Leadership in Health Care Organizations Practicum Coursework - 10

Leadership in Health Care Organizations Practicum - Coursework Example Integrity is not always easy to display and especially when it involves ones immediate superior as ripple effects might be dire and not worth it in the end (Huberts, Maesschalck and Jurkiewicz, 2008). This was one of those situations I found myself two years ago in my former employment. I was on off duty and was not supposed to come to work. However, I discovered I had forgotten some personal items and I went back to work around 8pm. I heard voices in the pharmacy but the door was locked which was strange. On investigation, I discovered my superior and another nurse taking drugs and putting them in a bag. This was stealing and I had to report it. I was however fearful of what the repercussions would be if I reported it but I did it anyway. A few months later I had to quit my job as the supervisor made my life impossible but at least I had stood up for my integrity. Integrity demands strength and not emotions. Emotions cloud one’s judgment and hence can prevent one from acting on the integrity. In order to be able to be a person with integrity and uphold it, it is important to remember what is important and that is to make things better and not worse. Separating emotions is therefore the key point in ensuring that one leads by example. In the above mentioned case involving my supervisor, if I had allowed emotions to cloud my judgment, i would not have reported him and hence would not have been displaying my integrity and not leading by example.

Essay on Virtue Essay Example for Free

Essay on Virtue Essay For most religious people it is one of the main goals in their life to live after the guidelines of virtue and show behavior with high moral standards. Virtue means goodness, morality, integrity, dignity†¦ Everything that Randle McMurphy is not at the first instance in â€Å"One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest†. His character opposes all classic characteristics of virtue and roughly speaking he fails to survive in the end. Therefore is it important to be virtuous? I believe that although virtue is coming out of fashion in today’s culture, it is a necessary, daily element in our life. For most people virtue isn’t the â€Å"coolest kid in town†. If someone announces that they’re giving up on dating, spending money on nice clothes and to overall work on becoming a more virtuous person, one will be labeled as a â€Å"freak†; someone maybe too religious that has a screw loose somewhere. Being virtuous can be boring because you have to control and put yourself in the background in a time when most teenagers and adults live their life for the public. One will sit in a nice restaurant with a plate more like art than food in front of them, but instead of enjoying their meal and talking with their friends, people will take a picture to display on instagram or facebook showing other people how good their life is. Being wicked and a little bit crazy is a strangely attractive characteristic nowadays. Along the lines of â€Å"good girls go to heaven. Bad girls go everywhere. † In OFOTCN McMurphy is that kind of crazy, wicked person. Although he fails to fit into society, it is hard to argue that he is not polarizing, fun and strangely likeable. When Murphy is asked why people believe he might be mentally ill, he bluntly says, â€Å"Well, as near as I can figure out, its cause I, uh, fight and fuck too much. † A virtuous person would never say that. But coming from Randle, it is oddly witty and authentic. McMurphy is not the perfect example of virtue; he is the exact opposite, the how-not-to-do-it. Yet you feel yourself rooting for him, wishing that he will succeed in his life. Maybe because you see good in him even though you have to dig past a few layers, or maybe you are inspired by his pure love of life and spontaneity. In Addition his relationship with Chief shows true affection and care. For example when Randle is genuinely interested in Chief’s story and even asks him to run away with him. He builds a friendship and basis of trust where the Chief even reveals his ability to communicate. The amazing part is the fact that the Chief never spoke a word with anyone and acted dumb the entire time he was on the ward, fooling everyone. McMurphy brings a lot of joy and freshness into the sanatorium, although they’re primarily enforced with alcohol and women. He is unique and against all norms. If you’ve read The Catcher in The Rye, you know that McMurphy is someone who isn’t â€Å"phony†. But all his likeability aside, McMurphy fails to run away from the psychiatric hospital and even loses his life in the end. Therefore it shows us that it isn’t really possible to live in society without norms. Which brings us to the point that humans need virtue as an element in their life in order to survive. We need and want virtue in our life, so that we can keep things in order and live a happy life. There is an invisible book of rules that almost everybody knows of. Not everyone follows it, but it’s usually known in the name of â€Å"common sense†. For instance people know that it is hurtful to cheat on someone. Loyalty and honesty are elements of virtue and people live by their rule everyday. When you promise someone to do something, you have to do it or will be labeled as irresponsible and untrustworthy. You don’t have to say these things out loud because it’s common sense. Elements of virtue lie so deep in our culture that they’ve become everyday values and traditions that have formed a common code for society. Beside materialistic or selfish values, we need morals and principles that leave us with something more substantial than money or success. Virtue is something that is expected of everyone, yet not usually voiced. Someone who is against all norms usually doesn’t survive in society. The example is Randle McMurphy, who is a healthy and intelligent man. There is nothing stopping him from living a normal life, but his persona is so impulsive and difficult that it is very hard to find virtue in him. Therefore people are quick to judge him and label him as a danger to society. He gets send to the electroshock treatment because he acted impulsively and smashed a window in order to get Martinez’ cigarettes. Bystanders will describe this act as dangerous and violent and conclude that he is a threat. I think that McMurphy didn’t mean any harm, but failed to think twice about what he was doing. A virtuous person would’ve never smashed the window in the first place and therefore never gotten a punishment. We are imprinted with the knowledge that some things are right and others wrong, whereas those judgments are based on the concepts of virtue. But humans aren’t that easy and the way society understand this concept has its flaws. All humans are different in their personas and stories, but no one is better than the other. In OFOTCN everyone in the psychiatric hospital is very different from the other, but they each have their pluses and minuses. The nurses aren’t more virtuous than the patients, which is shown in the irresponsible behavior of Nurse Ratched that ultimately resulted in Bibbet’s death. But for society it might seem that she showed virtuous behavior in forms of honesty. It might seem unfair that those â€Å"Looneys† are locked up either in the prison or sanatorium because they don’t behave in an acceptable manner. â€Å"What do you think you are, for Chrissake, crazy or somethin? Well youre not! Youre not! Youre no crazier than the average asshole out walkin around on the streets and thats it. † McMurphy is the one to voice out that the people in the hospital are no less valuable than the â€Å"normal† people. It is ironic that especially Randle, who seems to be dangerous and aggressive, to say something that true and tolerant. We see that the patients have accepted and believe the opinion of the society. So has the hospital, that just strictly follows the daily routine, shocks patients if they’re not obedient and don’t put visible effort in genuinely helping them. Nurse Ratched says, â€Å"The best thing we can do is go on with our daily routine. † right after Bibbet’s death and McMurphy’s brain surgery. For society it is easy to say that someone is bad according to his or her moral standard and integrity. But not every person is born into a nice environment, a loving family or prosperity. There is much more to a person’s life that forms their character, way of thinking and thus value of virtue. We see that McMurphy is by no means a purely malicious character but a fun-loving guy who loves life. Yet his way of dealing with things put him in trouble and difficulty. It is very important to understand and have virtue in your life, because even though we often neglect open and excessive virtuous behavior, it is an unspoken rule in society to behave to some extent of common virtue. It is somewhat ironically contradicting and there is just simply no scientific answer to being virtuous because there are so many factors that play a role in someone’s behavior. Everyone is good and bad and the lines between villain and hero are sometimes surprisingly blurred. Humans are complex beings that can’t be simply categorized into wrong and right and many situations seem ambiguous depending on the perspective. That is why virtue is a great ideal but by no means a scale to critic.

The Victim :: Essays Papers

The Victim As a victim Lester Ballard, the main character in Child of God by Cormac McCarthy, never thought that victimizing and murdering others was unjust. If justification is law according to the theory of an eye for an eye, then in many ways Ballard had justification for his actions. Ballard lived by the golden rule, which is to treat others as you wish to be treated. In the following paragraphs I will explain how Lester is a victim and why he is justified to victimize others. GRAPH Lester Ballard did not have the happy, normal childhood we all expect or imagine everyone to have. He never had any brothers or sisters to play with when he was little. When he was a boy his mother ran off with another man and never returned to Lester again. Just shortly after his mother ran off, when he was nine or ten years old, Lester’s father hung himself in their barn. He was left dangling dead for Lester to find later that day. From that day forth Lester was alone in this world. He had no family to share love and happiness with. Lester was not an ignorant child when his father killed himself; he was old enough to understand what had happened and what death was. These situations can have severe mental impact on a child. One member of the community makes a comment about Lester, â€Å"They say he was never right again after his daddy killed himself.† Here Lester is displayed as a victim of his parents. The two people he loved the most and was cl osest to abandoned him. He became a victim of isolation, loneliness, and a broken heart. He could never show love toward people the same way again. Another major impact the loss of Lester’s parents had on him was the loss of role models.

Human Resource Definition Essay

1. Contingent workers- Someone who is not an employee, but a temporary or part-time worker for a specific period of time and type of work. Employee engagement- The extent to which individuals feel linked to organizational success and how the organization performs positively. Human capital- The collective value of the capabilities, knowledge, skills, life experiences, and motivation of an organizational workforce. Human resource management- Designing management systems to ensure that human talent is used effectively and efficiently to accomplish organizational goals Organizational culture- The shared values and beliefs in an organization. Productivity- Measure of the quantity and quality of work done, considering the cost of the resources used Sustainability-Being able to continue to operate, survive, and adjust to significant changes. ————————————————- ————————————————- Essay Questions: Answer the following essay questions based on the book and class discussions. 2. Ethical behavior in an organization is likely to occur when an ethics program includes these four elements: The four elements necessary to quantify an organization’s ethics are 1) written code of ethics and standards 2) ethics training to executives, managers, and employees 3) availability for advice on ethical situations (i.e. advice lines or offices) and 4) systems for confidential reporting 3. What challenges face HR managers with regard to workforce availability and quality? What are potential solutions? Future supply of and demand for employees and the nature of workforce issues, including the retention of employees. These factors are used when recruiting applicants for job openings. The selection process is concerned with choosing qualified individuals to fill those jobs. 4. What are the three major roles of HR management? Which is/are the most affected by technology and outsourcing? Which roles are growing in importance? 1) administrative, 2) operational and employee advocate, and 3) strategic. 5. Identify the key competencies needed by all HR professionals, and the additional competencies needed by senior HR leaders. HR professionals need competencies in strategic knowledge and impacts; capabilities in legal, administrative, and operational areas; and technology knowledge abilities. Senior HR leaders need these areas plus others to be effective. ————————————————- HR Headline: Read the following and then in teams, answer the following questions: HR Headline: The Challenges and Crises Facing HR Management Recent economic downturns, industry crises, bank failures, closing of plants and stores, changes in global operations, and other factors have significantly affected organizations, managers, and Human Resource (HR) management professionals. Some jobs are in high demand while others are being eliminated. According to surveys, some of the biggest problems include the following: 1) Adjusting benefits programs due to increasing costs; 2) Attracting and retaining key employees; 3) Planning for replacement of â€Å"baby boomers† when they retire; 4) Using talent management to train and develop capabilities of employees for future job needs; 5) Dealing with the expanded personal and organizational use of HR technology through blogs, wikis, twitters, text messaging, and other aspects; and 6) Complying with revised and changing federal, state, and local legal requirements affecting discrimination, treatment errors, unionization, and others. Questions for Discussion: 1. What do you think will be the most important change in the economy that will influence HR management operations? Explain. Their media tend to be a big part of it since that how things are function more. There are so many way to communicate and get things done faster and is more time saving. Also attracts different type of people with different types of skills. 2. How do you think technology changes will change the way HR professionals do recruiting and selection of employees? What are the pros and cons of any changes? It helps people have easier way to apply for jobs or to show their talents. Help HR find people with the skills that they are looking for. But it also disqualifies many people for the reason they are in the internet/ profiles. 3. The number of jobs in HR is predicted to increase between now and 2018. Explain why you think that is? They are going to need more people to be able to hire other that are right for the jobs rather than outsourcing. Since many people are baby boomer, there are going retired soon so that means many companies are going to need new heiress there need HR to be able to cover all the new people that are coming. HR Headline: The Challenges and Crises Facing HR Management Recent economic downturns, industry crises, bank failures, closing of plants and stores, changes in global operations, and other factors have significantly affected organizations, managers, and Human Resource (HR) management professionals. Some jobs are in high demand while others are being eliminated. According to surveys, some of the biggest problems include the following: 1) Adjusting benefits programs due to increasing costs; 2) Attracting and retaining key employees; 3) Planning for replacement of â€Å"baby boomers† when they retire; 4) Using talent management to train and develop capabilities of employees for future job needs; 5) Dealing with the expanded personal and organizational use of HR technology through blogs, wikis, twitters, text messaging, and other aspects; and 6) Complying with revised and changing federal, state, and local legal requirements affecting discrimination, treatment errors, unionization, and others. Questions for Discussion: 4. What do you think will be the most important change in the economy that will influence HR management operations? Explain. Their media tend to be a big part of it since that how things are function more. There are so many way to communicate and get things done faster and is more time saving. Also attracts different type of people with different types of skills. 5. How do you think technology changes will change the way HR professionals do recruiting and selection of employees? What are the pros and cons of any changes? It helps people have easier way to apply for jobs or to show their talents. Help HR find people with the skills that they are looking for. But it also disqualifies many people for the reason they are in the internet/ profiles. 6. The number of jobs in HR is predicted to increase between now and 2018. Explain why you think that is? They are going to need more people to be able to hire other that are right for the jobs rather than outsourcing. Since many people are baby boomer, there are going retired soon so that means many companies are going to need new heiress there need HR to be able to cover all the new people that are coming. ————————————————- ————————————————- Chapter Video—Fruit Guys: After the video, answer the following questions. 6. What do you think will be the most important challenges for HR at Fruit Guys in the next five years? SUMMARYIZED THE VIDEO: It was showing how people in business think in the way of rewarding people in different positions. People that are in a higher position that are being rewarded for their performance in money show there performance actually got worse compare to the people in lower positions that are getting paid less. The study show that the people that have cram time to do a project are more productive and they show more passion on their job. Also people tend to do thing for free in there space time and are more productive since they are not pressured or force to do something they tend to be more productive. 7. Based on the CEO and other manager in the video, it appears that HR at Fruit Guys is expected to be involved in all three roles of HR. Describe an example of HR activities at Fruit Guys required for each of these roles shown in Figure 1-9 in the text.

Prehistoric Art

Prehistoric man faced many challenges. For example, they had no means of communication and yet they had to work together to find and kill their own food. When making art, prehistoric man had to make their own paint brushes and create their paint. This makes prehistoric art so impressive because their paintings very accurately capture the proportions and look of the animals they drew. Prehistoric paintings are found in ceilings and high walls of caves which would have required resistor's man to make some sort of ladder to reach these areas.A last reason the art is so impressive is because they were able to symbolize important aspects of their life in artwork that still survives until today. 2. The images of people in prehistoric art are so unrealistic while animals are well observed because the animals were more important to them. In their lifestyle, animals served as a source of food and kept them alive; humans did not serve as something necessary to stay alive. Some theories formed to explain this are that resistor's man thought they would find the animal they drew, also known as sympathetic magic.It is also thought that prehistoric man believed a well drawn image of an animal would capture the soul of the animal. An example of the contrast between animal and man is shown in a pictograph depicting a group of men hunting a herd of deer. While the deer are perfectly detailed and proportioned, the hunters are stretched and seem boneless making them look extremely unrealistic. 3. The Venus of Wildflower is a small statue made from limestone in prehistoric times.Certain body parts, such as the breasts, stomach, thighs, and butt, are grotesquely exaggerated. She has no arms and no face. The Venus of Wildflower looks like this because those parts of the body would be necessary for survival in tough times. If they could not find food to hunt then they would need to have stored fat previously to use during the time of famine. Prehistoric man exaggerated the areas that he responded to. For example, seagull chicks respond to a yellow stick with one red stripe on because it looks like a seagull chicks mother's beak.When shown a yellow stick with three stripes on it they react more vigorously because the red stripe is necessary for survival for chicks. When the chicks hatch they respond to the red stripe and go to it to receive food. Without having this response the seagull chicks will die after hatching. Similarly, specific areas on the Venus are exaggerated because prehistoric man responded to the specific areas that would aid their fight for survival. For instance, the stomach and thighs are exaggerated because having fat

Reflection Communication Skills Essay

Reflection Communication Skills Essay Reflection: Communication Skills Essay A Simple Reflection To begin a reflection at a particular milestone, one should look into the mirror and look past the concrete image into what lies beyond. The particular milestone here is the completion of COMM 1015 and my progress over the semester is what lies beyond. Certainly, change is evident over my first semester of college; the debate here is whether the change is positive improvement or not. This has indeed been an enjoyable semester for me, but as I begin to gather up the ends of my first semester communication skills education, I will illustrate and reflect on my progress. Writing has always been one of my stronger suits, gliding with ease through English classes that others may find difficult. I have always been able to easily throw together a captive introduction, state a thesis, provide support, and conclude well. Even though it is very easy for me to develop a good piece of literature, there are still areas for improvement. I have never been very keen on the e ntire writing process until this year. I now use a quick brainstorm and free write to create a detailed outline making my papers much more logical and organized. Also the peer editing process is something that I have improved on greatly, learning to edit the papers’ of my classmates and taking their feedback to mind as well. I selected the nonverbal paragraph, speaker analysis, and common book essay as my personal best writings this semester because in all three I included the writing process and it helped me develop well organized, all-inclusive pieces of work that were fun to read. I also had them edited by Ms. Emilie and students taking all feedback and corrections into mind, effectively perfecting the writings. I am proud of them more simply because the assignment allowed me to put together my ideas in a unique way that I thought was interesting. I think my major weaknesses, though, fall more into reading comprehension and critical thinking. The structure of Ms. Emilie’s teaching helped my reading comprehension skills improve significantly through the course of the semester. Material was to be read from the book and a subsequent quiz would be provided to prove understanding of the material. I ended up doing very well on these quizzes illustrating my improvement throughout the class. These acquired skills helped in every other class where reading was necessary to capture certain material. Critical thinking came more subtly during the course. The group conflict project improved my critical thinking as I had to examine all of the aspects of my stakeholder to find solutions to the common problem. Also the conflict resolution letter incorporated critical thinking as I had to come to a mutual solution between two parties where neither takes a loss. In both cases, research was necessary to establish a common ground and find the solutions that work best for every party involved. I understand now, in detail, the ste ps to solving a conflict; stating the problem, analyzing the problem, brainstorming solutions and choosing the best one. I am now able to come to a plausible solution when faced with a conflict as opposed to a one-sided close-minded solution. My listening and communication skills have also greatly improved over the semester. I have never been a very effective communicator demonstrated through my weak relationships with my family and friends. The material in the textbook and the corresponding quizzes forced me to learn a ton of things I did not know about being an effective communicator. I learned how to use listening skills, nonverbal communication, feedback, and many more strategies to communicate appropriately with people. I also learned how to register feedback and make changes in the way I am communicating based on the message being communicated to me. The communication environment involving kinesics, occulesis, haptics, proxemics, chronemics, olfactory, and vocalics is mu ch more vivid to me as my knowledge

Stress2 essays

Stress2 essays Psychological stress is a result of many factors and should be dealt with very carefully. Stress can be defined as a set of interactions between the person and the environment that result in an unpleasant emotional state, such as anxiety, tension, guilt, or shame (swin pg 1). Another way of putting it, is that there are somethings that put certain demands on us. The effects of stress should not be limited to unpleasant emotional states. Many studies have concluded that the effects on our physical health from stress can be extremely detrimental. These adverse physical effects include heart disease and formations of cancer. There are also some societal issues that psychological stress can hamper. There are numerous elements that trigger the effects of psychological stress. Frustration is one of these elements that will trigger stress. Frustration is one of the most prevalent sources of stress in my life at this moment. A lot of different events will cause frustration. Frustration occurs from something blocking our attainment of certain goals or needs (Corey 207). All of the little things that frustrate us include waiting in lines or traffic, sense of failure or inadequacies, bad relationships, deaths, and loneliness. Self-defeating thoughts are a way in which we almost deliberately block attainment of our needs. If in our heads, we have this preconceived notion that we are incapable of obtaining something that we want or that others could not possibly love us, we create a self-fulfilling prophecy. I used the word "deliberately" in describing self-doubt because we have the ability to change these misinformed thoughts. Major life changes whether it be positive or negative can lead to very stressful situations. In our society, many people fall into a rut of everyday life and fear change to their daily routines. When any kind of change occurs it is very traumatic. There are many chang...

SAT Preparation - PrepScholar 2016 Students Encyclopedia

SAT Preparation - PrepScholar 2016 Students' Encyclopedia SAT / ACT Prep Online Guides and Tips There are numerous and diverse resources for students to prepare for the SAT. Preparing for this important exam has been shown to be strongly correlated with scoring highly and improving scores between test administrations. Because the SAT largely differs in question type and pacing from most classroom exams, students tend to benefit from familiarizing themselves with the test before taking it. Note: this article is a series in the PrepScholar2016 Students' Encyclopedia, a free students' and parents' SAT / ACT guide that provides encyclopedic knowledge. Read all the articles here! How many points can SAT prep help? Studies have shown various levels of score improvement following SAT preparation courses. According to the Johnson San Francisco study in 1984, students showed an average increase of 178 points on a 1600 SAT scale following a 30 hour prep course. On a 2400 SAT scale, the equivalent is an SAT improvement of 267 points. A study from Ohio State University showed that students achieved score improvements of greater than 60 points following SAT review. Despite many rigorous scientific studies showing SAT score can be improveddramatically by prep,the College Board maintains its official politically motivatedposition that the SAT cannot be prepped. The College Board benefits from the position that the SAT cannot be prepped so it can maintain the image of the SAT being fair, a key requirement colleges, who are a main driver of College Board's customers. To support the claim that the SAT is uncoachable, it cites research studies that show only about 10 to 20 point score improvements per section following preparation. These studies, however, have raised questions of bias as many werecarried out by College Board and its partner organization, the National Association of College Admission Counseling. Sources of Prep Questions College Board, the nonprofit organization that develops the SAT, releases official practice tests for students to take, some of which are previously administered tests from years past. In addition to these official practice questions, students can find practice questions from various sources, including test prep companies and online classrooms, like Khan Academy. Since SAT prep is a large and varied field, students must be discerning about the quality of SAT practice materials and lessons. Online Preparation Due to advances in educational technology, online SAT courses are a burgeoning method of test prep. Online courses have proven popular among students due to their ability to track student progress, diagnose students' strengths and weaknesses, and customize study plans to individuals. Online prep programs may also offer one-on-one tutoring. Other methods of test prep include one-on-one tutoring, self-study from books, and classes. These methods have varying degrees of effectiveness depending on their quality and the learning styles of individual students. Many students prefer the convenience of online SAT preparation programs, which can be accessed anywhere with Internet. The lessons may be scaffolded to target each student's needs. Students benefit from using a customizable program with high quality content, practice questions, and test-taking strategies. Online programs that incorporate one-on-one tutoring tend to excel in blending the strengths of technology with the benefits of connecting with a tutor. The most effective tutors tend to have extensive teaching experience and to combine individualized instruction with student support. Other Preparation Methods Some students opt for one-on-one tutoring as their main method of SAT preparation. The most helpful tutors thoroughly understand their students' academic profile, map their progress, and created individualized study plans. The least effective tutors simply sit beside students as they do practice problems and lack the ability to communicate clear explanations or effective strategies. One common downside of one-on-one tutoring is its high cost, with many tutors charging hundreds of dollars per hour. Another method of SAT preparation comes in the form of classroom courses. Students may gather for a number of weeks to learn about the SAT, take practice tests, and learn lessons. While SAT preparation classes can be useful to many students for covering the basics andexposing students to SAT practice, they are often lacking in individual instruction and can be relatively expensive. Finally, many students self-study from SAT preparation materials and books. College Board's Official SAT Study Guide, commonly referred to as the "Blue Book," is a key resource due to its ten official practice tests, though most SAT tutors agree that it is lacking in content review and test-taking strategies. This mode of SAT preparation requires independence, self-discipline, and self-directed study habits. To effect score improvements, students must ensure that they are using high quality resources with relevant information and practical tips. Read more from theSAT Encyclopedia! Further Reading Complete Official SAT Practice Tests, Free Links The 10 Best SAT Books Recommended for SAT Prep How to Get a Perfect SAT Score, by a 2400 Full Scorer

Trade relations between USA and China Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Trade relations between USA and China - Essay Example Ranging from the ongoing currency war to accusations of immoral trade policies, factors which have led towards this destabilization of trade relations are not only economical but, perhaps, have a political milieu too. Firstly, one of the major challenges faced by the USA-China trade is the prominent USA accusation of ‘manipulating’ the Chinese currency. Over the past few years, the official currency of China, Yuan, has been held in a floating exchange rate system; though it has only been allowed a narrow margin to fluctuate. Many analysts and economists in the USA however urge for a more flexible exchange rate which pivots around the market equilibrium determined by the market forces of currency demand and supply. Despite of the fact that Yuan has been allowed to fluctuate more liberally and has even risen by 20% in value against the USA Dollar since 2005, Japan, European Union and USA yet accuse China that it manipulates its currency by deliberately keeping it at a low exchange rate in relation to the USA Dollar with a view to make the USA products less competitive and, simultaneously, the Chinese goods and services more competitive and relatively cheaper than the USA goods. This lowered currency rate leads to a rise in Chinese exports whereas USA exports decline. A large amount of trade deficit suffered by the USA in trade with China adds to the gravity of the accusation. Concerns for China regarding this issue are that the USA, World Trade Organization or APEC might impose trade sanctions on China for its ‘problematic’ currency exchange rate. These sanctions may prove very costly for the growing Chinese economy as the world’s second largest economy is principally led by mass amount of exports to its trading partners. Restrictions over free trade for China may cause the deceleration of its growth or may even put it to a halt. The trade balance between USA and China in 2011 exceeded $295 billion and any probable sanctions may d rastically affect this huge amount of traded commodities between the two giants. Moreover, China’s Current Account surplus has also been declining during the past few years and the consequences of USA pleas regarding the unfair trade advantage China has may turn the ‘already withering’ surplus into a trade deficit, whereas China may also lose its most important trade partner (Davis). The list of allegations upon China is elongated and does not restrict itself to the currency devaluation. China is also accused by the USA for adopting an unfair exchange rate regime. Yuan’s rate of exchange has been, contrarily to the US allegations, in conformity with the international monetary system which is operating at the time. Observing the variations from a fixed to a floating and then from the fixed peg to a basket peg, China’s exchange rate valuation has always been repudiated by USA. This might lead to a further withering of trade relations between the two n ations in the near future. (Moosa viii) Also, on the accusation list is the allegation upon China of piling up its foreign reserves. Again, the charge seems to be lacking ample rationality as any nation is allowed to purchase foreign currency reserves and to accumulate those reserves in order to minimize its risk of a speculative economic slump in the future. Similarly, China has done the same and has acquired pretty huge amounts of US Dollars in the

Scenario analysis Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Scenario analysis - Assignment Example pic for organizational research in order for identifying how a firm’s social cultural and technological trends can add to its competitive advantages. Regardless of its US origin, one-third of ‘OXnians’ belong to other countries; and many of them, in addition to English speak Russian, Greek, Mandarin, and other regional languages. Obviously, the diverse workforce has turned to be one of the important competitive advantages of the company as it reduces OXO’s divergence risks in international market. Universal design philosophy is the core of OXO’s business concept for which the company has been globally recognized by reputed business schools and universities as an excellent business model. Most of the products of OXO reflect its genuine concern to consumers’ requirements as it introduces viable solutions to problems associated with handling every day devices. The way it distributes products also has a social manner as it utilizes a wide range of retailer network and online stores across the globe. According to the changing business environment and new trends, OXO has initiated partnership with othe r business groups. For instance, since 2004 the company has been operating as a subsidiary of Helen of Troy Limited. Another significant partnership is with UCB with intent to develop syringe and packaging components that would meet the challenges of rheumatoid arthritis patients by providing them with devices to enable self-administrating medicine. OXO uses the most modern technology for its ease running. Their technological efficacy can be seen mainly in the area of customer services. They have a well developed customer service system that ensures the ‘security, integrity, and confidentiality’ of customer information. When the details of credit card are transmitted online by customer for purchase payment deals, ‘OXO uses industry standard security measures called SSL (Secure Socket Layer Concryption)’. When a person visits their website for the

#1 - the effectiveness of graphic organizers #2 -Learning vocabulary Article

#1 - the effectiveness of graphic organizers #2 -Learning vocabulary through reading - Article Example There were earlier studies in the area, though limited in scope, which have brought out the positive aspects of graphic organizers. The reviewed study aims to provide additional knowledge in the recently implemented systems where remedial students and students with learning disabilities are mainstreamed, and it could ostensibly lead to significant research in the field. The review of literature is carried out promptly, mentioning studies in the field by Bergerud, Lovitt, and Horton, Darch and Carnine, Sinatra et.al., Scruggs et.al., Mastropieri et. al., and so on. The review goes in detail to the significance of their studies and critically evaluates them, establishing the necessity of the present study. It also establishes a theoretical framework, holds scope to make use of the effectiveness of graphic organizers for students with learning handicap to the relatively new aspect of mainstream instruction. The authors succeed in relating previous research to their work. The study has three research questions which are hypothesized in affirmative answers. The questions are: 1. are the graphic organizers more effective than self-study condition for the three classifications mentioned? 2. do graphic organizers produce consistent effects in middle school and high school across a variety of content area classes? and 3. can teachers successfully implement graphic organizers with heterogeneous groups through teacher-directed and student-directed procedures? The hypothesis is consistent with theory and known facts. It is explained as testable, and promised to provide expected results. The methodology is explained with sufficient clarity so as to allow future researchers to replicate it for their purposes. The population used is selected from nine whole classes of three each from middle school science, middle school social studies and high school social studies. From each subject area, two classes are randomly selected to serve as experimental groups and

Blood Donation Marketing analysis Research Paper

Blood Donation Marketing analysis - Research Paper Example The collected blood will be supplied to the military camps, churches, community organizations etc for emergency purposes ( American Red Cross, 2010).The guidelines, benefits of the blood donation camp are available for free through social media networks like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter (Donate Blood, 2013d). Weakness Recruitment of first time blood donors require extensive identification, education and motivation. Training, educating and motivation these first time blood donors consumes a lot of time (Red Cross, 2010). The trainers have to maintain a record of the first time blood donors since the repeat donors are already provided with an identity card by the blood organizer camp. Apart from time consumption, the blood organizers have to deal with the pre donation anxiety and nervousness of the first time blood donors. Opportunity The benefits about blood donation are being taught to the college children, this has eased the task of the blood donation camps to communicate the benefits of blood donation. Technological development has made it easier for the blood donors to schedule their appointments online (Donate Blood, 2013e).... †¢To develop an integrated marketing communication strategy which motivates current, non and lapsed donors in the target market to increase their blood donations in 2013-14. †¢To improve and increase blood donation accessibility for the 18-24 year-old age group in 2013-14. Issue Analysis In Australia, marketing effort is aimed at attracting and maintaining sufficient numbers of regular, volunteer blood donors in the under-represented age group of 18 to 24 year-olds. It is essential that the Australian Red Cross Blood Service ensures are reasonable and safe blood supply throughout the year. Each week, at least 27,000, blood donations, are required to assist people with serious blood illnesses (e.g., cancer, blood diseases), surgical patients (e.g., open heart surgery, burns), kidney disease patients, pregnant women and traumatic accident patients (Australian Red Cross Blood Service, 2013). Only a relatively small percentage of the eligible population within the 18-24 year-ol d age group donates blood on a regular basis. Furthermore, eligible donors often lapse in their blood donating behaviour after their blood donation. Marketing Strategy Arranging for a blood donation campaign is a challenging task and requires intensive market study, planning and psychological analysis of the blood donors. An effective marketing strategy needs to be developed to ensure the smooth functioning of the blood donation campaign. Marketing Objective To encourage blood donation among individuals aged between 18 to 24 years old from the period 01 July 2013 to 30 June 2014. Budget Allocation The allocated budget for the blood donation campaign would be AUD20 million which would be required to cover the research process, media, medical equipments, advertising

Thurgood Marshall and his impact on the American civil rights movement Term Paper

Thurgood Marshall and his impact on the American civil rights movement - Term Paper Example He is recognized for making contributions to race and gender equality as well as the rights of an accused. He was born on 2 July 1908 in Baltimore, Maryland and attended the Samuel Coleridge Taylor Elementary School and Booker T. Washington Junior High. Thurgood Marshall’s parents were mulattoes who could trade their ancestry to a nineteenth-century Congo slave who have caused much trouble for his master that he was set free. The former slave was Thurgood’s Marshall’s great grandfather. Thurgood Marshall’s father was a waiter and amateur writer while his mother was a schoolteacher. During his elementary years, Thurgood Marshall â€Å"was best remembered† to be on the front row so teachers could see him closely. He was also described as to have â€Å"enjoyed teaching the girls while he was in school†. According to Thurgood Marshall, himself, he was born Throughgood Marshall but after growing tired of spelling his long first name, he shorted his name to Thurgood when he was in second grade. Thurgood Marshall had revealed that although they had lived on a respectable street but behind them were â€Å"back alleys where the roughnecks and the tough kids hung out.† Further, Thurgood Marshall had revealed that every dinnertime, his mother had to go to the front door to call her brother but had to use the backdoor to call him for dinner. 12 In 1921 to 1925, Marshall attended the Colored High and Training School that became the Frederick Douglass High School in 1923.13 The Colored High and Training School was known as an all-black school with no school library, no cafeteria, and no gym when Thurgood Marshall was enrolled.14 The school was â€Å"so overcrowded that half-day sessions were held to accommodate all students†. 15 Students in the school were divided based on perfor mance and Marshall had belonged to the best students of the school.16 Nevertheless, Marshall was known as a prankster and his â€Å"antics† usually sent him to punishment.17 The main form of punishment then was to put the punished in the school basement to memorize the US Constitution.18 From the experience, Marshall recounted later, that came to know the US Constitution by heart.19 Marshall was a figure on the high school campus because of his participation and success in his school’s debate team.20 Marshall married Vivian Burey in 1923.21 In 1924, he graduated from high school at the top three of his class after maintaining a grade of B average. 22 In 1930, Marshall graduated cum laude from the Lincoln University in Lincoln, Pennsylvania.23 Lincoln University was known as the â€Å"Black Princeton† because it was founded and ran â€Å"by the same Presbyterians who ran Princeton University†. 24 In Lincoln University, despite graduating at the top of his class, many thought he never studied.25 One friend even described him as someone who was the least likely to succeed.26 In Lincoln University, Thurgood Marshall was known as a great pinochle player, fan of cowboy movies, and connoisseur of comic books. 27 On his second year in the university, Marshall joined the Alpha Phi Alpha, a fraternity described as â€Å"elite† and composed of â€Å"mostly light-skinned boys†.28 Thurgood Marshall was known to have â€Å"enjoyed† hazing the younger students and â€Å"did so in such an aggressive manner that he got kicked out school, along with 25 other sophomores†.29 However, Marshall and the rest of his companions were readmitted after they wrote and sign a confession of admission to the University.30 Marshall initially intended to attend the University of Maryland Law School but found out that only two black students had graduated from the law school in Maryland. 31 Further, he

Blood Donation Marketing analysis Research Paper

Blood Donation Marketing analysis - Research Paper Example The collected blood will be supplied to the military camps, churches, community organizations etc for emergency purposes ( American Red Cross, 2010).The guidelines, benefits of the blood donation camp are available for free through social media networks like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter (Donate Blood, 2013d). Weakness Recruitment of first time blood donors require extensive identification, education and motivation. Training, educating and motivation these first time blood donors consumes a lot of time (Red Cross, 2010). The trainers have to maintain a record of the first time blood donors since the repeat donors are already provided with an identity card by the blood organizer camp. Apart from time consumption, the blood organizers have to deal with the pre donation anxiety and nervousness of the first time blood donors. Opportunity The benefits about blood donation are being taught to the college children, this has eased the task of the blood donation camps to communicate the benefits of blood donation. Technological development has made it easier for the blood donors to schedule their appointments online (Donate Blood, 2013e).... †¢To develop an integrated marketing communication strategy which motivates current, non and lapsed donors in the target market to increase their blood donations in 2013-14. †¢To improve and increase blood donation accessibility for the 18-24 year-old age group in 2013-14. Issue Analysis In Australia, marketing effort is aimed at attracting and maintaining sufficient numbers of regular, volunteer blood donors in the under-represented age group of 18 to 24 year-olds. It is essential that the Australian Red Cross Blood Service ensures are reasonable and safe blood supply throughout the year. Each week, at least 27,000, blood donations, are required to assist people with serious blood illnesses (e.g., cancer, blood diseases), surgical patients (e.g., open heart surgery, burns), kidney disease patients, pregnant women and traumatic accident patients (Australian Red Cross Blood Service, 2013). Only a relatively small percentage of the eligible population within the 18-24 year-ol d age group donates blood on a regular basis. Furthermore, eligible donors often lapse in their blood donating behaviour after their blood donation. Marketing Strategy Arranging for a blood donation campaign is a challenging task and requires intensive market study, planning and psychological analysis of the blood donors. An effective marketing strategy needs to be developed to ensure the smooth functioning of the blood donation campaign. Marketing Objective To encourage blood donation among individuals aged between 18 to 24 years old from the period 01 July 2013 to 30 June 2014. Budget Allocation The allocated budget for the blood donation campaign would be AUD20 million which would be required to cover the research process, media, medical equipments, advertising

Apple's marketing strategy in China Literature review

Apple's marketing strategy in China - Literature review Example The competitiveness of the global environment has been made possible by technological advances that have leveled the playing field for international businesses to penetrate cross-border markets (Friedman, 2007). Modern means of communication, which facilitates information gathering and business transactions, â€Å"allowing people around the world to compete, connect, and collaborate† (Cherunimal, 2010). Nor is the globalization trend limited to commerce and trade, such that â€Å"No institution, whether a business, a university or hospital, can hope to survive, let alone to succeed, unless it measures up to the standards set by the leaders in its field any place in the world† (Peter Drucker, 2007, p. 66). Several frameworks for international marketing planning have been conceptualized to capture its nature and scope, although the specific nuances of the process continues to evolve with the changing dynamics of globalization. Li and Li (2009) proposed an Internet-enabled , multi-agent-based hybrid framework, which was designed to address the three types of uncertainty conditions identified by Ashill and Jobber (2001), namely: state uncertainty, or the inability to forecast future events in the global marketing environment; effect uncertainty, which results from failure to understand the causes and effects of the changing environment; and response uncertainty, or the inability to predict how the market will respond to the changes. The framework is graphically portrayed in the following diagram: Figure 1: The Internet-enabled multi-agent-based hybrid intelligent support framework (Li & Li, 2009). The decision-making framework synthesizes the processes identified in earlier academic literature. Environmental scanning and monitoring involves the continuous observation of political, economic, social and technological events, and competitors’ moves (Jain, 1990). Strategic analysis assesses the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, evalu ates the principal criteria or factors which the firm must address. Management identifies the strategic intention, risk, synergy effects, and market attractiveness, and thereby defines the firm’s competitive advantage. Go versus no-go decision under uncertainty is a pass/fail test conditioned by fulfillment of the Go condition and failure of the No-go condition (Cohen, Rolph & Steffey, 1998). The decision-makers decide the course of action and possible alternatives to take, with cognizance of the state, effect, and response uncertainties. Entry mode selection under uncertainty is the choice of the manner in which the firm enters the target market, given the degree of risk and the level of market control (Chee & Harris, 1998). Finally, formulating marketing strategies is concerned with the means of achieving the defined marketing goals and objectives towards creating the competitive advantage defined for the firm. These processes will be more closely described in the following sections. In the hybrid model, the processes are carried out by multiple software agents, working in an Internet-enabled system through a suitable software architecture and underlying integration method (Li & Li, 2009). Table 1: International marketing envir

Cosmic Race Essay Example for Free

Cosmic Race Essay The term â€Å"Cosmic Race† is also known as â€Å"La raza cosmica† which was based on the opinions of some Mexican Scholars in the 1920’s who held that since the Latin Americans held the blood of all the races, the transcended the races of the â€Å"Old World†. This term basically embodies the idea that traditional, exclusive concepts of race and nationality can be transcended in the name of humanitys common destiny (MacLachlan, 1980). While the idea of the origins or creation of the â€Å"Cosmic Race† has been attributed to other races, there is no denying that it was the Spaniards who played a major role in this. The open-mindedness, in this case the open philosophy and attitude of Spain regarding culture and society, was influential in creating this cosmic race. Spain realized that the key to being able to build a vital and flourishing economy in the colony was to build a common denominator for acculturation by both Indian and European races (MacLachlan, 1980). Spain was able to accomplish this by establishing and expanding the colonial political and ecclesiastical institutions, the economy, society, and the role of women in the Mexica Society. Further proof of this was the policies of Spain regarding women as they encouraged the women to participate in economics and politics by providing the women during that time with extensive legal rights (MacLachlan, 1980). These factors and the methods by which Spain cultivated the Mexica Empire are brought on by the characteristic of Spain as being â€Å"open-minded†, which in turn led to the creation of the â€Å"Cosmic Race. † References: MacLachlan, C. and Rodriguez, J. (1980) The Forging of the Cosmic Race: A Reinterpretation of Colonial Mexico. University of California Press,

Predictive Capabilities of the Simulex Model

Predictive Capabilities of the Simulex Model Introduction The purpose of this study is to analyse the predictive capabilities of the Simulex model, used to simulate the movement of people in evacuation simulations. Other evacuation models used within the fire engineering community, i.e. Firewind WayOut and simple hand flow calculations, provide quick and easy access to a reasonable estimate for a required movement time for egress in a building. This study will help to reveal whether the additional data used within the Simulex methodology aids the user in reaching a more accurate overall estimate. This will be done by carrying out a number of evacuation scenarios and comparing the results collected using the Firewind WayOut model and hand calculations. A multi storey hotel tower will be used to carry out the study. The outcome of the study will help to calibrate the components of the human behaviour in the Simulex model, as it is suggested that Simulex enables you to simulate occupant behaviour in the event of a building evacuation (IES, Sim ulex simulation of occupant evacuation). A considerable amount of study has been carried out on all aspects of human evacuation from emergency situations, and the affects of human behaviour on evacuation times can be seen as a major factor in terms of life safety. The majority of movement models to date take into account little consideration of the behavioural aspects of the occupants under emergency and focus their work on the flow of occupants. An evaluation of the results gathered in this study will help to show whether Simulex takes occupants-occupants interaction into account. Studies carried out in the past have revealed that occupant evacuation times are highly dependent on their perceived threat of the fire event. Appearance, proximity, propagation, time, and toxic gases of the fire threat also tend to predispose the individual to a higher level of behavioral activity, again depending upon the individuals perception of these threat variables. Thus, occupants located in close proximity to a developing fire, and with clear sensual links with smoke and heat, are likely to react more speedily than those who are reacting solely on alarm signals (John L. Bryan, Human Behavior and Fire). The importance of such an analysis tool is becoming essential in building design as regulation moves to a more performance based system. The purpose of this dissertation is to outline the methodology used within the Simulex model. The outputs determined by each of the models can then be compared along with the hand calculation work carried out. A sensitivity analysis will be performed for the Simulex model and this will help provide a clear evaluation of its predictive potential. Aim To evaluate the predictive capabilities of the Simulex movement model by carrying out both sensitivity and comparative analysis from results gained using the Firewind WayOut movement models and simple hand flow calculations. To gauge the effectiveness of the additional methodological approach taken by Simulex in gaining an overall more accurate estimate. Objectives Carry out a literature review of papers available which cover all aspects of building evacuation. Estimate crowd densities for use as input assumptions for Simulex, Firewind WayOut and hand calculations. Evaluate the model outputs and make a comparison between the methodologies adopted by each of the models. Conclusions should be formed on the basis of this evaluation. Carry out a sensitive analysis of both the Simulex and WayOut models. This can be achieved by altering the user input data to see how this effects the overall evacuation times. Gauge the predictive capabilities of each of the models in terms of how all aspects of building evacuation are taken into account. Investigate how the Simulex model attempts to deal with merging behaviours in a staircase. This will be carried out in reference to the information gained from previous work detailed in the literature review Provide concluding statements with reference to the results gained using the Simulex model. This should include an insight into whether the results gained using this method provide a more accurate estimate of the likely real life evacuation time. Methodology Carry out a literature review of the existing information available which relates to building evacuation and evacuation modeling. Factors to consider include a detailed evaluation of all aspects which affect the evacuation procedures of occupants i.e. affects of alarms, pre-movement times, human behaviour, crowd dynamics, and travel times. A study will be required relating to the current scope of movement models used within the fire engineering community. The methodologies used within the Simulex and the Firewind WayOut models will be studied and form part of the literature review. This will highlight all the differences and similarities between the methodologies incorporated into the tools. This information will be of significant importance when analysing the output data and forming any conclusions. Choose a suitable building design which can be used to carry out the study. The chosen building has been selected as the multi-storey hotel tower, Shibboleth project. Further information of the building will be provided further on in the text. CAD drawings of the Shibboleth hotel tower are required as this design will form the basis of the study. A collection of CAD drawings showing the Shibboleth floor plans will be used as a base to creating these geometries. The CAD drawings will be stripped down (removing inanimate objects i.e. furniture etc) to reveal only boundary layers i.e. walls, floors, etc. These barriers are those in which occupants are unable to pass through. A sensitivity analysis of Simulex and Firewind WayOut models will be carried out. This requires some factor of validation data to be collected by varying single point of input data and analysing how greatly they affect the overall results. By independently altering all the required input data, it is possible to monitor the effect each of the inputs has on the model outputs. This analysis will be carried out for each of the models. Run a mock evacuation using the Simulex model. To achieve this all CAD drawing will be turned into DXF files and inputted into the model. Staircases and floor plans can be linked and occupants will be added relevant to the room sizes as uses (Occupant loading will be calculated for the building and agents will be calculated and added accordingly). Run a mock evacuation using the Firewind WayOut model. The CAD drawings will again be used to measure all lengths and areas in the building. The occupant loading will be kept similar to those used in the Simulex calculation. Carry out hand calculations for the building. The process which will be followed is provided in the SFPE Handbook (SFPE Handbook, Section 3, Chapter 14; Emergency Movement). All input data used will be maintained from the previous work carried out in the computer models. This enables a conclusion to be reached as to whether the innovative tool can be used under the performance based regulatory system and form part of a successful fire engineered solution. Gaining a clear understanding of such information will allow the user to evaluate the results in a more efficient manner. An exhaustive analysis of the output data produced by both movement models will be carried out by the author. A conclusion will then be reached as to whether the FDS+Evac model can provide similar data as the movement model selected as the comparative tool. As this Simulex model is used presently within the fire engineering community to perform evacuation analysis on a number of real projects, it can then be assumed that such a tool supports the engineers performance based design solution. The results will also provide the evidence which will be required to evaluate whether the FDS+Evac model takes into account the threat perceived by the occupants in close proximity to a fire event, and incorporates this into the evacuation time for these occupants. Scope and Limitations Only two models are being reviewed in the study. The university has both Firewind WayOut and Simulex available for use at present and no other models were available at the time this study was carried out. The Simulex model is not used extensively through the course at the university and as a result the user had limited experience in operating it at the time of the study. The modelling work, i.e. measurements of lengths and areas, was carried out entirely from the drawing provided; no site visits etc were made to the building. Only one scenario has been run to carry out the study, a greater timescale for the work would have allowed a more exhaustive study, i.e. greater test cases, to be carried out. As the methodologies in each of the models vary slightly, it was only possible to minimise the extent to which occupant characteristics varied, but it was not possible to eliminate it altogether. Literature Review Regulatory Perspective As architects, designers and engineers continue to push the boundaries of building design, the regulatory system in Scotland continues to move towards a more performance based system. This system allows all parties involved in the design stage a far greater amount of freedom, i.e. promote innovation and limit the impact of regulation (S. Kipp, 1999), when ensuring a building design meets the requirements of the relevant codes. Professionals working within the built environment are now able to incorporate much more of their experience and judgement when developing a design than when following the outdated prescriptive approach, which were conceived for typical buildings. As a result of this, a number of tools have been developed within each discipline which allows each innovative design to be exhaustively tested, ensuring an adequate level of safety is provided before they are incorporated into any building design. For a fire engineer, many of these tools require computational technologies to perform a number of these tasks. Fire modelling is becoming more and more involved in the design stage of many large and complex projects all over the world. A number of models are available, varying in complexity, to carry out any necessary analysis within a number of complex spaces. They allow engineers to evaluate many fire safety related features of a building design before they are finalised, and ensure that any areas of issues with the design can be resolve before a project reaches the construction phase, as altering designs at this point can be extremely expensive and time consuming for all parties. In the UK, the current emphasis for escape design sets out to limit the distance and therefore time in which occupants are subjected to surrounding which will increase the risk of alarm or injury. The current timeframe in which occupants should have to travel from their place or origin and reach a place of safety is 2 minutes 30 seconds. This time had been calculated as a factor of the maximum allowable travel distance and the average walking speed of an occupant. Storey exit widths are sized assuming a specific flow of 80 persons/minute/metre clear width and a flow time of 2.5 minutes (Boyce et al, 2009). The time which is required to clear a floor is an important factor which must be considered to achieve an effective fire safety engineered design. The functional standards allow an engineer to carry out comparative analysis between the required safe egress time (RSET) and the available safe egress time (ASET). A building is deemed to provide an acceptable solution if the time required for egress is less than the time available before conditions are judged untenable by some factor of safety. This requirement is subject to an exhaustive analysis being carried out by a suitable professional, on all aspects of the design which will affect occupant egress. Human Behaviour in Fires A lot of research has been undertaken within the fire engineering community to gain as much understanding as possible of the factors affecting human behaviour when occupants are faced with emergency evacuation procedures in the built environment. John L. Bryan has covered a lot of work studying person-fire interaction and how occupant awareness can affect pre-movement times D. Canter has done a lot of work in gathering data from a number of sources to paint a clearer picture of the evacuation process. E. R. Galea covered a study dealing with human behaviour during evacuation of the world trade centre attack in 2001. Jonathan D Sime has produced work dealing with peoples ability to way find in a building, his work has shown that it may be more effective to incorporate escape routes into the general circulation routes as this will increase occupant familiarity with evacuation routes. Lars Benthorn provided an insight into how people evaluate information and subsequently choose their escape path. There are many more professionals who have done excellent work in analysing human behaviour in emergency situations and all the information collected is useful as it can then be incorporated into the design of evacuation tools. Building evacuation takes on a number of stages and involves a timeframe from the incipient stage of a fire right through until the last occupant has reached a place of safety. Human behaviour can affect both pre-movement and movement times, therefore it is essential to have a clear understanding of how to adapt an evacuation design to maximise its potential in life safety terms. The time to evacuate a building is a combination of several stages, these stages are: Detection time; Alarm time; Pre-movement time, (this is a combination of recognition and response time); and Travel time. The time taken for each of these stages of the evacuation process is dependent on the occupants response and behaviour. Figure 1: Factors involved in assessing the total escape time. (CIBSE Guide E: Fire safety engineering design approaches, 4-7). Pre-movement Time Distribution The pre-movement time of a building is the time for occupants to react to the alarm signal and begin their evacuation process. There are many factors which can affect the pre-movement times of occupants and these will be highlighted later in this text. In multi storey, multiple use occupancies, such as the one selected as part of the study, it can be assumed that not all occupants will have comparable pre-movement times, and for this reason it is good practice to study the appropriate time distribution curves in order to provide an accurate account of an expected pre-movement time in a building simulation. Purser et al, 1999, suggest from their work that Once the first few occupants have begun to move, the pre-movement times for the remainder of the occupants in an enclosure tend to follow a logarithmic–normal frequency time distribution. The shape of the above curves follow a typical pre-movement tome distribution following what has been observed historically; the initial delay of start up highlights the time taken for the first of the occupants to make the preliminary movements towards their chosen exit. This is followed by a rapid increase in frequency as the majority of others tend to initiate their travel phase. The long tail of the curve illustrates the last remaining occupants who will begin their travel period which will signify the end of the total pre-movement phase of the evacuation process. The above distributions are fit well for open plan occupancies where occupants have a clear view of the majority of other persons in the premises. In a building hosting a large number of enclosures, it can be assumed that the time distribution will be far wider than shown in the above diagram. This is due to the limited visibility which would be available for occupants in such a premises; the herding effect as occupants will be reduced as they would have less chance of grouping together and following the actions of the first occupants who move. Purser et al, 1999 , suggests that a range of 20-30 minutes would be more suitable for a multi occupancy building with sleeping risk (such as the Shibboleth hotel tower used to carry out the study). Many different factors will influence how a person will react and the decisions they make will determine their evacuation process. It can be very difficult to obtain real evacuation behavior; real evacuations may be undertaken by people who are unaware of the actual urgency to escape. They may perceive the alarm as a drill (Jake Pauls, 2003) People are often unaware that the alarm they hear is not a false one and so they will proceed to evacuate as they see fit to do so. Stopping to gather up personal belongings or only beginning to evacuate when others around them do. People have both reaction times and pre-movement times, reaction time is the time taken to perceive the alarm and decide to take action; and the pre-movement time is the time that elapses while the occupant is preparing to leave. L. Benthorn (1999): People usually choose to leave a building the same way they came in, even if this is a poorer alternative than other available. Within the field of behavioural science, it is pointed out that people often choose the known before the unknown, which would explain the above behaviour. Occupants in a building will tend to head for the exit them came in through not only are they familiar with this exit it but it will lead them to a place they will recognise. This is particularly true for those people who are not familiar with their surroundings. People will continue to do this and follow the crowd until they are either faced with the fire or are given further information. It has been suggested that incorporating evacuation routes wherever possible into the main circulation routes at the design stage will aim to optimise the effectiveness of the evacuation strategy. This is due to the fact that occupants tend to use a familiar route. The occupant characteristics that should be considered in performing an evacuation analysis are listed below: Population numbers and Density The maximum potential load should be used to give a conservative estimation. The number of people using a building or space and their distribution will greatly affect the travel and flow speeds speed of occupants. Familiarity A persons familiarity and regular use of the building and its systems may cause them to respond differently. Competent users of the building will have prior knowledge of the nearest escape routes and they may have had the opportunity to have participated in drills. Those unfamiliar with the building will rely upon the knowledge of staff and the clarity of signage available, and may be less responsive to warning systems. Distribution and Activities Distribution will impact on movement speeds and density will impact on the ability to communicate instructions. Activities people are involved in will affect their initial response. Those who are dedicated to a task within a building will not necessarily be able stop their job on activation of the alarm system. Level of Alertness The commitment of people to their activity or their interaction with others can affect their awareness. A premise which holds a sleeping risk for occupants can be expected to have a delayed response time. Physical and Mental Ability Some occupants may rely entirely on assistance, disabled; those with a hearing disability or those with a visual disability may require special means of notification. Level of Mobility Affected by the age of occupants, age can influence the ability of an individual to independently make their way along an exit route and reach a place of safety within an acceptable timescale. It may also reduce an occupants ability to withstand exposure to smoke and other harmful bi-products of fire. Social Affiliation Behaviour will be strongly influenced with the interaction between occupants. Groups of people who have a social connection (i.e. parent and child who are separated within premises at the time of the fire event) will try and regroup before making their way to an exit. The time spend undertaking such an act may increase the level of risk for these occupants. Groups of evacuees try to stay together and the slowest member of the group influences their speed. Role and Responsibility Sufficiently, well-trained and authoritative staff will shorten the pre-movement phase of an evacuation process. An effective management plan followed by all members of staff will ensure this is provided within premises. Location Can influence a persons choice of exit and the time to notification. Travel distances will be affected by location. Commitment Those who are committed to their activity will be reluctant to respond to an alarm, especially if it means their task is to be started again. Responsiveness The extent to which a person is likely to respond to alarms, those who have previous experience of emergency situations may be less likely to respond quickly as they are aware of the most appropriate action to take. The Panic Theory When people, attempting to escape from a burning building pile up at a single exit, their behaviour appears highly irrational to someone who learns after the panic that other exits were available. To the actor in the situation who does not recognise the existence of these alternatives, attempting to fight his way to the only exit available may seem a very logical choice as opposed to burning to death. (Turner and Killian 1957) The concept of panic is attributed to occupants lack of knowledge about a fires existence before a fire reaches a size where it can seriously hamper the ease in which evacuees are able to escape. This can be due to a problem with the detection and alarm system installed within premises, or the lack of information available to occupants as they try and make their way to the relevant escape routes. The theory of panic is not an easy thing to define, yet a set of definitions are presented below: A sudden and excessive feeling of alarm or fear, usually affecting a body of persons, originating in some real or supposed danger, vaguely apprehended, and leading to extravagant and injudicious efforts to secure safety. (John L. Bryan 1984) A fear-induced flight behavior which is nonrational, nonadaptive, and nonsocial, which serves to reduce the escape possibilities of the group as a whole, (Kentucky State Police, 1977). In the stress of a fire, people often act inappropriately and rarely panic or behave irrationally. Such behavior, to a large extent, is due to the fact that information initially available to people regarding the possible existence of a fire and its size and location is often ambiguous or inadequate. (Ramachandran, 1990.) Affect of Alarm on Pedestrian Movement The type of detection and alarm system in a building can greatly affect the way in which occupants despond to the emergency signal, and this is turn will affect the response time of occupants. The level of information that occupants are provided with in the early stages of evacuation can influence their decision to evacuate. It has been common practice to use traditional ringing sounders within non-domestic premises in recent years. One drawback of using this form of alarm signal is that occupants are not being provided with any informative information regarding the fire event. Evacuees could benefit from a system which would inform them of a fires location and lets them know which evacuation route is the safest in terms of their location in the building. This is a difficult system to integrate into a building as fires are extremely unreliable and information is specific to a single fire scenario. Sounders themselves are not the most informative method of warning system; they convey little information and have been proven ineffective (Bob Choppen, 2003). Voice alarm systems are largely becoming a more acceptable mode of informing occupants of a fire occurrence in modern buildings. Large premises which are designed to cater mainly for the general public will benefit greatest from a voice alarm system. Occupants are fuelled with much more information of the emergency event than in the past using traditional alarm signals. Voice messages can convey a greater deal of information to the occupants. John L Bryan concluded from his research that the use of voice alarms/public announcements with an alarm bell was the most effective way of warning occupants. Ramachandran in his review of the research on human behaviour in fires in the UK since 1969 summarized the effectiveness of alarm bells as awareness cues: The response to fire alarm bells and sounders tends to be less than optimum. There is usually skepticism as to whether the noise indicated a fire alarm and if so, is the alarm merely a system test or drill? A lack of panic is attributed to a number of factors including: Insufficient seriousness of an emergency. Acceptance of staff responsibility to direct occupants to exits. Evacuation process is complete before occupants have come in sight or contact with fire and smoke. Panic was not initiated at exit paths due to sufficient exit widths being available, thus eliminating the chance for queuing to occur, i.e. little competition for similar exits by occupants. Human Stress Model. (University coursework notes, Evacuation Systems Design model; Powerpoint Presentation namely Human Behaviour in Fire (Slide 48/51), Dr. Iain Sanderson, 2008). Evacuation Modeling Evacuation models can help engineers prove that tenable conditions will be available to occupants for the timescale required for all occupants to reach a place of safety, which an element of safety built in. The total time for occupants for occupants from the time of detection and alarm, to the time for the last occupant to reach a place of safety, is called the Required Safe Egress Time (RSET). This is traditionally compared with the time from fire ignition until tenable limits are exceeded, and conditions have reached a level where humans will be unable to continue their process of escape. This time is called the Available Safe Egress Time (ASET). As long as RSET > ASET by some factor of safety, a building is deemed to provide an adequate level of safety for all occupants to escape in an emergency situation. Pedestrian movement models have typically fallen into two categories, one category dealt independently with movement and the other tried to connect both movement and human behaviour. S. Gwynne (1999) highlights the main approaches available of computer analysis models: Computer based analysis of evacuation can be performed using one of three different approaches, namely optimization, simulation and risk assessment. Furthermore, within each approach different means of representing the enclosure, the population and the behaviour of the population are possible. Movement models can be categorised in a number of forms; Ball bearing, Optimisation, Simulation or Risk Assessment models. Ball bearing / Gaseous This example of movement model treats its subjects as inanimate objects. Sometimes referred to as environmental determinism, subjects are unthinking individuals who respond only to external stimuli, thus human behaviour it not taken into account. Occupants are assumed to begin their evacuation instantly, with no regard to the time taken for detection, alarm and pre-movement times. Factors effecting occupant movement therefore only include physical considerations of the occupants and their surroundings (i.e. crowd densities, exit widths and travel speeds). Individual occupants are merged into units and their movement treats their egress on masse (S. Gwynne, 1999). A good example of a model which employs this type of methodology is Firewind, with its WayOut tool. Optimisation This form of pedestrian movement model deals with large crowds of people at the same time. Evacuees are treated as homogeneous groups, thus there are no independent characteristics for a particular individual. People are uniformly distributed; all exits will be equally shared. One of the best examples of this form of model is EVACNET. 6.5.3 Simulation These models try and take into account not only the physical characteristics of the space, but also consider some representation of human behaviour in emergency scenarios. They attempt to produce as an output the path and decisions taken my individuals during the evacuation process. Examples of this type of model include Simulex and buildingEXODUS. 6.5.4 Risk Assessment Model These models are an attempt to identify hazards associated with the evacuation of a building, be it due to the occupants or the building, and attempt to quantify the resultant risk. An example of this type of model would be Crisp, and WayOut. 6.5.6 Enclosure Representation Enclosure representation of the geometries created within a computer models can take on two forms; fine and course networks. Enclosures are subdivided into a number of zones which are interconnected with neighbouring zones, and the characteristics of each of these affect the parameters found in each on the adjoining cells. The detail and size of each of these zones determines which category a model shall fall into. NODE ARC NODEOne or more arcs connecting 2 nodes are called a Path. (John M Watts 1987). Definition of a network model is given by John M Watts (1987), A network models is a graphical representation of routes by which objects or energy may move from one point to another. 6.5.6.1 Fine Networks Models using this method divide the entire floor space of the enclosure into a selection of shapes or nodes. The size and shape of these nodes will vary for different models. The node is connected to its neighbouring node by an arc. Paths of individuals are tracked over time. Examples of such models include Bgraf, Egress, buildngExodus, Magnetmodel, Simulex and Vegas. 6.5.6.2 Coarse Networks Models following this form of enclosure representation do not allow individual occupants to be followed independently of other within the group. Single nodes represent large spaces, such as rooms and corridors. As evacuees moved from space to space, users will be unaware of their position in each node. A coarse network does not provide information regarding person-wall, person-person and pe

Indian Women Writers :: Literature Writing Middle Eastern Papers

Indian women writers A world of words, lost and found: a brief overview of women's literature in India from the 6th century BC onwards The Vedas cry aloud, the Puranas shout; "No good may come to a woman." I was born with a woman's body How am I to attain truth? "They are foolish, seductive, deceptive - Any connection with a woman is disastrous." Bahina says, "If a woman's body is so harmful, How in the world will I reach truth?" Much of the world's literature has been dominated by a canon that nearly dismissed women's writing more than two centuries ago. The counter-canons that have emerged as the result of this exclusion have helped to establish women's writing in mainstream culture, but still in some ways fail to acknowledge women's literature coming from non-white countries. This essay is an attempt to highlight some of the works produced by women in India over the ages. Although India has a history of ancient civilisations such as the Harappa and Mohenjodaro, and of matrilineal societies in the south, no written records of women's literary prowess exists predating the 6th century BC. The emergence of the first body of poetry by women in India could be attributed to the advent of Buddhism. Perhaps it was the freedom offered by the religion, the way of life it offered to women, and the principle of equality that it propagated which allowed women to pen their thoughts for the first time. Buddhism offered women the opportunity to break away from the restrictions of home life, a major factor in the rise of Indian women's literature in the early 6th century BC. The earliest known anthology of women's literature in India has been identified as those belonging to the Therigatha nuns, the poets being contemporaries of the Buddha. One of these, Mutta, writes, So free am I, so gloriously free, free from three petty things - from mortar, from pestle and from my twisted lord. [Tharu and Lalita p.68] Mutta's works, translated from Pali, offer an explanation through their interpretation. Religious escapism was the only way out for many women who were frustrated with a life inside the home. They chose to join the Buddhist sangha (religious communities) in their attempts to break away from the social world of tradition and marriage. Thus emerged poems and songs about what it meant to be free from household chores and sexual slavery. Although the early forms of writing addressed the issue of personal freedom, the poetry that followed later was a celebration of womanhood and sexuality.

Death Of A Salesman – Play Review

The play Death of a salesman is written by Arthur Miller. It is a massively touching play all about a man constantly chasing the American dream. The Sympathy the audience begins to feel for Willy Loman is shown by the way we feel about him at the end of this play. This is truly an amazing play written the talented Arthur Miller. We start the play seeing Willy Loman, his two sons and wife at their home as Willy arrives home from a hard days selling, at least this is what he leads Linda, his wife, into thinking. We join the play at the beginning of his failure. We see his get progressively disheartened and borrows money from his neighbour, Charley, and has convinced himself he will eventually be in the position to repay him, although as the audience we can see that this is highly unlikely. Our sympathy for Willy fades gradually as we realise he doesn't seem to help himself. We get increasingly annoyed with Willy chasing the American dream; we see he does not accept help as when Charley offers him a job, after Willy is fired from his company. Willy gets extremely offended by this and gets angry wit Charley for insulting his ability to regain his job. Both Charley and Willy now that Charley will never see his money again, and the fact that Charley offers Willy a chance to get his life back on track and Willy refuses makes us feel that Willy is almost lazy and seems unfazed by his situation. The fact that Willy had an affair makes us feel sorry for Linda and as an audience we feel like Willy deserves all he gets, but we see the way it affects the whole family and when biff and happy both try to get jobs and fail we see that the effort Willy put in with both of them when they were younger has made almost no difference to them. They may have been better of if Willy, like Charley, had just left them to it. Bernard who is Charley's son is extremely successful but never boasts, the main difference between the two sets of sons its that both Biff and Happy find it necessary to boast non stop, it seems, and Bernard is more laid back and tends not to make a big deal of the fact he can play tennis at a friends house. Willy treats Linda badly, always starting fights and just generally making little digs. The only time we see a mixture of love, anger and guiltiness on Willy's part is when Linda is mending her stockings and he remembers that he gave a pair to ‘the women' and he seems to get a pang of guilt and therefore tells Linda to take off the stockings. The main problem in Willy's life is money, but it seems he would rather scrounge of people like Charley than get a real job, like the one Charley offers him. He plays an act when it comes to money as he lies to his family, especially Linda. He wants everyone to think he is rich and successful but really he is unsuccessful and becoming increasingly poor. Overall this play in touching and also infuriating, we find ourselves getting angry and points in the play, when we see Willy lying to friends and family it seems that the only person he is true to is Charley and that's only to try and get money and sympathy from him. We feel extremely sorry for Willy and his family, especially Linda when noone turns up to Willy's funeral. This seems like the almost perfect end to realistic play. When we see the full picture of Willy's affair we become almost at one with Linda and tend to feel the same emotions as her, but mostly anger.

Micro Environment

|Chapter | | 1 | Introduction 1. 1 Problem Background There are about three billion people, half of the world’s population, living on the income of less than two dollars a day. Among these poor communities, one child in five does not live to see his or her fifth birthday. One study in 2006 showed that the ratio of the income between the 5% richest and 5% poorest of the population is 74 to 1 as compared to the ratio in 1960, which was 30 to 12.To enhance international development, the United Nations Organization (UNO) announced the millennium development goals,aimed to eradicate poverty by 2015. In this regard, microfinance is the form of financial development that has its primary aim to alleviate the poverty. Governments, donors and NGOs around the world responded enthusiastically with plans and promised to work together towards the realization of these goals.In the recognition of microfinance, the UNO celebrated the year 2005 as a year of micro-credit, as a result this financ ing instrument is perceived worldwide as a very effective mean against hunger and poverty, mainly in developing countries. Microfinance is a credit methodology, which employs effective collateral substitute for short-term and working capital loans to micro-entrepreneurs. The level of a country’s poverty has long been linked with measures of its economic development. Little consideration was given to the social reorganization of the natural resources (e. empowerment vs. alien ation of people, sustainable use vs. depletion of the environment). The economies with positive growth rate of Gross National Product (GNP) were measured by their poverty mitigation. This gratitude emphasized on the achievement of wealth and technology as a path for development and assumed that improved lives for all would be the natural consequence. Microfinance is not a new development. Some developed countries as well as developing countries particularly in Asia hav e a long history of microfinance.Dur ing the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, in number of European countries, microfinance evolved as a type of the informal banking for the poor. Informal finance and self-help have been at the foundation of microfinance in Europe. The early history of microfinance in Ireland can be traced back to 18th century. It is a history of how self-help led to financial innovation, legal backing and conductive regulation, and creating a mass microfinance movement. But the unpleasant regulations prompted by commercial bankin g brought it down.The so-called Irish loan funds appeared in early eighteenth as charities, initially financed from donated resources and offering interest free loans. They were soon replaced by financial intermediation between savers and borrowers. Loans were granted on short–term basis and instalments were scheduled on weekly basis. To enforce the repayment, monitoring process was used. In Latin America and South Asia, the microfinance has grown out of experiment s, but the best-known start was in Bangladesh in 1976, following a widespread famine in 1974 and a hard-fought war of liberation in 1971.Its origin can be traced back to 1976, when Muhammad Yunus set up the Grameen Bank, as an experiment, on the outskirts of Chittagong University campus in the village of Jobra. The inspiration of Grameen Bank came to Muhammad Yunus’ mind when he lent the equivalent of $26 to $42 to exploited women who were working as bamboo furniture maker. He saw that, they were enthusiastic about it and paid back their loans on time.In the beginning, Muhammad Yunus focused the activities of Grameen Bank mainly on savings and small loans, and decided to put the interest rates high enou gh to cover the expenses. Finally yet importantly, he asked borrowers to organize themselves in solidarity groups of five people (who have to meet every week in order to repay their loans and to ex change their opinions). Inspired by the success of his experiment, he decided t o spread out this system to other villages in Bangladesh. In 1983, this institution became a bank.Today it operates in almost 36000 villages and serves more than 3500000 people. On 13th October 2006, the Nobel Peace Prize went to Muhammad Yunus and Gramen Bank, the microfinance institution he founded 30 years ago. Muhammad Yunus has shown himself to be a leader who has managed to translate visions into practical action for the benefit of millions of people, not only in Bangladesh, but also in many other countries. Loans to poor people without any financial security had appeared to be an impossible idea. 2 Eventually we are in a situation, in which Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank, tells us the goal spread of micro-credit and finance, which give us the hope, may be our great-grandchildren will go to museums to see what poverty was like. This report is about microfinance and its contribution to the improvement and poverty alleviation for millions of the poorest people of Ba ngladesh. Micro finance has a huge impact on the lives of millions of poor people..Numerous scholars and NGOs have been working to take microfinance within the reach of poor people, who are still not benefited by the conventional financial system. It was believed that microfinance is not important for all people but most groups can benefit from this idea. In this report, we try to present evidence of the important contributions made by microfinance in the eradication of poverty by increasing the income generating activities, empowerment of poor people to access development services such as health and education, and reduction in vulnerability. 1. 2 Problem StatementIn the light of problem, background leads to the following problem statement, Impact of Microcredit on poverty alleviation of the poor people in Bangladesh 1. 3 Objectives of the study To be meaningful, every work must have to formulate the objectives of the study. In the light of the topic of the report, the objective of this study is to show how microcredit works, by using group lending methodology for reducing poverty and how it effects the living standard (income, saving access to health and education, etc. ) of the poor people in Bangladesh. 1. 4 Methodology of the studyData & information are mainly collected from secondary sources. We have used several books, research literatures, articles, journals and report, as secondary sources for our study. Internet sources were also used as a secondary source for our report. Since the internet sources are less reliable, we have limited the use of those sources to the web pages of prominent organizations like Grameen Bank. Most of the sources, we tried to use, are reliable and are acceptable almost everywhere. Nevertheless, from them we had to choose the most appropriate literature for our report.For this reason, we had to go through numerous references related to this topic, to find the suitable materials. Besides these, Google Scholars were also used to find the suitable research material. The keywords used when searching for scientific articles and literatures were; microcredit, microcredit and Bangladesh, poverty reduction and microcredit, Muhammad Yunus and microcredit,living standards and microcredit etc. 1. 5 Limitations Due to shortage of time, the accuracy of information may not have been completely flawless. 1. Definitions and Key Concepts Microcredit It is a component of microfinance and is the extension of small loans to entrepreneurs, who are too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. Especially in developing countries, micro-credit enables very poor people to engage in self-employment projects that generate income, thus allowing them to improve the standard of living for themselves and their families. Poverty Poverty is a condition in which a person of a commumity is deprived of the basic essentials and necessities for a minimum standard of living.Since poverty is understood in many senses, the basic essentials ma y be material resources such as food, safe dringking water and shelter, or they may be social resources such as access to information, education, health care, social status, political power, or the opportunity to develop meaningful connections with other people in society. According to the World Bank’s (1980 ) definition of poverty, condition of life so characterized by malnutrition, illiteracy, and disease as to be beneath any reasonable definition of human decency. Extreme Poverty/Absolute PovertyExtreme poverty is the most severe state of poverty, where people can not meet their basic needs for survival, such as food, water, clothing, shelter, sanitation, education and health care. Eradication of extreme poverty and hunger by 2015 is a Millennium Development Goal set by UNO. To determine the number of extreme poor people around the world, the World Bank characterizes extreme poverty as living on the daily income of US $1 or less. It has been estimated that around 1. 1 bill ion people currently live under these conditions. Moderate povertyIt indicates the condition where people earns about $ 1 to $2 a day, which enables households to just barely meet their basic needs, but they still have go for many of the other things – education, health care –that many of us take for granted. Relative Poverty It means that a household has an income below the national average income. Micro finance Institutions (MFIs) A microfinance institution is an or ganization, engaged in extending micro credit loans and other financial services to poor borrowers for income generating and self-employment activities.An MFI is usually not a part of the formal banking industry or government. It is usually referred to as a NGO (Non-Government Organization). |Chapter | | 2 | Theoritical Framework 2. 1 What is microcredit? Microcredit is the extension of very small loans (microloans) to the unemployed, to poor entrepreneurs and to others living in poverty who are not consi dered bankable. These individuals lack collateral, steady employment and a verifiable credit history and therefore cannot meet even the most minimal qualifications to gain access to traditional credit.Microcredit is a part of microfinance, which is the provision of a wider range of financial services to the very poor. 2. 2 Features of microcredit †¢ Size – loans are micro, or very small in size †¢ Target users – micro entrepreneurs and low-income households †¢ Utilization – the use of funds – for income generation, and enterprise development, but also for community use (health/education) etc. †¢ Terms and conditions – most terms and conditions for microcredit loans are flexible and easy to understand, and suited to the local conditions of the community. Usually micro-credit is provided to a particular geographical area or community. †¢ Micro-credit funds are sometimes initiated in response to the needs of a particular group . †¢ Some loan circles and lending institutions require participants to attend ongoing business training and mentoring programs, which is not the case with traditional debt lending. †¢ Micro-credit is recognized as having increased risk and is treated as a separate class of product by lenders. †¢ Its mission is to help the poor families to help themselves to overcome poverty. It is targeted to the poor, particularly poor women. 2. 3Classification of microcredit I. Traditional informal microcredit (such as, moneylender's credit, pawn shops, loans from friends and relatives, consumer credit in informal market, etc. ) II. Microcredit based on traditional informal groups (such as, tontin, su su, ROSCA, etc. ) III. Activity-based microcredit through conventional or specialised banks (such as, agricultural credit, livestock credit, fisheries credit, handloom credit, etc. ) IV. Rural credit through specialised banks. V. Cooperative microcredit (cooperative credit, credit uni on, savings and loan associations, savings banks, etc. VI. Consumer microcredit. VII. Bank-NGO partnership based microcredit. VIII. Grameen type microcredit or Grameencredit. IX. Other types of NGO microcredit. X. Other types of non-NGO non-collateralized microcredit. |Chapter | | 3 | Major MFIs and their role in Bangladesh Back during late 1970s, when the Jobra experiment was underway under Professor M. Yunus, the Dheki Rin Prokolpa was initiated by the Bangladesh Bank in collaboration with the Swanirvar Bangladesh, and several other pilot schemes were initiated by a handful of the NGOs who were active then.At that time, it was difficult then to conceive that these initiatives would lead to a major micro-credit movement, which would make Bangladesh known to the rest of the world. Even during the 1980s, in spite of Grameen Bank’s success, the main discourse amongst development practitioners in Bangladesh centred on the desirability of micro-credit program as opposed to concie ntization. By 1990, unhindered experimentation in the fields led to a quiet resolution of the debate and the country experienced a massive expansion of micro-finance activities during the 1990s.This is borne out by the figures on the time path of MFI expansion (see Figure 1), [pic] Many studies and surveys have been carried out by different agencies regarding the working of MFIs and their impact on the poor people in Bangladesh. The agencies like Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies and World Bank have found strong evidence that functioning of MFIs have helped the people in meeting their daily needs and at the same time building their assets.It has been stated in The World Bank Economic Review that microfinance has not only helped people to develop in their material capital but also in the human capital, by better access to health care and education system, and general awareness among the people about their rights and duties towards society. However, there are numerous MFIs w orking in Bangladesh at present so it is almost impossible to mention all of them. Therefore, we have chosen four of the most important ones and try to give the overview of them. 3. Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee (BRAC) With a vision of â€Å"a just, enlightened, healthy and democratic Bangladesh free from hunger, poverty, environmental degrad ation and all forms of exploitation based on age, sex, religion and ethnicity†, BRAC started as an almost entirely donor funded, small-scale relief and rehabilitation project to help the country overcome the devastation and trauma of the Liberation War. Today, BRAC has emerged as an independent, virtually self-financed paradigm in sustainable human development with its motto ?Alleviation of poverty and empowerment of the poor. It is the largest in the world employing 97,192 people, with the twin objectives of poverty alleviation and empowerment of the poor. Through experiential learning, BRAC today provides and protects liveliho ods of around 100 million people in Bangladesh. Diagnosing poverty in human terms and recognizing its multidimensional nature, BRAC approaches poverty alleviation with a holistic approach. BRAC's outreach covers all 64 districts of the country. 3. 1. Microfinance Programs of BRAC, at a Glance (Source: BRAC Annual report 2005) |Inception of micro finance programme |1974 | |Programme coverage |Districts 64,Thanas:507 | |Total No of Area/Branch Offices |1,381 | |Total No of village Organizations |160,197 | |Total No of Members |4,837,099 | |Percentage of Women Members |98% | |Outstanding Borrowers |4,159,793 | |Cumulative Loan Disbursement |165,794 million (US $3,094) | |Members’ Savings |9,159 million (US 141 million) | |Average Loan Size |9,452(US $145) | |Repayment Rate |99. 49% | 3. 2 Grameen Bank The history of origin of Grameen Bank can be traced back to 1976, when Professor Muhammad Yunus, head of the Rural Economics Program at the University of Chittagong, launche d an action research project to examine the possibility of designing a credit delivery system to provide banking services targeted at the rural poor.The initial activities started from Jobra village (adjacent to Chittagong University) and some in th e neighboring villages in the following years. Later in 1979, with the sponsorship of central bank and support of the nationalized commercial banks, the project was extended to Tangail, a district north of Dhaka. Later the Grameen Bank became an autonomous organization through the government legislation of October 1983. Today, Grameen Bank is mainly owned by the people whom it serves and they own 90% of its shares and remaining 10 % are owned by the government. 3. 2. 1 Microfinance Programs of Grameen bank, at a Glance (Source: Gra meen Bank annual report 2007) |Numbers of Members |7. 5 million | |Percent of Women Members |97% | |Number of Canters |99,502 | |Number of Villages covered |59,912 | |Number of Branches |2,499 | |Number of A reas |81,334 villages | |Number of Zones |21 | |Cumulative amount Disbursed since Inception |256,497. 40 (Million Taka) | |Cumulative Disbursed during |2005 39,183. 49 (Million Taka) | |Amount of Loan outstanding |27,970. 31 (Million Taka) | |Members |20,138. 7 (Million Taka) | |Non-Members |11,521. 19 (Million Taka) | |Portfolio Growth Rate |39. 66% | 3. 3 Association for Social Advancement (ASA) ASA in Bengali means ‘HOPE’. ASA is a non-governmental organization based in Bangladesh, which provides micro-credit financing. It was established in 1978 by Shafiqual Haque Choudhury who is also the current chairman. Its functioning is basedon the institutional support system.Innovations and simplifications of staff training, monitoring and bookkeeping are the three areas responsible for ASA's ability to effectively manage established units and pursue bold growth initiatives simultaneously. This makes the operations smooth and efficient. This makes it simple and easy to operate both for the organization and for the clients, without the unnecessary delays of bureaucracy and red-tape. Its mission is to â€Å"reduce poverty and improve the quality of life of the poor through the provision of qualitative and responsive micro finance services in an innovative and sustainable way†. ASA offers a successful alternative microfinance model to that of the Grameen bank.ASA combines low cost operations and high growth to fuel its success. ASA continues to perfect the role of financial intermediation by developing a variety of savings p roducts that are quite successful at generating the necessary funds from local sources. The experiences of ASA's managerial dynamism and replication of its simple model have much to offer the diverse microfinance sector as it accommodates demand for quality Financial services by the poor masses. ASA is confident that a financially viable microfinance sector that provides competitive financial services to its customers will be able to expand outreach at a pace similar to its own. 3. 3. Microfinance Programs of ASA, at a Glance (Source: ASA Annual Report 2005) |Inception of micro finance programme |1978 | |Programme coverage |Evenly distributed over the country | |Total No of Area/Branch Offices |2,291 | |Total No of village Organizations or groups |178,904 | |Total No of Members |5. 99 millions | |Percentage of Women Members |Not sex biased | |Outstanding Borrowers |4. 8 millions | |C umulative Loan Disbursement |33,082 million (Taka) | |Total Members’ Savings |3,036 million (Taka) | |Average Loan Size |Taka 7,129 | |Avg. savings balance by members |Taka 748 | 3. 4 Proshika Immediately after the ‘WAR OF LIBERATION’ in 1971, a group of young men, who could realize the inadequacy of the conventional development practices, began to plan development activities with an alternative appr oach. With an objective to contribute to rebuilding the war-ravaged country, they formed Proshika M anobik Unnayan Kendra (Proshika Centre for Human Development).The development process of PROSHIKA, one of the largest NGOs of Ban gladesh, started in a few villages of Dhaka and Comilla districts in 1975, although the organization formally took its first step in 1976. Proshika is an acronym of three Bangla words, proshikkhan (training), shikkha (education) and kaj (action). PROSHIKA envisages a society, which is economically productive and equitable, socially just, environmentally sound, and genuinely democratic. The main mission of PROSHIKA is to conduct an extensive, intensive, and participatory process of sustainable development through empowerment of the poor.Through empowerment, the poor are or ganized and made aware of the real causes of their impoverishment, a leadership is developed among them, their material resources are mobilized, income and employment is increased, and capacities are developed to cope with natural disasters. Empowerment makes th e poor functionally liter ate, enables them to take better care of their health, to get involved in environmental protection and regeneration, get elected in local government bodies and community institutions, and provides the poor with better access to public and common property resources. 3. 4. 1 Microfinance Programs of PROSHIKA, at a Glance ((Source: PROSHIKA Annual Report 2005) |Numbers of Members |2. 7 millions | |Percent of Women Members |Approximately 60% | |Number of Groups |148,039 | |Number of Villages covered |23559 | |Number of Slums |2102 | |Number of Households |2. 3 millions | |Number of primary Groups |148,039 | |Cumulative Disbursed during 2005 |Taka 31,870 millions | |Number of Education Centres Set Up So Far |53,616 | |Persons graduated with technical skills |1. 11 millions | |Chapter | | 4 | Impact of Microcredit Program on Poverty Alleviation 4. What the microcredit clients do with the loan money In one of the country's large formal MFIs, it was found that about sixty eight per cen t of the clients used 54% of their total loans for small trades. A few clients used 64% of the loan money for buying homestead and cropland. A small number of clients used 67% of the loans to build new houses. Some spent 15% of the total loan for medical treatment of their relatives and themselves. Some spent 19% of the total loan money for consumption purposes. A few clients used 29% of loan money for sending their relatives abroad for jobs. A smaller number of clients used 18% of their loan for major repairing of their dwelling houses.A handful of clients used 42% of the loan for buying television sets, furniture and gold ornaments, while others used the loan money in buying rickshaws, livestock and lending to others in a modicum scale . In another large non-governmental organisation (NGO)-MFI, it was spotted that fifty per cent of the clients used 95% of the total loan money in trading businesses like vegetables, grocery, fish, and betel leaves, etc. A few clients used 40% of the loan money in repaying occasional borrowed debts. Some clients used 35% in agricultural farming. Some used 37% of the total loan for buying livestock for rearing. A few clients used 41% loan money for redeeming mortgaged cropland.Some clients used 61% of the loan money for sending relatives abroad. Again some used 34% of the loan money for meeting the debts from moneylenders. Some clients used 15% of the total loans in repaying loan installments of other NGOs. Some clients used 17% of the loan for medical treatment. Some used 100% loan for house construction, while others used the loans for buying land, rickshaw vans and consumption purposes. Yet again in another large NGO-MFI in the country, about fifty per cent clients were noticed using 66% of the total loan in running their businesses. Several clients used 43% of the total loan for marriage ceremony of their family members.A few clients used 38% of the loan for house construction and repairing. Some used 32% of the total loans in repaying loans of the local moneylenders. A few clients used 59% of the loan for various litigation purposes. Some clients spent 41% in food consumption. Some clients used 67% loan for weaving purposes. Others used the loans for medical treatment, buying livestock, cropland, taking others land for cultivation and repaying loan installments of other NGOs. In a mid-level MFI operating in the urban areas, cent per cent clients used 86% of the total loan in various types of businesses that include grocery, cattle hide, computer composing, photocopy service, commercial phone service, saree selling, etc.Some clients used 84% of the total loan for house construction. A few clients used 81% of the total loan in buying land in the villages where they hailed from. In a pretty tiny NGO-MFI, some clients were found using 74% of the total loans for buying fishing equipment like nets and boats, etc. Some clients used 46% of the loan for buying livestock. A few used 74% of the loans as business capital. Some kept 52% of the loans as savings in the commercial banks, while others used the loan money for repairing houses and meeting medical costs. 4. 2 Impact of Microcredit The major objective of microcredit (MC) is to create income among poor households and thereby alleviate poverty.In this respect the question can be asked at two levels, first, whether MC leads to an improvement in income and second whether the increase in income is sufficient to lift them above the poverty level. There is also a third aspect related to the second that is whether poverty alleviation takes place on a sustained basis. Though most impact assessment studies examine the impact of MC on income, the analyses concentrated on mainly the first question. It should be mentioned that most studies consider the total impact on growth of income and do not examine whether a redistribution of credit fund has a redistributive impact on poverty and income of households 4. 2. 1 Findings of PKSF ME Study by BID SPalli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) commissioned a longitudinal Monitoring and Evaluation Study (MES) which was conducted by the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS). Started in 1997, the studies were completed in 2001. The study covered 3026 sample households spread over 91 villages located in 13 of PKSF POs operational areas. A census was administered in late 1997, covering 19151 households in 91 villages. The first and the second round surveys under the study were administered in 1998 and 1999 and the third and final round survey was conducted in 2000. Some findings on the impacts of microcredit as presented here are gleaned from the reports and papers prepared by BIDS. The summary of the PKSF-ME Study by BIDS is shown in the Table below- Table: Impacts of Microfinance (compared to non-participants) Broad Category |Indicatiors |Type of Change |Cause of Change | |Economic Impact |Income |+ |Self employment activities | | |Food Security |+ |Greater access to cultiv able land through the | | | | |rental market | | |Wage (land poor) |+ |Transport and other non-agril activities sup. by MC| | |Employment (land poor) |+ |better access to the land rental market | | | | |Wage emoloyment in non-ag. sector | | |Assets (land poor) |+ |av. ow land size than non-participants | | | | |larger operational holding | | | | |impact of MF (poultry livestock, bi-cycles, | | | | |rickshaw/van) | |Social and other |Fertility and contraceptive use |+ |program participation | |development impacts | | |female methods dominate | | |Health and Nutrition |+ |program placement effect | | |Sanitation and drinking water |+ |program participation | | |Literacy and school enrollment |+ |program participation | | |of children | | | | |Social mobility |? |do not vary significantly | | |Women articipation and HH |+ |participation in a MC program | | |welfare | |increasing women’s income | 4. 2. 2 Measuring the Impact of Microfinance Grameen Bank has been tracking the pro gress of its clients in achieving all ten indicators since 1997, and reports that 55 percent of its established members (Grameen annually surveys all clients who have been in the program more than five years) had crossed the poverty line by the end of 2004: [pic] (Source: CIA World Factbook: http://www. cia. gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/bg. tml) This is an impressive achievement, and exactly the type of information that one might hope any MFI would be tracking. Though it might seem arbitrary to determine that achieving all ten indicators constitutes movement out of poverty, in fact all poverty lines are to some degree arbitrary, and they are meant to quantify whether or not families are meeting basic needs—such as those represented in the Ten Indicators. Knowing that 55 percent of established Grameen clients never go hungry, have access to safe drinking water, and send their children to school is important to Grameen. Table 1: Poverty rates among Grameen Bank members vs . Non-participants, 1984-85 |Grameen members |Target non participants |All households | | | |Grameen |Comparison |Grameen |Comparison | | | |villages |villages |villages |villages | |Moderately poor (percent) |61. 0 |83. 7 |80. 4 |61. 5 |76. 3 | |Extremely poor (percent) |48. 0 |76 |74. 4 |47. 1 |54. 6 | Table 2: Poverty rates among Grameen Bank members vs. Non-participants, 1996-97 |All households | | |Grameen |Comparison | | |villages |villages | |Moderately poor (percent) |18 |57. 5 | |Extremely poor (percent) |15 |54. 5 | Table 1 and 2 suggest that Grameen Bank members are substantially less poor than non-members, and that Grameen Bank’s activities affected the poverty levels of entire villages. The centerpiece of the findings of a survey is that every additional taka lent to a woman adds an additional 0. 18 taka to annual household expenditure—an 18 percent return to income from borrowing. Notably, the returns to male borrowing were considerably lower, only 11 per cent.The paper and the book reported a variety of â€Å"wider† impacts, including: †¢ A one percent increase in credit to Grameen women increased the probability of girls’ school enrollment by 1. 86 percentage points. †¢ A 10 percent increase in credit provided to women increased the arm circumference of girls by 6 percent. †¢ A one percent increase in credit to women increased the height-for-age of both boys by 1. 42 percent and girls by 1. 16 percent. Microcredit is not merely an instrument for credit extension to the poor borrowers. It is a movement to emancipate the poor to alleviate their poverty, improve their quality of life, and build their capacity and awareness and to integrate them economically and socially into the mainstream of the economy.The benefits of microcredit go beyond the quantifiable ones, there are other benefits, which are not seen, but are evident in the socio-economic transformation of rural Bangladesh. |Chapter | | 5 | Conclus ion We have come to the conclusions that there is a noticeable and positive impact of microcredit activities on the living standards, empowerment and poverty alleviation among the poor people in the society. If one can help, a poor person to stand on his own that cannot only bring about a revolution in their lives but also in the society. The dream of a healthy and educated society with no discrimination and biased can be achieved through this simple thought, the dream which seems to be coming true and becoming practical.The simple vision of one man, Muhammad Yunus has taken the shape of the revolution and has shown the ray of hope in the path of life to every human, irrespective of his background or status or position. The hope of a life that no one will sleep hungry, no one will die due to lack of medication, our children can read and write on their own and everyone will be the pillar of the society. Scope for further research The current study did not consider the reasons of moti vation to join the microfinance program. Another area that has not been investigated is the difficulties that the borrowers face to repay the loan. These areas deserve to be studied by future researchers in the field. There is also another field, which is neglected in our study that the supply gap of MFIs.Actually, to what extent the MFIs are capable to deliver their service to the poor people. Further research could be conducted in this area and for finding the reasons for the gap between demand and supply in terms of microfinance services. References www. google. com Grameen Bank official website (www. grameen-info. org/) ASA official website (www. asabd. org) BRAC official website (www. brac. net) PROSHIKA official web site (www. proshika. o rg/) Rahman, R. I. , 1994, Impact of Credit for the Rural Poor: An Evaluation of Palli Karma Sahayak Foundation's Credit Program, Report Nr: 1207, BIDS, Dhaka. (found on the internet)The World Bank, 1996, Staff Appraisal Report, Bangladesh Po verty Alleviation Micro-finance Report 1, South Asia Region. (Found on the internet) Khandker, S. R, 1998, Micro-credit Programmes Evaluation —- A Critical Review, IDS Bulletin of International Development Studies 29 (4), 11-19. (Found on the internet) Measuring the Impact of Micro? nance: Taking Stock of What We Know (December 2005) – by Nathanael Goldberg. (Found on the internet) Impact of Microfinance on Living Standards,Empowerment and Poverty Alleviation of Poor People: A Case Study on Microfinance in the Chittagong District of Bangladesh. -by Mohammad Arifujjaman Khan and Mohammed Anisur Rahaman.