Finance for Managers; Writing Essay Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Finance for Managers; Writing Assignment - Essay Example The study measures issues accomplished by the first holders of vehicles following three years. It has climbed one space in the not so distant future, to fifth, however drivers are eager to attempt different brands. "Youre getting adequate levels of value, unwavering quality and steadfastness from essentially every maker," said Jack Nerad, article executive of Kelley Blue Book. "That takes an enormous shaft out of Toyotas quiver." Toyotas are additionally not holding their resale esteem and they did before the reviews. For the 2011 model year, Kelley Blue Book predicts that all Toyota brands will be worth a normal of 39 percent of their buy cost following five years. In the 2009 model year, Toyotas were required to hold 47 percent of their worth following five years. Reserve directors, all different things being equivalent, as to put resources into "great organizations". Toyota had a solid record of developing incomes and benefits over a long period. Moreover, examination uncovered solid focal points – the celebrated generation framework, for instance, and a leaner expense structure during a period when outside adversaries were weighed down with benefits and medicinal services costs for previous workers. There were fascinating new items advancing, and an appearing lead in new crossover motor innovations, for example, those utilized as a part of the prominent Prius. A qualitative examination of their focused position and track record, of the sort a store director would perform on any stock, recommended that Toyota verifiably had been a "decent organization" previously. To address the inquiry of whether Toyota was still a "decent organization", speculators inclined intensely on the gathering with Toyotas administrators. The nations main two, Honda and Toyota, have headed the route in expanding the general piece of the overall industry for Japanese stocks by a normal of almost 60 percent. While the stocks have altogether dropped a

Ethics and Compliance Paper Essay Example for Free

Ethics and Compliance Paper Essay The companys project-oriented approach improved teamwork and leveled the playing field; team culture and corporate culture have been promoted; an innovative spirit has been instilled; and international integration has been improved. In terms of the market results, Lenovos adaptation of project management has improved the ompanys core competitiveness with improved delivery and customer satisfaction. In turn, distinctive performance was delivered: In 2006, the company had a market share of seven percent in the global PC market, led only by Dell and HP. Its total turnover was USD 14. 6 billion, a rise of 10 percent over the previous year. Ethics and Compliance Paper BY bc64762 Walmart is one of many companies who report its filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. The purpose for writing about Walmarts Ethics and Compliance paper is to inform the reader about Walmarts important compliance processes. SEC filings, analysis of financial statements, requirement for certification and legal proceedings will be explained throughout further reading. Procedures for Ethical Behavior Walmart has an official statement of ethics which is meant to be applied to not only the associates and directors employed by the organization but also third parties. These third parties include suppliers, consultants, public relations firms, contractors and all other third party companies who conduct business with Walmart in any fashion. Due to the fact that Walmart does conduct business in several countries the tatement of ethics may be modified to coincide with the laws and customs of each country. To conform to the statement of ethics written out by Walmart, associates expect to follow the laws written by their city, state, and country at all times. These employees are also responsible for not only reading the Guiding Principles but also understanding and using those principles every-day. Employees do not expect to memorize these policies; however they are expected to learn those that apply directly to their Jobs. If an employee has a question or concern they should not be afraid to sk help from a manager or report any inappropriate conduct. If there was anything to happen and an investigation would take place with Walmart employees, the employees are expected to cooperate with and ensure the investigation remain private and come up front with any news that any employees may have. Along with these requirements of employees, Walmart has additional responsibilities for managers to ensure the ethical behavior is conducted. If an ethical issue is brought to a managers attention, it is their Job to report this to the Global Ethics Office at the Walmart Corporation. Managers are also expected to meet with their employees as a group to review the Guiding principles and answer any questions that may arise. Managers encourage always putting ethics first in the event that an ethical issue is in conflict of business objectives. It is the managers duty to lead by example, and ensure that Just because one ethical mistake is made that this does not continue within their department. Open communication between managers and employees is a must and no issue should ever be put aside regardless of the magnitude. Along with these responsibilities and requirements, discipline is handed own for those in violation. Actions are taken up to and including termination for violation of the organizations ethics policy. SEC Compliance Processes The most important process that Walmart uses to comply with SEC is to make SEC filings in accordance to the law. A sample of these filings can be examined at: http:// finance. yahoo. com/q/sec? s=WMT. This page gives a list of 8K and IOQ filings made by Walmart with SEC. Also of utmost importance, the finance department at Walmart prepares the financial information and statements required by the SEC like the Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statements. The company is then financial statements, more disclosures, controls and procedures and other information as required under part B. It is also necessary to provide Other Information relating to the company. The most important process of compliance that appears in the report is the signature certifying that the report is in compliance with Section 13(a) or 1 5(d) of the SEC Act of 1934. The act of signing makes the President and Chief Executive Officer responsible for the information contained in the reports. The requirement for certification makes it important for the CEO and the CFO to nsure that the information contained in the report is correct. Other organization processes are somewhat mechanical. For instance, the legal proceedings, including those against the company need to be listed. The legal department will provide a comprehensive list of the legal proceedings. Three officers, the President and the CEO, the Executive Vice-President and CFO as well as the Senior Vice Preside nt law suits filed against Walmart and the disclosures in the court contains information about the internal proceedings of Walmart. The following web sites offer one the opportunity to examine Walmarts compliance with SEC requirements: http:// walmartstores. com/lnvestors/SECFilings. aspx or http://www. wakeupwalmart. com/ press/article. tml? article=784. Apart from this, the SEC is responsible for the enforcement of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, the Investment Company Act of 1940, Trust Indenture Act of 1939 and the Securities Act of 1933. In consideration of the Sarbanes Oxley Act, the CPA auditor of Walmart is required to comment on the internal control of the company. The auditor of Walmart, Ernst ; Young carries out the requisite examination of the internal control at Walmart and makes comments about the internal control at Walmart. Walmarts Financial Performance over the Last Two Years Financial ratios are used to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a company. The current ratio, debt ratio, return on equity ratio, and days receivable ratio will be used to identify Wal-Marts financial health. The ratios used will be for 2008 and 2009 to obtain a brief look at the companys financial health. The first ratio is the current ratio. The current ratio tests for a companys liquidity (Keown, Martin, Petty, ; Scott, Jr. , 2005). The simplest and most basic test for a companys relative liquidity is the current test, which divides the companys current assets by its current liabilities. In 2008, Walmarts current assets were $48,020 million and the current liabilities were $58,478 million for a ratio of 0. 8. In 2009, Walmarts current assets were $48,949 million and current liabilities were $55,390 million for a ratio of 0. 9. The ratios indicate that the Walmarts financial health was slightly better in 2009 than it was in 2008. Because a companys assets may be financed by debt or equity it is important to consider a companys debt ratio. The debt ratio shows relatively how well a company manages its assets or rather how much of its assets are in the form of debt (Keown,

Cell Culture and Proliferations | Experiment

Cell Culture and Proliferations | Experiment To study the cell proliferation of Mouse Y1 adrenocotical cells by using MTT (3-(4, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) and crystal violet staining methods. INTRODUCTION In general, Cell proliferation means multiplication/Reproduction of cells for increasing cell population in a very short span of time. The assay of cell proliferation is to measure the number of cells which are present in the dividing culture medium. Cell proliferation is controlled by using growth factor (Fetal calf serum), Which normally bind to the surface receptors present on the cell membrane generally regulate the cell signaling molecules, which pass the message to nucleus by help of receptor generally where the transcription factor gets bind to the DNA, makes turn off turn on the protein synthesis mechanism, responsible for cell division. Cell proliferation method is very important for studying various biological factors like bioassay, carcinogenic analysis and other toxicological tests. Generally two metods are used for studying cell proliferation i.e. crystal violet staining method and MTT (3-(4, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) method, here these methods are used to study ce ll growth in mouse Y1 adrenocotical cells. In crystal violet staining method, the DNA of cells is going to stained by crystal violet which produces a colour intensity that is proportional to the cultured cells(including newly proliferated cells). In this method, the principle involved to calculate the cell proliferation is based on the absorbance taken up by the viable cells in culture at different concentrations after the cells are stained with crystal violet. In MTT (3-(4, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) method, the assay depends on the amount of MTT taken up by the cells, tetrazolium salt is water soluble which produces yellow colour. The tetrazolium MTT is metabolically reduced by active cells, in presence of dehydrogenase enzymes, producing NADH and NADPH which are reducing equivalents. This results in the formation of purple formazan intracellularly, which is measured by spectrophotometer. MATERIALS METHODS Cell culture: In DMEM (Dulbeccos modification of eagles medium),mouse Y1 adrenocotical cells which were grown on monolayer was removed by using mixture of trypsin and EDTA (0.05% and 0.02% ).The cells are incubated by 5minutes by adding Trypsin/EDTA(7ml).After incubation the flask was removed and tapped gently to separate undetached cells. The contents of the cell are transferred to a universal container for centrifugation at 1000rpm/ 5mins.Supernatant was discarded and medium is added for resuspending the cell pellet. The cell number was estimated by using Haemocytometer counter for 15ml the cell suspension dilution was prepared containing density 1.25X105 cells/ml of suspension. In 96 well plate, 60 wells were filled with 100Â µl cell suspension, in this the remaining outer wells are filled with Phosphate Buffer Solution (PBS) of 200Â µl.Allowed the plate overnight in a gas incubator to settle down the cells. Those cells were treated with Fetal Calf Serum (FCS) of different concentrations vary ing from 0% to20% in universal tubes.12 wells of plate were filled with 200Â µl of different concentrations. These plates were incubated for a period of 24hours. Cells were washed with Phosphate Buffered Solution (PBS) for three times using multichannel micropipette; later media containing various serum concentrations were added. These two 96 well plates were used for crystal violet staining and MTT (3-(4, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide) assay after 72 hours of incubation. Crystal Violet Staining Method: The cells were removed from central 60 wells of 96 well plates and filled with 200Â µl of methanol in a fume cupboard. After 15minutes methanol was removed from the plate and was left to dry in the fume cupboard. Once the plates were dried the cells were stained with 200Â µl of crystal violet. Once the staining is complete after 20minutes the plates were washed with Distilled water for atleast three (3) times and then solubilized the cell layer by using 50Â µl of 10% glacial acetic acid. The plates were then kept for incubation in a gas incubator for thirty minutes after incubation Absorbance of wells was measured at 540nm. MTT STAINING METHOD: The cells present in the central 60 wells of 96 well plate were treated with 20Â µl of MTT (5mg/ml solution in PBS) and was left for 4hours in gas incubator at 370c.After incubation by using multichannel pipette medium was removed and 100Â µl of acid-isopropanol was added in order to dissolve the blue formazan crystals from the cell layer and then it was incubated for 30minutes at room temperature after solubilizing formazan crystals Absorbance was measured at 570nm using plate reader. Calculation: Total No. of cells in 5 square = 21 Average cells present in one square = 4.2 Calculation of cell number: The volume of each square is= 4 X 10-3 The total cell number for 5 square gives the cell = 0.02Â µl No. of cells in 1 ml = 105X104 Number of cells required = 395X104 Volume of suspension required = concentration required/ concentration got = 395X104/105X104 = 3.7619 ml cell suspension to be taken Medium to be taken =30,000Â µl-3.7619Â µl = 29996.23Â µl medium to be taken. DISCUSSION: Here the increase in the absorbance with corresponding to the fetal serum concentrations shows the sign for the cell growth. Ammonium cations bind to negatively charged DNA which in turn gave blue color to the mixture. By using the color intensity, viable cells were estimated by means of haemocytometer. No experiment will produce 100% results. So here also errors occurred due to practical errors. Occurrence of errors might be due to: Washout condition of stained culture cells Improper solubilisation of 10% glacial acetic acid. In MTT method the degradation of MTT gives color to the mixture. This degradation was due to the dehaydrogenases of viable cells. The color intensity is directly proportional to the cell growth. Here also the errors might be occurred due to improper solubilisation of formazan crystals (Butler. 1996), (Javoise. 1998). DIFFERENTIATION OF K562 CELLS TO PLATELETS IN PRESENCE OF PMA: Differentiation of K562 cells to megakaryoctes/platelets Phorbol Myristate Acetate treated and untreated cells were spun down in a bench centrifuge and after resuspended in 1ml PBS (having 1 % Bovine serum albumin). Then by using haemocytometer the cell number was calculated, after diluting the suspension. cytospin was added to 1 ml cell volume which was adjusted to density of 106 cells per ml. In assembled cytospin 200 Â µl at 1000 rpm/3min. After fixing the slide in acetone /methanol(50:50), slide was washed with 0.15 M tris buffered saline .In humid temperature Human cd61 cells were incubated for 2 hrs using TBS slide was washed.with rabbit anti- mouse Ig-G anti body cells incubated for for 30 mins at room temperature and washed with TBS, after washing, cells were incubated with Alkaline phosphate anti-alkaline phosphate complex, this was repeated with Ram and APAP for amplification. They were washed under running tap water after staining with red TR substrate and counter was stained with haemotoxylin. Finally the slide was viewed und er microscope after washing with TBS.PMA is a diester of phorbol and a tumor promoting agent (proc.Natl.Acad.sci.USA Vol.82, pp, 3859-3862, june 1985Medical sciences). PMA initiates the signal transduction by protein kinase C (PKC) enzyme which allows promoting the differentiation of K562 cells.By using CD 61 marker the K562 cells were treated .These CD61gets attached to cell network to work as primary antibodies. In addition with cells performs a seconndary antibobodies whenever exposed to Ram along with APAP and forms pink color by attaching to FC region of anti-human CD 61 antibodies. This phenomenon gives the cells under going differentiation when incubated with PMA (MSc Pharmacology Biotechnology, cell biology laboratory manual/ January 2010) RESULT: The slide treated with Phorbol Myristate acetate (PMA) is in pink colour, whereas the slide which is untreated with Phorbol Myristate acetate (PMA) is in blue colour after staining. The cells when treated with PMA differentiate into Platelets/Megakaryocytes. In PMA the diseter bond promotes the tumor, which in turn activates the signal transduction of protein kinase C enzyme(PKC) inn K562 cells causes the CD61 expression. The RAM IgG gets attached to the CD61 antibodies, these K562 cells when incubated with APAAP form a complex. Later fast red dye was added to the mixture which gets attached to the APAAP, the cells turn pink by taking the stain. The cells containing PMA expressed the CD61. It generates the (signal transduction protein kinase C) PKC enzyme and on of K562 cells causes the expression of CD61. The rabbit antimouse IgG antibodies attach to the antibodies of CD61 when incubated in the presence of APAAP (alkaline phosphatase anti-alkaline phosphatise) on of K562 cells complex. Then we add the fast red dye to the mixture which was attached to APAAP (alkaline phosphatase anti-alkaline phosphatise) and stains the cells pink. CD61 was expressed by only those cells which had PMA (Shelly, 2000)

High School Cliques Essay -- Posse HS High school groups descriptive E

High school is a combat zone. Perhaps incognito, high school is vile in all ways, shapes, and forms. High school is destruction of humanity. From blondes to redheads, and albinos to bronzed beauties, there is no fair play. Manipulation, deceit, lies, and forbidding grades are the fate of these entire helpless quarry. After many devastating centuries, mankind has learned to adapt to this revolution. Fighting for freedom and molding to the staggering state of affairs, students have mastered separation brilliance and competence, creating differences with style, interests, and appetites. One thing that will never change†¦ there is no escaping these dreadful high school cliques! â€Å"Whatever! She only makes an appearance every month because her parents pay her for every C on her report card.† The prosperous, preppy, popular kids that everyone loves to hate, famous for self involvement, shopping sprees, and cruel intentions. Armani blazers, Dior flats, Kenneth Cole aviators and jewelry from Tiffanys define this clique, along with their pompous arrogance. The survival of the preps would be slim to none without their faithful limousine chauffeurs, personal fashion coordinators, gourmet chefs and faithful butlers. This group is complete with haughty drama queens and wealthy heirs. Useless without their army of followers, these pitiful spectators have watched the high school incessant battles from afar, sipping champagne, and eating caviar. Dim-witted jocks that have yet to comprehend the overexposure of the lettermen’s jacket stand alone in the food chain. Pumping iron, chugging protein shakes, and buns of steel are the athlete’s top priorities. Fear of academic probation limits their success. Constantly being tackled, foul... ...ticular population lies the future Bill Gates! Last, and usually not even present, are the high school burnouts. Seeing them make it halfway through a year without dropping out is like witnessing a miracle. Sleeping in class, lighting smoke bombs in the hallways, bringing drugs and weapons to school, and getting sent to the principal’s office are the rebel’s means of survival. Ordering pizza and guzzling soda is more appetizing to the burnouts than attending class. Rumor has it that even teachers go out of their way to avoid these radicals. So gather up your grenades and stock up on artillery. Find a secluded location and assemble a trench. Begin dodging the deception and malice of the preps, the jocks, the hicks, the goths, the nerds, and the drug addicts. These are the dire high school cliques that have furthered the destruction of humanity.

Misconceptions Among Muslim Essay

This is the biggest misconception about Islam, no doubt resulting from the constant stereotyping and bashing the media gives Islam. When a gunman attacks a mosque in the name of Judaism, a Catholic IRA guerrilla sets off a bomb in an urban area, or Serbian Orthodox militiamen rape and kill innocent Muslim civilians, these acts are not used to stereotype an entire faith. Never are these acts attributed to the religion of the perpetrators. Yet how many times have we heard the words ‘Islamic, Muslim fundamentalist, etc.’ linked with violence. Many people use the name of religions for their own purposes. One should consult the source of Islam and separate what the true religion of Islam says from what is portrayed in the media. Islam literally means ‘submission to Allah’ and is derived from a root word meaning ‘peace’. Islam may seem exotic or even extreme in the modern world. Perhaps this is because religion doesn’t dominate everyday life in the West, whereas Islam is considered a ‘way of life’ for Muslims and they make no division between secular and sacred in their lives. Like Christianity, Islam permits fighting in self-defence, in defence of religion, or on the part of those who have been expelled forcibly from their homes. It lays down strict rules of combat, which include prohibitions against harming civilians and against destroying crops, trees and livestock. Nowhere does Islam enjoin the killing of innocents. The Quran says: {Fight in the cause of Allah against those who fight you, but do not transgress limits. Allah does not love transgressors} (Quran 2:190), {If they seek peace, then seek you peace. And trust in Allah for He is the One that heareth and knoweth all things} (Quran 8:61) War, therefore, is the last resort, and is subject to the rigorous conditions laid down by the sacred law. The term ‘jihad’ literally means ‘struggle’. Muslims believe that there are two kinds of jihad. The other ‘jihad’ is the inner struggle of the soul, which everyone wages against egotistic desires for the sake of attaining inner peace.

Conjugating German Modal Verbs Muessen, Sollen, Wollen

Conjugating German Modal Verbs Muessen, Sollen, Wollen How do you conjugate the German modal verbs  mà ¼ssen, sollen, and  wollen? See the different tenses and sample modal sentences and idioms. Modalverben - Modal Verbs PRSENS(Present) PRTERITUM(Preterite/Past) PERFEKT(Pres. Perfect) Mssen - have to, must ich mussI must, have to ich mussteI had to ich habe gemusst *I had to du musstyou must, have to du musstestyou had to du hast gemusst *you had to er/sie musshe/she must er/sie musstehe/she had to er/sie hat gemusst *he/she had to wir/Sie/sie mssenwe/you/they have to wir/Sie/sie musstenwe/you/they had to wir/Sie/sie haben gemusst *we/you/they had to ihr msstyou (pl.) must ihr musstetyou (pl.) had to ihr habt gemusst *you (pl.) had to * In the present perfect or past perfect tense with another verb, the double infinitive construction is used, as in the following examples: ihr habt sprechen mà ¼ssen you (pl.) had to speak ich hatte sprechen mà ¼ssen I had had to speak The old spelling with ß, as in ich muß or gemußt, is no longer used for forms of mà ¼ssen. For all  modals  with umlauts, the simple past (preterite/Imperfekt) has no umlaut, but the subjunctive form always has an umlaut! Sample Sentences With Mà ¼ssen Present: Ich muss dort Deutsch sprechen. I have to speak German there.Past/Preterite: Er musste es nicht tun. He didnt have to do it.Pres. Perfect/Perfekt: Wir haben mit der Bahn fahren mà ¼ssen. We had to go by train.Future/Futur: Sie wird morgen abfahren mà ¼ssen. She will have to depart tomorrow.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Wenn ich mà ¼sste... If I had to... Sample Idiomatic Expressions Ich muss nach Hause. I have to go home.Muss das sein? Is that really necessary?So mà ¼sste es immer sein. Thats how it should be all the time.   Sollen - should, ought to, supposed to ich sollI should ich sollteI should have ich habe gesollt *I should have du sollstyou should du solltestyou should have du hast gesollt *you should have er/sie sollhe/she should er/sie solltehe/she should have er/sie hat gesollt *he/she should have wir/Sie/sie sollenwe/you/they should wir/Sie/sie solltenwe/you/they should have wir/Sie/sie haben gesollt *we/you/they should have ihr solltyou (pl.) should ihr solltetyou (pl.) should have ihr habt gesollt *you (pl.) should have * In the present perfect or past perfect tense with another verb, the double infinitive construction is used, as in the following examples: wir haben gehen sollen we should have gone ich hatte fahren sollen I had been supposed to drive Sample Sentences With Sollen Present: Er soll reich sein. Hes supposed to be rich. / Its said that hes rich.Past/Preterite: Er sollte gestern ankommen. He was supposed to arrive yesterday.Pres. Perfect/Perfekt: Du hast ihn anrufen sollen. You should have called him.Future (in sense of): Er soll das morgen haben. Hell have that tomorrow.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Das httest du nicht tun sollen. You shouldnt have done that.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Wenn ich sollte... If I should...Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Sollte sie anrufen... If she should (happen to) call... Sample Idiomatic Expressions Das Buch soll sehr gut sein. The book is said to be very good.Du sollst damit sofort aufhà ¶ren! Youre to stop that right now!Was soll das (heißen)? Whats that supposed to mean? Whats the idea?Es soll nicht wieder vorkommen. It wont happen again.   Wollen - want to ich willI want to ich wollteI wanted to ich habe gewollt *I wanted to du willstyou want to du wolltestyou wanted to du hast gewollt *you wanted to er/sie willhe/she wants to er/sie wolltehe/she wanted to er/sie hat gewollt *he/she wanted to wir/Sie/sie wollenwe/you/they want to wir/Sie/sie wolltenwe/you/they wanted to wir/Sie/sie haben gewollt *we/you/they wanted to ihr wolltyou (pl.) want to ihr wolltetyou (pl.) wanted to ihr habt gewollt *you (pl.) wanted to * In the present perfect or past perfect tense with another verb, the double infinitive construction is used, as in the following examples: wir haben sprechen wollen we wanted to speak ich hatte gehen wollen I had wanted to go Sample Sentences With Wollen Present: Sie will nicht gehen. She doesnt want to go.Past/Preterite: Ich wollte das Buch lesen. I wanted to read the book.Pres. Perfect/Perfekt: Sie haben den Film immer sehen wollen. They have always wanted to see the movie.Past Perfect/Plusquamperfekt: Wir hatten den Film immer sehen wollen. We had always wanted to see the movie.Future/Futur: Er wird gehen wollen. He will want to go.Subjunctive/Konjunktiv: Wenn ich wollte... If I wanted to... Sample Idiomatic Expressions Das will nicht viel sagen. Thats of little consequence. That doesnt mean much.Er will es nicht gesehen haben. He claims not to have seen it.Das hat er nicht gewollt. Thats not what he intended. See the conjugation of the other three German modal verbs  dà ¼rfen, kà ¶nnen, and mà ¶gen.

Essay on HIST Dropbox 2

Essay on HIST Dropbox 2 Essay on HIST Dropbox 2 Kayla Salazar June 10, 2015 Charlie Steen HIST 101 Assignment #1 In my opinion the Theban Plays, Antigone, Oedipus the King and Oedipus at Calonna were all so very horrifying. Sophocles is the author of The Theban Plays who also wrote several more. It was said that he was concerned with the individual struggle people had with fate. Each of his stories involves a lesson that he wanted to teach the audience. Still to this day the lessons can be taught to people. The plays would include fate, loyalty, courage, politics, religion and morality. Critics have said that the most popular play by Sophocles is Oedipus the King. Oedipus is the protagonist and the antagonist is fate. The three plays include religion and political life. During that time religion was based on Mythology and the laws of the gods. In the play of Oedipus the King the plot was based on god-given prophesy or how others would call it spoken fate. The prophecy told to his parents was that one day Oedipus would kill his father and marry his mother. Immediately after hearing this prophecy his parents ordered his death to protect them. The ancient Greeks believed that the gods had higher power and were in control of human destiny. They also believed that the gods controlled everything, from weather, prosperity and poverty. Oedipus’s brother-in-law is off seeking the advice of Apollo. Being god of truth the Greeks sought for answers from Apollo. Creon the king and also the uncle to Antigone, banned the burial of Polyneices and Antigone disobeyed and buried her brother anyway. Doing that act Creon put her in prison and caused her to kill herself. Although she broke the law she says she did out of respect for divine law, which takes precedence over man-made law. She says, â€Å"Yea, for these laws were not ordained of Zeus, and she who sits enthroned with gods below, Justice, enacted not these human laws. Nor did I deem that thou, a mortal man, Could'st by a breath annul and override the immutable unwritten laws of Heaven.† Another quote from Antigone is, â€Å"All wise are Zeus and Apollo, and nothing is hid from their ken; They are gods; and in wits a man may surpass his fellow men; But that a mortal seer knows more than I know- where Hath this been proven?† She believed like many others that Zeus, god of the Olympians, was in control of their destiny. Ancient Greeks believe that the sins of their fathers were inherited to their children. The children of Oedipus must had to be punished because of his wicked acts. His two sons kill each other in battle, his daughter kills herself and the other daughter witnesses all these events and becomes emotional distraught. The Greeks were always

Reflection on Leadership and Sustainability SKK Inc

Reflection on Leadership and Sustainability SKK Inc Introduction Leadership is one of the most important factors that always dictate success or failure of an organization in the world today. Leadership has been in existence for as long as the history of humankind can be traced. As Blanchard (2010, p. 57) puts it, a leadership goes beyond providing the direction for the followers. It entails going into details to discover the potential of the followers.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Reflection on Leadership and Sustainability: SKK Inc specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More It involves engaging the followers in a way that would make them discover themselves. It involves helping the followers develop the urge to achieve. It is the art of making people realize that they have a potential to achieve beyond their current capacity. Leadership requires the leader to challenge the followers positively in a way that would make them feel that they need to rediscover themselves. An organization has to come up with means through which it can wade off these challenges and deliver quality products in the market in the best way possible. This way, a firm would be able to come out as a successful business unit that can withstand market pressures. Organizations share external environmental factors. Emerging technologies, good government policies, a promising market are factors that an organization cannot consider as a competitive advantage. They are factors that are shared by all the firms in that particular industry. An organization must therefore, develop its policies that will give it a competitive edge in the market. An organization should develop mechanisms through which it can challenge the existing market threats in the best way possible. It should be able to stand out among the rest, as a firm that understands the market and is able to provide it with what it needs. It must appear positively special. This requires proper management of the workforce. It re quires a strategy that will help it have the best workforce that can drive the changes required within an organization. This is what most firms have realized and are determined to achieve Blanchard (2010, p. 98). They need to go beyond simple management of the workforce. In the management, we need leaders. There is need to have a sustainable environment where the future is protected, while the current needs are achieved. Gill (2011, p. 91) says that this may be a very challenging task. This is because in most of the cases, meeting currents needs involves compromising the future.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More However, the current society requires a sustainability strategy that would assure an organization of a protected future. This research paper focuses on leadership and sustainability in the contemporary world with focus SKK Inc in Cambodia. Transformation al Leadership and Sustainability at SKK Inc SKK is a Cambodia-based company specializing in land and real estate developments. The vision of the SKK Inc. is to become the leading architectural firm in the region. The mission for the company is to transform the construction patterns into environmentally sustainable structures within the jurisdiction of its market. SKK’s core values are to create and provide livable, eco-friendly and contemporary communities for people living in Phnom Penh. Since 2011, SKK has just set base as being a leading driver in real estate development industry in Cambodia. Given this fact, transformational leadership is very important to the management in enhancing sustainability. Transformational leadership is defined by Holiday (2002, p. 38) as a type of leadership that uses motivation to enhance the performance of employees. Holiday (2002, p. 24) defines leadership as a process where an individual (a leader) offers guidance to a group of individuals (followers) in an organizational structure. It is the process of leading others towards a better future. Transformational leadership, as the name suggest, provides a completely new path to approaching various issues in an organization. It provides an insight the employees. One of the main aims of a transformational leader is to create a completely new approach in managing various issues within the organization. This is what the current world demands an organization. Emerging technologies are changing various approaches of management. The emerging trends need new approaches that can be used to provide a way in which they can be managed differently. This is what leaders at SKK Inc have embraced. Transformational leadership attempts to make employees discover themselves. According to Hacker and Grint (2005, p. 78), a transformational leader will always make followers realize that they have untapped capacity which they can exploit to get better results in every activity they are doing. It involves making the followers realize that they are part of the change. It makes employees own the whole process.Advertising We will write a custom assessment sample on Reflection on Leadership and Sustainability: SKK Inc specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More They feel that some changes that are proposed are part of them and are meant to make their work easier. This way, they develop the responsibility to ensure that these changes are accomplished successfully and within the specified time. Such leadership will evoke desires on the followers to see to it that specific desires are achieved within the specified time. It is an art of tying the objectives of an organization to that of its employees. This leadership approach makes emphasis on the first ‘P’ of the three elements of sustainability which is the people (Fullan 2005, p. 85). It involves making people within the organization appreciate the need to develop a sustainab le policy within the organization that would enable the firm experience sustainable development. This would entail developing means through which an organization can generate profits without putting a lot of strains on the planet earth. Characteristics of Transformational Leadership that Makes it a Sustainable Leadership Strategy SKK Inc should consider the need to have eco-friendly communities not only in Phnom region, but in all other regions where it operates. As the current Project Director of the SKK Inc. Cambodia, I am deeply concerned of how our sustainable infrastructural development can be spread to a larger geographical region beyond the current scope. Given that SKK Inc cherishes sustainable leadership on all its leaders at various positions, understanding some of the characteristics of transformational leadership would be important. Having a sustainable business is very important in the current competitive world. Business units are subjected to a lot of pressures by the shareholders to increase their profitability. However, the need to preserve the planet earth is also increasing as the negative impacts of environmental degradation are already evident in the world (Bruijn 2002, p. 29). The purpose of leadership is therefore, to find a common ground for these two contradicting elements of sustainability. Transformational leadership has some characteristics that make it unique from other forms of leadership. Transformational leadership cherishes authenticity. It encourages followers to act as natural as possible. People who act naturally always tend to give their best. Passion is another major characteristic of transformational leadership. A transformational leader must be passionate about every action they take. This way, it becomes possible for the followers to take this characteristic from the leaders.Advertising Looking for assessment on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Followers will develop passion when they realize that their leader has passion in his or her actions. Transformational leadership should also embrace creativity. Creativity is very crucial in the contemporary world. A leader must be able to solve problems in a creative manner. They have to encourage the culture of creativity in their employees. This way, such an organization will be able to be creative in the market. Transformational leaders should have self-awareness. He should understand what he or she stands for and is able to express this feeling to the followers (Parkin 2010, p. 49). This way, it would be easy to avoid cases where a leader issues instruction, which he or she can change abruptly without a clear explanation for the same. A transformational leader must have interpersonal intelligence. This is important to help bring people of different social backgrounds together. Organization brings together individuals from different backgrounds. It would require interpersonal i ntelligence to make these people reason in the same line and work as a unit towards achieving specific objectives. This would help in creating sustainability. A transformational leader must have integrity. As Blanchard (2010, p. 78), ethics is very important in the process of creating a secure future. It is important to note that transformational leadership aims to bring a completely new approach of doing various activities in s better way. Integrity will be one of the main ingredients in that leadership. It will be possible to tell others to maintain integrity only if the leaders show the same in their actions. A transformational leader must also develop clarity of purpose. The leader must be sure of what he or she wants from the followers and from the leaders. According to Billsberry (2009, p. 68), having a clear sense of purpose on what one does makes it possible to measure the level of success of an individual. This way, it becomes easy for such a leader to determine the rate at which objectives of the organization is being achieved. In order to achieve this sustainability, an organization should also consider the following models (theories) of leadership. Theories of Leadership In order to support sustainable leadership, it would be vital to consider some of the leadership theories in the contemporary world. These theories help in further clarification of the purpose of leadership within an organization. Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid This theory by Blake and Mouton has largely been considered as one of the most appropriate theories in managing sustainable business operations for individual firms. According to Kezar Lester (2009, p. 720), Black and Mouton’s managerial grid is one of the most relevant models of leadership in the current world. The grid is as shown below. As evidenced from the grid, the theory gives emphasis on concern for people and concern for production. As a leader, there is always a concern to ensure that the organiz ation functions effectively. This can be measured by increased productivity of the firm. This theory says that productivity should not be overemphasized at the expense of employees (Gray Bebbington 2001, p. 93). Employees are very valuable to any organization, and their interest should be taken care of. The need for productivity should be balanced with the need to protect the employees. At (1, 1) is impoverished management where employees concern is not taken care of, and production is poor. Concern For  People Concern for Production At (9, 1), emphasis is laid on task, while taking middle ground (5, 5) would help the firm achieve its objectives moderately with moderately satisfied employees. At (1, 9), emphasis is given on concern for employees. The best grid is at (9, 9) always referred to as team management. Employees concern is emphasized while ensuring that production is put at maximum levels possible. This model enhances sustainability because it emphasizes on the two Ps o f sustainability which is people and profits. PESTEL Analysis It is important to understand the environmental factors that may have direct impact on the operations of SKK Inc. PESTEL analysis is one of the best models of analyzing the environmental factors. The political environment in this region has been marred with some challenges, especially due to some political strife experienced in some of the regions where this firm operates. The economic and social structure of the market has been very attractive. The advanced technological environment has been unpredictable, while the legal structures have always defined the way this firm operates in the market (Holiday 2002, p. 118). Charles Handy PEST Model Charles Handy came up with a different approach to leadership that focused on environmental factors. This model focuses on what Charles describes as new realities that a leader must take into consideration within an organization. The first is the political factors. Political environme nt has direct influence on operational activities of a firm. It must be taken into consideration when a leader is formulating policies. Economic status of the society will also influence the leadership style that a leader can apply. It will dictate what policies to apply, and which to suspend as the firm awaits a change in the economic environment (Davies 2006, p. 67). Social factors play an important role in defining leadership strategy. The social structure of a society will help define the organizational culture that a leader can instil on the followers. In the current society, the role of technology in defining leadership has become significantly huge. Before formulating any policy, a leader must take into consideration the relevance of the policy and the prevailing technologies in the environment. This theory emphasizes on the third element of sustainability which is the environment. Conclusion The current business world has become very competitive. The need to have sustainable leadership in organizations is increasingly becoming important. As demonstrated in this discussion, inasmuch as there is need to develop strategies that would meet the current needs of organizations and people in the current society, there is also the need to ensure that the future is protected. There is need to ensure that the current structures would benefit the current organization in a manner in which these organizations would have a secured future. Theorists have tried to explain the need to have sustainability in organization. Sustainability in organizations is the sure way of ensuring that there is continuity. As this discussion demonstrates, there is need to have some of these theories have clearly demonstrated how the current competitive world can be sustained using sustainability in leadership. There is need to have a leadership strategy that is conscious of the future society. List of References Billsberry, J 2009, Discovering Leadership, Palgrave, Basingstoke. Blanchard , K 2010, Leading at a higher level, Prentice Hall, London. Bruijn, T 2002, Partnership and leadership: Building alliances for a sustainable future, Kluwer Academic, Dordrecht. Davies, B 2006, Developing and sustaining leaders, Paul Chapman, London. Fullan, M 2005, Leadership sustainability: System thinkers in action, Corwin Press, Thousand Oaks. Gill, R 2011, Theory and Practice of Leadership, Sage, London. Gray, R Bebbington, J 2001, Accounting for the Environment, Sage, London. Grint, K 2005, Leadership: limits and possibilities, Palgrave, Basingstoke. Holiday, C 2002, Walking the talk: The business case for sustainable development, Greenleaf Publishing, Sheffield. Parkin, S 2010, The positive deviant: Sustainability leadership in a perverse world, Earthscan, London.

Green Buildings Improve Occupants Health Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 1

Green Buildings Improve Occupants Health - Essay Example Construction of a green building is exceptionally costly as opposed to construction of a regular building. Before an individual is able to construct a green building he must consolidate a lot of money (Coussens, Pp 43). Individuals may save money from less energy consumption, but before this, they need to pay handsomely. Construction of green buildings is dreadfully expensive because eco-friendly materials used in building is not available in many regions. These materials have to be imported from other parts, thus increasing construction cost. There is a lot of indoor pollution in green building because these buildings are heavily sealed, hence ventilation is not enough. This worsens if the builder uses materials that emittoxic substances as it may result to health problems to the occupant. Green buildings are built in a manner that ensures maximum utilization of light. This results in construction of the buildings in the opposite direction to the neighborhood buildings, thus causing problems with the neighbors. Green buildings may take a long time before they are completed and this may put the home owners in difficult situations. The home owners are in difficult situations because some of them want the building to be completed at a specific time (Coussens, Pp 54). Green houses may take long before they are completed because materials are scarce and they have to be shipped from other countries. Another cause of delay is unavailable recycled materials that are supposed to be used in construction. It is difficult to install air cooling features that are self regulating like natural environment.

Discussion of the tax gap and what IRS is doing to close it Term Paper

Discussion of the tax gap and what IRS is doing to close it - Term Paper Example The latest figures of tax gap estimate signify the initial complete renewal of the report during five years, and it demonstrates the country’s observance level is basically unaffected from the previous evaluation including tax year 2001. The tax gap marker is a useful guide to the level of tax observance as well as to the continuing sources of lesser observance; however, it is not a satisfactory guide to â€Å"year-to-year alterations within IRS plans or to year-to-year returns on IRS service and enforcement schemes† (Ward et al, 2013). The voluntary observance level (percentage of overall tax revenues paid promptly) for the tax year 2006 was around 83.2 percent. The voluntary observance level for 2006 was statistically unaffected from the most recent earlier estimate of 83.7 percent tax year 2001. On a comparative basis, the tax gap is mainly in proportion to the increase in overall tax liabilities. Besides, a little increase in the tax gap estimate is accredited to improved statistics as well as better evaluation techniques. For instance, IRS formulated the â€Å"econometric model† (Kahn & Polsky, 2013) for estimating the tax gap attributable to small businesses which was then used for newer functional information. In addition, large business tax gap for the year 2006 was based on enhanced statistical techniques and modernized information. Moreover, the data linked with individual income tax payers carries on to progress supported by better evaluation methods as well as newer statistics. The tax gap includes three main factors: â€Å"non-filing, underreporting and underpayment† (Kahn & Polsky, 2013). As in the year 2001, the underreporting of earnings was the major cause of the tax gap during 2006. Under-reporting in more or less all taxpayer categories summed up to around 380 billion USD of the gross tax gap during 2006, increased from 290 billion USD during 2001. Tax non-filing summed up for around 30 billion USD during 2006, increased from 29

How the Black Plague Changed Europe Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

How the Black Plague Changed Europe - Essay Example The aristocracy wealth was based on ownership of land. The death of millions of people due to the Black Plague, therefore, meant that there was an acute shortage of labour. The peasants were particularly affected by the Black Plague because of the poor conditions in which they were living; the poor conditions coupled with close quarters in which the peasants were living provided a conducive environment for the spread of the Black Plague (The Flow of History,n.p. Web.). The shortage of labour led to drastic reduction in agricultural produce. The reduction of agricultural produce was a real disaster in the economy of medieval Europe. Apart from reduced agricultural produce, the few available peasants/labourers started demanding higher wages because the demand of their services was very high (Herlihy, 8-9). This led to increase in the cost of production of agricultural products. This in turn led to inflation because the aristocrats had to sell their produce at higher prices because of the high cost of production. Another factor that led to the inflation of the economy was the prohibitive trade measures that were instituted by some monarchs, these measures made procurement of goods through trade quite difficult (Zapotoczny, 2-3). This meant that there was insufficient supply of goods in the market leading to inflation. The crumbling of the Agricultural sector in the 14th century Europe due to the Black Plague depleted the tax base of the European states. The medieval European states were therefore forced, as it were, by the economic constraints occasioned by the Black Plague to increase taxes. The increase in taxes exacerbated the already high inflation in medieval Europe. The Black plague therefore caused economic recession in the medieval Europe. The economic recession ultimately led to complete change of economic system in Europe from Feudalism to capitalism as we shall see later in this paper. The second

Concepts of Criminal Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Concepts of Criminal Law - Essay Example Certain defenses arise from these acts which led to the prosecution of Johnny. In the crime of possession of the Nutria, the state maintains that the act is that of strict liability, however, though the act of carrying the Nutria is a capital offence, there lacks the level of Mens Rea whereby, the defendant did not knowingly or intentionally possess the Nutria with the knowledge of its illegality. The defendant, Johnny Juneau, lives a conservative and segregated life in the woods, where the new change in rule of law has not traversed. Henceforth, the jury should not convict him of the crime however much ignorance of the Law is no defense. Proof that the level of Mens Rea required to convict Johnny lacks in this case, can be given by the town’s people who know him well, those that know he has not been in town for a long time. In the case of gas theft, the defense presents that Johnny was acting under a mistake of fact. In his last visit to town, the rates for gas were $1.4 per gallon, and on arriving at the gas station, Johnny believed the sign that read $4.42 per gallon was a mistake. He believed it true that the 4 was supposed to be one and therefore borrowed the ladder, with the assumption that the law permits self help. The case is a case of specific intent, whereby, Johnnie did not intend on taking control of the storekeeper’s property, however, he only meant to do good by correcting â€Å"the mistake†. In the case of gas theft, the evidence provided clearly outlines that the level of Mens Rea required to convict Johnny does not exist. Johnny was acting under a mistake of fact, and good intentions. Due to this reasons the Jury should not convict him for the crime. The accusation that Johnny murdered the neighbor does not suffice since first the unlawful act that can lead to murder (Actus Reus) did not exist since he only placed a ladder to change the gas store sign. Then the thought of acting in such a manner that the neighbor would die does not exist thereby lacking the necessary level of Mens Rea required to convict him does not exist. Johnny is still innocent on grounds of negligence since it is not his fault there existed a live wire that was the negligence of the storekeeper. Johnny therefore lacked the knowledge nor the intent to kill anyone when he decided to borrow the ladder. The Judges Decision Johnny appears to be a victim of circumstances, since his innocent motives seem to lead to crimes. All cases seem to lack the necessary Mens Rea required to convict Johnny. In the Judges perspective, the best way to resolve this would be critically analyzing the facts of the case, and the statutes of Law, to be able to come to a reasonable decision. In the case of possession of Nutria it is the duty of the state, to make known any sudden amendments in the laws of the state, and it is the duty of the citizens to carefully study and follow the rules of law. In Johnny’s case of Nutria possession, Johnny lives in the woods, a segregated and conservative life and there is no reasonable way that the change in law reached him, therefore, though there exists ignorance of Law, the State cannot convict Johnny since the facts presented prove that he lacked the level of Mens Rea that would otherwise convict him. In the case of theft of gas, the evidence pro

Globalization and the maritime world in the twentieth century Essay

Globalization and the maritime world in the twentieth century - Essay Example Marc indicates that cargo ships were the major systems of transport and were used load and offload goods (166). The goods in this context had different destinations throughout the world. This concept simply explains that globalization was taking place as the goods were sent to different places. The world was soon becoming smaller thanks to the development in the maritime industry. Marc explains that the shipping lines ordered for larger ships that would be used transport the aluminum boxes that were the standard containers (202-21). Additionally, the development of the maritime industry saw the modernization of port cities to accommodate the larger ships (Marc 191-201). The author also argues that in the 1980s computers ventured in as well, that led to a containerized system (Marc 125). A closer analysis of this fact would be said to have shaped the global economy through innovations in the maritime industry. Miller backs the work of Marc by arguing that globalization is historical and can be rooted to the reality of shipping and trading. The maritime world, in his thought, was the major reason behind the global interconnectedness (Miller 11). In the twentieth century, for example, there were a lot of Eurocentric exchanges in the sea. There was the existence of a global maritime system where European ports were constructed, shipping lines as well as partial networks (Miller 12). This commercial maritime world played a huge role in shipping the present day world of business. The Europeans were the principal operators of the global trading and transport systems up to the 1960s. Just like Marc, Miller would argue that there is a great link between containerization, trade, de-colonization and economic growth thanks to the maritime industry and its developments. Through the works, the close correlation between the maritime world in the 20th century and globalization is evident. The process of globalization clearly went through progressions that saw the

Consumer perception between international and local brands - A western Dissertation

Consumer perception between international and local brands - A western vs asian perspective - Dissertation Example Managers face challenges because of lack of synthesis between managerial concepts of brand identity and socio-cultural conception of inter-group dynamics, which may result in ill-fitted brand identities is a given sociopolitical context. Singapore is one of the top shopping destinations in Asia and hence attracts numerous international brands. These brands operate in a highly competitive environment trying to attract the attention of consumers as well as gain recognition against other international brands. This is because Singapore is a multicultural city compromising of Chinese, Malays, Indians and Eurasians, and with one in four resident being a non-Singaporean (SEDB, 2009). Consumer companies have been trying to tap into the opportunities presented by Singapore’s strengths and unique positioning. 1.2 Rationale for Research Studies have been conducted by different researchers on the subject such on attitude towards foreign and local brands – uniqueness theory to diffe rentiate themselves from others (Kashi, 2013), consumer ethnocentrism (Rice & Wongtada, 2007) and on the influence of animosity (Fullerton et al, 2007). Researches on this subject have been conducted but most of the researches have been conducted in developed countries. No such study has been found that focuses on the Asian countries. This research aims to go deeper and compare local and international brands in Singapore to identify local consumers brand perception. Singapore has been chosen as the focus of this study because of her ability to attract a wide range of international brands. Besides, Singapore is a useful setting because it is strongly influenced by both eastern and western traditions. In fact this can serve as a guideline for other Asian nations as they adopt western habits and consumption patterns. However, there is a tendency in Singapore to support the home grown design talents to the extent that domestic fashion brands have been gaining international exposure with government support (The Straits Times, 2012). Renowned local brands that originated in Singapore include Raoul and TWG. This significantly shows that Singapore brands do have the ability to compete with international brands such as T.M. Lewin. Therefore, this research expands into Singaporean’s reaction and attitude towards branding and how they perceive the established international brands against renowned local brands in various sectors. This research emphasizes on how Singaporeans come about having a particular opinion towards brands and what factors may influence consumer’s choice of brand. Customers globally have developed enhanced ability to select local and foreign brands even in developing countries. Business environments being competitive, it has become imperative for sellers of both domestic and foreign goods to explore customer purchase behavior. 1.3 Research Aims and Objectives With the aim to explore Singaporean consumers’ attitude and perception t owards brands, the objectives of the research are: To identify what factors can affect consumer’s attitude to brands Identifying models to assess consumers attitude towards branding To find out the different perceptions between international and local brands Comparing the attitude towards

Concepts of Criminal Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Concepts of Criminal Law - Essay Example Certain defenses arise from these acts which led to the prosecution of Johnny. In the crime of possession of the Nutria, the state maintains that the act is that of strict liability, however, though the act of carrying the Nutria is a capital offence, there lacks the level of Mens Rea whereby, the defendant did not knowingly or intentionally possess the Nutria with the knowledge of its illegality. The defendant, Johnny Juneau, lives a conservative and segregated life in the woods, where the new change in rule of law has not traversed. Henceforth, the jury should not convict him of the crime however much ignorance of the Law is no defense. Proof that the level of Mens Rea required to convict Johnny lacks in this case, can be given by the town’s people who know him well, those that know he has not been in town for a long time. In the case of gas theft, the defense presents that Johnny was acting under a mistake of fact. In his last visit to town, the rates for gas were $1.4 per gallon, and on arriving at the gas station, Johnny believed the sign that read $4.42 per gallon was a mistake. He believed it true that the 4 was supposed to be one and therefore borrowed the ladder, with the assumption that the law permits self help. The case is a case of specific intent, whereby, Johnnie did not intend on taking control of the storekeeper’s property, however, he only meant to do good by correcting â€Å"the mistake†. In the case of gas theft, the evidence provided clearly outlines that the level of Mens Rea required to convict Johnny does not exist. Johnny was acting under a mistake of fact, and good intentions. Due to this reasons the Jury should not convict him for the crime. The accusation that Johnny murdered the neighbor does not suffice since first the unlawful act that can lead to murder (Actus Reus) did not exist since he only placed a ladder to change the gas store sign. Then the thought of acting in such a manner that the neighbor would die does not exist thereby lacking the necessary level of Mens Rea required to convict him does not exist. Johnny is still innocent on grounds of negligence since it is not his fault there existed a live wire that was the negligence of the storekeeper. Johnny therefore lacked the knowledge nor the intent to kill anyone when he decided to borrow the ladder. The Judges Decision Johnny appears to be a victim of circumstances, since his innocent motives seem to lead to crimes. All cases seem to lack the necessary Mens Rea required to convict Johnny. In the Judges perspective, the best way to resolve this would be critically analyzing the facts of the case, and the statutes of Law, to be able to come to a reasonable decision. In the case of possession of Nutria it is the duty of the state, to make known any sudden amendments in the laws of the state, and it is the duty of the citizens to carefully study and follow the rules of law. In Johnny’s case of Nutria possession, Johnny lives in the woods, a segregated and conservative life and there is no reasonable way that the change in law reached him, therefore, though there exists ignorance of Law, the State cannot convict Johnny since the facts presented prove that he lacked the level of Mens Rea that would otherwise convict him. In the case of theft of gas, the evidence pro

Consumer perception between international and local brands - A western Dissertation

Consumer perception between international and local brands - A western vs asian perspective - Dissertation Example Managers face challenges because of lack of synthesis between managerial concepts of brand identity and socio-cultural conception of inter-group dynamics, which may result in ill-fitted brand identities is a given sociopolitical context. Singapore is one of the top shopping destinations in Asia and hence attracts numerous international brands. These brands operate in a highly competitive environment trying to attract the attention of consumers as well as gain recognition against other international brands. This is because Singapore is a multicultural city compromising of Chinese, Malays, Indians and Eurasians, and with one in four resident being a non-Singaporean (SEDB, 2009). Consumer companies have been trying to tap into the opportunities presented by Singapore’s strengths and unique positioning. 1.2 Rationale for Research Studies have been conducted by different researchers on the subject such on attitude towards foreign and local brands – uniqueness theory to diffe rentiate themselves from others (Kashi, 2013), consumer ethnocentrism (Rice & Wongtada, 2007) and on the influence of animosity (Fullerton et al, 2007). Researches on this subject have been conducted but most of the researches have been conducted in developed countries. No such study has been found that focuses on the Asian countries. This research aims to go deeper and compare local and international brands in Singapore to identify local consumers brand perception. Singapore has been chosen as the focus of this study because of her ability to attract a wide range of international brands. Besides, Singapore is a useful setting because it is strongly influenced by both eastern and western traditions. In fact this can serve as a guideline for other Asian nations as they adopt western habits and consumption patterns. However, there is a tendency in Singapore to support the home grown design talents to the extent that domestic fashion brands have been gaining international exposure with government support (The Straits Times, 2012). Renowned local brands that originated in Singapore include Raoul and TWG. This significantly shows that Singapore brands do have the ability to compete with international brands such as T.M. Lewin. Therefore, this research expands into Singaporean’s reaction and attitude towards branding and how they perceive the established international brands against renowned local brands in various sectors. This research emphasizes on how Singaporeans come about having a particular opinion towards brands and what factors may influence consumer’s choice of brand. Customers globally have developed enhanced ability to select local and foreign brands even in developing countries. Business environments being competitive, it has become imperative for sellers of both domestic and foreign goods to explore customer purchase behavior. 1.3 Research Aims and Objectives With the aim to explore Singaporean consumers’ attitude and perception t owards brands, the objectives of the research are: To identify what factors can affect consumer’s attitude to brands Identifying models to assess consumers attitude towards branding To find out the different perceptions between international and local brands Comparing the attitude towards

Imperialism and 1st World War Essay Example for Free

Imperialism and 1st World War Essay The portrayal of the artists is indeed a true picture of the horrors of World War I which cannot be envisioned by just reading accounts of the war as given in different readings. The paintings reveal the disgusting events that will surely put the shivers into the generation of today in realizing the atrocities and soul stirring hardships that were experienced by all those who were part of the war. While the monarchy of the combating countries relaxed and simply gave orders it were the soldiers representing the states that bore the brunt of the chilling circumstances. Soldiers were silent observers in seeing their colleagues butchered in helplessness while they themselves were lucky to come back alive into their trenches unaware of what the next day had in store for them. The medical corps and nurses were always on the alert to receive the dead and grievously wounded soldiers while those who were captured had to submit to the inhuman tortures at the hands of their captors. Several soldiers were maimed in leading a life of revulsion, helpless in leading a life of misery. The onslaught of gas attacks made several soldiers to die in agony while many suffered psychologically in being unable to lead normal lives. The fear of gas attacks was so severe that soldiers had to always move with gas masks in specified territories. There was always a sinister plan underway and it became difficult for the combatants to judge about who friends are and whom to understand as enemies. There was always an ongoing process to build tunnels and infrastructure to face the challenges of enemy attacks in a war that never seemed to end. All who were physically fit could be expected to be called for war duties with little hope of returning alive. The war was extensively destructive as nothing was spared and all means were used to inflict the maximum damages irrespective of the intensity of suffering and loss to life. Human life appeared to have no value nor did the sufferings of the masses for the leaders who gave orders to fight with the sole objective of winning the war. The focus was on winning over the adversaries by whatever means that was possible in using weapons and other means that inflicted maximum loss and suffering. References Discussion, Imperialism and 1st World War, http://dl. bergen. edu/webct/entryPageIns. dowebct

The Agritourism Potential For Rural Development Tourism Essay

The Agritourism Potential For Rural Development Tourism Essay Development is critical and essential to the sustenance and growth of any nation. The main goal of each and every country is to reach overall development of the country. The term development encompasses the need and the means by which to provide better lives for people in a country. It includes not only economic growth, although that is crucial, but also human development providing health, nutrition, education, and a clean environment. However, in executing development is a complex issue and the basic perspective of it is equates development with economic growth. According to the United Nations Development Programme (2009) development is to lead long and healthy lives, to be knowledgeable, to have access to the resources needed for a decent standard of living and to be able to participate in the life of the community. Gboyega (2003) captures development as an idea that embodies all attempts to improve the conditions of human existence in all ramifications. It implies improvement in material well being of all citizens, not the most powerful and rich alone, in a sustainable way such that todays consumption does not imperil the future, it also demands that poverty and inequality of access to the good things of life be removed or drastically reduced. It seeks to improve personal physical security and livelihoods and expansion of life chances.Thus, development aims at improving important aspects of peoples lives such as livelihood, security, environmental, physical and mental well being. Enhance in knowledge, experience and resources is helped people to build a better life. The goal of development is to expand the capabilities of people to live the lives they choose to lead (Amartya Sen 1999). It is most appropriately defined with their active participation. Development is different from growth. It has broader and deeper meanings. Economic growth is necessary but not sufficient condition for development and hence it can be viewed as a multi-dimensional phenomenon. The major dimensions of it include the level of economic growth, standards of education, quality of housing, level of health, distribution of goods and services, and access to communication (World Bank, 2005). Ingredients for development and economic growth are capital formation, human resources, natural resources, and technology/entrepreneurship. Capital formation is essential to invest in sectors with high economic output, saving capital, investing in infrastructure creates jobs directly and indirectly by attracting investors. Human resources are a key to development in any country. There is need to develop a mechanism to address lack of health facilities, lack of education, poverty, malnutrition, and disease. Human resource development is important if people are to make use of ICT for development. Natural resources are crucial in development. Development activities need to be harnessed more of their natural resources. It is imperative that they should improve farming techniques and develop better land ownership methods. Technology and entrepreneurship are important to developing countries to improve the know-how and know-what. Openness to ideas is important if any economy is to develop. The formation of regional and international blocks encourages technology and entrepreneurship. Development should be a sustainable long-term condition for humanitys multidimensional well-being. It has been clearly explained in the Rio Declaration, adopted by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, held in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil as; Human beings are at the center of concern for sustainable development. They are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature. Sustainable development could probably be otherwise called equitable and balanced, meaning that, in order for development to continue indefinitely, it should balance the interests of different groups of people, within the same generation and among generations, and do so simultaneously in three major interrelated areas-economic, social, and environmental. Sustainable development is about equity, defined as equality of opportunities for well-being, as well as about comprehensiveness of objectives. Not all the countries in the world have same level of development. While developed countries have reached higher level of development or standard of living due to better standards in their societies, developing countries have faced several issues and challenges along their way towards development. Developed countries are countries whose lives are patterned industry and have some specific characteristics like higher level of average per capita income, level of education, life expectancy of the population and also low level of population growth rate and death rate. Life style is based on the market economy and economic activities are mostly related with industry sector as well as export oriented. Furthermore, majority of the population lives in cities and there is relatively higher level of health of the population. Countries that have Human Development Index (HDI) of 0.788 or over are in the category of developed countries. According to the IMF index of HDI released in 2011, there are 47 countries in the top quartile and classified as possessing a Very high human development. On the other hand several common negative characteristics can be seen among developing countries as well. These are preventing the development of those countries. Low levels of living are manifested qualitatively and quantitatively in form of low incomes, inadequate housing, poor health, limited or no education, high infant mortality, low life and work expectancy, and in many cases, a general sense of malaise and hopelessness are some of them. Moreover, low levels of productivity in many areas like labour productivity, agriculture or farm productivity. In addition, low level of industrial development, high unemployment, small domestic market, small amount of disposable income and uneven regional development, problems in institutional changes in land tenure, credit and banking structures, honest and efficient administrations and the restructuring of educational and training. Most of the developing countries possess high population growth potential characterized by high birth rate and high but declining death rate. Rural development in developing countries Rural development is an integral part of the national development of a country. Rural development actions are mainly and mostly to development aim for the social and economic development of the rural areas (Chigbu, 2012). Especially in developing countries, very high emphasis has been given to rural development, aiming to gain equitable and balance development throughout the country. Rural Development which is concerned with economic growth and social justice, improvement in the living standard of the rural people by providing adequate and quality social services and minimum basic needs becomes essential. The present strategy of rural development mainly focuses on poverty alleviation, better livelihood opportunities, provision of basic amenities and infrastructure facilities through innovative programs of wage and self-employment. Rural development generally refers to the process of improving the quality of life and economic wellbeing of people living in relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas (Malcolm, 2003). Although rural development has traditionally centered on the exploitation of land-intensive natural resources such as agriculture and forestry, due to changes in global production networks and increased urbanization have changed the character of rural areas. Increasingly tourism, niche manufacturers, and recreation have replaced resource extraction and agriculture as dominant economic drivers (Neil and David, 2009). The need for rural communities to approach development from a wider perspective has created more focus on a broad range of development goals rather than merely creating incentive for agricultural or resource based businesses. Education, entrepreneurship, physical infrastructure, and social infrastructure all play an important role in developing rural regions (Conn, 1996). Rural devel opment is also characterized by its emphasis on locally produced economic development strategies (Malcolm, 2003). Furthermore, rural development aims at finding the ways to improve the rural lives with participation of the rural people themselves so as to meet the required need of the rural area. As such, general people themselves have to participate in their sustainable rural development. When rural development is concerned, in one point of view it can be explained as the development consists of a wide variety of new activities such as the production of high quality and region specific products, nature conservation and landscape management, agritourism and the development of short supply chains (Knickel Renting, 2000). These new activities in rural areas mean new income sources to local people. Therefore it is believed that, doing diversification and utilizing multi-functionality of agriculture and formation of agritourism can be used as a strategy to enhance rural development. Rural Development and national development in developing countries In developing countries, the  rural development is one of the most important factors for the growth of the national economy. Desai (2009) has recorded Rural Development is an important segment of national development. Developing countries are primarily agriculture-based countries and majority of the population are in rural areas. Agriculture contributes for a significant share of the gross domestic product (GDP) of those countries. Agriculture, mining, forestry, handicrafts, fisheries, poultry, diary and rural tourism are the primary contributors to the rural business and economy of developing countries. However, in many developing countries sufficient amount of investment in rural sector doesnt take place (United nation, 2011). The rural sector is not able to contribute its full potential for the national development. For example, in the Asia-Pacific region in many cases governments implement national development strategies, including fiscal and trade policies, which are biased against agriculture and the rural sector in general. These policies are seriously affecting the livelihoods and entrepreneurial development of small agricultural producers, the landless and other producers in rural areas (United nation, 2011). As a consequence of the biased policies and budget allocations government institutions in most countries concerned have been unable to effectively promote agriculture and rural development through the provision of timely and adequate social and production services in rural areas making lesser contribution for the national development (FAO, 2008) Not only in Asia-Pacific this problem exists in other regions of the world as well. The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean need to invest more and better in rural communities as their economic contribution to national development is twice as large as officially believed, according to a new World Bank report released recently. The report evaluates the effects of the rural sector on national growth, poverty reduction, and environmental degradation both in rural areas and the rest of the economy, as well as the public policies that can enhance its contribution to overall national development (Viveros and Morrison 2005). A study of Onyemelukwe (1981) on the assessment of the performances of the rural sector of the typical African country Nigeria in national development contexts has found out the critical role of the sector and the system effects of inadequate equipment of the sector for such role. The Nigerian situation is used to illustrate the prospects and the problems of th e rural sector in most African countries. Rural sector in Sri Lanka is mainly consisted of farming community. The agriculture sector is the cornerstone in Sri Lankas economy with more than 70% of the population living in rural areas depending on agriculture for their livelihoods. Currently this sector contributes to about 18% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 30% of the employment (Central bank of Sri Lanka, 2011).  Therefore, without taking into consideration agricultural development, we cant even imagine rural development in this country. What is Agritourism? In general, agriourism is the practice of attracting travelers or visitors to an area or areas used primarily for agricultural purposes. In particular, it refers to farm enterprises and community events that showcase the activities and produce of rural families and the agricultural heritage of farming regions to travelers. Agritourism provides rural experiences to travelers with the goal of generating revenues for farmers and surrounding communities. These experiences typically include a wide range of attractions and activities that take place in agricultural areas. Important ingredients of agritourisms rural experiences include open spaces, low levels of urban or industrial development, and opportunities for visitors to directly experience agricultural, pastoral, and natural environments. Moreover, agritourism is a type of rural tourism. It is a combination of two complex industries; agriculture and tourism, to open up alternative income sources for the farmers as well as surrounding community (Wicks and Merrett, 2003). Brscic (2006) has explained agritourism as a special form of tourism which takes place within the family farm that symbolizes a specific form of business, giving a number of benefits to the families involved, with multiple impacts on the socio-economic relations and the space in rural areas. It is a form of farm diversification aiming some benefits from exiting farm resources. Agritourism can be also explained as an activity, enterprise or business that combines primary elements and characteristics of agriculture and tourism and provides an experience for visitors that stimulates economic activity and impacts both farm and community income. Relationship between agritourism and rural development Several research findings in many developed countries have shown that agritourism as a possible rural development strategy. For example, Haghiri and Okech (2011) discovered role of the agritourism in developing the economy of rural areas in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. According to Demirbas Topcu (2009), agritourism is a new element for rural development in Turkey. Agritourism as an effective vehicle for rural development in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan (Dernoi, 2002; Weaver and Fennell, 1998). Study of Hightower (2011) recorded that Agritourism is being used as a catalyst for additional income and triggering economic growth in rural areas. Disez, (1999) revealed that agritourism represents and innovative activity taking place within the framework of rural development in Massif Central region in France. In Romania, agritourism is the best way for the preservation of traditions and customs in the rural areas, supplying a sustainable rural development (Mo rtan, 2006). In some countries like Italy, Spain, Greece, Austria, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Ireland and Norway it is a growing sector with the policies of the governments aiming to benefit from it as a regional development instrument (DemirtaÃ…Å ¸ Topcu, 2007; Frater, 1983). Rural tourism provides many benefits to local areas by bringing visitors to the region, increasing awareness for agricultural products and showcasing produce to the local and regional community. It can also provide incentives for local heritage and conservation groups to preserve unique heritage landscapes and built heritage. Most studies have highlighted the multiple benefits that agritourism brings to the farm, local communities, agriculture heritage and natural resources (Fleischer and Pizam, 1997; Busby and Rendle, 2000; Ventura and Milone, 2000; Sharpley, 2002; Wicks and Merrett, 2003; Hegarty and Przezbà ³rska, 2005; Fleischer and Tchetchik, 2005; Mitchell and De Waal, 2009). Agritourism Research conducted in developing countries A small number of researches have been conducted in some developing countries in Asia. Mayasia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, and India are examples of such countries. When South Asian countries are concerned, the number of research is very few. India is the country leading in agritourism in this region. According to Tiraieyari and Hamzah (2011) in Malaysia, there are potential benefits of agritourism for farmers and local communities in general. It further indicated that  agritourism as an economic development instrument has great potential to contribute to rural development as Malaysia is one of the tourist countries with great potential to develop agritourism. As per the Council of Agriculture (COA) of Taiwan, after registering a decline of 1.9% of GDP in 2001, 173 Farms were established for tourism and this created huge impact in the development of rural areas of Taiwan such as chi-ching and Shwei-Li in Nantou County (Murangwa, 2010) A study on agritourism in Thailand notes that agritourism can utilize the agricultural holdings and products for the purpose of tourism such as scenery from paddy fields and vineyards, food and drink from agricultural products (vegetable, fruit, etc), souvenirs from local products (handicraft), and accommodations from redundant or vacated property to gain local development in area (Cynthiaord, 2012). As reported by the South East Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), in Manila Philippines, agritourism could be a nichà © tourism product that would help improve farm incomes provided a well-planned program is put in place. It will consolidate initiatives in agriculture and tourism sectors nationwide that contributed to poverty reduction, natural resources management, and rural development. (Aguiba, 2012) A research in Chitwan District in Nepal found out the importance of agritourism for the rural development in Nepal. Agritourism is the concept of diverting the tourists to those rural areas, where there is range of agricultural activities, services and amenities provided by farmers and rural people attract both internal as well as international tourists in order to generate extra income for their business. The living standard of the farmers and rural poor can be raised by identifying high value-low volume crops, which have comparative advantages and by optimally utilizing the available resources for sustainable development (Maharjan, 2008). However, the available literature evidence that our neighboring country India has engaged in agritourism successfully. According to the research on Agritourism the potential for sustainable development and growth aiming to explore the scope for developing agritourism in India has been conducted by Raghunandan et al.,(2010). This research has conc luded that there is potential for Agritourism in India to grow into an important source of income for the rural population if the development is focused on integration and participation. Furthermore, Agritourism has been identified as a source of generation of alternative income for farmers and local community, employment opportunities, reduction of gender bias and accelerate growth rate by Chadda and Bhakare (2010) based on their research on Socio-Economic Implications of Agritourism in India. Agritourism in Sri Lanka Evidence on only one study related to agritourism and rural development of Sri Lanka was found as a result of the vigorous literature search during the study. One study is the research conducted by Senanayaka and Wimalaratna (2010) about agritourism and rural development in Sri Lanka with special reference to Nuwara Eliya District. They have found that the economic problems as well as development potentials remain in agricultural areas side by side in the country. Only a small fraction of the vast rural agritourism resource base is being utilized by the industry now with little or no benefits to rural people. Dedicated research work on agritourism will promote the sector with the participation of policy makers, rural communities and private investors on a sustainable manner while trickling down a reasonable fraction of the benefits to the rural people. This would diversify their agricultural livelihoods and improve their income and living standards. As per the literature review, agritourism in most of the countries has a short history and it is at the developing stage (Maumbe, 2012; Choo, 2012; Bernardo et al., 2007). Several countries have the research findings mainly based on preliminary research and pilot studies. Therefore, there is definitely a need for future research to verify the preliminary findings of these researches especially in developing countries. Moreover, several researchers have shown that agritourism has lots of strengths and opportunities for the improvement of rural areas and rural development. However, those researches have been conducted in specific condition which is unique to that particular country itself. Therefore, generalization of the findings to other countries is not so valid specially, for developing countries having lots of variations in geographical, political, socio-economical and environmental conditions. Not only the differences among the developing countries, there are several regional lev el differences even within a country. Furthermore, in a country, rural areas are different from each other. Thus, testing the level of contribution of agritourism for the rural development at provincial level is the best way to identify the real potential of it. Since a very few number of research have been conducted at provincial level in developing countries, there is a need for lots of research of this kind. Even though in Sri Lanka there may be a potential in this regard, no sufficient research have been conducted in this field. Therefore, this kind of research is highly important. Problem statement Sri Lanka is a developing country and there is a need to enhance the living condition of the people by developing the total economy of the country. There is a gradual, but comparatively slow increase in GDP in the country for several years (Figure1.1). Figure 1.1: Improvement of the GDP from 2002 to 2012 in Sri Lanka Source: Central Bank of Sri Lanka, 2012 Sri Lanka tourism has contributed to the growth of total economy for several years. However, due to exist civil war during 2008-2009, tourism had being faced a declining trend. Along with ending the war in 2009, tourism industry restated to flourish and contribute for the national economy significantly. As a result, by now it is one of the main contributors of the national income of the country and expects to have further growth in future. The direct contribution of Travel Tourism to GDP in 2011 was LKR219.7bn (3.4% of GDP). This is forecast to rise by 5.6% to LKR232.0bn in 2012.This primarily reflects the economic activity generated by industries such as hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services (excluding commuter services). The direct contribution of travel tourism to GDP is expected to grow by 5.7% per annum to LKR402.4bn (3.4% of GDP) by 2022 (Figure 1.2). Figure 1.2: Contribution of travel and tourism to GDP from 2002 to 2022. Source: World Travel and Tourism council, 2012 Moreover, travel tourism generated 236,500 jobs directly in 2011 (3.0% of total employment) and this is forecast to grow by 0.2% in 2012 to 237,000 (3.0% of total employment). This includes employment by hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services (excluding commuter services). It also includes, for example, the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries directly supported by tourists. By 2022, travel tourism will account for 293,000 jobs directly, an increase of 2.2% per annum over the next ten years (Figure 1.3). Figure1.3: Travel and tourisms contribution to employment opportunities from 2011 to 2022 Source: World Travel and Tourism council, 2012 Rural sector performs a significant contribution for the national development in the country. About 70 percent of Sri Lankas population lives in its rural areas. In rural areas, main sectors that are helping for rural development are agriculture, forestry, fisheries, mining, art and craft and rural tourism. Among these sectors, the most important one is agriculture. A large number of people in the rural sector engaged mainly in agriculture and allied activities. Agriculture sector can generate regionally equitable economic growth, rural livelihood improvement, and food security through efficient production of commodities for consumption for agro-based industries. Since agriculture sector has multi-functionality, it can link with other sectors like tourism and form new opportunities for local and regional development. Considering the experience of other developing countries in Asia, it can be assumed that there will be a potential for agritourism for the rural development in Sri Lanka. Therefore, this study will answer the question does agritourism represent a significant and viable rural development tool in Sri Lanka? 1.3 Objectives of the study The broad objective of this research is to explore the potential of agritourism for rural development in Sri Lanka with special reference to demand and supply issues. Specific objectives of this research are: To find out the current supply of agritourism in the country. To study the government policy interventions in tourism and agritourism sector of the country. To identify and assess the visitors needs and satisfaction of agritourism of the country. To find out the local residents attitude towards impacts of agritourism economic and contribution of agritourism for rural development. To find out the government officials attitude towards impact of agritourism to the rural development in the country and also national and provincial level support to the development of agritourism as a sector of rural development. To recommend ways and strategies to development of agritourism in Sri Lanka as a sector of rural development. 1.4 Conceptual Framework The aim of this research is to study the agritourism and its contribution for the rural development in the country. The main stakeholders of agritourism are agritourism providers, visitors, local residents and the government. Figure1.4 shows the relationship of the stakeholder in agritourism and how agritourism links with rural development. Agritourism providers supply the agritourism. They can be farmers, private sector companies or organizations. Agritourism supply can be conducted by adding tourism activities to the existing farm and arranging facilities for the visitors to come to the farm, see those activities and get some knowledge about them, spend leisure time at the farm. In supply agritourism three things are important. Things to see (farm animals, fruits, vegetables, Herbal plants) activities to do (feeding animals, milking cows, harvesting crops, climbing trees, picking fruits, threshing paddy) and farm products to buy (yogurts, curds, fruits, vegetable, jam jelly). Visitors can be local or foreign people those who are ready to buy the agritourism services. They make demand for agritourism. They come to visit the farm to see things, get a rest, enjoy farm activities and sometimes study on farming, Farm stay for few days, visit surrounding villages, buy local art and craft items, see cultural shows perform by local people and pay for the farm goods and services they consumed. In this way agritourism provider can earn extra income and other returns from agritourism which is the main aim of providing agritourism. Improvement of the level of income and living standard of the agritourism providers (especially farmers) is the main aspects of agritourism business. Other important point regarding agritourism is the presence of other tourism attractions in the area. Other tourism attractions can act as a motivational factor for visiting the agritourism operation. Moreover, proper government interference through correct rules and regulations are essential to operate the agritourism industry smoothly. Also, on the way, visitors can buy local products of nearby local residents, can visit other interesting places in the village like religious places, cultural sites, national parks, forests, waterfalls, traditional festivals, folk games. In this way, visitors can interact with local residents of the area. These interactions create economic, social-cultural and environmental that impacts for the rural development of the area. Furthermore, local residents can sell their products and labour to agritourism operation and earn some money. Enhancement of the level of income and living standard of local residents are the other aim of agritourism along the way to rural development. The other important factor is the government attitude towards agritourism and intervention to rural areas where agritourism operations are available. Especially provincial and local level governments have responsibility to enhance the condition of the area up to a good stand making it suitable for conducting tourism activities. So that, provision of infrastructure facilities such as road system, transport facilities, water, electricity, telecommunication to the area have to be taken place. Not only that, banking facilities, safety and security, medical facilities for the area are also needed to be provided. In this way, provisions of infrastructure facilities directly help for the rural develop of the area. Other Tourism Attractions of the Area -Mass tourism -Ecotourism -Nature tourism Agritourism Rural Development Other Sectors of Rural Development -Forestry, -Fisheries, -Mining, -Art and craft etc. National Development Visitors Demand and Supply of Agritourism Local Residence Government Policy -National Level -Provincial Level -Local Level Impacts of Agritourism Agritourism providers -Economic -Socio-cultural -Environmental Local Residents -Economic -Socio-cultural -Environmental Agritourism Providers Private Sector Medium and Large Scale Companies Local Foreign Farmers Figure 1.4 Conceptual Framework of the Study 1. 5 Scope and Limitations of the Study This study has covered important aspects such as the supply of agritourism (number of destinations, scale of operation, available facilities, number of visitors, length of stay etc). Demand for agritourism (demographic information of visitors, nature of their demand, visitors satisfaction towards agritourism, demand function) information of local residents (impacts of agritourism on them, their attitudes towards agritourism development) and policies related to agritourism development in the country. Agritourism is a business process. However, aspects like establishment, management, development, improvement, marketing and promotion of the operations are beyond the scope of this study. There were few limitations in this research. This is a small-scale research conducted at local level with four types of stakeholder; operators, visitor, local residents and government officials within only few districts without the whole country. In terms of operators, some financial analysis like benefit cost ratio, IRR of agritourism etc., could not be done as they did not want to disclose financial information d