The Jellyfish Dystopia Essay -- Ecology

Earth’s environment is a complex construction with multiple parts that are all important to its success. Even creatures like jellyfish cannot be ignored when considering this delicate construction. As humans manipulate the environment, conditions are beginning to favor jellyfish and promote large population explosions. The effects of these large populations have a myriad of effects on humans and can be applied to ecological dynamics found in Margaret Atwood’s A Handmaid’s Tale. The manipulation of the environment by humans is the first factor that has begun to promote the jellyfish dystopia. As humans change the environment, conditions are beginning to favor jellyfish. In an environment that largely favors them, a population explosion and accompanying jellyfish dystopia is inevitable. These population explosions are a great leap toward the jellyfish dystopia. Throughout the marine environment, humans have begun overfishing in multiple marine environments. This opens niches in the oceanic food webs. These niches, or spaces in the food webs, result from the removal of predators that would previously control the jellyfish population (Stone). In the absence of their predators, the jellyfish population is free to expand and forms blooms, or large jellyfish populations. The jellyfish themselves then prevent the native fish population from rebounding by feeding on the fish eggs (Stone). Human proceed to fish in these areas again, and the jellyfish predation decr eases to a greater degree. Humans also improve conditions for jellyfish as we allow pollution levels to rise. Devices like cars are contributors to the carbon dioxide levels. As the CO2 levels rise, this also affects the oceans. They slowly are becoming more acidic and becomin... ...er what manipulating this environment may due to the jellyfish. Unfortunately, in many cases we are improving conditions for them and as a result degrading our own situation. Works Cited Blomberg, Lindsey. "The Great Jellyfish Invasion." E: The Environmental Magazine 23.1 (2012): 16-17. Academic Search Complete. Web. 1 May 2012. Pauly, Daniel. "Aquacalypse Now." The New Republic. Mike Rancilio, 9 Sept. 2009. Web. 01 May 2012. Tucker, Abigail. "The New King Of The Sea." Smithsonian 41.4 (2010): 26-37. Academic Search Complete. Web. 1 May 2012. Stone, Richard. "Massive Outbreak of Jellyfish Could Spell Trouble for Fisheries." Yale Environment 360. Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, 13 Jan. 2011. Web. 01 May 2012. Vince, Gaia. "Jellyfish Blooms Creating Oceans of Slime." BBC.com. British Broadcasting Company, 5 Apr. 2012. Web. 1 May 2012.

Know Thyself Essay -- essays research papers

Consider the ancient imperative â€Å"know thyself†. How can different ways of knowing help us as individuals and communities to achieve this goal? Shakespeare once said, â€Å"Life is but a stage and men merely players on it.† In order for us to become main characters on this stage, instead of mere extras, we must be able to truly identify who we are as individuals first. After this has been accomplished we can find out how we can benefit our society. When complete self-awareness, self-knowledge, self-confidence, and self-respect are reached, than you can truly â€Å"know thyself.† In all of the Natural Sciences, be it physics, chemistry, or biology, the physical world is dissected and analyzed. Using a language of their own, the Natural Sciences go about defining and declaring what we are. In biology the human brain is analyzed and studied; in fact when my parents were in medical school and were studying neurology, they were given actual brains to dissect. However these studies merely identify what is there physically, not the soul or the identity. Sant Kirpal Singh explains, â€Å"Man is composed of body, mind (intellect) and soul. We are extremely careful to develop ourselves physically and mentally, but understand very little about the soul, which is the Power ruling both the body and the mind.† I have a sixth grade sister named Nora, and she is going through what most young adults go through at her age, self-discovery. She is neither an adult nor a child and is feeling lost and angry at ...

The Characters of Leo Tolstoys Anna Karenina Essay -- Tolstoy Anna Ka

The Characters of Leo Tolstoy's Anna Karenina          By examining the character list, one immediately notices the value Tolstoy places on character.   With one hundred and forty named characters and several other unnamed characters,   Tolstoy places his central focus in Anna Karenina on the characters. He uses their actions and behavior to develop the plot and exemplify the major themes of the novel.   Tolstoy wishes to examine life as it really is.   Tolstoy gives us a lifelike representation in Anna Karenina by creating   characters, both major and minor, that contribute to the sense of realism.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The most striking feature of Tolstoy's minor characters is that although they may only appear briefly, they still possess a sense of lifelikeness.   When a character is introduced, Tolstoy provides the reader with details of the characters appearance and actions that give a sense of realism.   For example, the waiter that Stiva and Levin encounter at their dinner, although a flat character is definitely presented in a manner which allows him to have a sense of lifelikeness and fullness.   From the speech patterns the waiter uses to the description of the fit of his uniform, one is presented with the details that allow the waiter to contribute to the novel in means beyond simply the presence of a minor character.   His description and actions provide the novel with a sense of "real life".      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Another way in which Tolstoy gives the minor character a sense of life is by making them unpredictable.   One sees this in the character of Ryabinin.   When initially discussed,   the reader is told that upon conclusion of busines... ...esponse to the same situation.  Ã‚   It is this contrast of the three characters that allows Tolstoy to take full command of the life novel. He achieves a sense of real life in all of his characters.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although the reader may wish to, and can, draw distinctions in Tolstoy's characters such as a major or minor character that is either flat or round, the central focus of the character should be the contribution that they make to the reality of the novel. Although one can classify each of the characters in Anna Karenina as a major, minor, flat or round character,   Tolstoy presents each of his characters, whether they be major minor flat or round, so as to convey a sense of reality and lifelikeness in his novel.    Work Cited Tolstoy, Leo, Anna Karenin, translated by Edmonds, Rosemary, Penguin, London, 1978.

Cosmology in Milton’s Paradise Lost Essay

The Oxford English Dictionary defines â€Å"cosmos† as â€Å"the world or universe as an ordered and harmonious system,† from the Greek, â€Å"kosmos,† referring to an ordered and/or ornamental thing. When God created the world he had this in mind. To have a harmonious system in the universe where everything can live in peace and free of all worry. God was on top and everything was peaceful. Until the angles in Milton’s Paradise Lost had a fight. After the fight God banished these bad angels and had the last part of his universe created, hell. This completed a very complex picture of Milton’s vision of the universe in the beginning. The encyclopedic writers of the early Middle Ages communicated a modest assortment of basic cosmological information, drawn from a variety of ancient sources, especially Platonic and Stoic. These writers proclaimed the sphericity of the earth, discussed its circumference, and defined its climatic zones and division into continents. They described the celestial sphere and the circles used to map it; many revealed at least an elementary understanding of the solar, lunar and other planetary motions. They discussed the nature and size of the sun and moon, the cause of eclipses, and a variety of metrological phenomena. Another novelty was the frequent argument of the twelfth-century authors that God limited His creative activity to the moment of creation; thereafter, they held, the natural causes that He had created directed the course of things. Twelfth-century cosmologists stressed the unified, organic character of the cosmos, ruled by a world soul and bound together by astrological forces and the macrocosm-microcosm relationship. In an important continuation of early medieval thought, twelfth-century scholars described a cosmos that was fundamentally homogeneous, composed of the same elements from top to bottom: Aristotle’s quintessence or aether and his radical dichotomy between the celestial and terrestrial regions had not yet made their presence felt. Cosmology, like so many other subjects, was transformed by the wholesale translation of Greek and Arabic sources in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Specifically, the Aristotelian tradition gained center stage in the thirteenth century and gradually substituted its conception of the cosmos for that of Plato and the early Middle Ages. This is not to suggest that Aristotle and Plato disagreed on all the important issues; on many of the basics they were in full accord. Aristotelians, like Platonists, conceived the cosmos to be a great (but unquestionably finite) sphere, with the havens above and the earth at the center. All agreed that it had a beginning in time – although some Aristotelians of the thirteenth century were prepared to argue that this could not be established by philosophical arguments. Nobody representing either school of thought doubted that the cosmos was unique: although nearly everybody acknowledged that God could have created multiple worlds, it is difficult to assume that anybody seriously believed He had done so. However, where Aristotle and Plato disagreed, the Aristotelian world picture gradually displaced the Platonic. One of the major differences concerned the issue of homogeneity. Aristotle divided the cosmic sphere into two distinct regions, made of different stuff and operating according to different principles. Below the moon is the terrestrial region, formed out of the four elements. This region is the scene of generation and corruption, of birth and death, and of transient (typically rectilinear) motions. Above the moon are the celestial spheres, to which the fixed stars, the sun and the remaining planets are attached. This celestial region, composed of aether or the quintessence (the fifth element), is characterized by unchanging perfection and uniform circular motion. Other Aristotelian contributions to the cosmological picture were his elaborate system of planetary spheres and the principles of causation by which the celestial motions produced generation and corruption in the terrestrial realm. A variety of Aristotelian features, then, merged with traditional cosmological beliefs to define the essentials of late medieval cosmology – a cosmology that became the shared intellectual property of educated Europeans in the course of the thirteenth century. Universal agreement of such magnitude emerged not because the educated felt compelled to yield to the authority of Aristotle, but because his cosmological picture offered a persuasive and satisfying account of the world as they perceived it. Nonetheless, certain elements of Aristotelian cosmology quickly became the objects of criticism and debate, and it is here, in the attempt to flesh out and fine-tine Aristotelian cosmology and bring it into harmony with the opinions of other authorities and with biblical teaching, that medieval scholars made their cosmological contribution. But the most interesting point about Milton? s cosmology is this: why, when he knew of the discoveries Galileo had made with his telescope-as Book VIII clearly proves-and must have accepted the validity of the Copernican cosmology, wich our planetary system revolves, did Milton base his universe upon the Ptolematic pattern? The answer lies in the literary advantages of accepting the older though erreoneous concept: it was known, and Copernicanism was strongly resisted and only slowly accepted; the Ptolematic system was orderly, it laid down limits within wich Milton found it easier to work, and it made God and man the two ends of a chain-man can ascend, onward and ever upward, to union with the divinity, and this could never have happened in an open-ended Copernican universe. From the early through the late Middle Ages, Europeans moved from a disorganized, almost mystical way of thinking about the universe to an acceptance of a well-ordered, geocentric universe based upon the ideas of Greek philosophers such as Ptolemy and Aristotle. In this universe, the Earth was at the center and other heavenly bodies rotated around it in a series of concentric spheres . The entire system was powered by the primum mobile, or â€Å"Prime Mover,† which was the outermost sphere set in motion directly by God. This Primum Mobile trasformed the love of God for mankind into energy and provided the impetus that made the whole universe rotate; It took some very creative thinking to make this universe work well. For example, the retrograde motion of the planets in which they sometimes seemed to be changing directions and moving backwards was explained by way of â€Å"epicycles† (see the diagram on the right below). Specifically, it was proposed that the planets rotated around a center point fixed in place on the sphere of that planet, causing the apparent change in the direction of planetary motion. The seven known planets orbited the Earth, each one? atmosphere pushing round the one next inside it by friction ; all of this motion created a beautiful â€Å"music of the spheres† which could not be detected by humans (at least not until after they died and went to heaven), but which provided pleasure for angels and other supernatural beings. The outermost orbit, that of the planet Saturn, was itself surrounnded by the spere of the fixed stars (Book III,481) and outside that again was the vast expanse of the waters of firmament, also called by Milton the Crystalline firmament, as distinct from the waters on the earth and under the earth, had been used by God as an insulating jacket esigned to protect His Chaos through wich Satan flies at the end of Book II. The whole universe was suspended from Heaven (also frequently called the Empyrean) by a golden chain. Since medieval Europeans had no conception of a vacuum, it was believed that the heavens were filled with a celestial fluid that flowed as the spheres of the universe rotated, thus sustaining the motion of the planets. In Heaven, God sits on His throne supported by four seraphim, the most powerful of the nine orders of angels wich had remained loyal. he middle Ages believed literally that it was Divine Love that made the world go round. The rebel tenth who had revolted under Satan had been hurled down into another dread realm, Hell, created for them to occupy beyond the domain of Chaos and Old Night to the outer surface of our universe. Deceiving Uriel, regent of the sun, he flies down to Eden. The subsequent movements of both Satan and the guardians of Paradise are explained in Books IV and IX with detailed astronomical references. Just as the physical universe was thought to be centered around the Earth, the psychological universe of Medieval Europeans revolved around humans. Any understanding of the psychology and behavior of individuals at that time requires a consideration of the person’s desire for eternal salvation. For Medieval European Christians, time had essentially two divisions: The brief and insignificant one in which they lived out their sinful lives, and the cosmically enduring one in which the suffering or joy of their souls would occur. In Medieval Europe, there was no room for abnormality or nonconformity, as ANY deviation was considered to be the work of the devil. A hierarchy was everywhere in all things. People accepted their place in the social order no matter how lowly it might have been, and everything in the world had the potential for symbolizing something supernatural. People perceived messages from God in virtually every natural and human event. However, By the 17th century, the Copernican and Galilean models gained ground, and replaced this worldview. It was still an attractive philosophical construction and one that persisted for a long time in the collective Renaissance consciousness. Milton, who chose to use the Ptolemaic cosmology for his Paradise Lost, was not alone in Renaissance literature to hold on to the Medieval worldview, if not in scientific earnest, as a poetical conceit (cf. Donne’s â€Å"The First Anniversary† and â€Å"Good Friday, 1613†). Nothing less than the creation and ordering of the universe defines the scope of Paradise Lost. The epic explores its cosmological theme in theoretical discussions between Adam and Raphael and in the narrator’s descriptions and metaphors. Further, Milton imagines Satan surveying the universe in an expedition of discovery through a new world in his fall from Heaven and his passage through Chaos to Earth. Adam tries to understand the earth’s physical place in the universe and its associated ontological and theological value as the home of man. He wonders aloud about â€Å"this Earth a spot, a grain,/ An Atom, with the Firmament compar’d/ And all her numbered Starrs, that seem to rowl /Spaces incomprehensible† (PL8. 17-21). Milton asks us to imagine the first man struggling with many of the same questions a Renaissance thinker, contemplating new models of the universe, must have considered. In response to the theory that everything revolves around the sun and not the earth, philosophers were forced to question the importance of man’s role in the universal order. Raphael, responding to Adam’s concerns, suggests there is no reason â€Å"bodies bright and greater should not serve / The less not bright, nor Heav’n such journies run / Earth sitting still† (PL8. 87-9). Yet, the poem does not answer all such questions directly, and scholars often find it difficult to determine Milton’s attitude toward science. In these debates, it is helpful to remember that Milton was not a scientist but a theorist. He did not contribute to scientific knowledge so much as to an understanding of what new scientific ideas might mean to traditional Christian cosmology. He meditates on this in conditional modes, as does Raphael in his description of the universe: â€Å"What if the Sun/ Be Centre to the World† (PL 8. 122-3). In the mid-sixteenth century, Nicolaus Copernicus and his followers, most notably Johannes Kepler and Galileo Galilei, disturbed the entire Christian world by proposing a heliocentric model of the universe that displaced the earth, and by extension humanity, from the center. As the Reformation progressed, resulting theological debates acquired political importance and Milton, as a politically conscious theologian, addressed these issues in Paradise Lost. Critics debate the extent of Milton’s interest in the advancement of science. Catherine Gimelli Martin notes that many find â€Å"his cosmology stands on the wrong side of the great scientific revolution initiated by Copernicus, furthered by Galileo, and completed by Newton† (â€Å"What If the Sun Be Centre† 233). However, Martin argues that classifying Milton as scientifically backward is a mistake resulting from our modern society: â€Å"we too easily forget that during this formative period, no ‘advancement of learning,’ scientific or otherwise, could yet be conceived as succeeding apart from the requisite disclaimers about the folly of seeking superhuman knowledge and the proper assurances of humility before heights of Divine Wisdom† (Martin 231-2). Modern readers tend to treat scientific knowledge as inevitably progressive and therefore expect in Milton an appreciation of our modern scientific values and knowledge. As a rationalist, Milton must have admired the new sciences but, as a classicist and a Christian theologian, he had not yet placed scientific knowledge ahead of piety or biblical knowledge. William Poole notes the danger of seeing in Milton an advanced scientific philosopher and warns: â€Å"we should be extremely wary forcing Milton into clothes he does not fit† (â€Å"Milton and Science: A Caveat† 18). However, within the middle ground, scholars agree with Martin that Milton appreciated the value of scientific thought and development, although he may have doubted the reach of this branch of human knowledge. Cosmology appears in Paradise Lost through direct scientific references, incorporation of new scientific theories into various characters’ worldviews, and warnings against seeking beyond the limits of human knowledge. Martin observes: â€Å"Galileo or his telescope is approvingly cited on five separate occasions in Milton’s epic (the only contemporary reference to appear at all)† (Martin 238).

Role and Performance of Government and Ngos in Relie F

ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 Role and Performance of Government and NGOs in Relief Assistance: A Case Study of 2005 Earthquake61 Khalil Ahmad(Corresponding author) Assistant Professor of Economics University of the Punjab, Lahore Tanveer Ahmed Naveed Lecturer, Department of Economics University of Gujrat Sami Ullah Lecturer, Department of Economics University of Gujrat Tahir Rashid Ph. D.Scholar at Government College University, Lahore (Pakistan) Abstract This study investigates the role and performance of Pakistan government and humanitarian agencies during relief and emergency aid assistance to 2005 earthquake victims. This comparative study is based on empirical data collected from 30 most affected villages of NWFP (Pakistan) and AJK through a sample survey on 1st anniversary of 2005 earthquake. About 500 randomly selected heads of the families were interviewed in the sampled area.Mann-Whitney Wilcoxon test i s used to compare the relief assistance provision and satisfaction shown by sufferers toward government agencies and Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) during relief program. While Chi-Squire test is used only to investigate the relationship between affected areas and respondents’ demographic characteristics. Evidently, results show that the NGOs provided more relief items in a better way to victims of 2005 earthquake than did the Government of Pakistan. This study will be helpful in disaster management planning at government and non-governmental levels.Keywords: Performance; Earthquake; NGOs; Government; Relief Efforts BACKGROUND AND INTRODUCTION Pakistan experienced a destructive earthquake on October 8, 2005, at 8:50 PST, intensity of 7. 6 measuring on Richter scale. Arguably, this was the most devastating disaster in Pakistan’s history. The earthquake epicenter was located 100 kilometers north-northeast of Islamabad. Intensity of losses increased by a series of aftershocks, more than 1000 aftershocks ‘ranging from magnitude 5. 0 to 6. 0’ were recorded as of October 27th in IndiaPakistan Kashmir region. 61 Authors are very thankful to PATTAN Development Organization (National NGO) and Dr.S. M. Naseem for financial help and motivation in study conduction COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1726 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 At least 73,000 people had died, another 70,000 had been severely injured or disabled and over 2. 8 million persons have been left without shelter. In addition, 600,000 houses, 6,298 schools and 796 health facilities were demolished. About 6,440 kilo meters roads were damaged and 50-70% of the water supply, sanitation, telecommunication and power infrastructure was rendered un-operational. Pakistan 2006) It is nearly impossible to figure out exact economic impact of earthquake 2005. In total, about US$5. 2 billion was estimated cost of earthquake; includes cost of relief provision to victims, restoration of livelihood support and short, medium and long term reconstruction (ADB and World Bank, 2005). The most immediate task was rescue of people trapped in collapsed buildings and to transport them at safer places along with provision of relief to survivors to save the lives and to secure the dignity of affected population (ERRA, Annual Review 2005 to 2006).The Government of Pakistan immediately realized the enormity of the task and appealed to the international community for emergency assistance. The Government of Pakistan and national & international agencies took immediate measures for rescue, relief and reconstruction for 3. 5 million affected people of NWFP and AJK. Generally, donor agencies and the external sources prefer to channelize emergency assistance to disaster victims through international and/or indigenous NGOs due to all pervasive corruption and misappropriation of reli ef funds on the part of the Governments.The government of Pakistan and participating slocal, national, and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) with the help of domestic and external sources initiated massive rescue and relief activities in the area. (ERRA, Annual Review 2005 to 2006) Both, government of Pakistan and NGOs played important role in relief distribution and rehabilitation activities. Government of Pakistan established the central coordination office for rescue and relief started to work at Prime Minister (PM) Secretariat immediately after the earthquake.Federal Relief Commission was established on 10th October 2005 to mobilize all resources, to coordinate activities and to facilitate flow of relief goods (ERRA, Annual Review 2005 to 2006). The Federal Relief Commission (FRC) of Pakistan Government, Armed Forces, International donors, UN agencies and local NGOs joined hands to undertake the huge operation for delivering emergency relief against challenges s uch as mountainous terrain, distant and difficult to access communities, changing weather conditions, resource constraint, and overwhelming suffering of the people.On March 31st 2006, the Government of Pakistan officially ended the ‘Relief’ phase and the Federal Relief Commission (FRC) was subsumed into Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA). Government of Pakistan, NGOs and international nongovernmental organizations (INGOs) performed different rescue, relief and rehabilitation activities during the first year of the 2005 disaster. Relief provided by FRC with assistance from foreign governments, INGOs, NGOs, individuals and corporate sponsors are summarized in Table 1.COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1727 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS Table 1: Joint Relief Delivered to the Affected Population Relief Goods and Services Temporary Shelters to Families Tents Blanke ts / Quilts Ration( in tons) Medicines (in tons) Field Hospitals Established Field /Mobile Medical Teams Sorties Flown Quantity 385,000 951,790 6,361,090 256,376 3053. 76 65 86 30,334 JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 Source: ERRA, Annual Review 2005 to 2006 (From October 2005 to March 2006)Empirical studies suggest that nations with greater resources, better awareness and preparedness are more able to restore and move to normality faster than poor and less prepared nations during disasters. According to the Mid-America Earthquake Center, ‘‘the biggest earthquakes in the region (Pakistan & India) are yet-to-come’’ (Boyd 2006, p. 1). â€Å"Theoretical studies indicate that the energy stored along the Himalayan arc suggests a high probability of several massive earthquakes of magnitude (greater than) 8. 0 in the future† (Shaheen 2007, p. ) â€Å"Theoretical studies indicate that the energy stored along the Himalayan arc suggests a high probability of several mass ive earthquakes of magnitude (greater than) 8. 0 in the future† (Shaheen 2007, p. 1). Research on disasters could be used as a tool for creating better preparedness to combat with future disasters. Further, it helps formulate a comprehensive strategy for disaster management. This research study based on Pakistan’s experience and response to disaster 2005 would be of greater importance for other countries facing similar disasters.Objectively, researchers have investigated various aspects of the 2005 earthquake. However, this study sheds light on role, responsibilities and performance of Governmental institutions and Non-governmental organizations during rescue and relief efforts. This study compares performance of the Pakistan government with NGOs with regard to management and distribution of emergency aid to 2005 earthquake victims during and immediately after the disaster.This comparison is based on data obtained from three most affected areas of NWFP (Pakistan) and AJ K through a sample survey conducted on earthquake victims in October 2006, on the 1st anniversary of 2005 earthquake. Literature Review Pakistan is prone to frequent disasters that inflicted severe losses to property and lives. More frequent disasters are floods, droughts and earthquakes. However, the history reveals that earthquakes were the worst disasters regarding losses to lives (ERRA, Annual Review 2005 to 2006).In 1950, Pakistan witnessed the first severe flood disaster that claimed 2910 lives and affected more than 10,000 villages. Since then, floods, droughts, cyclones, earthquakes and landslides have been striking with regular intervals but none of the successive governments could ever devise a comprehensive strategy for disaster management (A Review of DMP&S in Pakistan). There was a major earthquake in Quetta, Balochistan, in COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1728 ijcrb. webs. comINTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BU SINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 1935 when the entire city was destroyed. From 1974 to 1990, approximately 5669 people were killed due to earthquakes in the Northern Areas (NA), NWFP and Balochistan (A Review of DMP&S in Pakistan). A brief history of earthquakes in Pakistan along with intensity and resulting human losses is given in Table 2. Table 2: Details of Earthquakes in Pakistan Date May 31, 1935 November 28, 1945 December 28, 1974 October 8, 2005 October 29, 2008 Magnitude 7. 7. 8 6. 2 7. 6 6. 4 Deaths 30,000 – 60,000 4,000 5,300 80,000 215 Injuries and Destruction Tsunami 17,000 injured 3. 5 million people homeless 120,000 homeless District/Province Ali Jaan, Balochistan Balochistan Hunza, Hazara and Swat Muzaffarabad (AJK) Ziarat District, Quetta Source: www. wikipedia. org. com As Pakistan is in a seismic belt, therefore, it suffers from frequent earthquakes of small magnitudes. Mountain ranges of Koh-e-Suleman, Hindu Kush and Karakorum are significantly vulnerable.The devastation can be immense because of the poor quality of buildings and housing (A Review of DMP&S in Pakistan). During the 2005 earthquake a large number of government buildings constructed by the contractors in AJK and Balakot area, collapsed in the first jerk of the quake. This is the overall impression of the people in the earthquake devastated areas that between 30 and 60 per cent of funds for government buildings, including schools, are spoiled by corrupt officials. Contractors habitual of such kickbacks spend less on quality materials resulting in poorly constructed buildings.Therefore, systemic corruption in government construction projects would be directly responsible for the devastating losses of next generation in northern areas of Pakistan (Shaheen, 2008). In addition, there was no adequate crisis management structure in Pakistan prior to the 2005 earthquake and none have any past experience to deal with such severe natural disasters. Although, the army and several NGO groups took the initiative in launching rescue and relief efforts, however, the onerous responsibility of reconstruction and rebuilding rested on the government (Prakash Ouis, 2001).Further, high dependence on natural resources makes communities vulnerable particularly to changes in resource condition (Pomeroy et al. , 2006). Mostly, all-pervasive corruption and abuse of relief aid by Government agencies and bureaucratic style of humanitarian organizations distracts them from the needs of the people they are supposed to assist, in favor of other values that their institutional frameworks dictate (Binini, 2006).This claim was tested by investigating the response to the Pakistan 2005 earthquake and a closer look at data suggests that there was not an optimal match between survivor needs and relief deliveries (Binini, 2006). A certain degree of coordination failure is, of course, inevitable in disasters of this scale. However, Pakistan’s domestic and external political situation made such co-ordination even more problematic and highlighted the need for a bottom up strategy to tap the resources at the local and grass-root levels.Literature represents different strategies adopted by the world by learning from experiences, how to combat with future disasters, how one can better prepare to face less socio-economic and COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1729 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 human losses. Many countries like Italy adopted insurance policy measures to combat natural catastrophes (Amendola, 2000). This raises the question whether government agencies and NGOs played the required role during relief phase of 2005 earthquake?Did the government or NGOs performed better during provision of relief aid to victims. Whether the international donations and NGO development programs aimed at reducing vulnerability to earthquakes are an appropriate response t o the earthquake hazard or not (Shaheen, 2008). Are earthquake victims satisfied that relief provided by Government and NGOs was according to their need and secured dignity during relief disbursement? So did Pakistan learn any lesson? If yes, what policy planning Pakistan adopted for future Disaster Risk Mitigation?These all aspects are required to investigate for better preparedness, mitigation and for future disaster response. The purpose of this research is to investigate the role and performance of government of Pakistan and humanitarian agencies during relief and emergency aid assistance of 2005 earthquake victims. Further to evaluate, comparatively who performed better. This study will be helpful in disaster management planning at government and non-government levels. Typically, this study is unique in its nature and will be an imperative contribution to the body of research concerning disaster management in Pakistan.Methodology and Data collection The primary source of data f or this research was field survey conducted in October 2006, immediately after the Pakistan government earthquake emergency relief assistance programs ended. About 500 household heads in the most affected districts (areas) of Pakistan and Kashmir â€Å"Mansehra, Bagh and Muzaffarabad† were contacted to investigate the role and performance of Government agencies and NGOs in various rescue, relief and rehabilitation programs. While survey team couldn’t conduct interviews in fourth most affected district â€Å"Batagram† due to adverse circumstances (i. . cultural, religious and political reasons, at the particular moment). Individual household was the basic sampling unit. â€Å"A household is a group of people in a dwelling unit living together as a family and sharing the same kitchen† (PAUL 2003). In the first stage of the design of the survey, out of nine, three most affected districts were selected. In the second stage, 15 most affected union councils wer e selected (5 UCs in each district). In the third stage, 30 villages or Mohalahs (for urban) were randomly selected.As affected area is consisted of diversified topography, so to find impartial and faultless response urban and rural localities were also considered. Similarly, male and female respondents were selected proportionately to find statistically reliable and significant results. A comprehensive questionnaire containing demographic information of respondents followed by data relating to socio-economic impact of disaster along with opinion questions with regard to the distribution of inflict relief by the government and NGOs were asked to household heads. A household head is defined as the person who makes the major economic, social, and household decisions, irrespective of this individual's age and gender† (PAUL 2003). Key Questions 1. Comparatively, who performed better during rescue and relief phase of 2005 earthquake, the NGOs or Government of Pakistan? COPY RIGHT à ‚ © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1730 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 a. Who provided more relief to the 2005 earthquake victims in the emergency/relief phase? . To what extent 2005 earthquake victims are satisfied with the Government and NGOs’ performance Performance is measured by ‘both’ provision of relief items to affectees and satisfaction level shown by respondents toward Government agencies and NGOs. Relief includes following items; rescue, transportation, shelters, food, bedding, cooking utensils, information and awareness, education, training, money, health facilities that were essentially required soon after disaster to survivors to live with dignity.Whereas variable government includes; Army, ERRA, PERRA, DRU, Local Administration, Federal Government, and other governmental institutions that took part in rescue and relief phase. Moreover, Non-governmental Org anizations includes; indigenous NGOs, International NGOs, UN Agencies. Analysis Techniques To analyze the amount of external support provided to the afectees by the government and to test whether the amount of received support was in accordance with their socio-economic conditions, chi-square test of association and Mann-Whitney Test (nonparametric tests) are used.Chi-Squire test is used only to investigate the relationship between affected areas and respondents’ demographic characteristics (occupation, education, sex and locality). Mann-Whitney Test is used to determine if a difference exists between performances of two groups: Government and NGOs. Unlike t-test, Mann-Whitney Test does not require normal distribution of data (MacFarland, 1998). Subsequent analysis is performed by using the SPSS.The nature of the relationship between socio-economic indicators receipt of assistance will be helpful for evaluation of the equitability and performance of the government and NGOs re lief assistance efforts during earthquake 2005. In general, there is a positive relationship between the amount of emergency aid received by earthquake victims and their socio-economic conditions. Poor victims, owing to their weak political and economic power, receive much less assistance than rich victims. Results and Discussion Devastation of 2005 earthquake could be portrayed by housing destruction of affected regions.Data represents that 100% living was affected by disaster. In total, 75% people substantiated complete demolition of houses, while remaining 25% claimed partial damage. Table 3 explains the area wise house damage caused by earthquake. Remarkably, data regarding house damage shows approximately similar trends as shown in district profiles prepared by ERRA. Table 3: Destruction of housing by 2005 Earthquake House damage Completely Damaged Partially damaged Not damaged Total Bagh 80. 7% 18. 4% 0. 9% 100% Area wise breakdown Mansehra Muzaffarabad 77. 5% 69. % 22. 0% 30. 1% 0. 6% 0. 00% 100% 100% Total 75. 2% 24. 4% 0. 4% 100% COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1731 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 Nearly, all the respondents reported that they had received the external aid ‘in any form’, either from governmental agencies, NGOs, INGOs, friends/relatives or from individual philanthropists. Collectively, about 85% respondents ranked NGOs and Government agencies topmost helping hands during relief phase.The remaining 15% reported that they seek assistance either from relatives, friends, neighbors, individual philanthropists and they ranked the same at top. The following analysis of the assistance received by victims is based on the response of 85% of respondents who availed some form of assistance. Table 4 shows selected characteristics of the respondents; mainly they were segregated into four occupational groups: farming, services, bus iness, and others. Mountainous geographic location of the area is the reason that only 6. % of the selected population is engaged in farming and 19. 7% in business profession. Moreover, majority of respondents (68%) were employed in services sector (including both public and private services). The analysis based on Chi-square test reveals that there was a significant difference in the occupational characteristics of respondents in all the three sites covered in the present Table 4: Percentage Distribution of Demographic characteristics of the respondents Characteristics Profession Farming Services Business Others Bagh 5. 4 69. 6 19. 6 5. 4 100 39. 13. 3 31. 9 15 100 25. 2 74. 8 100 55. 3 44. 7 100 Districts Mansehra Muzzaffarabad 11. 7 2. 6 59. 6 74. 7 20. 5 19. 1 8. 2 3. 6 100 100 47. 7 13. 8 23. 0 15. 5 100 22. 2 77. 8 100 52. 6 47. 4 100 46. 2 9. 7 25. 1 19. 0 100 38. 8 61. 2 100 48. 5 51. 5 100 Total 6. 5 68. 1 19. 7 5. 7 100 45. 2 12. 0 25. 9 16. 8 100 29. 7 70. 3 100 51. 6 48. 4 100 X2=18. 490 (df=6; p=0. 005) Education Illiterate 1-5 years 6-10 years Above 10 years X2=5. 531 (df=6; p=0. 478) Locality Urban Rural X2=13. 889 (df=2; p=0. 001) Sex Male Female Total X2=1. 451 (df=2; p=0. 484) study.Analysis indicates greater dependency of the affected area population on non-farming income generation sources. While in Mansehra (NWFP) 11% of respondents disclosed that their major source of income was agriculture which was highest engagement in farming throughout study area. The survey data revealed that sample consisted of 45% illiterate respondents. Further gender analysis shows that illiterate women ratio was significantly higher than male illiterate population i. e. 70% and 30% respectively of total 45%. Table 5 illustrates discriminating behavior of society regarding educational acilities to female population of the area. Chi-Squire test shows highly significant results, that is educational COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Resea rch 1732 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 level is drastically different between male and female population of selected area. Interestingly, official data regarding gender wise literacy also have approximately similar trends. Table 5: Gender wise breakdown of educational level of respondents (in Percentage) Illiterate 1-5 years Male 30. 64. 9 Female 69. 7 35. 1 Total 100. 0 100. 0 X2=76. 827 (df=3; p=0. 000) Sex Educational Level 6-10 years Above 10 years 64. 8 79. 0 35. 2 21. 0 100. 0 100. 0 Total 51. 6 48. 4 100. 0 The null hypothesis that there is no difference in provision of relief assistance to 2005 earthquake victims by Government and NGOs was tested by using Mann-Whitney test. Significance can be verified by comparing the computed test statistic (e. g. , U) with its critical value. By interpretation of the p (probability) value, it is observed that p= 0. 005, which is smaller than the 0. 05.Comparison of te st statistics with its table value and the probability method both suggest the rejection of Null hypothesis which states that there is no significant difference between government-provided relief aid and that of NGOs. Further the higher mean rank for NGOs (518 vs. 467) supports the conclusion that the NGOs provided more relief items in better way to victims of 2005 earthquake than Government of Pakistan. Table 6: Comparison of Relief Support Groups N Mean Rank Government 492 467. 53 Relief Support NGOs 492 517. 47 Total 984 Test Statistics Test StatisticMann-Whitney U Wilcoxon W Z Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) Sum of Ranks 230022. 50 254597. 50 Relief Support 108744. 500 230022. 500 -2. 824 0. 005 Evidently performance is directly associated with satisfaction. Satisfaction is persons feeling of pleasure as a result of comparing a product perceived outcome in relation to his/her expectations. Consequently, if the performance exceeds the expectation, the beneficiary is very satisfied. If out come equals the expectation, the receiver is satisfied. But if the performance falls below the expectation, then the recipient is dissatisfied.In this study Mann-Whitney Wilcoxon test is used to compare satisfaction shown by sufferers toward government and NGOs role during relief program. Test shows extremely significant results. Similar to 1st null hypothesis, 2nd null hypothesis is also significantly rejected, that is, there is no difference in satisfaction shown by victims towards NGOs and Government of Pakistan for relief provision. Further, it explains that NGOs (including both the indigenous and the international) prevailing in Pakistan have played an effective and impartial role in the distribution of relief assistance than did the government organizations.So results show that COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1733 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 credibility of NGOs botto m-up approach is higher than that of the government based on topdown directives. In so for as performance is concerned, people are more satisfied with the role played by NGOs/INGOs as compared to Government Agencies during the relief phase. Table 7: Comparison of Satisfaction Groups/Satisfaction Government NGOs Total Statistic Mann-Whitney U Wilcoxon W Z Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) N 492 492 984 Mean Rank 354. 310976 630. 3689024 Sum of Ranks 174478. 5 310141. 5 Test Statistics Satisfaction 53200. 5 174478. 5 -15. 242 0. 000 Conclusion In 2005, Pakistan experienced the most disturbing earthquake in its history. Pakistan government and humanitarian agencies initiated wide range of relief efforts for the survival of victims. This study is an effort to compare the relief disbursement efforts carried out by the NGOs and the government. Further, it looks at the possible association between socioeconomic characteristics of the disaster victims and the amount of assistance they received from th e government and/or from the NGOs.To probe these objectives, this study used a primary data in which 500 household heads of 30 villages of 15 union councils of three districts have been interviewed. The analysis of data indicates that though both, government of Pakistan and NGOs’ played significant role during rescue and relief assistance, the majority of respondents reported that they were more satisfied by the NGOs work compared to government efforts. Further majority of the respondents believed that NGOs performed much better in relief provision than the government of Pakistan.Recognition to NGOs efforts could be due to non-bureaucratic working style, proper need assessment, ensuring victim participation in decision making, acting as per sphere standards while helping the communities. Moreover, wide range of experience in working with effected communities and use of more participatory approach made them more efficient and successful. Respondents’ opinions regarding less efficient role of government could be due to unmet very high and irrational victims’ expectations. Further NGOs are supposed to work in specified area with having fewer responsibilities and more skills.Whereas governments’ working area and responsibilities are spread to all affected population regardless of degree of severity. Moreover, important policy implication of this study is that if government agencies would not handle relief efforts effectively and efficiently than donor agencies may rethink their procedure and channelize future emergency aid and development funding through NGOs or sub-offices. This mistrust has been experienced by government of Pakistan in current flood disaster on both, public and donors’ ends.But optimistically this might lead to COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1734 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS JUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 expansion of NGOs in Pakis tan. So government need not only develop institutional and technical skills to cope with future disasters but also consider expansion to NGOs as alternative to mitigate the hazards and strive to strengthen them. COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1735 ijcrb. webs. com INTERDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL OF CONTEMPORARY RESEARCH IN BUSINESS ReferencesJUNE 2011 VOL 3, NO 2 Action Aid International (2006), The Evolving UN Cluster Approach in the Aftermath of the Pakistan Earthquake: An NGO Perspective. Action Aid International, London. ADB-WB (2005), Preliminary damages and need assessment—Pakistan 2005 earthquake, prepared by Asian Development Bank and World Bank, Islamabad, Pakistan, November 12, 2005. Amendola, Aniello, 2000, ‘Earthquake Risk Management: A case study for an Italian Region†, International Institute for Applied Systems, A-2361 Laxenburg, Austria. Benini, A. A. et al. , 2006, ‘Survivor Needs or Logistical Convenience?Fa ctors Shaping Decisions to Delive’ Blackwell, doi:10. 1111/j. 0361-3666. 2008. 01065. x Boyd, J. (2006), Preliminary report: Future quakes in Pakistan inevitable, http://www. media. rice. edu/media/NewsBot. asp? MODE=VIEW=8166, Accessed on 23-04-2011 at 17:00. MacFarland, T. W. (1998), ‘Mann-Whitney U-Test’ viewed August 2010. http://www. nyx. net/~tmacfarl/STAT_TUT/mann_whi. ssi Pakistan, Government of (2005), ‘A review of Disaster Management Policies and Systems in Pakistan’ Islamabad. Pakistan, Government of (2006), Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA), Annual Review 2005-06.Paul, B. K. 2002, ‘Relief assistance to 1998 flood victims: a comparison of the performance of the government and NGOs’ The Geographical journal, Vol. 169, No. 1, March 2003, pp. 75-89. Pomeroy, R. S, Blake D. Ratner & Stephen J. Hall 2006, ‘Coping with disaster: Rehabilitating coastal livelihoods and communities’ Elsevier, Ma rine Policy 30, PP 786–793. Shaheen, M. A. (2007), Academic Institutions and Libraries of Pakistani Administered Kashmir: A Pre and Post Earthquake Analysis, A Paper read on 73rd IFLA General Conference and Council held on 19-23 August 2007 at Durban, South Africa. Shaheen, M.A. (2008), ‘Earthquake effects on educational institutions and libraries of Azad Kashmir An appraisal’, Emerald, Vol. 57, No. 6, 2008, pp. 449-456. COPY RIGHT  © 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 1736 Copyright of Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business is the property of Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.

Appraise the Pros and Cons of Cosmpolitanism

10024634 Appraise the Pros and Cons of Cosmopolitanism Cosmopolitanism is the term to illustrate a theoretical belief of how some think the world should be, where interstate boundaries are abolished and citizens become part of a global body. It is derived from the ancient Greek, kosmopolites, usually translated as ‘citizen of the world’. Cosmopolitanism takes different stand-points throughout the fields of sociology, politics and philosophy.Gerand Delanty splits the concept into four main categories: â€Å"internationalism, globalisation, transnationalism and post-nationalism†(Delanty 2000: 52) and four sub-categories â€Å"legal, political, cultural and civic† cosmopolitanism. This essay shall analyse and evaluate arguments for and against the notion of cosmopolitanism according to Immanuel Kant’s perception and Hegel’s analysis of the subject matter.Since Kant’s perception is pre-dominantly a form of internationalism and legality, and he is known as the modern forefather of the contemporary conceptualisation, I shall primarily focus on the arguments for and against legal cosmopolitanism. Immanuel Kant developed his notion of cosmopolitanism as a result to the ever increasing Hobbesian ‘state of nature’ in the international realm, between the individualistic actors, nation states and the ever growing interstate communication; especially post the peace of Westphalia where state sovereignty became formalised.Hegel believed that this individuality amongst states in their hobbesian ‘pursuit of felicity’ would only lead to war. â€Å"when the particular wills of states can come to no agreement, the controversy can be settled only by war. † (Hegel 2001: 264) This in mind, I shall reference the views and opinions of contemporary theorists on Kant’s conceptualisation of cosmopolitanism. One of the main positives of cosmopolitanism according to modern theorists is accountability, Ka nt’s predominantly Legal cosmopolitanism was the ideology where state conflict could be resolved into ‘ perpetual peace’ through international laws.Contemporary legal cosmopolitanism as an example, arguably is demonstrated in the Nuremburg trials in 1945. It was the first time that states and state leaders could be held accountable under international legislation and judicial trial. Karl Jaspers states that the trial was a â€Å" new attempt in behalf of order in the world†(Jaspers 1947: 51) and Robert Fine elaborates on Jaspers argument that â€Å"Nuremburg marked the awn of a new cosmopolitan order un which individuals, as well as states, could be held accountable to international law even when acting within the legality of their own state. † (Fine 2003:610) Kant’s philosophy towards the birth of modern cosmopolitanism was pre-dominantly legal, as he desired republican universal legality across the international realm, in order to achieve à ¢â‚¬Ëœperpetual peace’. â€Å"No Independent States, large or small shall come under the dominion of another state by inheritance, exchange, purchase or donation†( Kant 1795).Thomas Pogge, a contemporary cosmopolitan theorist depicts that in cosmopolitanism’s universality â€Å" the status of the ultimate unit of concern attaches to every living human being equally- not merely to some subset, such as men, aristocrats, Aryans, Whites or Muslims† (Pogge 1992:48),according to this some may argue that one fault in Kant’s idealistic Cosmopolitanism is that there were no equal rights for women and that the law under cosmopolitanism only applied to men.This indicates that the trial with the Nazi crimes against humanity would be amicably subsumable to Kant’s theory because it is bringing the injustices of the German state during the Nazi period of power to justice. Kant wished to retain the exercise of power to law†(Delanty 200:55) Having a â €˜universality’ of international laws to present crimes or excess power conclusively is a positive aspect supporting the theory of cosmopolitanism.Some aspects of cosmopolitanism are embedded within our society today by the overrule of international law, especially since the increase of globalisation and the extensive expansion of interstate communication. However arguably some see cosmopolitanism as a means of promoting western political values over common enemies for example during the cold war with the USA’s involvement into communist Vietnam. Vietnam was seen as a case study where the US intervened in order to promote liberal democracy.This was a result of the US’s foreign policy, you could argue that there has been considerable criticism towards the USA’s foreign policy as it has created an abundant amount of unnecessary conflicts, for example the Iraq and Iran conflicts. Robert Fine states that â€Å"a destructive criticism of the idea of cosmop olitan right has been put forward by legal and political theorists who argue that cosmopolitanism is essentially a banner under which powerful nations conduct wars against their enemies and portray them as enemies of humanity itself. (Fine 2003:611) Essentially this depicts a detrimental aspect to the ideal of cosmopolitanism. â€Å"a number of states may make themselves into a family, the union, because it is an individuality, must create an opposition, and so beget an enemy. † (Hegel 2001: 259) This illustrates Hegel’s awareness of Kant’s idea, though he is illustrating here that Groups or unions will be created from states to, on a larger level create one individual to face their enemies.Though Carver and Martin illustrate that Kant was a â€Å"critique of imperialism and colonialism† which you could argue is a primitive form of spreading political values and beliefs, he was a promoter of republicanism and at the centre of his philosophy he believed th at â€Å" all political constitutions should ultimately be republican† (Carver 2006: 39-41). Delanty also contributes to this issue by stating the problem with Kant’s cosmopolitanism is in â€Å"transferring the republican constitution onto the international order†.Even Hegel thought that Kant’s theory was inaccurate to modern times. Though many thought Hegel wished to criticize and oppose Kant’s understanding of cosmopolitanism, evidence suggests that he supported it but thought that it just needed reformulation in accordance to different epoch. â€Å"It is argued that Hegel’s critique was neither regressive nor nationalistic, but rather that he advanced the theory of cosmopolitan right beyond the Kantian framework of formal natural law. (Fine 2003: 610) â€Å"Hence, Kant proposed an alliance of princes, which should settle the controversies of states, and the Holy Alliance was probably intended to be an institution of this kind. But the state is individual, and in individuality negation is essentially implied†(Hegel 2001: 259) Robert Fine refers to Karl Schmitt’s biography on the Nuremburg trials, where he states that â€Å"the only distinction between crimes against humanity and crimes for humanity is that the former were committed by Germans and the latter by Americans. (Fine 2003: 611). Fundamentally this denotes that there is a considerable amount of evidence to illustrate the faults with cosmopolitanism on a hole. On the other hand Kant had anticipated for this abuse of power within his concept and as Robert Fine states he desired to create â€Å"a federation of nations based on mutual co-operation and voluntary consent among a plurality of independent states. † This deems that the individual nation state remains with some sovereignty but the overall power lies within the federation of states.Although Kant’s republican prejudice may promote western ‘imperialism’ because by stating that all political systems should work within the ideology of republicanism, it shall overwhelmingly create conflict with other foreign systems of politics and contrasts with what Robert Fine illustrates as the basis behind cosmopolitanism. â€Å"standing armies would be abolished, no national debt would be incurred in connection with military costs, no state would forcibly interfere in the internal affairs of another, no acts of war would be allowed which would ‘make mutual con? ence impossible during a future time of peace’, foreigners would be afforded a right of ‘universal hospitality’, and the indigenous inhabitants of newly conquered colonies would no longer be ‘counted as nothing†(Fine 2003: 613) Essentially it is difficult to appraise the pros and cons of cosmopolitanism especially when referring to its earliest contemporary form. Each pro or con has its own co-relating positive and negative.However overall evidence suggests that if I were indeed to analyse the above pros and cons it would seem that there are more significant arguments in favour of cosmopolitanism as accountability is key in the modern world we live in. Therefore cosmopolitanism is a better alternative to a liberal democracy that creates conflict. Bibliography * Delanty, G (2000). Cosmopolitan citizenship : beyond the nation state. In : May, Citizenship in a global age. Philadelphia: Open University * Jaspers, K. (2001). The German Questions.In : Koterski J The Question of German Guilt. Fordham: Fordham University Press. 41-55. * Fine, R. (2003). Kant’s Theory of Cosmopolitanism and Hegel’s Critique. Philosophy & Social Criticism. 29 (6), 609-630 * Kant, I (1991). Political Writings. Cambridge: Cambridge University * Pogge, T. (1992). Cosmopolitanism and Sovereignty. Chicago Journals. * Hegel, G (2001). Philosophy of Right. Kitchener: Batoache Books Limited. * Carver et. Al. (2006). Palgrave advance in continental politic al thought. Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. 32-59

Research Project Essay

Introduction The purpose of this study is to investigate the extent to which the strategies employed by Nandos in the recent recession have been effective. For the topic to be extensively researched, the research proposal has been split in to the following objectives. * Identifying the customer base of Nandos. * Investigating if and how the recession affected Nandos. * Analysing strategies used by Nandos in the recession. An investigation of Nandos’ performance since and during the recession will need to be undertaken. This would need to be compared to its performance prior to the recession in order to investigate the effect of the recession on Nandos. Firstly, the proposal will first carry out an in depth literature review to investigate relevant theories and information related to the research objectives outlined above. Building on the findings of the literature review, the research design and strategies will be formed to investigate each of the above objectives. During the course of this study, ethical and practical issues in relation to the research altogether will also be considered. Nandos founded in 1987 is a casual dining restaurant with a Portuguese theme. It originated from South Africa and is now operating in 30 countries on 5 continents. It specializes in chicken dishes with different souses such as lemon and herb, medium, hot or extra hot Peri-Peri. In some countries, they also offer other flavor options like mango and lime, lemon and herb, or Mediterranean (Nandos 2009, p.4) The restaurant began in 1987 when Robert Brozin and Fernando Duarte bought a restaurant called â€Å"Chickenland† in Rosettenville, Southern Johannesburg. They renamed the restaurant Nandos after Duarte. The restaurant incorporated influences from former Portuguese colonists from Mozambique, many of whom had settled on the south-eastern side of Johannesburg, after their homeland’s independence in 1975. (Nandos 2009, p.4) Nandos is famous for its flame-grilled Peri-Peri chicken which is served either in quarters, halves and wholes. It also serves burgers, pitas, salads, wings and wraps. In some countries, Nandos sells chicken livers, Espetada and the Cataplana. (Nandos 2009, p.2) Nandos also manufactures a range of sauces which are sold in Nandos restaurants and in supermarkets.  These include Peri-Peri sauces, marinades, cooking sauces and a Peri-Peri Essence. (Nandos 2009, p.2) In 1992 Nandos entered the United Kingdom’s restaurant industry with its first restaurant in Ealing, London and now is operating with its several branches around UK. In 2009 Nandos UK was awarded Three Stars in the Best Companies Annual Accreditation Awards becoming the only entrant in the large companies’ category to achieve the three star rating. (Harmer, 2010) Literature Review Customer Base According to Edwards (2010) customer base of an organisation includes all the customers that organisation servers. One of the most important ways to establish a successful business is to build a solid base of customers who stick with the business through thick and thin. A solid customer base becomes the foundation on which a business grows. Business Cycle Business Cycle is defined as a cycle of series of different phases of contraction and expansion of real GDP. A complete business cycle consists of five different phases and every country has to go through each phase in order to achieve its peak. A complete business cycle from peak to peak is shown in the graph below. (Arnold 2008, p.151) . (Arnold 2008, p.151) Phases of The Business Cycle There are five different phases of a business cycle which include the peak, contraction, though, recovery and expansion. (Arnold 2008, p.151) A complete business cycle is measured from peak to peak. Peak – at the peak of the business cycle real GDP is temporary high. (Arnold 2008, p.151) Contraction – this phase represents the decline in the real GDP. This phase is known as the recession phase. (Arnold 2008, p.151) Trough – this phase represents the low point in the real GDP just before the starts to increase back again. (Arnold 2008, p.151) Recovery – this phase represents the phase when the GDP is rising back towards the initial peak. Recovery phase begins from trough and extends up till the initial peak. (Arnold 2008, p.151) Expansion – the expansion phase refers to the increase in real GDP beyond the recovery  point. In this stage the GDP increases the initial peak. (Arnold 2008, p.151) No country can stay in the peak phase for long time even the developed countries. The best any country can do is that they can go straight from contraction phase to expansion phase and skip the trough and recovery phases. Recession According to Wiegand (2009) recession occurs when a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) – the value of all the reported goods and services produced by a country – goes down for two or more consecutive quarters – which means for six months or more. (p.18) The above mentioned definition was considered very simple and standard so on November 26, 2001, the National Bureau of Economic Research gave a different than standard definition of recession. According to the NBER, â€Å"recession is a significant decline in activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, visible in industrial production, employment, real income and wholesale retail trade.† (Wiegand, 2009) Ordinary recession symptoms are quite depressing. People buy less stuff because they feel less confident about making in the future. Factories make less stuff because people are buying less. It can be harder to get credit. Unemployment rises and stock market falls. Depression A recession when gets out of control turns into a depression resulting in the country’s GDP drops by more than 10%.(Wiegand, 2009) Real life examples of great depression that happened in USA and Finland are: * From 1929 – 1933, the GDP of the United States decreased by 27%. * Form 1937 – 1938, the GDP of United states decreased by 18%. * In 1990s, after the Soviet Union fell apart the GDP of Finland dropped by 11%. The above given examples when compared by the global recession of 2001 in which the GDP decreased by 0.6% give the idea of the critical situation of 1930s. (Wiegand, 2009) Impact of Recession According to King (1997) the recession had two different but related impacts: * The realization that competitive nation require competitive government stimulated experiments to reform government structure and systems. * The failure of many of these experiments to deliver short – term benefits has led many to distrust the traditional processes and rhetoric of governments.  While recession exposed both businesses and governments to new global forces, nosiness responded more flexibly than government. (p.269) Causes of Recession The reasons which cause the GDP to decrease and hence result in recession are classified into two types which are: External Causes of Recession External causes include misusing of those same factors which are used by the government in tackling the recession. Recession is generally caused by the excessive application and misusing of different governmental economic policies like fiscal or monitory policies. On rare occasions, there can be other types of external shocks such as oil embargo of 1973 – 74, but usually the cause of recession that does the real damage is the fiscal or monetary policies. The most prominent example of external cause of recession is the severe monetary control sometimes referred to as â€Å"cold turkey monetarism†. (Klien 2002, p.133) Internal Causes of Recession Internal causes of recession are probably more important than that of external causes of recession. These are the excesses, imbalances and distortion that develop within the structure of the economy itself as the expansion unfolds and cause consumers to cut back on their buying and business executives to cut back on production and employment. For example: an excessive build – up of inventory, an imbalance in price – cost movements that brings on a profit squeeze and excessive demands for credit that drive the rates beyond variable level. (Klien 2002, p.133) Strategies used by Governments to combat Recession The methods used by the federal government to try to pull the economy out of recession are discussed below: Setting Fiscal Policies According to Wiegand (2009) fiscal policies are basically the guidelines the government follows to collect and spend the tax money. Governments in order to tackle recession it can take the following steps: * Cut Taxes – so people and businesses keep more cash for spending on goods and services. * Increase Spending – on government projects to boost employment. * Widen â€Å"safety net† programs – such as unemployment insurance. Adjusting Monetary Policies According to Wiegand (2009) governments can regulate economy by manipulating the supply of money. Governments can use the following measures to control the recession in the economy: * Lower the amount banks have to keep in reserves. * Lower the interest rates on loans. * Buy treasury bonds and loans that private entities made. Strategies used by Businesses to combat Recession According to Vickers (2006) Businesses in order to recession proof its business in case of economic slowdown should follow the strategies give below: * Diversify its business. * Offer extraordinary customer service. * Intensify its marketing activities. * Adopt latest technology. * Stay focused towards long term goals and objectives. * Look for new ways to be innovative. Recession and Chicken/ Burger Bar Market The worldwide recession has affected most markets and the chicken/burger bar market is no exception. Mintel (2010c) shows the chicken and burger bar market was worth  £4.014m. However, in 2008, roughly when the recession came to the fore, this was down to  £3.781m and was estimated to fall further yet. Recession and Nando’s A study conducted in December 2010 based on the opinion of 1,966 people aged 16+, suggests 7% of people falling in the category visit Nandos. Furthermore, for the age group 15-24, this figure rises to 19% (Mintel, 2010a). This would seem to suggest that Nandos appeals more to a younger age group. However, one must take into consideration that the sample of 1,966 may not be a sufficient representation of the UK population. Nandos are inclined to target a young age group; an idea backed up by the â€Å"Spirit of Nando’s† radio campaign aimed at 18-35 year olds (Mintel, 2010b). This point is further backed up by Nandos’ popularity amongst celebrities (Sawyer, 2010). In addition, Mintel (2010a) also suggests that, largely, visitors to  Nandos are inclined to be from the C1 and Urban Prosperity socio-economic groups. Although there was some archival data on the customer base of Nandos, it is not sufficient for the purposes of this research. Building on the data found during the literature review, this study will look more closely in to the customer base of Nandos. Due to lower consumer spending influenced by the recession, Nandos in the UK made a loss of  £23m in only 36 weeks leading up to February 2009. However, directors of Nandos also citied rising ingredient costs as factor (Paskin, 2010). The loss of  £23m over 36 weeks during the recession would seem to suggest that the recession has negatively affected Nandos. The Mintel (2008 and 2010c) reports showed that there was no significant change in Nandos’ market share in the period when recession was in progress. The research design will allow for the reasons behind this loss to be analysed in detail. Nandos’ financial reports will be required to look comprehensively at their financial performance and the driving forces behind any major changes. The effect of the recession on Nandos may well have been reduced due to the brand name being perceived honest and sincere (Opoku et al, 2007). Nandos has continued to expand through the economic downturn, planning ’20 – plus’ openings and David Niven vowing to open up to 200 more within 5 years (Wootton, 2010). Another strategy explored by Nandos was the move towards being eco-friendly, underlined by unveiling the first branded UK restaurant to use its own waste cooking oil as a solitary power source (Wootton, 2009). Another tactic employed by Nandos was to make a commitment to offer healthier options in their menu (Eversham, 2008). Nandos strategy of not taking note of recession and expanding will need to be further looked in to. Their initiative towards their staff and providing healthy options will also be investigated and the effectiveness of it analysed through the research methodology. Also, Nandos made a vow to make no redundancies in the recession which seems to be to keep up staff morale. And, as Moore (2010) suggests, HR methods are a major contributor to business profitability and this is a factor which is gaining more and more weight. This strategy seems to have paid some dividends with the award of three stars in the Best Companies Accreditation Scheme 2010 (Harmer, 2010). Research Methodology Definition Research methodology in research methods refers to the study of specific techniques, tools or procedures applied to achieve research objectives. Research methodology includes types of data, types of study, sources of data, research tools etc. used in order to conduct the research. (Dillman, 2000) Purpose of Research Research Question The research is being conducted to answer the following research questions: * What is the customer base of Nando’s? * If and how the recession affected Nando’s? * What are the strategies used by Nando’s in the recession? In order to answer the research question above the methodology used to carry out the research includes the following: Nature of Study In order to answer the research questions this study will require both exploratory and explanatory strategies at different points. Exploratory strategy is required as there is not enough information available about the research topic in hand as this type of research on Nandos has never been conducted before and is done for the first time. So in order to fulfil the research objectives information about Nandos is needed to be explored to investigate the effect of recession on Nandos and different strategies used by Nandos to tackle recession. (Dawson, 2002) Explanatory strategy is required as the relationship of the research findings must be established and explained in the research. (Dawson, 2002) Research Onion By considering the research objectives and the literature review of the research project a clear structure of the most suitable research methodology for the research is developed. Through each layer of Saunder et al. (2007) research onion model the most appropriate research methods, approaches and strategies are adopted for conducting the research in order to answer the research question. The different layers in Saunders et al. (2007) research  onion model are shown in the figure below; all the layers will be individually discussed to explain the reason behind selecting a particular element for this specific research. Saunders et.al (2007) â€Å"Research Onion† Research Philosophy As shown in the figure above the first layer of Saunders et al. (2007) research onion is the research philosophy. Considering the research objectives interpretive approach is selected as the relation between Nando’s and its customer’s is needed to be determined in order to answer the research question. Positivism approach is also considered as the research also required qualitative and statistical data in order to improve the research findings. Research Approach As shown in the figure above the second layer of Saunders et al. (2007) research onion is the research approach. The research design will mainly be deductive as the use of existing literature and information on Nando’s will be required to form a hypothesis which will be extensively investigated through primary research methods. However, due to an apparent lack of specific existing research on some of the topics, an inductive approach will also be taken to help in answering the research objectives. Research Strategies As shown in the figure above the third layer of Saunders et al. (2007) research onion is the research strategies. The research strategies employed in order to collect data for the research included the Survey, interview and Archival research. Data collected specifically for this research which is primary data will be collected through survey and interview while secondary which includes already published data will be collected through archival research. (Bates, 2005) A survey will be conducted; a questionnaire is designed in which direct formal questions will be asked from the customers of Nando’s. The questionnaires will be distributed among the customers of Nando’s according to the principles of random sampling as according to Saunders et al. (2007) a suitable sample from the whole population can  produce the results representing the whole population. The research strategy also includes intercept interviewing in which an individual personal interview of the branch manager will be conducted which will also include direct formal questions. Research Choice As shown in the figure above the fourth layer of Saunders et al. (2007) research onion is the research choice. The research choice for this research is ‘Mixed – Method’ as the research design will aim to collect and analyse both qualitative and quantitative information. This will allow for triangulation and, as Saunders et al. (2009) suggest, triangulation helps improve the credibility of findings, making them more valid. Time Horizon As shown in the figure above the fifth layer of Saunders et al. (2007) research onion is the Time Horizon. Time horizon chosen for this research is ‘Cross – Sectional’ as all the data required to answer the research question will be collected just once and the whole research will take a month to complete. A Gantt chart is given in the appendices outlining the timetable of key activities for the project. The total research work is divided into 10 different tasks where some of the activities overlap as some of their components are inter linked. Research Plan The research design will mainly be deductive as the use of existing literature and information on Nandos will be required to form a hypothesis which will be extensively investigated through primary research methods. However, due to an apparent lack of specific existing research on some of the topics, an inductive approach will also be taken to help in answering the research objectives. Furthermore, this study will require both exploratory and explanatory strategies at different points. The research design will aim to collect and analyse both qualitative and quantitative information. This will allow for triangulation and, as Saunders et al. (2009) suggest, triangulation helps improve the credibility of findings, making them more valid. Phase 1: Archival Research Firstly, mainly existing information on Nandos will be examined in order to investigate whether Nandos had indeed been affected by the recession. This part of the study will be deductive and exploratory. As regards to establishing the customer base of Nandos, credible databases such as Mintel will provide useful information which will help in the formation of the questionnaire and also aid in the sampling imperative information on variables such as demographics and age groups. Furthermore, reports on Mintel such as the ones examined in the literature review, can help in identifying the affect the recession had on visitors. There are reports available which discuss and analyse who visits Nandos, and other such outlets which were briefly explored in the literature review. Some of these reports, which have the same variables, were composed before and after the recession respectively and the differences will be closely examined to determine patterns. Archival research will provide key information in both quantitative and qualitative form which will help develop primary research methods and ultimately answering the objectives. The financial reports will provide quantitative information. The figures before, during and after the recession will be analysed through determining the changes in profitability, for example, to establish if and to what extent the recession affected Nandos. Newspaper articles and the reports on databases such as Mintel will provide qualitative information. However, one must keep in mind that some of the data collected may be out dated and hence possibly not be relevant and bring in to question the validity of findings. The quantitative findings of this phase will be analysed by the use of graphs and other such tools to show trends and patterns. (Researcher’s Contribution) Phase 2: Questionnaire Following the analysis of data collected through the archival research, the next step will involve questionnaire conducted with Nandos’ customers. A questionnaire was chosen as a data collection tool as it can be carried out, in theory in any case, over a large sample in a reasonable amount of time, hence allowing generalisability (Saunders et al., 2009). This method will not only aim to establish Nandos’ customer base but also how, if at all, the recession has affected their attitudes towards Nandos. The questionnaire will be quantitative focused but will also provide opportunity to collect  qualitative data. In constructing the questionnaire, the analysis of the existing information on the customer base of Nandos found through phase 1 will be vital. The questions will be formed dependant on the type of customer base Nandos has; i.e. age group or socio-economic group. The population for this data collection method will be Nando’s customers. As mentioned before, Nandos has over 200 outlets in the UK. Ideally, every Nandos customer that visits every outlet would be part of the sample. However, this is not feasible and getting a sample that will allow generalisability is vital (Saunders et al., 2009). Since there is not a database of specific Nandos customers, the sampling in that regard will have to be probable in the form of random sampling. The customer assistants will be told to offer every customer the chance to fill out the voluntary questionnaire. However, elements of non-probable sampling will also be present as the Nandos outlet that will be targeted for the questionnaire cannot be selected dependant on key variables identified through phase 1 such as outlets with high number of visitors and location among others due to lack of resources. The outlet that will be selected will aim to be the most accurate representation on Nandos. The questionnaire will aim to cover the three types of variables, suggested by Dillman (2000), which are behaviour, opinion and attributes. The idea of offering an incentive to fill out the questionnaire may also be explored, however, this could lead to customer not answering honestly in order to get the incentive and hence hurting the validity of findings. The questionnaire prepared for the research is attached as an appendix. Phase 3: Interview with Manager The next step of the research will be to conduct a series of interview with a commercial manager within Nandos. An intercept interview of an individual was chosen. As discussed in the literature review, Nandos made a commitment to staff to make no redundancies and, in basic terms, to stand by them. As with the questionnaire, the sampling for the interviews will have elements of both probable and non-probable elements. From the store included in the sample for the questionnaire commercial manager will be asked to participate in the voluntary interview. They will be told the purpose of the study and the fact that the study is required for educational purposes. To reduce the  chance of bias within the interview, the interviewee will be offered anonymity (refer to 4.0 for further discussion on ethical issues). The interview will be structured as this will help answer pre prepared questions and will be preferred by the interviewee as it will be quick (Saunders et al., 2009). Some key themes for this interview will partly be derived from the results of the questionnaire. Interview questions can be found in the appendix. This method will provide qualitative data, by using open-ended questions, which will be further analysed. (QSR International, 2010). Practical and Ethical Issues In every stage of this research, there will be practical and ethical issues to bear in mind, as is the case with most research studies (Saunders et al., 2009). The major practical issues relating to data collection are access and response rate. The sample for the questionnaire will look to select outlet that have a high volume of customers to increase the chances of a high response rate. As regards to data collection, all participants will be informed that participation is voluntary and all data collected will be used in compliance with the Data Protection Act 1998. Saunders et al. (2009) state that budget and time constraints prevent surveying a whole population and the sampling will look to overcome these constraints by selecting a sample which balances budget and time while giving a credible response. Another ethical issue was in relation to the interview with the mangers of Nandos’ outlet. Participants will be required to fill out a brief consent form, outlining the voluntary participation and ensuring anonymity where necessary. A brief consent form is given in the appendices.