scale production and better efficiency allow higher sales volume and lower price offerings. Other factors such as economies of scale in production, purchasing, faster accumulation of learning from operating worldwide, decrease in transportation and distribution cost, reduced cost in product adaptation, and the emergence of a global market segments have encouraged the competition on a global scale. However, the decision to globalise has some inherent drawbacks. Barriers such as governmental policies and institutional limitations, tariff barriers and duties, transportation cost, variances in customer preference and demand, are some of the drawbacks enumerated by (Douglas and Wind n.d.). Seizure of foreign operations by nationalists as stated by (David 2009), is one of the disadvantages. The economic changes fashioned by globalisation have brought about business displacements and job losses in many countries, changed the commodity composition of trade and led to distortions in local consumption patterns, thereby bringing about relative price changes that local consumers find difficult to adapt. Globalisation has also led to a situation where financial disturbances emanating from one country quickly spreads like wildfire to other countries with destabilizing consequences. (Obadan 2004). STRATEGIC GLOBAL DECISIONS In order to achieve an objective, aim or goal, every business must have a strategy. There is no common or single definition of strategy as it relates to and can be applied to many contrasting fields such as marketing ,economics, investment, military, gaming, and as well as corporate global environment. Strategy can however be generalised to mean a plan of action, thought out in advance, aimed at achieving a particular objective, with particular reference to gaining competitive advantage for an business over other businesses in the same industry. (Barney and Hesterly 2010) , defines strategy as a theory by a firm on how to gain competitive advantages. (Mintzberg 1988), proposed five definitions of strategy Plan A conscious thought out course of action, a guide made in advance before implementation. Ploy made with the intentions of outsmarting other competitors. Pattern i.e. a consistent and accurate behaviour resulting from the plan. This can be realised, unrealised and emergent strategies. As a position i.e. the way, a company positions itself in the market in terms of locating particular product brands at particular markets. Perspective i.e. the fundamental way of doing things in the business and way the managers of the company perceive the world from the companys point of view. (Lewis 1999), added a sixth definition, by defining strategy as a process of sensing, analysing, choosing and acting. According to (Johnson and Scholes 2007),Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long-term: which achieves advantage for the organisation through its configuration of resources within a challenging environment, to meet the needs of markets and to fulfil stakeholder expectations. They also posited that there are different strategies used at different levels of a business. Corporate Strategy is concerned with the generally purpose and scope of the business to meet consumers expectations. Investors interactions in the business environment, has an influence over and is a guide to strategic decision-making within the business. Corporate Strategy is also part of the mission statement of most firms. Business Unit Strategy This deals more with how a business competitively successfully a business is in a particular market. It is about the strategic decisions of choice of products, customer satisfaction, competitive and comparative advantage over competitors, development or creation of novel ideas and opportunities. Operational Strategy This handles the issue of how each the component parts of the business is organised in other to deliver the corporate and business-unit level strategic direction required for growth. Operational strategy therefore focuses on subjects of resources, processes, and people. Companies can use any or all of these strategies but also have to bear in mind that there are some globalisation drivers affecting the prospective use of global strategy. Lewis et al (1999) opined that managers shoul d be able to recognize when these drivers provide opportunities to use these strategies. In explaining thes drivers, Lewis et al (1999) said that Market drivers, are those characterised by homogenous customer needs, global consumers, global channels of distribution and transferability. Cost drivers on the other hand are the drivers that are dependent on the economies of the business and are characterised by economies of scale and scope, learning and experience, sourcing efficiency, favourable logistics and product development costs. Governmental drivers are those dependent on government policies and an influence over the use of all the other global strategies. It comprises of favourable trade policies, compatible technical standards and common marketing regulations. Fina lly, they named competitive drivers as those comprising of the interdependency of countries and globalised competitors. Although these drivers are individually powerful, they are not on their own formulae for sure success. A combination of two or more can be viable in an economy. Lewis et al (1999) PESTEL Creating a global strategy involves an initial step of an environmental analysis of political, economic, social, and technological trends that are pertinent to operating on a global level. (Kotler 1998), claims that this analysis is useful strategic tool for learning the direction a business is going with reference to its growth or deterioration, business position, potentials. PESTEL ANALYSIS Economic Factors Political Factors Social Factors Legal Factors FIRM Technological Factors Political factor: These refer to government policies such as the degree of intervention in the economy. Political decisions can have an effect on many vital areas for business such as the education of the workforce, the health of the nation and the quality of the infrastructure of the economy. African governments are taking steps in opening their economies to international trade. Most countries have started trade and exchange liberalization process, eliminating multiple exchange rates and nontariff barriers, and reducing the degree of tariff protection. Economic factors: These include interest rates, taxation changes, economic growth, inflation and exchange rates. , the restructuring of many African economies is gaining momentum. Throughout the continent, government intervention in economic activity is on the decline. Administrative price restrictions and agricultural marketing has been widely eased up. Social factors: Changes in social trends can affect the demand for a firms products or services and the availability and enthusiasm of the work force. Technological factors: new technologies create new products and new processes. There can be cost reduction, improvement in quality and innovation through technology. These developments can have a positive effect on consumers as well as firms concerned. Environmental factors: this includes weather and climate change. Fluctuations in temperature can have a negative on many industries including the telecoms industry. With the advent of global warming, there is greater environmental awareness and this is becoming a significant concern for firms to ponder. Legal factors: the legal setting in which firms operates determines the progress of the business. With ever-stringent laws in the telecoms industry on provision of services, Globacom will have to improve on its service provision. The managers of Globacom need to think about the factors that are likely to change and in what direction and which factors will have the greatest influence on them. PORTERS FIVE FORCES According to Michael Porter (1985), for a firm to seek for a favourable competitive placing in any industry, it will have to find out how attractive the industry is. To be able to analyse any industrys attractiveness, either domestically or internationally, there are five competitive forces: the threat of new entrants, the bargaining power of suppliers, the bargaining power of consumer, the threat of substitutes and the intensity of rivalry competitors. The five forces is the focal determinant of the industry profitability, as they have tremendous influence on price, costs and profits of the product. (De wit Meyer, 2004: p.259) Porters five forces model The threat of new entrants: In the telecommunication industry, the threat of new entrant is relatively low as the stringent barriers high initial cost of start-up and fixed cost associated with the business is extremely high. This works to the advantage of Globacom and others in the industry. Bargaining power of suppliers: There is a myriad of telecommunication companies worldwide but there limited number of telecommunication equipment suppliers in the industry. Here, Globacom is disadvantaged as there are limited alternatives. Bargaining power of consumers: bargaining power is high in this industry because of presence of many competitors. In Nigeria alone there are about ten telecommunication companies fighting for the same customers. Globacom is only at the moment differentiated in price and customer loyalty. Threat of substitutes: in the telecoms industry, threat of substitution is high as all the telecoms companies sell virtually the same product and or services. Globacom should determine the extent of customer switchover and try make customer satisfaction a priority. However, other companies in the industry may decide to go into price war, which reduces the profit margin of the companies involved. Degree of rivalry: the telecoms industry is a highly competitive as each company is trying to outdo the other in other to increase their subscriber base. Here as stated before, Globacom should have customer satisfaction as its watchword. Managers of Globacom should as a matter duty identify the key aspect or elements of each competitive force that influences the firm, assess how strong and vital each element is for the firm and decide whether the combined strong point of the element is worth the firm entering or staying in the country. Limitations Globacom has used this model as a strategy. Since growth is of core importance to the company, it has shown this by rolling out different services such as Glo mobile, Glo gateway, Glo 1, and Glo broad access, across West African sub-region (Globacom Limited n.d.). Globacom is using the strength of large customer base and name to keep itself in the forefront of the telecoms industry. PORTERS GENERIC STRATEGY Multinational companies are able to achieve competitive advantage, mainly through differentiating their products and services through low costs. Companies can broaden their market scope or they can focus on a refined target in the market. According to (Porter,1989), strategies allow companies to gain competiive advantage via three bases : cost leadership, differentiation and focus. It is imperative for companies to use the cost leadership strategy if they try to become low cost producers in their industry. Globacom pricing strategy is among one of the best in the industry in the sub-region. The other telecoms companies are trying hard to meet the price standard set by Globacom and this makes it easier for them to locate to other countries. N Nigeria, they have the lowest price tariff coupled with other added services. Globacom is also one of fastest growing companies in the industry it showed tremendous growth through sale of 600,000 sim cards in its first ten days of operation in republic of Benin (Cellular-News 2008), and planned to capture 30% of the 11 million subscribers within a short period of its commencing business in Ghana (Oruame 2008). Differentiation as used by many firms cannot in the telecoms industry as virtually all the product and services are similar in nature. However, the per-second billing method for calls, has been used by Globacom to dif ferentiate its product and services. Globacom on the other hand is not pursuing the focus strategy as it is directing its effort in a particular section of the industry. Limitations Companies pursuing the strategic generic model, have to make a choice between cost leadership and differentiation and avoid the stuck in the middle syndrome, which results in poor financial performance (Porter, 1980). Globacom does not pursue either low cost strategies or differentiation. It merges both techniques as its strategy. THE ANSOFFS GROWTH MATRIX (Lewis 1999), in citing Ansoff (1965), opined that the tool is used in detecting options available to firms wanting to widen their competitive edge, as it helps these businesses decides the strategy they will use in their product and market growth. Some of these options include: Ansoffs growth matrix Product Development Market Penetration (Existing product) (New product) (New market) Diversification Market Development (Existing market) Market penetration: This focuses on increasing market share of existing products into existing markets. The objectives of this option are to maintain or increase the market stake of current products through combining competitive pricing strategies, advertising, and sales promotion, ensure supremacy of growth markets, increase usage by existing customers Market development: This is a growth strategy where companies want to sell its existing products into new markets through new geographical areas, new product sizes or packages, or new distribution channels. Product development: this is the growth strategy where a business creates new products for augmenting existing products in existing markets. Diversification: This is the growth strategy where businesses introduce new products into new markets. However, for a business to implement a diversification strategy, therefore, it must have a knowledgeable idea of its gains and accompanying risk. Limitations: Globacom as a company uses this strategy extensively as seen in the number of countries it had moved into within a short span of time, the number of products it had introduced into these markets and the rate of diversification. However, it needs to monitor the trend in customers, demands in other to be responsive to them. PRODUCT LIFE CYCLE Most products pass through for basic phases i.e. introduction, growth, maturity and decline. From a strategic point of view, knowledge of the products life cycle helps a company to manage the introduction of a new product. (Barney and Hesterly 2010), speaking from an international perspective, opines that that the product life cycle of a product or service can be at different stages of its life cycle in different countries. Consequently, the resources developed by a firm during a particular stage in the life cycle of the product in the home market to the same stage of another product in the international market (Barney and Hesterly 2010). The PLC of a product consists of introduction, growth and maturity, and companies use this to analyse and assess how they believe their product will perform through its PLC and the marketing strategies and marketing mix implemented at each stage. (Lewis 1999), warned that firms that do not pursue strategies appropriate to the life cycle stage of the ir product, might lose competitive advantage. Globacom is increasingly expanding its range of products to retain its competitiveness in the market and hence important that they invest make sure their customers demand are satisfied. CONCLUSION Every strategic model is an instrument used for gathering strategic information from the international perspective and a process for perceiving a number of different futures for any organisation. Undeniably, globalization for the telecommunication industry is a persistent trend. The international low cost of both material and labour, the low price of the resources, and the most advanced technological expertise are all required for increasing competitiveness in the industry. Furthermore, for these firms to be able to manage the intricacies involved in globalization entails including new tools, structures and strategic models added to the ones already in use as the knowledge and application of strategic models is a prerequisite for the survival of any business in its industry. Globacom should adhere strictly to the laws of the relevant strategies and integrate them into the corporate business model to ensure and sustain its leadership role in the telecoms industry. Managers have to dec ide how to modify their products, make changes in their marketing policies to suit the situation on ground, formulate human resource practices and business strategies to deal with national differences in culture, language, business practices, and government regulations. In addition, managers have to decide how best to tackle the threat posed by efficient foreign competitors entering their home market and how to effectively and efficiently enter a foreign market and create a positive impact.

Impacts Of Urban Development On Wetlands Environmental Sciences Essay

Impacts Of Urban Development On Wetlands Environmental Sciences Essay According to Ramsar convention 1971, wetlands are defined as areas of marsh, fern, peat land or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporal, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, blackish or salty, including areas of marine water, the depth of which at low tide does not exceed 6m (Davies, 1993). Wetlands may incorporate riparian and coastal zones adjacent to the wetlands, islands of water bodies of marine water deeper than 6m at low tide lying within the wetlands. Wetlands affect the lives of every one of Ugandas citizens. We depend on wetlands for food, and clean water, for building materials and fuels, for livestock grazing and medicines and for water flow regulation. They provide a powerful engine for our countrys development with wetland services and products (WMD, 2008). The economic and ecological wealth represented by Ugandas wetlands, which cover 15% of its land cover are found in almost every sub-county (WID, 2001). While such a dispersed geographic coverage provides wetland benefits to a greater number of people, it also increases the likelihood of overexploitation and degradation. Ugandas high level of political and administrative decentralization adds to this risk. In Uganda there are no recent, exact countrywide statistics on chances in wetland area. The latest national land cover map with detailed wetland information was produced in 1996 (NFA, 2006). However local observations cited in Ugandas recent state of environment report indicate a reduction in wetland coverage, mostly due to conversion into crop land and spread of urban settlements (NEMA, 2007). While such conversions provide economic benefits from agriculture crop and real estate development, they are also associated with social costs primarily due to reduced or total loss of hydrological functions, habitat benefits and other ecosystem services. One of the factors driving these conversions is that the immediate economic returns to individuals outweigh the costs to the wider society associated with the loss of important ecosystem services. On a global scale, urbanization is increasingly homogenizing the biota of less developed countries. Even though urban sprawl is a worldwide problem, most studies on the effect of urbanization on wetlands and the conceptual models have focused on developed countries. South America has not escaped urbanization and therefore has undergone the effects of urban sprawl and development. Pavements replace native wetland ecosystems and what is left of the natural ecosystem is dominated by non-native ornamentals species (Tolba and El-khoy 1997). Kampala, Ugandas capital city has experienced rapid population growth of 5.61% per annum from 774,241 in 1991 to 1.2million 2002.The growth, which has occurred concomitantly with changes in population structure of the city, is influenced by rural-urban migration (UBOS, 2002). Population increase in Kampala area is responsible for increased demand for employment, land for housing, social services and infrastructure that have stimulated spatial urban development and industrialization. Due to increasing rate of industrialization, which is an indication of development, many people are coming into the urban centers to look for jobs. On the other hand, the employment opportunities are too few to absorb the labour, coupled with increasing population; this creates an influx of laborers. This has had serious environmental consequences including wetland degradation, deposition of solid and toxic wastes in the wetlands and drainage channels (NEMA, 2001/2002). The current urban development is occurring in a haphazard manner largely dominated by the urban informality in most of the sectors (NEMA, 2001/2002). This has greatly contributed to the unsustainable utilization of natural resources with in the area resulting in environmental degradation through solid waste accumulation, wetland encroachment, water pollution and land use/cover change, which is reducing the ecological services from the natural environment of the area. Although Ugandas wetlands are protected by National Environment stature 1995, most of them are still being reclaimed and degraded, especially those outside protected areas. The environment and natural resource issue in Nakivubo division pose some of the most contentious, difficult and politically sensitive questions.Therefore,the future of our environment and natural resources seems to depend more on the trends in; economic gains, social and political developments as well as outcome of litigation, legislation and administrative debates and decisions. In general the most outstanding issue concerning urban wetlands is the increasing level of degradation mainly from encroachment. Related to this issue are pressures, which include ownership of wetlands as property, and government/institutional policies. Other threats to the stability of wetlands are agricultural conversions, industrial pollution, drainage and over harvesting of wetland resources. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Nakivubo wetland, one of the main wetlands in Kampala district, has suffered major encroachment in the recent past. A visit to the wetland reveals a lot of new activities, which signify recent massive encroachment. The activities include; residential and commercial buildings and car washing bays among others. There is significant reduction in the vegetation cover, and the wetland now experiences more visible instances of flooding than before during heavy rains. All these activities put a lot of pressure on the wetland, and affect its ecological function and cause degradation. These activities are thought to be a consequence of the increasing rate of development and urbanization in Kampala. Though there is insufficient data at the present to link urbanization with encroachment on Nakivubo wetland. The size and biodiversity of unconverted portions of wetlands has drastically diminished, with some areas completely converted. In 1993 it was noted that 13% of the wetlands in Kampala was s everely degraded and by 2002 only 3.3% was remaining and was continuing to be degraded (NEMA, 2007). Housing, industrialization and infrastructure development play an important role in wetland degradation. This study will therefore examine the relationship between urbanization and the encroachment and degradation of the Nakivubo wetland, and suggest options for addressing the problem. OBJECTIVES The overall objective is to examine the effects of urbanization on wetlands, using Nakivubo wetland in Kampala as a case study. Specific objective i) To describe the types of activities in the Nakivubo wetland and their social-economic implications on the urban people. ii) Assess the sustainable management practices urban people use to improve on wetland ecosystem. iii) Assess the awareness of urban people towards wetland use and management. Research questions The following questions are going to guide in my research. i) What activities do you carry on the wetland and how do you benefit from such activities? ii) What management practices are you using not to degrade the wetland? iii) Are you aware of any organization that protects wetlands? 1v) what are your main sources of information concerning the conservation of wetlands. 1.5 Justification of the study The study will evaluate the impact of urbanization on urban wetlands. The research is to examine how urban development leads to environmental changes mainly through wetland degradation. Its to provide information on wetland degradation that is currently inadequate. Thus the research will guide National Environment Authority (NEMA), the National Wetland Program and other interested parties to carry out appropriate actions to halt degradation of wetlands and develop more efficient wetlands conservation programmes. The information would further help district administrators like district environment officers to prepare action plans to improve local wetland resource management and mobilize community efforts to participate in wetland conservation. The information will also help urban planners in practicing sustainable development that is beneficial to the people but also environmentally friendly. It will provide knowledge to the local community on the effects of wetland encroachment. CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 INTRODUCTION The growth of urban and sub-urban areas has been a dominant demographic characteristic of the 20th century. During this time urban population has increased ten-fold, and the proportion of the human population living in urban areas has risen from 14 to over 50% (Platt, 1994). Much of this expansion of urban land, and citizenry has occurred along coasts, as port cities have expanded, coalesced, and engulfed neighboring undeveloped lands. Between 1960 and 1990, coastal counties in the US increased in population by 43%, a faster rate of growth than in the country as a whole. Likewise, between 1970 and 1989, nearly half of all building activities took place along the coasts (Anon., 1994). As of 1981, 28% of municipal areas were coastal, but they accounted for 55% of the US population (Walker, 1990). Elsewhere in the world, the story is similar: of cities with populations over 1 million, 100% of those in South America are coastal, as are 75% of those in Asia and Africa ( Berry, 1990). Ugan das population growth also continues to be amongst the highest in the world. The population in 2007 stood at 28.4 million an increase of 70 Percent since 1991 and 16 percent since 2002 and the countrys population is expected to exceed 50 million and 127 million by 2025 and 2050 respectively, (NEMA 2007). Not surprisingly, the effects of this burgeoning coastal development on natural resources have been profound (Walker and Nordstrom,1990). Damage to and loss of wetlands have been extensive ( Tiner, 1984Dahl, T.E., Johnson, C.E., 1991. Status and Trends of Wetlands in the Conterminous United States, Mid 1970s to Mid-1980s. US Dept. Int., Fish and Wildlife Serv., Washington, DC.). A recent survey by the US Department of Agriculture found that urbanization was implicated in wetland loss in nearly all surveyed watersheds (96%) and may account for as much as 58% of the total wetland loss (Anon, 1997 ). Yet wetlands remain an integral part of social and economic stability and their continued disappearance should be of concern to everyone. 2.2 HISTORY OF WETLAND MANAGEMENT IN UGANDA The economic and ecological wealth represented by Ugandas wetlands, which cover 15 percent (31,406sq km) of its land area and are found in almost every sub-county, is well recognized by both its people and its leaders. Wetlands provide not less than 37 valuable services and products, and contribute hundreds of millions of dollars per year to the national economy (WID, 2001). Over 70 percent of all wetlands in Uganda are used for three purposes simultaneously: water collection, livestock grazing, natural tree harvesting, clay and sand mining, fishing and sources of crafts materials among other uses. In addition, they play a key role in filtering pollutants and in regulating water flows, which in turn influence groundwater recharge, flood impacts, and water availability during the dry season. Ugandas policy-makers have acknowledged the importance of wetlands in the countrys Constitution (1995), which commits the government to hold them, along with other natural resources, in trust for the common good of all citizens. Over the past 15 years, innovations including Ugandas Wetland Policy and decentralized wetlands management have established a firm foundation for more sustainable wetland management. Environmental and wetland concerns are also integrated into several of the governments other primary policies, including the Poverty Eradication Action Plan, Plan for Modernization of Agriculture, and District Development Plans. The ten-year Wetlands Sector Strategic Plan, launched in 2001, identifies eight key strategies to achieve sustainable wetlands management. Between 1995 and 2005, the Wetlands Inspection Division spent about $US 2 million to carry out wetland inventories for 30 Districts and build the National Wetlands Information System (WID and IUCN, 2005). 2.3 URBAN WETLAND ENCROACHMENT Historically, there are several factors that can explain as to why the wetlands resources have and are still getting degraded in urban areas like Kampala. The major reason is rapid population growth leading to quest for extra land for cultivation and settlement. Extensive wetland resources both in the industrial and developing economies have already been lost or undergoing increasing change due to conversion to aquaculture or industrial use. In his speech to mark the wetlands day 2010, Mafabi [who is he?] quoted that many wetlands around Kampala have been reclaimed and used for development purposes like building industries, rise growing, impunity and disregard of the law. Mafabi (1991), observed that one of the reasons degradation of wetlands, in Uganda are the increasing number of landless people, who are forced to drain and cultivate wetlands due to pressure for agricultural land. Land in Kampala is very scarce and where its available, its very expensive, yet people really need land for agriculture and settlement. According to William (1990) and Njuguna (1982), reclaimed wetlands produce new soils, which are a basis of increased food production required to feed the rapidly growing population in developing countries. Since people consider wetlands to have very fertile soils and the fact that relevant institutions have turned a blind eye on encroachers, thus encroachers have taken advantage of these weaknesses to settle around and within these areas. Few people have demanded the protection and conservation of wetlands and these few who have tried are in most cases not noticed or are taken for granted by the authority (NEMA 2010). From my own local observation, some individuals use their profile for example high ranking officials or senior citizens to abuse these wetlands however much the public complains. Finlayson and Michael (1991) noted that a fundamental cause of urban wetland loss in the past is that few people have demanded their conservation. Since other people are encroaching on the wetlands, many other individuals, even those who were campaigning for the conservation of these areas have lost hope and also encroached for their own benefits. On the other hand however, Dugan (1990), consent that the main causes of wetland loss and exploitation are: the secrecy and manipulation of information, the dominance of short-term private profit on long term public benefits. People are very much interested in short term private benefits without spending much from their pockets. Wetlands are not supposed to be owned by private individuals or parties NES (1995), and therefore many people encroach on them because they are not going to be asked for any land titles. Ntambirweki (1998) noted that many people are utilizing these wetlands because the economic policy for free goods is deficient and the land tenure system is not clear. Dugan (1990) goes ahead to state that deficient economic policy for free goods and insecure and undocumented land tenure has also been a cause of the degradation of these wetlands. In my own view, there is lack of appreciation by people in these urban areas like Kampala of the extent to which these wetlands are important and are used by rural communities for purposes like domestic water, water for agriculture and some cultural values. The people in urban areas will therefore, continue to use the wetland for their development purposes. Citing some examples from the flood plains of the inner delta of the river Niger where the wetland exploitation is rampant, Dugan (1990) observed that one of the fundamental reasons for the drive to convert natural wetlands to other uses is a very poor international appreciation of the extent to which they are important and are used by rural communities. He therefore concluded that the absence of this understanding on wetlands makes conservation difficult and unable to challenge the proposed changes, which are seen as being essential to economic development. Some other factors that are influencing wetland encroachment are poverty related. These wetlands contain plants like papyrus, which people are harvesting and using to make goods like bags and mats (crafts) that they sell and earn a living(R. kabumbuli et al 2009). This in the long run affects the functioning of the wetland incase these plants are over harvested. They are also using the wetlands to grow rice for food and sale, making bricks and for fishing. All these activities contribute to degrading the wetland but are beneficial to the urban people for them to earn a living. ACTIVITIES CARRIED OUT IN WETLANDS Today, theres a growing concern to conserve and use wetlands in a sustainable way. Wetlands are more valuable economic resources in their natural state for certain objectives such as fishing, wildlife enhancement, aquaculture, water quality improvement and flood control, compared to the gains from a modified wetland, (Barbier, 1994). By encroaching on these areas, their economic function is being greatly affected and can have adverse impacts. Many activities are going on in the wetlands of Kampala as a result of encroachment by wetland users. These activities may have significant implications on the wetland, which may be beneficial or destructive to the wetland. Wetlands have been used for farming and for agriculture by many people. Crops such as yams and rice have been grown in the wetlands; livestock is taken to the wetlands for grazing. Water for irrigation, domestic use and livestock is collected from these wetlands. The growing of some of these crops like the yams is beneficial in these wetlands as these yams play an important role in the cleaning up of the water since they remove some minerals and nutrients from the water (Njuguna, 1982). On the other hand, extensive growing of these yams can lead to destruction of the wetland. The people practicing agriculture in these areas around wetlands have gone ahead to construct houses within the wetland so as to settle near their crops and also due to the fact that land is a scarce resource in urban areas. By constructing these houses, the flow of water in the wetland is disrupted and this in most cases leads to flooding mainly in the rainy seasons (Dugan, 1990). Settlement within wetlands has led to other associated degrading activities like brick making (Namanve wetland), sand extraction, and papyrus over harvesting (Kyengera wetland). Activities like sand extraction for construction of houses when carried out massively and brick making can have serious implications on wetlands as the sand that is removed is important in the filtration function of the wetlands (NEMA 2001/2002). This affects water filtration as a service provided by the wetlands. Over harvesting of wetland resources like papyrus for the purposes of making crafts so as to increase on the income of these people is also likely to affect the filtration and purification role of wetlands as these plants play a vital role in water purification in these wetlands. There are a variety of investments that are put up in these wetlands by reclaiming of the wetland to create land. Industries have been put up, churches have been constructed and other businesses like markets and shops have been developed with in urban wetlands. These are some of the major encroachments and activities going on in wetlands worldwide and in Kampala. A lot of land has been reclaimed and used for constructing of big industries in the urban areas due to development, which has resulted in shortage of land for the construction of these industries and factories. The reclaiming of these wetlands so as to create land for construction has been a great cause of flooding (Mitsch and Gosselink 1990). On the other hand, this creates and provides land for development and settlement in urban areas. Due to development, there is need for roads with in these urban centers and therefore, some of the roads that have been constructed have encroached on the wetlands and others have been constructed either adjacent or within wetlands, which has affected the functioning of the wetlands. Roads constructed adjacent or within wetlands increase on the level of silting in the wetlands and they also disrupt the flow of the wetlands since this can lead to the diverging of the wetland (Anibal and Aguayo, 1995). There is also a likelihood of these roads breaking down after some time hence affecting many people. Within wetlands, activities like fishing and aquaculture are being carried out. People depend on these activities to earn a living and for livelihood support. Fish ponds have been constructed to culture fish near these wetlands. Wetlands both permanent and seasonal especially along the lakeshores are an important source of fish for the local community. The interface zone between the swamp and the open water is an important breeding ground for commercial fish including tilapia (William, 1990). Its also a home to many aquatic and wildlife species and birds. Extensive fishing can lead to over exploitation of the fish species, which are of importance in the ecosystem. This in the long run may affect the ecological functioning of the wetlands since it affects the food chain. AWARENESS TOWARDS WETLAND USE AND MANAGEMENT It should not go unnoticed that, historically, many wetlands have been misconceived to be waste lands. Consequently, they were drained or degraded by human activity without factoring in their numerous functions, benefits and values, (William, et al, 1990). Wetlands were also regarded as bogs of treachery, mines of despair, homes of pests, refuge for out laws and rebels, (Williams, 1990; Mafabi, 1991). A good wetland was a drained one, free of this mixture of dubious social factors, (Dugan, 1990). Lack of awareness is the major cause of the increasing deterioration of biodiversity in urban areas of developing countries (Anibal Pauchard, 2005). Public awareness of wetland issues is indeed a key tool in wetland conservation and must be part of any attempt to change attitudes and behavior patterns. Many people living around wetlands are not aware of the impacts they are likely to cause to the wetlands in relation to their practices and in the long run have continued using the wetlands in a way that is degrading them. Some, who are aware about the impacts they can cause on the wetland, have had very poor attitudes towards the information they have been given and have continued to use the wetland in a manner that is not sustainable. In order to alert the public on the values and functions of wetlands and the need for their sustainable use, the national wetlands programme (NWP) has developed an awareness campaign consisting of videos, audio tapes, posters, leaflets and booklets (NWP, 1997). Newspapers have carried features on wetlands; songs have been developed to supplement radio and television programs. Awareness seminars and outreach programs are also carried out. The target groups are farmers, resource users, schools and district development committees. There have also been various efforts to promote environmental education through formal education in schools especially the wildlife club of Uganda. Also NEMA has tried to put up programs in various schools to promote environmental protection. All this has to some extent raised awareness and concern about wetlands among Ugandans (NEMA, 1998). Many Ugandans including grass root communities, policy makers, and natural resource planners while aware of environmental problems have little commitment to environmental conservation (NEMA, 1998). This may be because majority of the population living in poverty under constant threats to food insecurity is so concerned with basic survival matters that theres not much room to be concerned about environmental issues such as proper management of wetlands. Institutional understanding of the value of wetlands and associated investments in wetland has grown in Uganda. Similar changes in peoples perceptions and attitudes of wetlands have given rise to arrange of conservation initiatives in wetland management. In Uganda, for instance, the Ministry responsible for environment protection is elaborating a national wetland policy in direct response to rising local concern over environmental and social consequences of wetland loss. Generally, the cumulative importance of wetlands has gradually developed because of the growth of knowledge about their numerous functions, values and threats documented by various researchers. In fact the Wetland Inspection Division in Uganda regarded the wetlands as wealth land because if well managed, the products and services can be reaped in perpetuity. And thus they are worth conserving and wisely utilized. CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY This section focuses on the study methodology.ie. Sample area, sample selection procedure, data collection technique, entry, processing and analysis that is going to be used. STUDY AREA The study is going to be carried out on Nakivubo wetland. The wetland forms the boundary between Nakawa and Makindye divisions in the valley between Bugolobi, Mpanga and Muyenga hills (ADF). It is permanently water logged and is fed by the Nakivubo channel. It is one of the major wetlands on the north-western shores of Lake Victoria. The study will specifically be carried out in Nakawa Division, Kampala district. Nakawa Division is in the eastern part of the city, bordering Kira town to the east, Wakiso district to the north, Kawempe division to the northwest, Kampala central to the west, Makindye division across Murchison bay to the southwest and lake Victoria to the south.it covers an area of 47.45  square kilometers (18.32  sq.  mi). Map of Nakivubo Wetland (Source; Emerton et al., 1999) Study population The study population involves mainly farmers, brick layers, residents, builders and other individuals who are greatly involved in the use of the wetland e.g. People involved in putting up of business like shops and schools in this are also going to be interviewed to get more information on the study objectives. The area is estimated to have a population of 135,519 people. Meteorology of Nakivubo wetland The Nakivubo swamp is within the equatorial belt, and has a moist sub-humid climate. It receives a bi-seasonal rainfall in the periods of March to May and September to November. The rainfall is linked to the Inter Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), the altitude, local topography and the lake. Short duration tropical thunderstorms are particularly common around Lake Victoria and Kampala. The latter is reported to receive more thunder storms than any other capital city in the world (Kansiime et al; 1999). This rainfall frequency and reliability favor the formation of peat lands and swamps. The presence of a large adjacent water body also ensures a both reliable and fairly stable hydrological regime (always humid, annual water level variations about 0.5 m). This is a requirement for papyrus, the dominant wetland macrophyte in the Nakivubo swamp. Geology of the swamp area The soils of the Nakivubo swamp area are alluvial and lacustrine sands, silts, and clays overlying granite gneisses. Indeed the gneisses overlay most of the Lake Victoria basin north of Kagera River, the main tributary of Lake Victoria located in the SW (Kansiime et al; 1999). Within the swamp, the alluvial soils range from semi-liquid organic material in the very upper layers of the emergent vegetation zones, through reddish ferruginous (high contents of dissolved iron in run-off water) loams to clays. Drainage of Nakivubo Swamp The major surface water drain into Nakivubo swamp is the Nakivubo Channel. In addition, Port Bell and Luzira waste water channels and a number of minor culverts discharge their water (some seasonally) into the lower Nakivubo swamp. The catchment area into the lower Nakivubo swamp is about 1.1 km2 from the Luzira watershed, 2.5 km2 from the Bukasa watershed and about 50 km2 from the city centre via the Nakivubo Channel and the upper Nakivubo swamp. These, with the exception of Luzira Prisons effluent and the Nakivubo channel, also carry rainfall and contribute different amounts of water into the swamp. METHODOLOGY RESEARCH DESIGN The study design will be stratified random sampling. The study area is going to be stratified on political units[at what level?]. The political units surrounding Nakivubo wetland are Bukasa, Kisugu, bugolobi, luzira prison and Mutungo[which political units are these?].One division is going to be chosen purposively basing on its accessibility from town due to limited finances, from which two parishes are going to be picked and from each parish 25 people[why 25 and not more or less?] will be interviewed by choosing the fifth house[why the 5th and not any other?] after each house with the head of the household[why the head and not any other member of the household?] being the target for interviews. schools, shops and gardens are going to be considered as plots (houses).[what does this mean?] SAMPLING AND SAMPLE SIZE The study population is going to be obtained by stratified random sampling; its objective is to reduce bias by sampling different strata. Stratification is going to be based on administration units. A Sample of 50 respondents is going to be interviewed using questionnaires and these are going to be obtained randomly. This is because of logistical, time and financial constraints. [This contradicts your research design, which is which?] DATA COLLECTION Data collection is going to be by primary data obtained directly from interactions with responds in the field and secondary data from library books, peer reviewed journals and government offices. The principal research technique in primary data collection is going to be by use of questionnaires (to answer all objectives),which are both closed and open ended, and are going to be administered by the way of direct interview with respondents. The open-ended questionnaires are going to allow multi-response that will shade more light on the subject matter. The interviews are going to be carried out in both Luganda English. Direct observations use of a camera are going to be used to get detailed information. Using a map of the area, a transect walk is going to be carried out to get a general view of the area. KEY INFORMANTS Key informants like environment secretaries and officials from environmental organizations (NEMA, WID) are going to be interviewed to get more valuable information on all my objectives. This will help me get firsthand information about the problem under study. It also helps to correct anomalies from questionnairesand leads to collection of in-depth data Is this true?. FOCUS GROUP DISCUSSIONS (FGDs) Focus group discussions (FGDs) are going to be carried out with some purposively selected respondents[what purpose?]. The FGDs are going to confirm the gathered information from questionnaires.[what comes first, FGDs or Surveys?] Further more they will give exploratory, illuminating and enlightened data. Such information will provide insight into attitudes, perceptions and opinions of participants. FGDs give participants ample opportunity to comment, explain and share experiences that were not available from individual interviews, questionnaires or other data sources and therefore views got from such d