Oil Spills Essays (873 words) - Ocean Pollution, Hazards, Oil Spill

Oil Spills Oil is a product used by everyone, but sometimes oil is a problem. An oil spill is a leakage from an oceangoing tanker, pipelines, or other oil sources. Oil spills occur very frequently, and cause enormous ecological harm. About eight million barrels of oil are spilled each year. Tankers usually carry about five-hundred million barrels of oil. Many oil spills, large in land or ocean coverage, have had major impacts on the earth and it's inhabitants. Many animals are die and some are injured in some way. Many plants and animals are endangered, or are now extinct. The largest oil spill to occur was when the Exxon Valdez went aground and covered 4,800 square miles in Prince William Sound, Alaska. This spill killed 35,000 sea birds, 10,000 otters, and at least nine whales. The spill left pools of oil up to three feet on some beaches. In December of 1989, an Iranian tanker leaked 70,000 tons, about 19 million gallons of oil off of the coast of Morocco. In January 1990 a broken Exxon pipeline leaked 567,000 gallons into the New York harbor. In June of 1990, another 260,000 gallons were spilled in New York Harbor. A tanker carrying 38 million gallons of oil caught on fire, and leaked oil into the Gulf of Mexico. This was a very serious threat to local shrimp nurseries and wildlife refuges. In February of 1990, 300,000 gallons leaked from a damaged tanker off Southern California, fouling miles of shoreline. In the Niger River delta, in Nigeria, Shell pipelines have repeatedly burst. In 1970 oil spilled across 8 square km, which remained contaminated for over 20 years. According to the U.S. Coast guard, the incident rate post is only 0.5 spills per year. In fact, there have been no large spills over 5,000 barrels from tankers in the US since 1991. The US Coast Guard data shows that the amount of oil spilled by tankers has decreased dramatically. Worldwide pollution from tanker spills is a relatively minor source of marine pollution. It only represents a small fraction of the oil released to the environment, when it is being compared to industrial waste, non-tanker shipping, and oil seepage from natural resources. Ships are but one part of an overall safety system that includes charting, aids to navigation, the condition of channels, and the resources that the Coast guard can bring to ensure standards are being met. The United States suffers from measurable neglect in portions of it's marine infrastructure. The Refuse Act, which was first enacted in 1899, makes it a crime to allow refuse to enter navigable waters. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act, makes it a crime to kill certain birds. These laws were not intended to apply to an oil spill, but prosecutors use them to intimidate and punish individuals without an obvious connection to a spill. The single most positive improvement that Congress can make to the legal regime, is to amend the Refuse Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, to make them inapplicable to oil spills covered in the Clean Water Act. Oil Spill Wildlife Management (OSWM), in business since 1989, is a wildlife consulting firm. OSWM offers it's clients an alternative to the wildlife dilemma. Donjon Environmental Marine Services is a synergistic organization created to provide the maritime industry with responsive, and cost-effective answers to meet the requirements of The Oil Pollution Act of 1990. Garner Environmental Services provides a 24 hour emergency response for any type of pollution incidents. Garner Environmental Services specializes in the management of disposal of waste streams, and maintains a fleet if equipment and drivers to transport these waste streams from industries on the Gulf Coast. Clean Venture Inc. is a leading contractor in handling waste, and hazardous oil materials. Since, it's establishment, Clean Venture Inc., has responded to more than five thousand oil and hazardous material spills and has performed over ten thousand projects, ranging in size from 1,000 to 3,000,000 dollars. How can we prevent oil spills? The US oil and natural gas industry, supplies more than 65 percent of America's energy. ?By nearly every measure, the volume of spills in US waters has been on a steady downward trend since 1973,? states Captain James D. Spitzer, the chief of the US Coast Guard's Office of Investigations. Most spills that occur are usually small, based on data from the US Coast Guard. In 1997, more than three-fourths of the spills in US waters were under ten gallons of

Dalai Lamas Vancouver Peace Summit Comments

Dalai Lama's Vancouver Peace Summit Comments About a month ago, the Dalai Lama said something about women that is just now making the rounds on Twitter. His statement, The world will be saved by the western woman, was delivered during the Vancouver Peace Summit 2009, which opened on the morning of Sunday, September 27th. Although Im still trying to track down a transcript of the speech containing the above statement, the Dalai Lama participated in more than one panel discussion that day, and the event most likely to have provoked such a strongly worded declaration was the Nobel Laureates in Dialogue: Connecting for Peace presentation held that afternoon. Moderated by former Irish president and peace activist Mary Robinson, the panel discussion featured four Nobel Peace Prize Laureates: the Dalai Lama (who won in 1989); Mairead Maguire and Betty Williams, founders of the Northern Ireland Peace Movement and winners of the Nobel in 1976; and anti-landmine crusader Jody Williams, an American peace prize winner in 1997. If the western woman statement were made in the context of the Dalai Lamas appearance with these extraordinary women, the words would seem less stunning than sensible. Truly, these western women have already changed the world, and have been doing so for more than three decades. Writing for the Interaction Institute for Social Change (IISC) blog, executive director Marianne Hughes ponders the idea of the aging women as hag (originally a representation of feminine power) and how it relates to the Dalai Lamas statement: Im not entirely sure what he meant...but I am wondering if when he travels across the globe and sees so many of our sisters impoverished and repressed he sees western women of all ages in a position to speak out for justice and to take on the responsibilities of the hag... to take loving care of the planet and its people. The Dalai Lamas comment about western women was not the only notable pro-female statement he made during the summit. In the Vancouver Sun,  Amy OBrian quotes others including a call for increased emphasis on the promotion of women to positions of influence. In response to a moderators question about what he sees as priorities in the quest for world peace, heres what the Dalai Lama said: Some people may call me a feminist...But we need more effort to promote basic human values - human compassion, human affection. And in that respect, females have more sensitivity for others pain and suffering. World-saving aside, women do what they do because its work that needs to be done. None of them do it with an eye toward winning a Nobel Peace Prize, but the acknowledgment is valuable in that it draws attention to these efforts and eases the ever-present fund-raising struggle...and recruits more followers, like those who are retweeting the Dalai Lamas statement. Hopefully every woman who forwards those words will dig down deep enough to find the source of his inspiration and understand that he honors real women whose work continues day in, day out...regardless of whether theyre in the limelight or not.

Governments Web Portal Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Governments Web Portal - Essay Example Still, there remains the uncomfortable parallel to automated phone systems, which all too often will provide one with every option but the necessary connection. How does the federal website compare to these and other comparable information sites Well to view the federal government's claims, one need only click onto the About Us connection. This link opens to a long list of self-promotions, beginning with a statement of the site's policy, or "vision", which is described as a "catalyst for a growing electronic government." while boasting more connections to government sites than any commercial sites on the internet. This is certainly a comforting thought: the government has enough control of its own accessibility that there are certain safeguards to prevent inappropriate meddling. The site is proclaimed to be owned by the citizens of the United States, much like the ideals behind our federal government, which can be taken in either a patriotic or cynical manner, depending on one's personal inclination. More plausible is the logic behind the site's implied development as a response to the events of September 11th, 2001: a PR campaign to portray the government as acting quickly to improve security. This lends an aura of paranoia to the site, as though George Orwell's Big Brother is looming over the average citizen's shoul der as they peruse the electronic pages To see other ways in which the government reacts, one can click the America Responds to Terrorism link. Here is a listing of related sites, such as 9/11 commemoration events, how to protect yourself , personnel locators, travel safety, humanitarian organizations and information about Iraq. To "Protect yourself", one should have a clear idea of what to ask, as the link itself leads to a long list of the last five years of headlines, from mail handling of biological threats to disaster preparedness and learning more about terrorism. The bio-threat anthrax scare is mentioned - regulations are hinted at as hiding in the library - but nothing is mentioned about the CDC having to limit its reactions to these scares. Too many false attacks were proving too expensive. On the other hand, the "Ready yourself" for emergency link connects you directly to the office of Homeland Security, who very sensibly lists warning signs of exposure to chemical threats although if animals were really dying a ll around someone, what realistic chances are still available to them Identifying the contaminated area and removing oneself or finding a "safe-area" is just good common sense, and, although it might sound callous, probably a part of Darwinism in action. The duct-taped garbage bags over windows are not mentioned, possibly as too close a reminder to the "duck and cover" sagacity of the Cuban Missile Crisis, yet if the most obvious suggestions are being mentioned, shouldn't such items still be listed somewhere Although perhaps some consideration is due here. In event of an actual pressing emergency, few people would take the time to access this website, relying

Risk Management and Policy Decision-Making Essay

Risk Management and Policy Decision-Making - Essay Example It inculcates â€Å"planning of the risks, identifying the risks, analysing the risks, developing risk response strategies and controlling and monitoring risks to determine how they have changed.† 1 in large and complex, multinational financial organizations like MF Global, several players play an integral role in the risk management in the firm as well as oversight role that is played by the regulator. Diagnosis of the situation leading to the filling of bankruptcy on Halloween, October 31, 2011, by futures and options broker MF Global, reveals lapses of key players in the risk management process, which led to the giant company going under with reportedly over $ 1.2 Billion of customer money missing.2 2.0. MF GLOBAL: FAILURE OF KEY PLAYERS Various players had a role to play in the risk management processes. They included the management, regulators, investors and credit rating agencies. The management led by the CEO Jon Corzine had the primary role to identify, analyse and pla nning for the risks, as well as developing risk response strategies and constantly monitoring them to ensure their effectiveness as well as adherence to the legal and regulatory framework. Within the organization, these duties are spread within several departments, and individuals to ensure an internal control mechanism. Consequently, the CEO, directors and risk managers had a direct role to play in risk management processes. On the other hand, the regulators role prior to the filling of the bankruptcy was one of oversight to ensure that MF Global complied with the legal framework including accounting, and disclosure requirements. Following the disclosure that the firm had problems, the regulators intervened, and when it was clear that the damage had been done, a decision was reached that to protect the customers; it was paramount for the company to liquidate.3 With regards to the investors, the panic in taking their money from the company put the company in cash strapped position t hat led it to engage in panic selling of its assets. Credit rating agencies such as Moody’s and standard and poor’s also contributed to the downfall. They were under fire for waiting, until the last few days, to flag MF Global’s exposure to European debts even though disclosure had been made in May.4 By the time the agencies worked, there were serious doubts among MF Global trading partners and the downgrading the rating agencies only accelerated the downfall of the firm. 3.0. BEGINNING OF THE END: DEFECTS, WEAKNESS IN RISK MANAGEMENT AND EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM Upon the appointment as the CEO, Corzine embarked on an aggressive European strategy,5 investing heavily in sovereign debts of other countries such as Spain, Italy, Portugal, and Ireland (which, at the time, were thought to be super -safe.6) The uncertainty of these debts made their yield even more than that of the U.S treasuries. Under his watch, MF Global discovered means to twist the accounting rules . The rules made it to be legitimate for a firm, say MF Global, to purchase an asset, for example, the debts of Spain paying for it using a loan that was secured by the asset. MF Global would derive its earnings from the difference between the interest rate it was earning on the Spain debt and

Network Risk Assestment and recommended actions Research Paper

Network Risk Assestment and recommended actions - Research Paper Example Application attacks are gaining popularity. Networked based fire walls will not be able to effectively keep the system secure from this kind of attack. Though some firewalls in networks have application firewall capabilities, most are considered to be underpowered by experts, providing less protection than the available firewalls that are single purpose. Actually, network firewalls have no capacity what so ever to protect against custom web applications (Eschenauer and Gligor, 1). This nature of a network security infrastructure leaves the organizations web resources at risk with dire consequences on the organization Quantitative risk analysis regarding the network architecture Asses Value Asset Value Cost of maintenances Profits to the company Worth in competition Recovering cost Acquisition cost Firewalls 4,000 100 per month 10,000 per month 2,000 1,000 5,000 Web server 5,000 100 per month 10,000 per month 2,000 1,000 7,000 Database Server 5,000 100 per month 10,000 per month 2,000 1,000 7,000 Table: 1 Estimate of potential Loss per Threat The table below shows the estimate potential loss per threat Asset Cost of physical damage Cost of loss in productivity Cost if information is disclosed Cost if critical devices fail Firewalls 4,000 10,000 120,000 10,000 Web server 5,000 15,000 1,000 15,000 Database Server 5,000 30,000 200,000 10,000 Table: 2 Application attacks can also be used to gain access into various departments in an organization, For instance gaining access into a database administrator, financial controller, or system administrator can provide an attacker access to information to these departments which may be having information that may contain passwords for credit card numbers which can be used to steal identity, or have dire financial implications to an organization or a company. Risk factor two Another issue is that the basic implementation has its default use of well-known UDP and TCP and ports for communication. Unfortunately for this organiz ation’s Web applications are packaged-solutions, hence the organization is unable to makes change to the prescribed ports. Therefore, systems in the demilitarized zones (DMZ) will be compromised; it is easy for the attacker to compromise the systems because of the default TCP/UDP portals. In addition, systems in the demilitarized zones experience little to no monitoring or security-controls. Only one server that will be compromised before an intruder to access the Web applications Because of these shortfalls, the basic architectural technique no longer gives the kind or level of security currently being required by online cash transfer companies like VISA Cardholder-Information-Security- Program (CISP) and Payment-Card-Industry (PCI) security standards, Federal-Information-System-Management-Act (FISMA), GLBA, SOX and more other regulatory and industry-security standards engaged in this compliance effort. Risk Factor 3 Physical factors like act of nature, earth quakes, floods and fires often cause irreversible damage on networking hardware. Some of these calamities are unpredictable, and can cause extensive damage in an organization’s network system with great loses, damaged equipments can result to loss of sensitive data and information, negatively affecting productivity with end effect being heavy losses on an organization. Another physical factor that poses security threats to the network system is unauthorized access to where the various devices and

Adventure Travel In India Market Study Tourism Essay

Adventure Travel In India Market Study Tourism Essay Adventure sports have seen a tremendous growth is the last six to seven years and the future looks very bright. The government is also doing its bit in order to promote adventure tourism in India. The Indian tourism industry has a lot of myriad players who want to latch on the opportunities that beckon in this field of the industry. But the industry and its players continue to be a house of disorder. This paper looks into the clear and present opportunity that lies ahead of the Indian Tourism Industry in the form of Adventure Travel, and analysis the various aspects that need to be kept in mind as the investors go out in search for the suitable customers to cash in on this multimillion dollar cheque. INTRODUCTION A man cannot discover new oceans unless he has the courage to lose sight of the shore, were the words of the famous French noble laureate Andre Gide and the increasing demand for the adventure sports indicates that people have entered the 21st century with renewed courage to find enjoyment in the thrills of the adventure filled outdoor activities. Thus, it can be seen like leisure tourism, adventure sports is becoming an integral determinant behind the tourism dynamics. As a subject for academic analysis, tourism can be said has reached a stage of relative maturity. A casual review of journals serving the subject area reveals a number that have been in existence for over 25 years (e.g., Tourism Management, Annals of Tourism Research), with the Journal of Travel Research publishing its 45th annual volume in 2007. Similarly, the range of journals reveals the diversity of issues considered (e.g., Tourism Geographies, Tourism Economics, Journal of Sustainable Tourism, and Journal of Travel and Tourism Marketing). With the evident relative lack of research in the area of Adventure Sports Tourism, it would be sensible to turn to research in the area of promoting the various disciplines of adventure sports by integrating it with operations of tourism management. This research will look into the increasing demand for the adventure sports, breaking with the cultural and geographical conformism of conventional holidays and trips, and will analyse the potential for it to tap effectively. OBJECTIVE Research in the field of sports tourism has burgeoned over the last decade. In a study conducted by a renowned publication, unsurprisingly, the most studied activity was major event sports tourism like Olympics, World Cups, etc.(40% of articles), with outdoor and adventure sports tourism (29%) and skiing and winter sports (15%) being the other two significant areas.1 This being a clear indication of the increasing demand for the adventure sports, the objective of this paper will be to study the feasibility of marketing, conducting and benefitting from such events specifically in India. This market study will broadly consist of two parts which will help the readers decide the readiness and the viability of the adventure sports market. Part-1 discusses the concepts and approaches that might inform an analysis of adventure sports in Indian market. And part-2 will conduct a critical evaluation and the determining factors of investing in this area of business. If youre not living on the edge, youre taking up too much space.Overall, the reader should after considering a personal perspective should be able to determine the likely success of new product or service ideas. PART 1 THE SERVICE Landscape and topography of India lends itself to variety of Adventure Sports activities. Not many people would agree, due to its unexplored avenues, that India is a place where one can indulge in numerous adventure activities, if not all. Definition of adventure is different for different person and best thing about adventure tourism in India is that it provides adventure sports ranging from soft adventure to active and extreme adventure. Soft adventures are ideal for family and kids and require very little or no skill and experience. Extreme adventure in India can be physically and mentally demanding and require good experience. The service which is being discussed here has two aspects to it one being the tourism in India and the other being the adventure sports. These two complement each other in the way that for a customer the need for one of the above may often lead to the demand for the other. For e.g. for someone visiting Manali, in the Northern part of India for a Holiday, a chance visit to the snow capped Rohtang Pass may encourage the trying of skiing which is promoted in the area. Thus it makes sense to look into both of these aspects individually to get a holistic view of the service being provided i.e. Adventure Travel. TOURISM Tourism for long has promised to be a sunrise industry for India. India is blessed with a vast range of practically everything that a successful tourism offer needs from mountains to rivers to history to religion and culture. The economic and political case for investments is also politically attractive. Tourism promises an inflow of hard currency and at the same time also promotes goodwill. It creates demand for a variety of industries like transports, hotels, handicrafts, entertainment and so on. With improved tourism in India the overall quality of life is sure to improve over a period of time. And yet India seems to be remarkably lethargic in making money out of tourism. The situation is rather pitiable and the following statistics emphasise that fact: Indias share of global tourism market 0.67% Number of tourists visiting India 2.6 million against Chinas 37 million. In terms of tourism revenues as share of GDP Indias Rank is 124th The spirit, cohesiveness, and vision that have spurred India to the top of the heap in diverse industries is lacking in this sector. The absence of integrated vision is compounded by a lack of initiative and tardiness in implementing policies. In a study conducted on Indian Tourism, it has been stated that, while there exists an ability to invest there also exists an equal degree of unwillingness to break away from the beaten path and take risks. The country is sitting on a virtual goldmine with a wealth of sights cultural exuberance, diversity of terrain and that special something that only India can deliver. Tourism has the potential to do something bigger than what IT has done for India. Priority should be given for development of tourist infrastructure in selected areas of tourist importance and for those products which are considered to be in demand in the existing and future markets so that limited resources are put to the best use ADVENTURE SPORTS IIndia, one of the most enchanting, incomparable and invigorating travel destinations all over the world, is a true treasure trove for the adventure enthusiasts. India has all the perfect ingredients that enchant its tourists with real fun and excitement. WATER The Himalayas offer you some of the toughest and most exciting river runs in the world. River sports in the rapids are the most popular, throughout the summers and can really get your adrenaline pumping. White Water Rafting, Kayaking, Snorkelling or Scuba Diving if there is a concept of water sport in Adventure you can find it in this country. TREKKING Source : World Tourism Organisation WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO?You can trek for one day or one month; backpack all your gear and wonder off in the wild or stroll comfortably with just a shoulder bag, water and camera whilst animals transport your camping gear, heavy baggage and logistic loads. You may set a challenging pace and go over difficult grades and high passes or just amble along, enjoying the wild nature, magnificent scenery, uncomplicated lives of people staying close to nature, stopping when you please, chatting with your companions, forging new relationships and hoarding a fund of fascinating memories to cherish. More extreme ways of trekking are Rock Climbing and Mountaineering. Rock Climbing as a sport it took off only about 15 years ago. Rock climbing uses a minimum of aids and the challenge is to find the toughest route and scale in the least possible time. The availability of good climbing rocks not too far from the city gets greater access and participation from professionals as well as from the amateurs alike. Mountaineering takes place at biggest adventure playground in the world -the Himalayas. Mountaineering is a serious activity undertaken with the primary goal of reaching a mountains summit. It requires a high degree of fitness and experience. Due to its high equipment costs and complexity, it is mostly taken up by foreign tourist coming to India. Himalaya promises every climber their share of adventure, which lures them to the mountains. AERO Experience Just like on the land, there are various adventure opportunities in the air too. Man has for times immemorial, longed to glide and soar like a bird in the sky. Parasailing and Paragliding are indeed, experiences which combine the wonder of smooth sailing in the air and the thrill of soaring high. Once in the air, you experience the ethereal serenity of the sport. It is an experience that is, surprisingly, thrilling as well as becalming. Other Activities Other extreme sports include the likes of skiing which is seasonal in nature and can be only carried out during the winters. Another very popular activity is bungee jumping which can be carried out even in the urban areas with the help of the required infrastructure. The potential MARKET AREAS Popular Destinations HIMACHAL PRADESH Himachal Pradesh is a complex mosaic of hills, lush green valleys and snow-covered peaks. The name itself originates from the ancient Sanskrit hima (snow) and achal (that which cannot be moved). This land of fascination and mystery with its age-old culture kindles deep interest and commands respect. It is replete with dense forests, fast-flowing rivers, terraced fields, snow-covered mountains, small fairyland villages and friendly folk all adding to its charm! Himachal Pradesh is also a treasure trove of ancient arts and crafts and rich traditions. PROs Established tourism Infrastructure like Hotels etc. Abundance of natural resources for conducting activities. Excellent govt. Support in setting up of new ventures. Trained Human resources available. CONs Market filled with unstructured profit making activities. Overcrowding of popular tourist centres. Local resistance present will affect the business. Many areas inaccessible. GOA Goa is a paradise for water sports lovers and has always appealed beach enthusiast and water sports lovers. The long coastal stretches offer loads of opportunities to indulge in all sorts of water-sport activities and also to try on some new watery excitement. Surf the seas or float across the skies, the options of sport enjoyment is never ending in Goa. One can never get tired of scuba diving into the wreckage of the colonial ships. The para-gliding, para-sailing, acquatics sports, water-skiing and wind surfing will be completely thrilling. Source: Ministry of Tourism, GOI PROs 105km of coastline provides ample opportunity for implementing innovative ideas. As shown above, Goa has the largest turnover of tourists in India. Easy accessibility with good road and rail transport and fully functional Intl Airport. CONs Lack of law and order. Poor transport facilities within Goa. Untrained hospitality staff. High costs due to black marketing. Untapped Destinations North-East Region The rich natural beauty, serenity and exotic flora and fauna of the area are invaluable resources for the development of ecotourism. The region is endowed with diverse tourist attractions and each State has its own distinct features. North East India presents some very outstanding and challenging adventure sports in India for the adventure enthusiasts coming from all over. PROs Untapped Market. Ideal Terrain for adventure sports. Readily available human resource which can be trained according to the needs. Government of India attaches great importance to the development of tourist infrastructure in the North Eastern region in view of its immense tourism potential. CONs Lack of infrastructure. Climatic extremities are hard to overcome in some regions. Social unrest can be disturbing. ANDAMAN NICOBAR Islands This UT does not have any other competitive advantage that comes even remotely close to tourism, because of the beauty and abundance of its natural resources. Theres tremendous scope for adventure sports, scuba diving snorkeling, swimming, sun-bathing, trekking and just soaking in nature at its most beautiful. However, till now, in the absence of a specifically stated tourism policy and a strategic implementation plan, and any gains accruing are more through serendipity rather than conscious effort. PROs Popular amongst both local and international tourists. Tourism is the main stay of the region, thus all the development is centred towards the infrastructure for tourists activities. Easy availability of human resources. CONs Not an accessible region as travelling from mainland takes lots of time and money. Dearth of basic infrastructure in areas except for the capital Port Blair. Thus the analysis of the various regions indicates that Indian Tourism has loads of untapped potential. Evident lack of policy or vision from the government has resulted in its inability to scale up infrastructure. If that is taken care of there can a surge in the number of tourist indulging in adventure travel. TARGET CUSTOMERS Over the last ten years, India has witnessed substantial changes in its leisure and travel choices and demands. This can be attributed to the rapidly growing economy, supported by globalisation and privatisation, which has lead to increased spending power and greater leisure time. Now, instead of spending a holiday being herded around in a tour bus, the sophisticated Indian traveller wants experience-oriented vacations. This has made adventure tourism a particularly exciting field to be in. According to Pranav Kukreti, Director, Marketing, of Treks n Rapids, The psychology of the modern Indian traveller has changed completely. Gone are the days when they were happy with simply staying in a resort in Shimla or Nainital. Now, they want excitement and adventure, The tourism industry fetches two million adventure tourists and is growing at over 35 per cent annually. It is estimated that India has the potential to attract another half a million foreign adventure tourists. The domestic market is also set to see a ten-fold growth in the next five years. This rise can be majorly attributed to the changing consumer behaviour of the urban population. It will be appropriate to divide the study of the customers into Domestic and International. Domestic The key socio-economic trends which have contributed to the increase in demand of the adventure sports can be listed as follows: Middle Class The size of the middle class families have stated shrinking with growing industrialization, while their pockets have grown bigger and bigger. With the adoption of concept of nuclear families the size of the families has gone down from 8-4 and 4-2. The leisure time that the members of the family get to spend together is preferably spent on quality holidays. Thus, adventure travel offers an excellent opportunity for the people to make their kids have fun while they rejuvenate themselves from the maddening office schedules. Urban Youth Youths have always had a strong urge to be non-conformist, and this behaviour is evident in their spending decisions too. Now with this urge being supported by ample spending power, Indian youth is raring to enjoy the thrills of adventure sports. Jawaharlal Nehru had talked about Indias Tryst with Destiny at the stroke of midnight hour, Indias latest tryst with destiny, BPO, is equally connected to the midnight hour. This tryst is also about independence: the independence of the Indian youth. To the delight of the marketers, the youth market theyve been chasing all these years finally has a credit card with no supervised spending limit. Corporate Promoted Activities Another windfall for the industry has been created by the corporate sector with almost 70 per cent of the demand for adventure tours originating from here. Tour operators have special two to three day packages for corporate teams. The idea here is to link sports with skills like time and stress management or working under pressure. The exercise is meant to rejuvenate as well as re-skill. Data of Foreign Travellers Source: MoT, GOI, Annual Report Adventurous Kids The kids at present have more self-sufficiency and influencing power in the family. They are well networked (read social networking), well informed and social. The ability of the kids to nag their affluent in making them purchase stuff for them is known as pester power. This pester power is also enabling them to undertake various school trips and adventure camps where they enjoy with their individual social groups. INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS India is emerging very strongly as a brand. With the inquisitiveness about India rising all over the world, more and more foreign tourists are coming to India to experience its vibrant cultures. But while they visit the popular destination it can be a good value addition for their trip if they can be offered an experience of river rafting in the rapids of the Ganges or a paragliding experience may accompany their sun tanning on beaches of the Goa. The foreign tourists have high spending power and if the infrastructure and quality adventure sports facilities are available to their discretion, the promoters can be rest assured of a significant contribution to their balance sheets in dollars. The global meltdown combined with the Mumbai attacks have spelt disaster for the tourism industry with foreign tourist arrivals dropping by 2.1% and foreign exchange earnings down by 12.5%.   Reeling from these statistics, the tourism ministry is considering several sops for the hospitality and travel industry. Amongst these include offering free air travel and accommodation to foreign tourists who visit India for the third time. This move, if approved, will mean encouraging genuine Indophiles and is in line with our effort to encourage repeat travellers, an official from the Ministry of Tourism said while addressing the media. Indicating the Significant growth of the middle class Increasing Spending Power of the Domestic Market PART 2 Now that we have looked into the various characteristics of the adventure travel in India, it will be propitious to look into the various profitability and marketability aspects related to the business of Adventure Travel. Considering Adventure Travel to be a brand, the marketing mix (given in terms of 4Ps by Philip Kotler) of brand Adventure Travel can be: Product Adventure travel should position itself as one of the competitive alternatives when it comes to attracting tourists. Marketing adventure travel needs special focus on influencing the psychology of the perspective customers by influencing them with its core competencies of thrill and adrenaline rush. A synergic attitude between the government agencies and the private parties can take the quality of adventure sports to a world class level and promote a surge of tourists to experience its excitement. Collaborating with Major media houses to promote Adventure Travel in IndiaPrice Hotel prices in the U.S start at around $300 (expedia.com) whereas the average rate for a deluxe room in India is around $100 only. Thus if the facilities for adventure sports are produced at a large scale in India its prices will surely be low, due to the low labour cost and manufacturing costs. Within the sector the competitive pricing of the adventure travel will depend on the collaboration between the service providers and the service facilitator. i.e. the parties which are able to provide a complete package to its customers including, travel, accommodation and the adventure activities will be more in demand as their operations cost will be significantly low and at the same time level of convenience very high. Place Though we have so far talked about the tourist destinations as being the ideal places for providing this service, it may not be a bad decision to have such activities in the areas in the vicinity of the cities. By providing such services at a relatively approachable distances the rate of new customers coming to experience the new and the talked about activities will be more. And it may also be easier for the working executives to take out some time from their schedule, like an excursion on the weekends. This though will be a completely strategic decision keeping in mind the competitors and the various alternatives in hand. While this strategy may not work in a city like Delhi which has various hill-stations in the vicinity but may work quite well in city like Ahmedabad where the people have a significant spending power and not many similar options either. Promotion If adventure travel in India has to be established as a global brand, first the communication needs to go out to the primary audience, i.e. the one billion people of this country. If the government, the media and the trade bodies are able to influence a part of the population, they can spread the word, which in this age of networking will surely spread like fire. Collaborative marketing efforts involving the traders, the media houses, government and a good network of brand ambassadors can provide a structured and a long term approach to brand development of Adventure Travel in India. For e.g. collaborating with the GOIs Incredible India! Campaign and engaging the famous Hindi movies star Akshay Kumar (who is well known for his action and stunts) will go a long way in establishing a brand image in the minds of the Indian customers. CASE STUDY Water Sport Adventure Tourism at Indira Sagar Madhya Pradesh has a wide range of adventure sports such as wildlife sanctuaries, mountains, rivers that make MP an exotic place to visit, which is attracting the domestic as well as the international tourists. Apart from these natural regions the Government of MP is intending to promote other regions such as Indira Sagar water reservoir for tourism. The GoMP has proposed to come-up with the Adventure Tourism Zone at Indira Sagar in Khandwa district. This Zone would have two phases wherein one phase would be developed near the mentioned reservoir and the second phase would be developed on the island formed near the dam. The Zone would have various water sports, trekking, mountaineering facilities along with the traditional accommodation facilities. The project is expected to attract tourists primarily from the State and other parts of the Country. The proposed location is well connected with the major cities of the State through road and rail. Private Players have been invited to undertake the proposed project wherein the Private Player would build, own, maintain and operate the project. PROJECT RATIONALE The prime reason for increase in demand for adventure sports is the growth youth tourism which has been identified as one of the largest segments of global and domestic tourism. The growing number of young travellers is being fuelled by a number of factors such as increased participation in higher education, falling level of youth unemployment, increased travel budget through parental contribution, quest for exciting and unique experiences and cheaper long distance travel. These young travellers form a major contribute to adventure tourism revenue. GOVERNMENT SUPPORT The State Government would assist the private investor in identifying, immediate approval and clearance of the suitable land for the project. Further, the Government would also make basic infrastructure available at the site such as water, electricity, road etc. The State Government has identified adventure/ eco tourism as key segment of tourism and gives some incentives specific to the industry. This case study gives the clear indication that this is an upcoming area of business and has huge potential and the best way forward is collaborating the effort towards successful brand building. MARKET METRICS Threats Entry of multinational agencies to dominate the business. Lack of Govt. Support Low operational cost for the unorganised sector Generic competition with other tourists attractions. Opportunities High growth rate of leisure travel Rising influence of Indian Middle class Holidaying becoming a status symbol. Corporate support to adventure tours and travels More consumption power. WEAKNESS High infrastructural cost. Low level of marketing Psychological resistance to adventure sports in Indian mentality. Lack of collaboration and networking among the existing players. STRENGTH Offering something new and exciting to the huge Indian Population. Success abroad can be emulated domestically by collaboration. Increasing interest of foreign tourists in India. High growth potential The market metrics can be analysed by doing a SWOT analysis of the adventure travel in India. MARKET GROWTH Note: The per capita income of the Indian citizen rose by 12.7 % during the fiscal year 2008-09.(Reserve Bank of India). The foreign tourists arrival in India registered a growth of 5.6% during the year 2008.(Ministry of Tourism, Annual Report 2008-09) Both of the above mentioned statistics indicate an increase in the demand for the adventure travel services. While the domestic travellers will continue to send their ever increasing earnings, the foreign tourists will continue to venture out to the lesser explored countries like India. Thus, it is now in the hands of the industry players to tap the clear and present opportunity and act proactively with or without the collaboration of the government authorities to gain head on advantage in the upcoming field of business in the tourism industry. Conclusion High Price High Quality Low Price Low Quality As their countrys growth and recent success might suggest, Indian consumers are among the most optimistic. A June 2008 Nielsen Consumer Confidence Index among 48 countries found India to be the second most optimistic country behind Norway with an index of 122 (global average was 88). They are also greatly value-driven, with an expectation that values should be customized and adapted to Indian culture-not an easy task when dialects change every 100 kilometres and almost three-quarters of the population lives in hard-to-reach rural areas. Not surprisingly, the companies most likely to succeed with Indian consumers are those with the highest levels of patience, resilience and local understanding. But this confidence surprisingly not enjoyed by the Adventure Travel service currently available in the tourism market as it is being offered to the customers at a quality which is nowhere close to world class and is relative expensive option for the Indian consumer. The industry needs to collaborate amongst itself and with the support of the government try providing highly satisfactory Adventure travel to its customers at an affordable price. Only then will it be able to market its product convincingly and effectively to the customers, ensuring a growth oriented sustainable future.

Edward Zwicks Film, Glory Essay -- Zwick Films Movies Glory Essays

Edward Zwick's Film, Glory â€Å"Glory†, the excellent war film about the first black regime, showed how a group of black men who first found bitterness between each other, rose above it and became one to form a group of black men that marched with pride not animosity. When dealing with a great film that involves African Americans, the roles have to be filled by strong black actors. Edward Zwick falls nothing short of this. The two black roles are filled by Denzel Washington and Morgan Freeman. This war film seemed to be just like every other war film. Meaning that mostly all war movies have the singing among troops and playing cards or in this case, craps. This helps the viewer see past the soldier, and see the real person and notice their human as well. This paper will show how Zwick used different characters, racial wars, music, and camera to portray what really goes on during a time of war.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In â€Å"Glory† there are very different meanings to all the unique characters. Matthew Broderick, who plays Colonel Shaw, has many different meanings behind his character. The opening scene when he is lying on the battlefield he is feeling like he is in a living hell. When he is awakened the next morning, the first thing he sees is the sun. The sun looks like a narrow path of light, maybe resembling new life. Colonel Shaw, believing he was in a living hell, was awakened by a new heaven. Shaw, believing that he should of also died for his country, takes the responsibility of leading the first black regime and going back to the living hell for where he once was. Denzel Washington plays the next character, Private Trip. Trip is the rebel of the crew and talks like he has been through everything. Throughout the film, Zwick emphasizes Trip’s feet, which are badly scared, bruised, and cut. The bruised feet symbolize the journey that he has gone through si nce the age of twelve when he first ran away from home. This is very deep because since the age of twelve he has been on his own and there had to be bigger battles to fight than the war he was in getting himself into at the time. The feet also symbolize all the training that the troops are doing and they are not being rewarded with proper attire such as uniforms. The third main character is Sergeant Major John Rawlins played by Morgan Freeman. He at first is part of the regime and then is appointed Sergeant. He is the i... ...stage and the troops being on the ground, this shows that Shaw has the power over them and that the troops are inferior to him. Throughout the movie Shaw is on and off his horse. When he is on his horse doesn’t talk to the soldiers and when he does the camera angle shows him looking down, again showing more power. When off the horse he talks to the troops and treats them as not only troops but also as human beings the camera now is at conversation level, showing that Shaw and the troops are both there for the same purpose which is war.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã¢â‚¬Å"Glory† is an excellent movie not only on the screen but also behind the scenes. A better understanding is developed when the movie is watched from a critical point of view. There is a better understanding of the racial issues and how Zwick portrays the white and black issues by the different positions of the camera. Zwick shows an incredible camera view at the end when they all are one running for the fort and all the racial issues are erased. There is no better movie to review when you have to look behind the scene and get the true meaning, and in â€Å"Glory† the war against each other is erased and the unity rises above all negative issues.

Hong Kong affect its future economy Essay

This research project seeks to bring out the effects of the Hong Kong population structure on the future economy of Hong Kong. Hong Kong is a booming economy being one of the major financial districts of the South Asian region and its changing population structure has a lot to do with its workforce and in turn affects its working culture and present and future economic structure as well. Research Question: The research question for this project seek to study how or to what extent the population structure a regards to age and gender or social characteristics of the population tend to affect the present and future economy of Hong Kong. So there are two parts to this research project – the first part analyzes the population structure of Hong Kong with regards to the age and gender or social status and the second part brings out the economic structure of Hong Kong from its past to present changes and the future of Hong Kong economy in a more globalized world and the impact of global markets on the financial centre of Asia. The focused research question in this case brings out several dimension of the study as through the analysis of the qualitative and quantitative dimensions, the subjective and objective aspects of the study. The impact of the changes in population structure on the economy could be understood on the basis of changing population numbers and percentages quantitatively and the socioeconomic changes as understood qualitatively. The research question essentially focuses on the qualitative and quantitative dimensions of the research as it seeks to bring out the impact of population change in economic structure of Hong Kong in a descriptive manner and in accordance with socioeconomic changes, as in influence of wage, gender, age gaps and changes etc an also the direct statistical values and correlations between population and economic structures in terms of numbers and statistical values. The research question on the extent to which population structure affects the Hong Kong economy thus brings out this ‘extent’ in terms of numbers or real values as also in terms of description of changes in Hong Kong as what happens qualitatively when the population structure changes and what is the impact on the economy from a descriptive point of view. Like for example this can be related to lack of high living standards, poor health conditions of the elderly. These would be qualitative dimensions of the research and the values or percentages of changing population and simultaneously changing economy would be the quantitative aspects of research. These two methods are discussed further in the methodology section as given below. Background/Literature Review: A brief literature review is provided here and brings out the main points of research articles as published in journals and obtained from ingentaconnect or sciencedirect or JSTOR. The literature review is on the Hong Kong population and economic structure and articles published and written on these issues showing the impact of an ageing population on Hong Kong’s economy and job prospects and on the industries in Hong Kong as influenced by a global economy and ageing population. In this literature review section a study by Leigh (2006), a research article by Chui published 2003 and another by Fan and Lui (2003) have been selected. Leigh’s study shows the direct impact of ageing on Hong Kong’s economy, fiscal changes and living standards. Chui shows how the ageing population face problems of survival and housing in a fast paced Hong Kong economy and Fan and Lui talk of gender and wage gap in Hong Kong’s population that could redefine economic changes and structure. The studies chosen here highlight the qualitative aspects of the impact of ageing and gender changes in population or demography on the economic structure of Hong Kong. The participation of women has also increased significantly necessitating needs of study of the impact of gender on Hong Kong’s economy and how women’s participation in the workplace can change things for the economy. In a research article on the population structure of Hong Kong, Leigh (2006) has suggested that Hong Kong SAR’s population has been aging rapidly and aging could adversely affect the growth and living standards of people in Hong Kong. There has to be some change in economic and administrative policies in keeping with the aging or changing population according to the article. There is a high labor and productivity growth with increased migration of younger skilled workers from Chinese mainland in Hong Kong mainly due to Hong Kong’s booming economy and although this attenuates the economic impact of aging, there is no full offset of the impact of aging population on the economic structure of Hong Kong. According to Leigh, aging puts considerable pressure on public finances particularly as with aging there is also rising health costs that directly affect government spending. There are relatively fewer options that government has and opportunities to implement polices on this are also limited that could lessen the impact of aging on the governance and structure as demographic effects would start setting in by 2015 when the ratio of working population would peak. The Hong Kong SAR authorities have been focused on administrative and governance policies that would limit or reduce the fiscal impact of aging and they have also provided continued expenditure restraint on reform of health care financing with private health insurance systems, along with tax reforms and non age sensitive areas (Leigh, 2006). Considering the gradual ageing problem of Hong Kong, Chui (2001) suggest that Hong Kong as one of the Four Dragons of Asia is faced with the gradual ageing problem that seems to have affected the urban fabric of the city as also the general population. However one of the regions in which Hong Kong seems to be booming along with the economy is property development as Hong Kong is mainly based on a property led economy and the government as well as private and public property developers have been launching redevelopment projects for setting up new structures in Hong Kong. However as Chui points out the special needs problems of elderly people have not been attended to and most of Hong Kong’s elderly people are poor physically, financially and socially. However with urban renewal and changes, the elderly people are at disadvantage and face threats to their survival as they are not in a position to cope with the restructuring changes in Hong Kong’s fast paced urban development projects. There has also been a gradual weakening of the respect to Chinese traditional values and culture as for the respect given to the elderly and this along with nuclearization of families have added to the problems of the elderly. Chui writes that government housing policies in Hong Kong should emphasize on community care and ageing in place and help in solving housing problems and needs of the elderly. The study shows the plight of older people in Hong Kong, a booming economy in the South Asian region and a contrasting fate of the elderly people. The gender gap in wages has been analyzed by some researchers and the trend shows a narrowing gender gap in wages. According to Fan and Lui (2003), the narrowing gender gap may be related to women’s advantages compared with earlier times especially women’s changing positions at the workplace. Gender gap is found as smaller in occupations and industries that are less dependent on physical labour as men are more suitable for physically rigorous work. This shows that when an economy transforms from a manufacturing or production oriented approach to a more service oriented one, women’s productivity would be recognized an with increased women’s participation in service based economies, the gender gap on the basis of wage or participation at the workplace also decreases. A 1% random subsample was used in this study for two population censuses and the results of the experiment also support empirical results. Methodology The methodology to be used for this study will be both qualitative and quantitative research methods. The qualitative and quantitative data would be primarily available from the internet and research journal databases and journal articles will be selected along with studies by the Hong Kong government as based on the economic indicators, as well as statistical and other government reports on the population and GDP, GNP and labor or prices. Of course in this section we highlight the importance of theory and practice and differentiate between the theories and the practical implications of research and the use of methodology to explain these two features. The theories that will be dealt with will be economic theories and changes in the global economy along with changes in the Hong Kong economic structure. The practical implications here would be changes in the population structure statistically obtained and otherwise and population changes as indicated in journal articles that deal with ageing and its associated problems in Hong Kong. The theories and practice of the economic and population changes in Hong Kong will be obtained from journal articles selected from journal databases and these articles are obtained by using search terms such as ‘Hong Kong economy’, ‘Hong Kong population, ‘Ageing population, ‘South Asian Economy’, ‘Economic structure of Hong Kong, Population of Hong Kong, ‘Elderly in Hong Kong, ‘Employment in Hong Kong and Economy’ etc. As indicated in the later part of the study, the government’s reports on the economic changes and population changes have been given here and the results can be used to show the trends and the analysis can be done quantitatively and qualitatively to show the changes in population in terms of age, gender and wages or social status. In fact wage structure shows changes in economic conditions of the major part of population and results could be drawn to show how economy and wages would be related in turn to gender and age and the overall impact this has on the Hong Kong’s population structure could be drawn in the analysis and interpretation section of the results. The different possible methodological frameworks would be the qualitative methodology and the quantitative methodology. Qualitative methodology is about understanding the more qualitative or subjective aspects of the population and delineating the attributes or the characteristics of job changes, economic structure and population structure in Hong Kong. Quantitative methodology is about showing statistical tables and values and suggests the population and economic structural changes in terms of values or numbers as given in statistical tables. The impact of old age or ageing population on the economy as discussed qualitatively by researchers would form part of the study using journal articles and descriptions of the situation as given by researchers in articles and published papers as would be the quantitative aspects that are given in published reports and statistical tables giving values or numbers that define the changes in Hong Kong’s social, demographic and economic structure quantitatively in terms of values, statistics and numbers. A snapshot of the qualitative and quantitative primary data as would be used in the research study is given below and from some of the research papers as used in the literature review and the reports published by the Hong Kong government, the primary data in terms of tables or published research reports will be chosen and analyzed for the purposes of this study. The published articles or papers in journals as selected from ingenta, sciencedirect, JSTOR or other such databases thus provide the basis for qualitative primary data and the published research reports as available from Hong Kong government sites showing statistical analysis of population and economic structure form the more quantiatve aspects of this study and a balance of quantitative and qualitative methods will be considered for analysis of this research study. Social science research is largely based on ontological and epistemological propositions that help to understand consumer behavior and in this case population structure and government approach to population and how it affects Hong Kong economy in general. From the ontological point of view any phenomena could be analyzed objectively using economic data and in this case the economic structure of Hong Kong could be comparatively objectively analyzed considering other developed or developing economies and the effects of population on economy. The epistemological approach to methodology emphasizes on people’s perspectives and the subjective or qualitative aspects of research as already indicated. Positivistic and Interpretive theories in social science research focus on scientific data (as in positivism) in which experimental findings are of prime importance and interpretive analysis in which drawing out qualitative aspects and viewpoints of the researcher would be more important. The epistemological, interpretive positions are closer to qualitative methodology and the positivistic, ontological philosophies are akin to quantitative methodology as used in any research project. The Table below provides the population structure of Hong Kong by age and sex and as seen from the initial study of 2007 population growth and structure, 3. 9% of the population is above 60 years of age, 3. 4% of the population is above 65 or 70 years of age, 2. 7% of the population reaches above 75 year limit and 1. 7% of the population crosses the 80 year old mark. 1. 4% of the population is above 85 years. This suggests that a significant portion of the population is an aged population in Hong Kong and this is a change from 2006 in which the 60 year old population was at 3. 7% and above 75 year olds was at 2. 6% and above 85 year olds was at 1. 3%. The charts show that thee has been a slight yet significant increase in aging population of Hong Kong and considerable decrease in the young population as seen from the population data of 2006-2007. If data is attained over a period of last 10 years this aging population trend will however become more prominent and this will be elaborated in the methodology and data collection section of the research. This research table thus forms part of the resources that we use as data for our study on the effects of population on economic structure.

Geography of Iraq

Geography of Iraq Capital: Baghdad Iraq is a country that is located in western Asia and shares borders with Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Syria (map). It has a very small coastline of just 36 miles (58 km) along the Persian Gulf. Iraqs capital and largest city is Baghdad and it has a population of 30,399,572 (July 2011 estimate). Other large cities in Iraq include Mosul, Basra, Irbil and Kirkuk and the countrys population density is 179.6 people per square mile or 69.3 people per square kilometer. History of Iraq From 1980 to 1988 Iraq was involved in the Iran-Iraq war which devastated its economy. The war also left Iraq as one of the largest military establishments in the Persian Gulf region (U.S. Department of State). In 1990 Iraq invaded Kuwait but it was forced out in early 1991 by a United States-led U.N. coalition. Following these events social instability continued as the countrys northern Kurdish people and its southern Shia Muslims rebelled against Saddam Husseins government. As a result, the Iraqs government used force to suppress the rebellion, killed thousands of citizens and severely damaged the environment of the regions involved. Because of the instability in Iraq at the time, the U.S. and several other countries established no-fly zones over the country and the U.N. Security Council enacted several sanctions against Iraq after its government refused to surrender weapons and submit to U.N. inspections (U.S. Department of State). Instability remained in the country throughout the rest of the 1990s and into the 2000s. In March-April 2003 a U.S.-led coalition invaded Iraq after it was claimed the country failed to comply with further U.N. inspections. This act began the Iraq War between Iraq and the U.S. Shortly the U.S.s invasion, Iraqs dictator Saddam Hussein was overthrown and the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) was established to handle Iraqs governmental functions as the country worked to establish a new government. In June 2004 the CPA disbanded and the Iraqi Interim Government took over. In January 2005 the country held elections and the Iraqi Transitional Government (ITG) took power. In May 2005 the ITG appointed a committee to draft a constitution and in September 2005 that constitution was completed. In December 2005 another election was held which established a new 4 year constitutional government that took power in March 2006. Despite its new government however, Iraq was still highly unstable during this time and violence was widespread throughout the country. As a result, the U.S. increased its presence in Iraq which caused a decrease in violence. In January 2009 Iraq and the U.S. came up with plans to remove U.S. troops from the country and in June 2009 they began leaving Iraqs urban areas. Further removal of U.S. troops continued into 2010 and 2011. On December 15, 2011 the Iraq War officially ended. Government of Iraq Economics and Land Use in Iraq Geography and Climate of Iraq The climate of Iraq is mostly desert and as such it has mild winters and hot summers. The countrys mountainous regions however have very cold winters and mild summers. Baghdad, the capital and largest city in Iraq has a January average low temperature of 39Â ºF (4Â ºC) and a July average high temperature of 111Â ºF (44Â ºC).

Conquerors essays

Conquerors essays In this paper I am going to compare and contrast the lives of Hernando Cortes and Charlemagne. The common point I am going to prove in my paper is that they were both men who had other roles to play, besides conquering lands, but at the end of their time their most influential task was the expansion of their kingdoms for their respected regions, and they also defeated many strong empires to do so. Charlemagne or in Latin Carolus Magnus which means Charles the Great (Encarta, Charlemagne, 1) was king of the Franks and emperor of the Romans who led his Frankish armies to victory over many other peoples and nations. He mainly ruled most of western and central Europe. Charlemagne came from a very noble family. He was the grandson of Charles Martel, and was the son of Peppin the Short, or Peppin III who was the first Caroline king of the Franks. (The Middle Ages, 170) He has a son by the name of Louis the Pious (Dictionary of Medieval Civilization, 182) and a brother Carloman. Carloman shared the rule of the Franks with him from 768 until his death in 771. Peppin was extremely devoted to Pope Stephen II for he had crowned him, as well as both his sons after he died, emperor in 754. Because of his great devotion he rushed to the popes aid for military help many times. He took Charlemagne with him on most of these expeditions, which quite possibly could have sparked Charlemagnes interests for conquering native lands. (The Middle Ages, 170) Peppin died in 768 and the Charlemagne and his brother took over the kingdom from their. Three years later, in 771, Carloman had an unexpected death and the kingdom was all Charlemagne. In 770 Charlemagne had sought an alliance with the Lombards by marrying the daughter of their king. After a little longer than a year Charlemagne got sick of his wife and divorced her, and her father, Desiderius, was no longer friendly. In 772 the pop...

US Policy toward the Kazakhstan Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

US Policy toward the Kazakhstan - Term Paper Example From the very beginning United States had brought down some set of objectives in Central Asia, and had stuck these ideas to Kazakhstan, for this reason Kazakhstan remained the heart of Central Asia forever (Legvold, 82). The first country to recognize Kazakhstan was United States and this recognition took place on December 25, 1991. Since then a very strong bond had developed between these two countries (Kazakhstan). The administrations of United States starting from George H.W Bush to Clinton had made strategic decisions to achieve their goals (Legvold, 67). U.S. Policy According to President Obama main motive of Kazakhstan is to make sure that the country is well developed and stabilization is maintained in political sphere of the nation. According to the administration, Kazakhstan has made remarkable progress, and this was possible as U.S. had supported them throughout and finally the country gained independence in the year 1991 and could achieve their goals. For FY2012, U.S. government had helped to strengthen Kazakhstan as a strategic partner. The Obama administration had helped in launching annual bilateral consultations on various financial and political issues with Kazakhstan. The first meeting took place in Washington, DC, in the month of March 2010 and the second meeting took place in Astana which is Kazakhstan’s capital. ... The two leaders also decided various other ways by which Kazakhstan would help Afghanistan expand their transportation network in the northern region. President Obama also decided to continuously support the efforts of the government of Kazakhstan and helped in liberalizing its media and smoothen its political system with the help of legal reforms. Furthermore keeping in mind Obama’s interest in Kazakhstan, a consulate general named Almaty was opened (Nichol, 12-13). Economic Development of Kazakhstan Kazakhstan is one of the most financially developed nations of the Central Asian Republics. A major portion of the GDP is generated by two sectors that are Oil and Gas. Kazakhstan has been ranked sixth in the field of producing wheat, and it is also known to be the major exporter of wheat in the world. Around 33% of the population lies below the poverty line. President Nazarbayev had launched a plan to create a financially well developed, educated and self-sufficient country with in 2030.Again in 2005 he proposed to bring Afghanistan within the top 50 developed countries of the world in the next ten years. He emphasized on restoring tax and budgetary policies and paid more attention to developing the manufacturing sector so that the GDP growth not solely depends on the Oil and Gas sectors. In the year 2010, President Nazarbayev proposed a five year plan to give a big push to the industrial sector, in order to reach their goal as planned for 2030 (Nichol, 7-8). The Kazakhstan Massacre December 16, 2011 could have been one of the most memorable days for the people of Afghanistan as the nation became independent on that very day. But inspite of being a day of celebration, it was transformed into a doom’s day. Due to the Kazakhstan Massacre,

Article Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 9

Article Summary - Essay Example The organization experienced alienation of 15 members of the organization within the first two years since it started operating. The author even states that the committee does not believe that the problems faced by the organization are huge and the problem has helped in replacing employees who were less interested in working for the organization with employees who are more interested. The managers of the organization have failed to carry out their function of organizing in a successful manner. They have failed to obtain human resources that are necessary for the attainment of the organization’s objectives. The organization is experiencing decline in number of members due to which various tasks are not being completed as they are required to an the organization is failing to meet its objectives. The managers have even failed to design the jobs of the employees in a proper manner because due to limited staff, one member of the organization has to carry out various tasks. The managers might even be failing to departmentalize the organization because they may not have enough members to completely fill the department and one member within the department might be carrying out various tasks. Bailey, Ian. "Report Finds B.C. Police Watchdog Facing Human Resources Issues." The Globe and Mail. 23 Feb. 2015. Web. 5 Mar. 2015.