Economics and the Governement Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Economics and the Governement - Essay Example The government has therefore developed a very extensive and comprehensive plan which seeks to achieve a clean energy future. In a way, the Bill is very clear and concise both from an environmental and economic perspective. The development of this bill was basically a response to the growing concern over climate change especially by international bodies. It is nevertheless realized that Australia is responsible for only 1.5% of the total Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the world. However, on scientific grounds, this is not a justification for a slow approach in addressing climate change. In any case, the effects of global warming will be realized by all countries irrespective of their contributions to the whole problem. As such, governments across the world have been enacting such legislation to ensure a reduction in GHG emissions. Australia is one of the largest CHG per capita emitters which create an even greater need for the country to enact and implement a number of domestic leg islation geared towards mitigating emissions (Lockie, 2012). Carbon Price The bill established a fixed carbon price of $23 per ton which falls squarely on some of the largest GHG emitters from 2012 to 2015 after which the price of carbon will basically be flexible through a trading scheme with the market forces being the biggest price determinants. As a result of the increase in the price of carbon, there is a subsequent increase in the prices of carbon-intensive goods and services. Due to these increases, many producers and consumers will be compelled to seek for cheaper alternatives to the carbon-based products. Indeed, according to basic economic theory, there must be a great reduction in the consumption of carbon based products as long as substitutes are available. In a way, this scheme is very successful since the government sets a limit to the annual GHG emission which can always be achieved (Considine, 2012). Indeed, the Carbon Price Mechanism (CPM) is important in a number o f ways. Under the initial flexible price model, there is price certainty since most of the affected parties can accurately predict how much the carbon emissions will cost them for the three years period under operation. In the same way, all the parties down the supply chain of carbon consumption also have a three year period to determine the cost of their emissions. While the initial period focuses on price certainty, the second stage is basically geared towards addressing emission certainty. As such, from 1st July 2015, the government will actually regulate the number of permits given each year so as to cap the country’s net emission. More importantly, considering the few number of permits which shall be granted, they will be auctioned in the market and their prices will therefore be determined by the market forces. With a reduction in the number of permits, companies will definitely a have motivation to trade the excess permits for profits. Under the CPM, a liable entity is one who has an operational control of the facility which is emitting the gasses (Simon, 2011). It is presently estimated that much of the net national emissions results from electricity generation which accounts for 37 percent while industrial fuel consumption accounts for 17 percent. Agricultural and transport have a cumulative

MIH512-Demography and Health (Module 3-CBT) Essay

MIH512-Demography and Health (Module 3-CBT) - Essay Example Another surprise the effect Asian style government family planning, specifically in China, will have on the age of the population. China is rapidly aging because so few children are being born. Another surprise is the gender imbalance. In nations where one-child policies are in place and there is a cultural preference for boys, the abortion of girl fetuses or infanticide of female children has led to a great disparity between the numbers of men and women. Added to this surprise is the fact that the disparity among the educated and affluent in these countries is greater than that of poorer families that one would think would hold to a more traditional view of family. Mortality holds the second surprise for Eberstadt. Traditional thinking leads us to believe that increases in medical technology, advanced medicines and education on nutrition will lead to an ever-increasing life expectancy. In Japan, each new birth cohort can expect to live longer than the one before it. In many places this is not true. In sub-Sahara Africa, the culprit is HIV-AIDS. But in places like Russia, the culprit is less exotic. Two-thirds of men in Russia are intoxicated when they die. Alcohol abuse alone seems to be accounting for Russia dwindling life expectancy among men. The final surprise is the anomaly of America. America does not seem to be trending in any of the ways other nations are. America is surprisingly, evening out among age’s ranges. While places such as Russia and Europe will decrease in population and in world rankings, America will be holding its own if current trends continue. The health care system in my home country of the United States will need to adapt to the changing demographics by learning how to deal with continued influxes of immigrants. The pictures painted by these surprises leads to the conclusion that places such a Russia and China could become

The Importance of and Impacts of Professional Development in Education Essay Example for Free

The Importance of and Impacts of Professional Development in Education Essay Abstract: Like any area of human endeavors, the professional development in case of education is considered as a key factor in honing the over all performance of the students thereby resulting in a marked success of educational institutes. In this regard, importance and the positive implications of efforts in terms of teacher development cannot be denied. This paper succinctly touches on the contemporary trends pertaining to the development in education sector with a special elucidation of professional development where areas like collegial interactions, teachers leadership, community interaction, teachers’ individual learning and data driven decision come up to be the effective strategies in order to enlighten the education system with positive reforms.    The paper also analyzes a few research based programs as the case studies for advocating the importance of teachers and their collegial interactions for the success of any institution. Development in Education: In the changing world, the aggrandizing competitiveness has overwhelmed every sphere of the contemporary life. It’s a datum of experience that to cope with the increasing demands of the current era, a modern man is in a continuous process of inoculating reforms in every field. In this regard, what surpasses all the fields is the sector of education since it forms the basis for strengthening all the other institutes of life. In other words, for the provision of better workers, the engineering sector is as much dependent on the education system as is any other field like Medicine or Business.   Keeping in view such a crucial importance of education, various analysts and educationists are bringing new innovations in order to hone the current education system. These reforms involve issues like the quality of teachers, testing and evaluation, learning environment, course design, curriculum and need analysis of the students etc. Professional Development in Eductaion: â€Å"Student learning depends first, last, and always on the quality of the teachers (Usdan, McCloud Podmostko: 2001).† When talking about the reforms in the education system, the role of a teacher cannot be denied. Since teachers play a key role in the over all accomplishment of any educational institute, they have rather become the cynosure of educational reforms where they are considered as students who are in a constant process of mentoring and being mentored. The reason behind bringing the teachers to the centre of attention is the fact that any kind of improvement happening in any classroom involves the participation of a teacher (Schwarz: 1998). Any development in teachers would not only improve students’ performance but would also motivate the teachers themselves. According to Fullan and Stiegebauer, â€Å"Good change processes (are those) that foster sustained professional development over ones career and lead to student benefits (Schwarz: 1998).† Reasons behind Professional Development: â€Å"Processes, practices, and policies that are built on (†¦) view of learning are at the heart of a more expanded view of teacher development that encourages teachers to involve themselves as learners in much the same way as they wish their students would (Lieberman: 2002).† Behind the increasing trend towards the teacher development lays the notion of ‘learning by changing (Lieberman: 2002)’. According to this notion, the basic catalyzing force behind teacher development is the process of changes implemented in the institutions in an expectation of amelioration. In order to cope with the increasing demands, the teachers not only attend to their individual skills but also refer to their colleagues. This concept views the teachers in a constant process of learning that facilitates them to realize their changing roles as instructors, peer coach and researches, to create new structures like problem-solving groups, decision-making teams, to work on new tasks like journal and proposal writing and to establish an inquiry oriented culture in the classroom (Lieberman: 2002). Models and interpretations of teachers’ professional development: Sparks and Loucks-Horsley have proposed five levels of teacher development which are individually-guided staff development, observation-assessment, involvement in a development and improvement process and training and inquiry. However Hargreaves and Fullan propose that the term ‘teacher development’ has multiple interpretations which include the search to find learning opportunities for better performance, finding places for personal development and helping to foster a learning oriented and supportive work environment (Kee Luan : 1996). Marsick and Watkins proposed their Model of the Learning Organization to have three levels namely individual learning, team learning, and organization learning (NCREL: 2003). The first level focuses on individual skills that may be obtained in solitude or in groups whereas the last two refer to the collaborative skills of the teachers. Issues and Scope of Professional Development in Education: The scope of professional development in education can be best seen in the light of various strategies and issues involved under the vast umbrella of the term ‘professional development’. Team Learning and Teachers Collegiality: According to Bernard-Powers et al., â€Å"Adults are learners just as are children, and that everyone learns best when there are ongoing opportunities to develop questions, investigate, reflect, apply and share knowledge in real-life contexts (NCREL: 2003). Collegiality or Collegial Interaction is a phenomenon whereby the teachers get a chance of interacting with their colleague teachers for active professional learning through events like Conventions, Faculty meeting, Seminars, Lesson planning, School Visitations, Sharing materials, Conferences, Workshops, Examination preparation, Informal meetings and Team teaching etc. According to the research work done by Jackson and Goodlad, the greatest impediment in the way of teacher development is the absence or lack of collegiality. It is because learning new skills and implementing them is a matter of trial and error. As long as the teachers work and asses the performance on their own, a much greater space for improvement is left as compared to the case where the teachers work in groups (Kee Luan: 1996). The concept of teacher collegiality or the collaboration of teachers for the purpose of honing their performance is not a novel idea. Although prevalent for the past decades, collegiality has gained special interest of educationists in the recent few years when it is considered to be the most effective way of teacher development. With its roots profoundly interred in the organizational theory models, Collegiality fosters team work of the teachers thereby assuring the success of the institute. During the collegial interaction process the teachers learn from the experienced teachers and apply collaborative skills. In this concern, organizations like Australian College of Education and the General Teaching Council for England have already taken active measures to encourage teachers’ collegial interactions (Leonard, L. Leonard, P.: 2003). Teacher leadership: Teacher leadership is often considered as a direct contrast against collegiality because collegiality is misinterpreted as a form of interdependence of teachers on one another which leaves the individual potential of the teachers as leaders in doubt. Such misconception arise because of the lack of information that the collaboration of teachers not only helps in accommodating the weaknesses but also emphasizes on the encouragement of teachers in case of their achievement. Such an encouragement boosts a spirit and motivates the teachers for further honing their performance.   This makes the teachers individually strong rather than being dependent. According to McCann and Radford, collegiality also indicates the positive contribution of other teachers in the success of a particular teacher (NCREL). Succinctly speaking, the ‘celebration of achievements is important to give teachers encouragement and recognition. Ways of sharing and celebrating achievements before a wider school audience should be a component of a mentoring scheme ( NCREL).’ Community Interaction: According to the Ontario College of Teachers, the teachers are educational leaders who collaborate not only with their colleagues and students but also with the parents, and members of the community. As proposed by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, an effective teacher is a participant of the learning community (Leonard, L. Leonard, P.: 2003). The learning of such teachers is not merely confined to the premises of the institute but is stretched throughout the community. Occasions like parent teacher meetings, co curricular events, exhibitions and fairs provide a fair chance of learning experience in a culture specific context. Individual Learning : â€Å"Just as independent learners inspire an engaged and effective classroom, teachers who are themselves independent learners inspire vital and engaged learning communities (NCREL: 2003).† Among many areas that are kept under consideration for teacher development, technical proficiency often supersedes various other skills since education like any other field is also overwhelmed with the current of latest technologies. For the very reason, professional development in education also focuses on the teaching of technological skills. According to a survey conducted in different schools of the West, technology use by teachers results in an improved student performance thereby resulting in an increase of such trends (Brumfield: 2006). It is because the modern methods of teaching employ different technologies which make the lessons not only innovative but also interesting for the students. Individual Learning through Collegial Interactions: Collegiality also helps in honing the individual skills of the teachers in such a way that interactions with colleagues help the teachers to be acquainted with innovative strategies. Group discussions allow them to   implement better strategies of the other teachers in their classrooms, helps them in fulfilling the needs of all the students and provides them with a standard of professional practices to be implemented in the classroom (School Education Division: 2006) . Cultural Contexts in Teachers’ Learning: Since collaboration of teachers is wholly coalesced with the process of sharing ideas, the cultural context plays a vital role during its practice. It is in the light of the cultural notions that the teachers share common norms while practicing collegiality. Consequently, this culture-specific collegiality is responsible for the creation of a particular school culture. Peterson draws a schism between two types of cultures prevalent in the schools.   Namely Positive Culture and Toxic Culture, the former exists in educational institutes with teachers actively involved in collegial practice whereas the latter ascends the institutes where such exchange practices are discouraged (Leonard, L. Leonard, P.: 2003). Educational Decision-making: Decision making in education is an extremely critical issue since the major decisions not only hold the fortune of the students but also determine the over all success of the institute. Any rightly taken decision may boost a positive wave of change when at the same time a wrong decision may mar the prospects of the school’s population and its reputation. Realizing such a significance of educational decisions, the modern educationists propose a data-driven approach to decision making.   Although with its idea being inoculated back in 1980s, data driven decision making in education has actually gained strength in the present day world. The pre-requisite of such a decision making is the presence of data as a proved reason for implementing any new policy or a change in the institute. Such a data is systematically collected and analyzed by the teachers, heads and administrators. This data is of various types including the input, process, outcome and satisfaction data. Here the input data involves the data on the demographics and expenditures of the school, the process data comprises of the data on quality of instruction, the outcome data analyzes the dropout rate and the test results and the satisfaction data asks for the opinions of teachers, parents, community and the students etc   (Marsh, Pane Hamilton: 2006). Instead of relying on a single type of information, triangulation of data is considered the most effective way of getting the maximum information possible. In the triangulation of data, various sources and techniques are adopted which are tallied with one another before arriving at any concrete finding to form the basis of the future decision. Such decisions fall under two categories namely the identification oriented decisions and the action oriented decisions. In the case of identification oriented decisions, the data obtained is utilized to identify goals and to do the needs analyses. In the case of action oriented decision making, one of the most viable ways of data collection is to introduce temporary changes in the classroom and obtain the data in the form of achievement test. The results of such an achievement test are further compared with the tests administered in normal circumstances. The difference in the average results of the students before and after the implementation of transitory changes determine whether the decision of implementing the change permanently would be workable or not. Research works on Professional Development and Collegial Interactions: The Project for Enhancing Effective Learning: The Project for Enhancing Effective Learning (PEEL) was launched in Australia in 1980s and proved to be a ground breaking work of teacher collaborative action research. The project commenced as a research work confined to the classrooms in Melbourne. Originally focused on the development of students and their learning practices, the proceedings of the research indicated a need of similar meta-cognitive development of the teachers in order to make the teachers play a positive role in facilitating the changes implemented in the classrooms.    As a result of the changing environment in classrooms, regular meetings of teachers were held in which the colleagues used to mention their observations, share their experiences and come up with their innovative ideas thereby making the meeting rather informal at many times. In the words of Baird and Hagglund, â€Å"The over-riding outcome of PEEL was that every one learned (1994).† Concerning the teachers, the Baird and Hagglund gave the following pictorial model to show a step-by-step approach of reforming education by the role of teachers in a collegial environment (1994). POOR LEARNING TENDENCIES Replace with GOOD LEARNING TENDENCIES Foster by practicing GOOD LEARNING BEHAVIOURS Stimulate such behaviours by applying GOOD TEACHING PROCEDURES (That should be associated with GOOD CURRICULUM DECISIONS and GOOD ASSESSMENT PRACTICES) The above mentioned Peel Pathway of Improving Learning stresses the coalition of learning in a collaborative situation. Since its inception, PEEL has not only become a popular education reform model for Australian institutes but also for the institutes in other countries like Canada. PLAN- Project: PLAN in Swedish means ‘Project for Independent Learning’. Originally based on the methodology of PEEL, the PLAN Project of Sweden was started being framed in 1992 in order to bring a positive change in Gà ¶kstensskolan Institute of Sweden. The project was considerably based on a model that favored collaboration among teachers. One of the terms of agreement for joining PLAN was that the teachers should devote an hour for collegial interactions practiced in the form of groups having 12 members each. The group leaders of different groups were also required to collegiate with each other frequently with a sole purpose of training the teachers for rising students’ performance. Impacts of Professional Development: As a consequence of aggrandizing emphasis on professional development of teachers, the education system has witnessed a considerable phase of amelioration. According to the studies of Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, as a result of professional development, the teachers do not confine their lessons to the conventional facts but keep updating their knowledge with latest developments in their fields. Similarly, the teachers do not expect normative feedback but appreciate multiple perspectives from their students. They also design the curriculum in such a way that the knowledge inculcated to the students becomes more thought provoking. In order to elucidate various concepts, they try to extract examples from the real life situations instead to sticking to the text book instances. Through the practice of collegiality, teachers are now able to work in groups in order to share different teaching strategies about which they had learnt either in workshops or through community interaction and also share materials they that had retrieved from various sources which are helpful in honing the teachers’ performance. As a result of frequent interactions, all the teachers of the institute simultaneously hone their abilities thereby rising the over all quality of the institute’s education. In a special case when a large number of teachers leave the institute, teacher collegiality helps in training the novices who enter the faculty. In this way the weaknesses of a few teachers are accommodates by the strengths of the others (Inger: 1993). Conclusion: The area of teacher development pertaining to the educational reforms is challenged by a number of impediments. Among these hindrances, a few pointed out by Lieberman involve the lack of knowledge about how teachers learn, little space for invention and the building of craft knowledge and the view of teachers in practices which is not considered as an acceptable moiety of teachers’ learning (Lieberman: 2002). Even with such obstacles, the significance and positive implications of Teacher Development Programs cannot be denied. In the light of case studies of various teacher development programs, it is clear that the place of teachers as learners in a collegial environment is as necessity for the development of education systems as the teachers’ place in the form of educational leaders is made possible only by the collegiality practiced among them at different levels. References Baird, J.R. Hagglund S. (1994). Teacher collaborative Action Research: A Swedish adaptation of an Australian Project.   Retrieved March 14, 2008, from Education Resources Information Center: http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/13/5d/31.pdf Brumfield, R. (2006). Teacher development key to tech success. Retrieved March 14, 2008, from E-School News: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/top-news/index.cfm?i=37127CFID=686760CFTOKEN=98871010 Critical Issue: Terms of Engagement—Rethinking Teachers Independent Learning   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Traits (2003). Retrieved March 14, 2008, from North Central regional Educational Laboratory: http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/educatrs/profdevl/pd400.htm Collaboration, Teamwork, and Mentoring. Retrieved March 14, 2008, from North Central regional Educational Laboratory: http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/envrnmnt/stw/sw5ment.htm Inger, M. (1993). Teacher Collaboration in Secondary Schools. Retrieved March 14, 2008, from National Center for Research in Vocational Education: http://vocserve.berkeley.edu/CenterFocus/CF2.html Kee, T.E. Luan, T.S. (1996). Collegiality and Teacher Development. Retrieved   Ã‚   March 14, 2008, from The Australian Association for Research in Education:http://www.aare.edu.au/96pap/teoek96556.txt Leonard, L. Leonard, P. (2003). The continuing trouble with collaboration: Teachers talk. Current Issues in Education [On-line], 6(15). Retrieved March 14, 2008, from http://cie.ed.asu.edu/volume6/number15/ Lieberman, A. (2002). Practices That Support Teacher Development. Phi Delta Kappan, 76 (8). Marsh, J.A. , Pane, J. F. Hamilton, L.S. (2006). Making Sense of Data Driven Decision Making in Education.   Retrieved March 14, 2008, from The Rand Corporation: http://www.rand.org/pubs/occasional_papers/2006/RAND_OP170.pdf Professional learning guide (2006). Retrieved March 14, 2008, from Learning, Teaching and Assessment Guide: http://www.ltag.education.tas.gov.au/Proflearn/designpl/proflearnguide.htm Schwarz, G. (1998). Teacher Lore and Professional Development for School Reform.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Westport, CT: Bergin Garvey. Usdan,M., McCloud, B. Podmostko, M. (2001). Leadership for Student Learning: Redefining the Teacher as Leader. Retrieved March 14, 2008, from Institute of Educational Leadership: http://www.iel.org/programs/21st/reports/teachlearn.pdf Wisconsin Standards for Teacher Development and Licensure. Retrieved March 14, 2008, from Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction: http://dpi.wi.gov/tepdl/pdf/10kdp.pdf

Theory And Practice Of Strategic Planning For Tourism

Theory And Practice Of Strategic Planning For Tourism It is widely acknowledge that planning is crucial to successful tourism development and management; and planning has been a widely adopted principle in tourism development at both regional and natural levels. Tourism in Europe has been the subject of considerable academic debate and commentary since the political even of 1988-89. The debate has often focused on Central Europe, whose future free market depends on planning especially including tourism. In particular, strategic planning in the region will be critical to the future success of tourism as attempts are made to utilise tourism in the process of planned economic change. The lack of coordination and cohesion within the highly fragmented tourism industry is a well-known problem to destination planners and mangers. Gunn (1988) stated that continuous tourism planning must be integrated with all other planning for social and economic development, and could be modelled as an interactive system. He pointed out that the go-it-alone policies of many tourism sectors of the past are given way to stronger cooperation and collaboration. No one business or government establishment can operate in isolation (Gunn 1988; 272). On the other hand, Inskeep (1991) has pointed out the importance of an effective organisational structure for tourism management and the need for continuous, integrated planning. Achieving coordination among the government agencies, between the public and the private sector, and among private enterprises is a challenging task, however, and requires the development of new mechanisms and processes for incorporating the diverse elements of the tourism system. Countries need to have an idea about where they want their tourism sector to be in the future and the route it is going to follow to get there. If nations do not have a strategic plan for their tourism, then the old clichà © can apply. If you dont know where you are going, how will you know when you have arrived? (Tim Hannagan 1998, p. 120). In this write up, the meaning of both strategic planning and tourism will be analysing, and also analytical argument on strategic planning for tourism will be explored. Furthermore, few example of tourism planning activities will be evaluated to support the subject matter. Thus, what is Strategic planning / Tourism Strategic planning is concern with deciding what business an organisation should be in, where it wants to be and how it is going to get there (Smith 1994). Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieves advantage in a changing environment through its configuration of resources and competences with the aim of fulfilling stakeholder expectations (Johnson and Scholes 2005). Harrison et al (1995). Explain that strategic is about clarifying your mission, setting clear long term objectives and formulating a comprehensive and integrated set of steps to achieve it. Strategic planning then is concern with defining and achieving organisational purpose (Porter 1994). planning is the purposive process in which goals are set and policies elaborated to implement them and is concerned with understanding and explaining the substance of policy content and policy decisions and the way in which policy decision are made. (Barett and Fudge, 1981). On the other hand, According to World Tourism Organisation (WTO) the organisation defines tourism as: the short term movement of people to destinations away from the communities in which they live and work, and their activities during their trip, including travel, day visits and excursions (WTO cited in T. Outhart. et al 2001, p.4) so tourism includes short term travel for all purpose, weather for leisure or business. Furthermore tourism is about the temporary, short term movement of people to destinations outside the place where they normally live and work and about their activities during their stay at these destinations. (Outhart O. Taylor L. 2001, p.6). Tourism development is the planning and ongoing development of destinations, facilities and services to meet the need of current and future tourist. When tourism is effectively planned and managed, tourism development can result in huge improvement and benefits both for visit and tourist and for the local population, therefore the need of strategic planning for tourism in order to meet the desire of people living in the demanding world has to be encouraged so as to promote and attract tourist as well as building their confidence with tourism activities. Tourism planning has also been seen as a way of extending the life cycle of a destination with a view of exploring new opportunities, adaptation to the current market demand and marketing harmonisation and as well forecast for the future. As stated by Clegg (1994), tourism activities comprise the worlds largest industry with over trillion of dollars in revenue produced and the challenges in benefiting from such economic impact is the result of efficient planning that will take into account the preservation and protection of the environment, the enhancement of a community quality of life and development and that will attract not only first-time visitors but also repeaters as a result of building a reputation and be a successful destination. (Inskeep 1991, WTO 1994) in their own contribution to tourism planning and development, they stated that planning is crucial to successful tourism development and management; and planning has been a widely adopted principle in tourism development at both regional and national levels. On the other hand, (Cooper et al. 1993; Shepherd, 1998) argued that poor tourism planning will cause social problems, degradation of the environment, short-term benefit and failure or constraints due to lack of analytical details or miscalculations regarding the control of land usage (Cooper et al. 1993; Shepherd, 1998). Furthermore, (Tosun and Jenkins, 1996) elongated the above comment by saying that the failure of central planning caused by lack of community involvement as well as mismatch between central planning and local possibilities is detrimental for the tourism market. Thus emphasising on a new concept of sustainable development to empower the planning system for long term success of tourism as it can help to promote and support conservation, regeneration and economic development as well as enhance the quality of life of visitors and host communities (Holden, 2008; Wall and Mathieson, 2006). Furthermore, Gunn and Varr (2002) stated that if tourism is to reach towards better economic impact it must be planned as well towards goals of enhanced visitor satisfaction, community integration, and above all, greater resource protection. Strategic and Its Resources Implication Fig 1 Stage of strategy process Questions Description STRATEGY FORMULATION Mission statement Statement of aims Statement of Values What is our purpose? What kind of organisation do we want to take? A clarification of the purpose of the business Environmental Analysis Where are we now? This involves the gathering and analysis of intelligence on the business environment. E.g. staffing, resources, competitors, stakeholder expectation Objectives Where do we want to be? This involves detailed articulation of aims i.e. setting a target for the organisation to achieve Strategic choice of strategies How are we going to get these? Strategies describe how the objectives are to be achieved Options analysis Are these alternative routes Here you identify options required to be screened in order to choose the best STRATEGY IMPLEMENTATION Action How do we turn plans into reality? A specification of the operational activities task required. Monitoring and Control How will we know if we are getting these? Taking corrective action as necessary and reviewing strategy Source: (Johnson Scholes 1997 p. 13) (Catterick 1995 p. 14) Many organisations produce separate mission statements and statements of aims, objectives and strategies. The strategic plan will contain all of these, which is also applicable to all countries embarking on tourism activities. Looking at the meaning of tourism and its activities, the theory and practice of strategic planning for tourism sector in every nation cannot be measured. This is evident on the ground that, it is clear that effective strategic planning and management is a prerequisite for the successful utilization of tourism as an agent of change in every nation. Tourism is seen as transcending the traditional economic sectors and is viewed as an industry which can actively regenerate the small business/entrepreneurial sector with all its flexible and responsiveness to dynamic changes. However, the transformation of a centralised economy, characterised by flexible practices and a low priority for tourism, does involve a change of hearts and minds as much as it is needs outside strategic planning from expertise. No wonder that, Hungary has recognised the advantages that tourism can bring as witnessed by Prime Ministerial statement in 1990 lauding tourism as a potential power-house for the economy. However, Halls (1991a) most persuasive point is that, tourism is seen as an integral part of economic restructuring by exposing the system to both national and international forces and, in so doing, introducing potential foreign investors, encouraging privatisation and reducing the level of bureaucracy and centralisation. All this are made possible via strategic planning approach adopted by a given nation. In the case of tourism, Page Thorn (1997) suggested that a national policy or strategy was required in addition to the RMA, if sustainable tourism goals in New Zealand were to be achieved, since then a national strategy has been produced, reviewed and subsequently updated, emphasising the sustainable development concepts and the desirability of integrating environmental, economic, social and cultural considerations in the long-term management of tourism resources. Tourism Planning Approaches (Countries overview) The changing evolution of tourism, its different political and socioeconomic development environments, and the diverse scientific and technical contributions in the fields related disciplines (urban, regional, environmental planning, etc.) shape different approaches to planning. Such approaches have been the object of interesting systematizations, especially the critical perspectives of Getz (1987), and Tosun and Jenkins (1998) for Third World Countries, which are neither mutually exclusive nor a reflection of a chronological evolution: boosterism, economic, physical-spatial, and community-oriented approaches. To these four could be added two more that are omnipresent in todays literature: a strategic approach and planning for sustainable tourism. Boosterism has been the dominant tradition ever since the emergence of mass tourism. It is based on a favourable, uncritical assessment of tourism that identifies it as intrinsically positive and ignores its potential negative effects on economic, socio cultural, and environmental levels. Halls (2000) expresses his doubts about its consideration as a way of focusing on Getzs contributions, four approaches can be distinguished, and planning since it is precisely characterized by being a tourism implementation and development method that reveals lack of planning. The economic approach conceives tourisms as an instrument that can help achieve certain economic aims. It reinforces tourisms character as an export industry and its potential contribution to growth, regional development, and economic restructuring. Public intervention, in its regulating and promoting role, gives priority to economic purposes over environmental and social ones, although it also attends to all the factors that can jeopardize its economic efficiency: development opportunity costs, selection of the most profitable market segments, control over demand satisfaction, estimate of its economic impacts, etc. However, this approach does not usually analyze how the benefits derived from tourism are distributed socially (Burns 1999). The physical-spatial approach incorporates the territorial dimension with the aim of adequately distributing economic activities, and specifically tourism activities, in space, while also ensuring a rational land use. It is an approach in which both town and country planning and tourism planning coverage as a result of the recognition that its development has an environmental basis. This approach mainly focuses on the preservation of the natural resources that make the industry possible and on the management of the environmental impacts it causes. Among the examples of the physical-spatial approach, Hall (2000) mentions the work by Gunn in the late 70s (Gunn 1994) or Insteps integrated approach (Inskeep 1991). The community oriented approach originated in the late 70s with the numerous works that criticized tourisms negative sociocultural effects (de Kadt 1979; Smith 1977). It is not exclusively confined to the aim of solving and preventing those effects. In fact, it promotes a local tourism development control scheme so that residents are the ones who benefit the most from that development, thus avoiding conflict situations that could put the industrys future viability in danger. Murphys work (1985) undoubted constitutes a basic reference point of an approach revitalized by the need to achieve greater social involvement in planning processes. This circumstance has provided the momentum to undertake, from public instances, bottom-top planning schemes, among them the European initiative leader for rural development. Strategic planning moved from the business context to regional and urban planning in the 80s, and it has a strong influence on economic restructuring schemes for declining places and sectors (Borja and Castells 1997; Vazquez Barquero 1993). This approach has been progressively incorporated into tourism planning and essentially focuses on the search for competitiveness of firms and destinations in a changing, complex environment. In short, it contributes to or reinforces the following distinguishing elements of tourism planning: analysis of the competitive environment as a fundamental element in the definition of the firms or destinations strategy; definition of a wide time scope for planning on the basis of foresight and prospective techniques; stress on social participation and the creation of coordination and cooperation channels among stakeholders; and the rise in value of planning as a process that is permanent, flexible and integrated into management (Ansoff 1988; Borja and Cast ells 1997; Hall 2000; Ivars 2001; Porter 1982). Planning for sustainable tourism is related to the great deal of interest aroused by the development paradigm ever since the celebration of the Rio Summit in 1992. The application of its principles to tourism is especially relevant due to its ambivalence, for it can help to preserve and improve the environment. THE STRATEGIC PLAN AND IMPLIMENTATIONS OF COUNTRIES For example, the strategic plan and implementation program for the county of Szolnok in Hungary highlight many of the problems facing the future development and reorientation of tourism in Central European States. During the construction of the strategic plan, the largest obstacle was identifying tourism facilities that would meet the development needs of the county while minimising the risk of social or environmental damage. The county strategic planner came up with the following planning strategy; Phase 1; Immediate Action Improve Quality of Existing Facilities Improve utilization of existing facilities Improve Economic Benefits from Tourism Improve Performance of existing Entrepreneurs Create environment for future tourism planning Phase 2; Immediate to Medium Term Action Develop Szolnok town as tourist centre Increase Accommodation stock Create new restaurants/cafes in tourist areas Develop new tourism activities Build on existing cultural/heritage attractions Encourage the development of closer linkages between sectors Phase 3; Medium to Long Term Action Wider tourist base-conference business Develop new up-marker tourist facilities Widen the marketing activities Establish strong links with national/international organisations Adopt a fully international computerised reservation system Continue to develop monitoring/regulation and research into tourism activities in the county Develop new 5 year tourism development plans. The result of the strategy plan and its implementation is a county that is now poised to break through into wider tourism markets, armed with promotional materials of high quality, tourism information and maps together with a broad spectrum of products, a network of commercial and organisational links that will enable it to capitalise on the potential market for visitors from within and to Hungary. On the other hand the strategic planners for tourism in Spain came up with what is refer to as FUTURES (Master Competitiveness Plan for Spanish Tourism) (Ministerio de Comercio y Turismo 1994). This plan opened a new state of tourism policy in which the state redefined its role within an institutional discourse that intended to consolidate a system of coordination and cooperation between the different administrations. The FUTURES plan became the catalyst of this change encouraging the design of specific plans for the 1992-1995 period, favoring cooperation through actions financed jointly by the different administrations and fostering the participation of public and private agents. The plan was a reflection of the third generation of tourism policies, according to Fayos classification (1996) where competitiveness turned out to be a key element for tourism management. The FUTURES plan formed a part of the structural adjustment theory (Bote and Marchena 1996) which focused on the adaptation of Spains supply to the structural changes caused by the market that jeopardized the competitiveness of the countrys tourism industry. Finally, this period witnessed the start of the planning model derived from Spains entry into the European Union with the preparation of the 1989-1993 Plan de Desarrollo Regional (Regional Development Plan) for Objective -1 regions and the 1989 1993 Plan Regional de Reconversion Regional y Social (Regional Plan for Regional and Social Restructuring) for Objective 2 regions. These plans made possible the application of Europe Structural Funds to tourism in Spain and implied the definition of a regional development strategy where special attention was paid to tourism, both in those autonomous communities in which it has a strategic role and in others where it was perceived as an emergent industry (Ivars 2001). Essential objectives included taking advantage of tourism growth expectations, the valuation of non-exploited resources, the contribution made by new products to territorial rebalance and finally, the incorporation of tourism into local development strategies both in rural and urban milieus. In the case of Barnette County, Wisconsin, a strategic planning was formulated to improve its tourism industry as for decades tourism has been the main economic revenue for the area. Based on existing data collected from a 1993 assessment, an action plan was implemented and the main issues encountered were lack of organisation, marketing performance, finding and government perceptions form which actions were created to eradicate the problem but it didnt escape failure since estimated budget to find a visitor centre wasnt reach due to lack of fund, marketing guides on the county printed but not distributed, eco-tourism was to be developed using a joint marketing grant but was refused by the state of Wisconsin. Overall, it showed the issues of lack of interest and participation from stakeholders (tourism businesses and government) for further tourism development of Barnett County. Looking at New Zealand as a case study, a county that want to increase the level of its tourism activity and sustainable tourism has become the key of the country to do so, which according to Bramwell Lane 2000; Hall Page, 2006), the success of sustainable tourism planning depends on existing planning and management functions that guide appropriate developments and the ability to respond to pressure on infrastructure and environments that increasing tourism demand creates. The concerns for New Zealand are that the tourism product relies a lot on the natural resources and the image of a clean and green country (Tourism New Zealands marketing campaign) and its has been quite a problematic issue in some areas with regards to conservation and preservation of the environment. Page and Thorn (1997) suggested that a national policy or strategy was required in addition to the RMA (Resource Management Act), if sustainable tourism goals in New Zealand were to be achieved. Based on the previous research undertaken by Page and Thorn in 2001 and 2002, the following issues were encountered such as lack of considering the number of international tourist arrival at national level, lack of planning at national level which Page and Thorn argued that if a national plan was needed in order to achieve a more balance equitable and beneficial patterns of tourism activity and development for destinations and host communities, however a PCE (Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment) report on education for Sustainable development, suggested that the like and dislike and the caring of something lies with the people. What was found from the previous study was the lack of communication and integration between the RMA and the local authorities and resources available from the government was inadequate. However the recent study also reflect the incapacity of the RMA to work together with the national government, since tourism related project were not released but effort has been done to integrate the process of a sustainable development and increase the continuity of collaboration between the public and private sector, but there is still that major gap between strategy and the implementation of the policy formulated in the evolution towards a more sustainable New Zealand. Based on which Page and Thorn (2002) stated that a national plan is required if tourism is to be developed with the target of enhancing the quality of life of its local people and increase environmental protection from the tourism activity. Furthermore, within the tourism planning the goal and objectives set should be achieved to challenge pro-development policy in order for New Zealand to keep up in the term of competitive advantage as a clean, green and sustainable tourism destination. As argued by Edgel, Allen, Smith and Swanson (2008), those destinations, localities and nations that prepare good policies and implement detailed strategic plans will reap the benefits for sustaining their tourism products in the future, which is the indispensable and fundamental basis of New Zealand tourism strategy. Hence leads to betterment of tourism activities in New Zealand. Furthermore, before any implementation, analysis study will be performed through survey of existing data and collection of primary data. The data requirements will include information such as existing tourism profiles, travel patterns, tourist attractions, accommodation and other tourist facilities, land availability, economic and government structure, education and training needs and provisions, environmental indicators, socio-cultural characteristics, investment sources and available capital, relevant legislation and regulation and private sector organisation. (Cooper et al. Tourism Principle and Practices). Ones data has been collected, the issues associated with it will be analysis in terms of assets (infrastructures), market assessment of demand and supply and feasibility study, source of funding and impact of economic, environment and social factors in terms of tourism needs and opportunities and overcome detrimental impact. The result derived from these analysis will help in the formulation of plan and policies such as marketing strategies, human resources management, environmental conservation, economic and tourism development by which implementing and monitoring to ensure the development path and avoid deviation from the actual plan of the nation on tourism sector. The diagram below represents the key stages in the planning process. Fig 2 Key stages in the planning process Source: Tourism principle and practices by Cooper et al. RECOMMENDATION Tourism has been identified as one of the primary industries with the potential to assist local communities in developing economic diversity (Allen et al 1993, Davis Morais, 2004) However, tourism is not a panacea for economic decline. Tourism has the potential to create both positive and negative impacts. Gunn (1994) indicated that, there is no other form of development that has so many far-reaching tentacles as tourism (p.16). For tourism development to be successful, it must be planned and managed responsibly (De Oliveira, 2003; Inskeep, 1991; Martin, 1995). Inskeep, (1991) furthered the concept of responsible management, warning that ill-conceived and poorly planned tourism development can erode the very qualities of the natural and human environment that attract visitors in the first place (p. 460). Thus communities that use or plan to use tourism as an economic development tool to diversify their economy must develop strategic planning policies for the sustainable development of the community. It should be noted that one key to strategic planning for sustainable development of tourism in a community is the inclusion of stakeholders. Without stakeholders support in the community, it is nearly impossible to develop tourism in a sustainable manner. Therefore, a clear understanding of the attitudes and interests of stakeholders is a necessary precursor to the strategic planning and management of sustainable tourism. Strategic planning also emphasise the integration of economic, socio-cultural and environmental, therefore stakeholders should collaborate and take into consideration the preservation of culture and environment while maximising economic growth and returns to community. Jamal and Getz (1995) define these collaborative efforts as a process of joint-decision making among autonomous key stakeholders of an inter-organisational, community tourism domain to resolve planning problems of the domain and/or to manage issues related to the planning and development of the domain. CONCLUSION Tourism exists as a powerful economic force in the development of both community-based and global markets. Today, its activities comprise the worlds largest industry with over three trillion dollars in revenues produced. (Clegg 1994). Accordingly, the success of sustainable strategic planning depends on existing planning and management functions that guides appropriate developments and the ability to respond to pressure on infrastructure and environments that increasing tourism demand creates. As Iskeep, (1991) argues, the special relationship between tourism and the environment, based on a unique dependency on natural and cultural resources, requires a balanced approach to tourism planning and development to maximise the associated benefits and minimise the negative impacts. Therefore, if ill-planned or excessive development is permitted, tourism can damage the special qualities that are essential for sustainable development. Finally, the importance of strategic planning for tourism within a sustainable development context is now acknowledged globally as it was addressed as a specific topic in a review of Agenda 21 in 1997. In 2002, the world summit on sustainable development included a submission on sustainable tourism (chapter IV, paragraph 43) in the Johannesburg plan of implementation, which identified that while tourism has positive effects, uncontrolled (lack of strategic planning) tourism growth can undermine the basis of tourism. However, the extent to which sustainable development ideology is translated into policy and practice requires a strategic planning investigation to uncover the tourism activities that need urgent attention to meet the demand of visitors. This can be in a form of language to be used, create an image to be used, practically assistance and guidance, promotional material and its design, and strategic for the provision of tourism information. Tourism planning has also been seen as a way of extending the life cycle of a destination with a view of exploring new opportunities, adaptation to the current market demand and marketing harmonisation and as well forecast for the future. Therefore, it is on this premise that the researcher believes that the role of strategic planning in tourism development of any nature can not be quantified. Words Count 4365

What is Wisdom? Essay example -- essay on wisdom

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines the word wisdom as â€Å"the quality of being wise; power of judging rightly and following the soundest course of action, based on knowledge, experience, understanding, etc.; good judgment; sagacity (penetrating intelligence and sound judgment).† In this paper, I will present my interpretation of one instance of how wisdom is obtained and hopefully passed on. I perceive wisdom as the ability to make the best decision or select the best course of action according to the current situation with respect to prior similar situations and their outcomes. Wisdom is what I like to call acquired knowledge over time and experience. Wisdom is often associated with a formal education. On the other hand, you may not be formally educated, but still considered wise. As wisdom is acquired, situations are looked at in a different light. Let’s use children as an example. As babies and small children, we view our parents as role models. We emulate them as we get older. When most children reach adolescence, they think they are grown, know everything, and their parents don’t know anything. They can’t wait to get out on their own so they don’t have to follow any of those constricting rules placed upon them by their parents while they live under their parent’s roof. For the children that venture out on their own and either without their parent’s help or with just enough help to get set up, reality hits rather quickly. Out on their own, children start to see ju...

Childhood Obesity Essay -- Health Care, Diseases

"Today, about one in three American kids and teens are overweight or obese; nearly triple the rate from 1983. With good reason, childhood obesity is now the Number 1 health concern among parents in the United States, topping drug abuse and smoking. If current trends continue, today’s kids could be the first generation to live shorter lives than their parents" (Clinton, para. 3 2011). Children may not understand the complexities of food intake or obesity but they continue to be affected by the issue. The reality is that if a parent enables their kids to make poor eating choices as children; they will struggle as adults to make the right eating choices. Many factors contribute to childhood obesity but the major factors are living sedentary lifestyles along with poor nutrition and over consumption of fatty foods. Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English language defines obese as excessively fat; corpulent (bulkiness or largeness of body); overweight. According Charles Stuart Platkin, PhD, (2009) the child's Body Mass Index (BMI)-the number calculated from a person's weight and height- provides a reliable indicator of body fatness. A person's body fat percentage is the total weight of the person's fat divided by the person's weight and consists of essential body fat and storage body fat. A child’s BMI is calculated to asses there weight to make sure children are healthy at there current status. Based on research from the American Heart Association (2011) 23.4 million children ages two to nineteen are overweight and obese. 12.3 million of those children are males and 11.1 million are females. There is no debate about whether childhood obesity is a problem in the United States. The debate should begin with ackno... ...mputer or playing video games" (Childhood Obesity, 2011, p. 1) Considering a child is in school for approximately six to seven hours a day and is playing video games or watching TV four to five hours a day there is very little time left for physical activity that often gets neglected. Obesity often appears with children who consume far more calories than they can burn off. . It would take an averaged sized person, running at a pace of 10 minutes per mile, one hour to burn off all 620 calories consumed in the mighty mcnugget meal at McDonald’s. (Natural bodybuilding, 2011) Kids nowadays prefer watching SpongeBob Square Pants or nickelodeons cartoon network verse taking part in outdoor activities. An easy resolution in avoiding obesity issues among young children is to make time everyday for active activities and limit the amount of time the child sit stationery.

Evolution of Management Essay

From the Biblical times we find monarchies of the time use some form of management to lord over the great kingdoms such as the Egyptians who used hierarchy management to build the pyramids, Moses leading the Israelites through the desert to the promised land and King David when he was in charge of the kingdom of Israel. In Ancient civilizations, the Roman Empire made use of devolved government to manage the vast empires resources. This was done through governors’ who were in charge of certain areas as we see in the bible during the birth of Jesus Christ. We can find artifacts that in old cities such as Jerusalem where we find aqueducts that give us an idea of how they managed the water resources. Modernization of the world led to cities and towns that brought about the need to manage the resources in order to provide services to the people living within them. We also find management in the church and military before the industrial revolution. The Roman Catholic Church is one example that has had an impact on management as we see in the catholic hierarchy led by the pope and includes cardinals, patriarchs, and bishops. The Military has greatly influenced management through power vested in positions in the chain of command. Management continued to evolve and we find individuals in history who have made contributions to the art of management as we know it; Luka Pacioli was an Italian mathematician considered the father of accounting. He invented the double entry accounting system. Adam Smith was a political economist whose concepts on economics at the beginning of the industrial revolution contributed greatly to management today. Robert Owens, Charles Babbage, Henry Vernum Poor and Henry Robinson Towne are other individuals who were influential to management in this era. With the onset of the industrial revolution, new ways of management came into play as new generations looked to increase productivity of organizations. Classical Era Scientific Management Scientific management was pioneered by Frederick W. Taylor a mechanical engineer who sought to improve industrial efficiency. He saw the need to have management design jobs properly and provide incentives to motivate workers to achieve higher productivity. His ideology was to find the best practice, decompose the task into its constituent elements and get rid of things that do not add value. Taylor’s scientific management gave way to specialization and is considered the basis to many other management systems that came after. Taylor was supported in this new way of management by Henry Gantt who is accredited with the Gantt chart that is widely used for project management. Frank and Lillian Gilbreth were also early advocates of the scientific management system. Through the motion study, Frank sought to make the processes more efficient by reducing the motions while Lillian’s interest was on the human aspect of work. The human aspect of the scientific management principles seek to understand the workers personality and needs. Administrative Management Henri Fayol, was a French engineer and manager of the mines developed the administrative theory of management. He viewed management as an activity common to all human undertakings. He is credited to giving us the first comprehensive functions of management; 1.Planning  2.Organizing 3.Command/Direct 4.Coordinate 5.Control He urged that management was an all encompassing activity that should be taught in schools, colleges and universities. This approach proposed that management is a skill which can be acquired if its principles are understood and rejected the idea that â€Å"managers are born, not made†. Bureaucratic Management A German Sociologist, Max Weber’s approach to management was by focusing on the organizational structure. His views divided organizations into hierarchies with clear lines of authority and control, divided labor such that authority and responsibility are clearly defined and legitimized, organizational officials are appointed and not elected, organization members are selected on the basis of their technical qualification obtained through formal education and training. Organizations are to treat all employees and customers equally and not be influenced by differences. Weber’s principles on organizing can create stable, organized and systematic organizations but make it difficult for the organization to adapt to changing environments and new challenges. Neo-Classical Era Operations Management (Research) Operations management, also known as quantitative management, gives a quantitative basis for decision making. It is characterised by the search for the optimal answer to a problem by using quantitative models. It specially deals with the development of mathematical models to aid in decision making and problem solving. This theory holds that managing is a logical and rationale process, so it can be expressed in terms of mathematical models.