The Agrotourism In Malaysia Tourism Essay

The Agrotourism In Malaysia Tourism Essay Agrotourism is also known as agritourism and farm-based tourism. Agrotourism is actually the collaborations between tourism and agriculture since the visitor go to travelling as tourist to enjoy, relaxation, spend time and money for joyfullness and happiness in addition to visiting agricultural area, doing agricultural-related activities like harvesting, planting, fishing, and etc. It is a form of tourism in agricultural areas such as orchards, agroforestry farms, herbal farms and animal farms. According to World Tourism Organisation (WTO, 2002) that agrotourism is part of rural tourism and relates to tourism on farms. It gives farmers the opportunities to expand their activities and also to increase their income. Agrotourism is just a small part of rural tourism and agricultural practice worldwide, excluding in some European countries such as Austria, France, Italy and Switzerland, where the number of farms that offer some form of tourism is remarkably large. Agrotourism has differe nt definitions in different parts of the world. In Italy, it refers to farmstays. However in other parts of the world, agrotourism includes a wide range of activities which comprises of buying produce direct from a farm stand, navigating a corn maze, picking fruits, feeding animals or staying at a BB (bed and breakfast inn) on a farm. Agrotourism covers a wide range of agriculture-related activities about which visitors learn and can try them out by themselves. In ASEAN countries like Thailand, rice farming, flower growing, vegetable and herb cultivation and livestock farming are some common examples of agrotourism. Agrotourists or visitors are exposed to agricultural practices in a more leisure fashion, such as by joining picturesque canal tours or strolling through shady fruit orchards (tasting the fruits right from the trees) and working in rice farms. Almost all the agricultural research and study centres scattered throughout the country are supporting the agrotourism. Visitors are allowed to tour the centres, watch the demonstrations or take part in the hands on activities. Agrotourism and ecotourism are also closely-related. Agrotourism is when a native person or locals of the area offer the tours to their agriculture farm to allow a person to view them growing, harvesting and processing locally grown foods such as coconuts, pineapple, sugar cane, corn or any produce the person would not encounter in their home country. The farmers would also offer a homestay programme and education for the visitors. Activities that usually be offered to agrotourists or visitors: Opportunities for interaction between hosts and guests (visitors) Horseback riding Demonstrating and participating in daily farm work Providing courses in organic farming and gardening Demonstrating or offering classes in making traditional local crafts Demonstrating food processing, serving typical local dishes and offering cooking lessons Organising cultural events Offering excursions to natural and cultural attractions in the surroundings Exhibitions of agrotourist products Agrotourism in many European countries consists primarily of lodging and meals on the farm. Farm buildings are often remodeled by the farm families into rustic lodging facilities, and operate them as a type of bed and breakfast (BB) inn. Some farms especially in Switzerland, do little more than clean out a barn and spread straw on the floor, upon which people roll out sleeping bags. Other farms will provide fairly upscale accommodations for the visitors. Visitors are also able to tour the farms, help out with some farm chores and have meals with the farm family. Invariably, they experience life on the farm genuinely. In England, 23% of farms provide some type of commercial leisure service enterprise such as fishing, nature trails, picnic sites and so forth whereas 24% of English farms provide overnight accommodation and/or catering (Turner and Winter, 2003). In countries like France, hikers and cyclists can follow a network of trails around the country that leads from farm to farm. In the Netherlands and some other European countries, the farmers have centralized clearinghouses for contacting and booking stays services on working farms. Agrotourism, while new to many types of American agriculture, has been a major part of the development of the American wine industry for decades. Many wineries are part of organized regional wine tours, and some special events such as concerts, festivals, and weddings are also held for attractions. And another form of agrotourism that has been around for decades is dude ranches. Dude ranches are more common in the United States and Australian Outback. It offers vi sitors the opportunity to work on cattle ranches and the chance to take part in the cattle drives. In Australia, Canada and the Philippines, agrotourism is deemed as a growth industry. Reynolds (2005) mentions that agrotourism is a type of businesses conducted by farmers whose working agricultural operations for the enjoyment and education of visitors. Since it can complement farmers income and contribute to local economic development, agrotourism is being conceptualized as a business model in terms of product diversification. Referred to as agriturismo in Italy, sleeping in the straw in Switzerland, farmstays in New Zealand, and farm holidays in England, agrotourism is well established throughout Europe and in many other countries (Rilla, 1999a). Agrotourism enterprise as a business conducted by a farm operator or farmer for the enjoyment and education of the public beside promoting the products of the farm, and generating additional farm income (Hilchey, 1993:4). Although the farmers may not always have the time, moneys and necessary skills and expertise to develop the tourism p otential of their business, agriculture and public sector tourism organizations are always promoting agrotourism (Stephen J. and Getz, Don (eds)). Trends of Agrotourism Agrotourism was recognized as a part of ecotourism formerly as both have similar principles to conduct nature attractions (Rilla 1999). Both have been identified as the fastest tourism development model in the world. They have been widely developed in developing countries as a potential development models as natural resources and support of local society economically (OTA, 1992). At the moment, agrotourism has successfully developed in many countries, for instance Switzerland, New Zealand, France, Netherlands, Australia, and Austria (Rilla 1999). In Indonesia, there are eight provinces trying to develop agrotourism such as North Sumatera with rubber and palm plantations, Riau with cacao plantations, West Java by botanical gardens, Central Java and Daerah Istimewa Yogjakarta by salak pondoh agrotourism in Sleman, East Java by sugar plantations, Nusa Tenggara Barat by Rinjani ecotourism, Middle of Kalimantan and West of Kalimantan by palm plantations. Currently, they are still simply managed with limited facilities and are not developed on community-based model, and have not been well promoted (Indonesian Agriculture Department, 2005). Previously, agrotourism attraction was only interpreted as panorama attractions and plantations area, but now agrotourism has been interpreted as a linkage system between tourism and agriculture sectors as well as a model of region development (Indonesia Agriculture Department, 2005). Application of Agrotourism Agrotourism is highly dependent on the type of agricultural activity that is practiced in that particular area. In other words, this means that not all agrotourism destinations in the world provide the same agricultural activities. So in this subtopic, we are going to introduce and discuss about some famous agrotourism destinations in our country, Malaysia. This will definitely exposed us the similarities and differences among the agrotourism destinations throughout the world. First of all, let us look at Malaysias agrotourism spots. There are some famous examples of destinations such as: (i) Cameron Highland (ii) Taman Pertanian Sabah (iii) Parit Jawa Johor (i) Cameron Highland Cameron Highlands is Malaysias premier hill resort. Located in the state of Pahang, on the Main Range of Peninsular Malaysia, at 1524m above sea level, it is the largest of the Malaysian hill resorts. Much of its appeal lies in the net sprawling tea plantations which date back to 1929, as well as terraced flower gardens, strawberry farms, orchard and vegetable gardens. Being a popular hill resort, Cameron Highlands is well-developed with visitor amenities, tourist attractions, activities and a range of accommodation for a comfortable, leisurely holiday in cool invigorating climate. The cool climate which never ranged more than 20 degree Celsius, along with its fertile soil also attracts tourist from various places. Initially, the virgin jungle cleared for cultivation of tea bushes. Thus began Boh Estate, the first highland tea plantation in the country. Subsequently, other tea estates were opened, among them, the Blue Valley and Bharat plantations. The highland was also found to be conducive for the commercial cultivation of vegetables, flowers and fruits such as oranges and strawberries. The increasing popularity of Cameron Highlands in recent years has attracted the development of more tourism facilities and spots to cater to the growing number of visitors. The practice of agrotourism can be observed in various agricultural places which is well equipped with facilities in Cameron Highlands. This is important as the combination of both agriculture and tourist attraction forms agrotourism. There are many activities and places to be visited in Cameron Highlands in the context of agrotourism such as: (a) Sungai Palas Tea Estate It is one of the four tea states on the highlands, also produces the world famous BOH TEA. Tourists may travel 1 km into this estate where the factory is located. Resident guides will introduce the complex processes involved in the production of fragrant tea. These include the picking of tea leaves and the intricate art of brewing a good cup of tea. Tourists can even purchase some tea, the main produce of the highland, as a souvenir. (b) Apiary- Honeybee Farm Apiary- Honeybee farm is a small cottage industry for the production of honey. It is a garden ere some 25 varieties of flowers have been cultivated not for sale, but as a food supply for honey bees in search of nectar and pollen. Honey, believe it contain amazing ingredients for treating ailments such as insomnia, lethargy, skin diseases and even impotence. (c) Strawberry Farm Strawberries are another unique and proud product of the Highlands, seen as a trademark of the hill resort. The variety is known as FRESNO. Tourist will not leave the farm without a jar of strawberry jam. (d) Flower Nurseries Fresh flowers are cultivated in the highlands and are a leading export. Most of the flowers are grown in Brinchang. Bloom like roses, chrysanthemum, carnations, dahlia, geranium and everlasting flowers are grown in the nurseries. No visit to the highlands is complete without purchasing some of these colourful cuts to take back home. (e) Vegetable Farm Cameron Highlands is the nations prime producer of fresh vegetables, with some of the produce exported to neighbouring countries. Most of the vegetable farms can be spotted from the road along Brinchang to Tringkap. Cabbages, cauliflower, tomatoes, carrots, leeks, parsley and pepper are grown here. Purchases can be made at the vegetable stalls. (ii) Taman Pertanian Sabah Taman Pertanian Sabah is part of the 1500 acres of the Agriculture Research Station, Lagud Sebrang Tenom which is administered and owned by the Agriculture Department Sabah. It is a complex consisting of the Agriculture Research Station, Seed production Centre for Cash Crop, Farmers Training Centre and Taman Pertanian Sabah itself. The Park sprawled over an area of 500 acres. The park was first opened to visitors in October 2000, and was officially launched by the former Prime Minister of Malaysia Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad on the 25 March, 2001. With its rich biodiversity, the Park has a magnificent collection for indigenous and introduced plants species. It is also a conservation centre for native Orchids of Borneo. This park would become a heritage for the next generation and this will help to educate people in nature conservation and the preservation of natural rainforest through cultivation of trees, shrubs, plants and flowers. The lush greenery, multitude species of plants or flowers of endemic to Borneo Island and very rare, panoramic view of the lakes, captivating landscaped gardens provide an excellent base to expand your knowledge and ideal environment for those who seek peace, quiet and tranquility away from stressed and urban noise. This park also provides a great trekking ground as well as nature walks and jungle activities. The park is blessed with Mother Natures treasures. The park is a showcase of integrated activities carried out by all the Departments and Agencies under the Ministry of Agriculture Development and Food Industry. It also serves as a training and education centre for agriculture, horticulture, apiculture, seed production, forestry, fishery and animal husbandry. It is divided into four key areas: (a) Agriculture This included Living Crop Museum, Demonstration Farms, Agro forestry, Bee Centre and Germplasm collection. (b) Horticulture This include Native Orchid Centre, Hybrid Orchid, Evolution garden, Model Garden and Ornamental Garden (c) Animal Husbandry This included Animal Park and Animal Farm. (d) Fisheries This included Freshwater Fishing. Objectives of Taman Pertanian Sabah are firstly, as a major Agrotourism centre in the state. Secondly, to provide demonstration farms for Agricultural activities, Animal breeding and Fisheries. Thirdly, to serve as a centre for training and demonstration on Agriculture, Horticulture, Fishery, Apiculture, Seed Technology, Forestry and Animal Husbandry. Next is to provide facilities for nature-based recreational activities and the final objective is to promote awareness and love for nature. (iii) Parit Jawa Johor The following agrotourism destination that i recommended is a place which situated On the western coast of Johor, lies a small town called Parit Jawa. The main attraction here especially during the October-March migration season, is the birdlife. Despite the busy river mouth near the jetty the bird fauna seems unperturbed. The most noticeable of the birds are the Lesser Adjutants of the family of Storks, by sheer virtue of their endangered status and size. Standing at 120 cm tall, with a white body and dark grey wings this species is unmistakable. Its head is virtually bald, apart from a sparse covering of fine hair-like feathers. There are only 2000 odd numbers left in the world and its cousin, the Greater Adjutant, not found in Malaysia, is critically endangered with only 500 odd left in the wild. To be able to sight these amazing prehistoric looking birds is worth the weekend to this classic, pre-war-looking town of Parit Jawa. Birdlife The main attraction of Parit Jawa, especially during the October-March migration season, is the birdlife.  Though there is a regular traffic of fishing boats winding its way through the muddy channels, and though there are local people going about their business near the jetty the bird fauna seems unperturbed.  The most noticeable of the birds are the Lesser Adjutants, by sheer virtue of their size.  Standing at 120 cm tall, with a white body and dark grey wings this species is unmistakable. Comically, its head is virtually bald, apart from a sparse covering of fine hair-like feathers.  Ã‚   Active during the day, these storks feed on fish and amphibians such as the Crab-eating Frog. Once seized, the prey is subjected to a series of stabs with its powerful beak, before being swallowed whole.  At nights the storks roost in mangrove trees along the coast.   Nesting occurs mainly during the dry season, either in small colonies or as single nests.     Ã‚  Other shorebirds not commonly seen in Malaysia but which may be sighted at Parit Jawa include the Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris, the Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata and the Grey-tailed Tattler Heteroscelus brevipes.  Ã‚   Egrets and smaller herons are easily seen, including the Chinese Pond Heron Ardeola bacchus.  The Striated Heron Butorides striatus is very common, and is often seen perched close to the jetty or stalking small fish around the moored fishing boats.   Flocks of terns are often seen following fishing vessels back to harbour, swooping down to pluck small fish from the waters churned up by the boats propellers.   Kingfishers are common too, including migrants such as the Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis and the Black-capped Kingfisher Halcyon pileata; there are numerous sticks or posts close to the jetty where they like to perch.  Ã‚   Fishing Village For visitors unfamiliar with the laid-back charms of rural Malaysia the fishing village of Kuala Parit Jawa serves as a fine example.   The tidal inlet is crowded with wooden vessels which fish the muddy waters of the Straits of Malacca, and there are a number of open-air seafood restaurants specialising in spicy fish recipes.   Add to that a couple of brightly coloured Chinese temples and modest Malay kampung houses surrounded by banana, papaya and durian orchards and you have a scene of rural tranquility. Mud and Mangroves Beyond the rickety wooden jetty at the mouth of Kuala Parit Jawa is a wide expanse of mud, which is  exposed at low tide.   The coastal mudflats of the Straits of Malacca are rich in organic content, supporting an abundance of invertebrate life including worms, snails, bivalves, crabs and prawns.   In turn these food groups support a rich web of higher species including fish such as mudskippers, reptiles such as water snakes and monitors, and a wide range of bird species.  Ã‚  Mammals too live in the adjacent mangroves; groups of  Long-tailed Macaque Macaca fascicularis regularly venture out of the mangroves and onto the mudflats, probably to feed upon crabs hence their other name Crab-eating Macaque.   The Oriental Small-clawed Otter Aonyx cinerea can also be sighted here.   Implications of Agrotourism Agrotourism has contributed much to both the economic and social sector in our country development. However, there are positive and negative implications of agrotourism. First of all, agrotourism contributes lots in improving the economy of the local communities. When we are promoting about agrotourism, we are actually promoting both the agriculture and tourism as they are combined in this sector. Places of agriculture will sell the products and induce the tourism of the place at the same time. As a result, tourists will buy the agriculture products and spending for tour cost such as accommodation as well. Besides, agrotourism will help to increase the value of the village. For instance, the residents can provide home stay-themed-accommodation for the tourists. Home stay is a form of program that allows the tourists to live with a local family to experience their lifestyle. Besides this program, by spending on the service provided or products bought, the tourists can increase the incomes of the residents in rural area. This additional income will help to raise the status of the residents. Thus, the poverty rate in rural area can be decreased. Other  opportunity  generated from agrotourism is providing local employments. The residents of rural area, especially the youths, can work on accommodation service, tour guide service, restaurant or handicraft industry. This will decrease the migration of youths to cities. Thus, agrotourism helps improving the social situations, particularly poverty alleviation, decreasing unemployment and declining urbanization. Generating agrotourism-related businesses  is the most potential opportunity of agrotourism development. Due to the increasing amount of the tourists, traditional cakes or chips are produced in order to introduce the local food to them. In the handicraft industry, souvenir such as batik and canes products are made to sell to the tourists. To maintain the amount of visitors, agricultural product improvements and stimulations of tourism-related  enterprises are done. Last but not least, abandoned land can be developed in the practice of agrotourism. The development of agrotourism brings about the utilization of lands. These lands can turn out to be a new tourist attraction spot. They can be used as aquaculture rearing, orchard farm or recreational park. Nevertheless, agrotourism has its negative effects towards the environment when it is over-developed. Climatic change is one of the major problems which the agrotourism sector caused. Recently, we can see the global temperature is increasing drastically from year to year. The best example is Cameron Highland, a place that practice agrotourism. It was known as a cold place but now, the temperature is actually increasing. This has caused the crop yield of the agriculture products such as vegetable and fruits to decrease because these plants are only suitable in temperate condition. Another negative effect that we can see is the pollution problem. Extensive agrotourism activities have released polluting by-products which results in environmental problems. The increasing number of tourists causes air pollution in a particular area as they using vehicles which release greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides. These polluting gases are emitted into the atmosphere and translate into the acid rain. Acid rain has adverse affect on the plants, fresh water and soil because it can kills some of the living organisms. Besides, the excessive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides also result in soil pollution. Excessive use of chemical pesticides which exceed permissible limit causes undesirable health effects and reduces biodiversity. Continuous use of fertilizer that contains heavy metals such as cadmium in phosphate rocks will pollute the soil and render the crops to be toxic. When the rain falls, the pollutants in soil will be brought to the river along with the rain, which will then cause water pollution. In addition, increases in use of chemical fertilizer results in higher level of nitrates being washed from the soil into the water ecosystem. This causes an excessive enrichment of the water, eutrophicaton, leading to rapid algal growth that creates oxygen deficit and killing of aquatic life. This chain reaction will further affect our ecosystem and biodiversity. When agrotourism is allowed to develop without proper planning, deforestation might happen. As this sector is growing rapidly, more and more land is required. So, the limited availability of land will lead to deforestation. Deforestation will brings to decrease in the wildlife population and at a more critical state, the biodiversity of the area will be affected. Consequently, there will be agricultural mismanagement which results in less arable land for agriculture and at the meantime, affect the agrotourism sector. Constraints of Agrotourism Lack of promotion is another constraint of agrotourism. Advertisement related to agrotourism is not established to a wider range of places. People will not have much information about the agrotourism places. Besides, the pamphlets that provide incomplete information will confuse the tourists. The information given may not be interesting or fascinating enough to attract the tourists. Furthermore, many places are lack of tour guides to introduce the places to the tourists. These will deter them from visiting the agrotourism spot. The authorities should promote the uniqueness of each village to strengthen the destination by combining with other related activities to reach the goals of agrotourism. Facilities also play an important role in the development of agrotourism. The hardest barriers of agrotourism development are inadequate infrastructures, limited public facilities and imperfect human resource skills. It will be a trouble when the facilities such as transportation, hotel and toilet do not fulfill the tourists demands. Another problem in agrotourism is insufficient government supports. Due to the small amount of governmental expenditure on research and development of agrotourism, technical assistance and support, as well as agro-marketing, agrotourism always faces problems in developing. Government empowerment, investment in agricultural sectors, infrastructure development, human skill improvement, public facilities development, and local communities empowerment and involvement need to be immediately committed to apply an ideal agrotourism. Besides, the younger generation is the important factor in the development of agrotourism. However, they are not concerned and interested about the greenery. From their point of view, agrotourism spot is not an interesting place to travel and it is not worth to go for such an unmemorable and uncomfortable trip. Water World or Extreme Park will draw more attention from them. Also, they are not interested to work in the agrotourism sector. Fresh graduates are not enthusiastic about the job in agrotourism as they thought it is not well-paid compared to the professional sector. As a consequence, there is no new generation to take over this sector. Lastly, scarce investment is a big problem for agrotourism sector. It is more risky to invest in this sector compared to the other sectors which are stable in development. Investors are less likely to invest in agrotourism as this sector is not a popular trend in the world yet. All in all, the government, non-governmental organizations, and even the people of our country should do their best to contribute to agrotourism. The government should not just fork out money in maintenance. Instead, they should find alternatives in supporting the development of agrotourism. Solutions to solve the constraints and implement to improve this sector should be their priority concern. Ways to Improve Agrotourism In Malaysia Agrotourism and homestay programmes provided opportunities for local involvement and additional sources of income. A total of 19 agro-tourism locations were developed with the participation of farmers and fishermen during the Seventh Plan period. The products included day visits, farm-stay and agro-tourism packages. Agrotourism is rapidly carving a niche in Malaysia, especially as the country has a wealth of products to offer locals and visitors alike. Agricultural tourism, as it is formally known, helps by improving incomes and economic potentials of small farms, rural communities and agro-based ventures throughout the country. Visitors can also help with the locals daily chores, feeding the ducks, tending to the vegetables and see how the local communities thrive in todays fast-paced world. There are also homestays where visitors can discover more of local agrotourism practices. There are also fruit farms and parks where locals and visitors can learn more of agroutourism in Malaysia. In Malaysia, an agriculture park measuring over 10000 hectares has been opened, showing visitors how Malaysian agriculture has developed. For example, Cameron Highland located at Pahang and Dusun d Paradise that is situated in Melaka. These places have become tourist hotspot as it offer variety of activity and different experience for tourist. Malaysia Agriculture, Horticulture and Agrotourism ( MAHA ) is the main organization that promotes the practice of agrotourism. Today, the industry is still growing and need a lot of improvement to achieve optimum benefit. Supportive government policies are one of the ways of improvement. It maintains a business environment with oppurtunities for growth and profits have made agrotourism in Malaysia an attractive sector. The private sector in Malaysia is encouraged to become partners with the public sector in achieving the nations development objectives. Governments commitment to maintain a business environment should be the main objective that provides companies with the opportunities for growth and profits. Government can also pay constant feedback from the business community through channels of consultation such as regular government- private sector dialogues. These allow the various business communities to air their views and to contribute towards the formulation of better agrotourism. Air, land and sea transportation will be continuously upgraded to facilitate accessibility and the growth of the tourism industry. The comfort, safety and security of tourists are crucial for the success of the agrotourism industry. The government will increase security patrols, especially in remote tourist resorts, to ensure the safety of tourists. At the same time, adherence to safety measures in the transportation of passengers by road, rail, sea and air will remain a top priority. Operators, guides and instructors in the tourism business will need to be more conscious of the well-being of tourists and strive to ensure their comfort and safety. In addition, further efforts will be made to provide tourists with quality goods and services at reasonable prices. Over the years, extensive promotional campaigns have been engineered both locally and overseas to attract tourists from around the world. Despite the economic slowdown, the tourism industry remains strong. Today, Malaysia is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Asia. This will allow the agrotourism industry to continuously expanding. Government must take initiative, which are undertaken by its official tourism promotional board, Tourism Malaysia. This will create potential investment opportunities in many areas. Tourism Malaysia has established video clips in local television programme to promote agrotourism. Stable political condition is also essential for marketing in agrotourism even for major tourist attractions. Government should ensure the political condition is always stable so as to allow the continuous of tourist flowing into the country, thus promoting agrotourism. Besides that, this will make investor feel secure and allow them to expand the field safely. Malaysia government should offers investors a young, educated and productive workforce at costs competitive with the other countries in Asia. This will allow the investors to develop and practice agrotourism in a more convenient way. Thus, this will attract more investors to develop in Malaysia and directly contribute to the countrys economy. The investors also need to play their role to improve the practice of agrotourism. They should provide better infrastructure for their customers such as transports, accommodations and catering facilities. They must provide good transport links because even attractive regions can be almost impossible to market for tourism if they are not accessible from the population centres. Investors should ensure that the agriculture they planted must be in healthy condition and always fresh to attract more people to come and have a tour. Investors can cooperate with government to create partnership with travel agency of other country to promote local agrotourism. Tour agency can provide attractive tour packages and promotion for the tourist where is the investor will give cheaper price for the agent. This is a form of symbiosis interaction between the tour agent and investor. Both parties will get benefit from the interaction. Investor must provide wide d

The Economic Crisis Through Digital Economy Information Technology Essay

The Economic Crisis Through Digital Economy Information Technology Essay Already a circulated topic which puts thoughts investors and businessmen, the economic crisis seems to be invincible. The solving and minimizing the effects exerted at the microeconomic and macroeconomic level are still a challenge for economists, both globally and nationally. In fact, today we are at the confluence of two crises: the first (short term) but there is a second economic crisis in the long term, which is about the changing business climate. Following studies carried out internationally, it was concluded that these two crises have in common that one possible solution is to develop the digital economy. Digital economy seen as a new economy is the effect of coexistence of computer systems, Internet, telecommunications, electronics and their sustainable development. The trend toward digital systems integrated values pose a new life cycle of e-business. This new model of economy is characterized by several features quite different from traditional economy. First, new economy presents new market and business models (e-business, E-commerce, e-banking, etc.) achieved through the intranet and the Internet, bringing a radical change in their efficiency, to reduce the cost. In recent years, electronic commerce (e-commerce) has emerged as the concrete form of realization of business, also involving the definition of sui generis markets scientific knowledge, driven by an increasingly developing research and development sector. Second highlight the application needs of consumers and their ever more active involvement in design, implementation and use of goods and services from early stage research and development. In the light of these realities, the new economy is non-interactive, participatory, thus achieving a more rigorous interaction between supply and demand, in time and space. Thus the consumer is without the knowledge, the main innovation pawn. It is he who offers ideas for innovational producer, who must maintain and expand markets, increase comfort and provide sustainable economic development. Third, we talk about competition and cooperation, two inseparable sides of the digital economy (taking account of the interaction between supply and demand, above). Forms of manifestation of competition between producers suffer due to temper consumer transformation, how it perceives and chooses a product or service name of the manufacturer at the expense, making vital cooperation between producers. All these lead to the creation of virtual organizations as being achieved exploitation of business opportunities by sharing resources (skills, cost and market access). Lastly, the most delicate of the economy, that is on a power greater than design work. But as in anything less pleasant there a good side, we see that the advantage of creating new jobs that require highly skilled. Digital economy is regarded as superior to the wider economy. This is given its economic effects, namely reducing resource consumption, increased innovation and entrepreneurial spirit, increase productivity, speed change production and economic phenomena and processes, increasing value added, etc. The term digital economy refers to the transformation produced in the economic activities resulting from the use of information and communication technology (ICT), which provides access, information processing and storage in a low-cost time low. Antithetical on the old economy growth was driven by mechanization of production, particularly manufacturing and agriculture, and the new economy, a promoter of development is generally digitization (using information technology to produce and distribute goods and services) and in particular , using the Internet and other information technologies (smart cards, voice-based computing, wireless, databases, telecommunications and expert systems) in the service sector, which encompasses 80% of jobs. Information technology revolution has transformed virtually all industries and is the main developer of economic efficiency and productivity growth, living standards, the customization of products and services to meet individual needs and desires. So on this evolving digital economy is developing an increasingly see knowledge as raw material of economic activity currently living in a knowledge revolution. This revolution means a fundamental change and transformation processes based economy alm ost exclusively on natural resources in the economy based mainly on knowledge. On the basis of this revolution is the decisive role that the knowledge they have acquired in recent decades, increased economic importance of information technology, business processes, human capital, capabilities and organization skills knowledge related to organic factors. The exponential growth of mobile communications and the number of Internet users, the contribution of the ICT sector (ICT) to economic growth and job creation, restructuring of companies and business in general to better benefit from new technologies, accelerated development of electronic commerce and the essence of the digital economy supporting the transition to a knowledge-based society. It offers the most promising prospects for overcoming the crisis and stop efecto social exclusion, but require social protection systems to become more active, provide incentives for work, ensuring sustainable retirement system for elderly people and a stable environment the transition to knowledge-based economy can be run. SMEs the mainly pawn In order to achieve the digital economy should focus on using technology within firms, both in terms of Exeter and the environment when it comes to the firms external environment. It is understandable that the field could have the biggest Benefits after investing in technology the SME sector. Importance of SMEs can be seen in their effect on the most important aspects of life inhabitants of a region and the level of economic development. Thus, the importance of SMEs lies in reality following: offers the largest supply of goods and services for a nation in a modern society; is the main supplier of value added in economic sectors that have purpose, offers most jobs; firm level performance influence the state and the performance of national economy and standard of living of the population. In the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, seeking to become states with mature economies, the SME sector is considered the pillar supporting the economy. On average, 99.7% of companies present in the 27 EU countries, generating more than two thirds of total employment and 60% of added value, said Helge Boschenbroker, director of the Zeb/rolfes.schierenbek.associates and author of Serving SMEs by banks in CEE. Information and communications technology, with electronic trading systems offer benefits in increased turnover after business processes. Transfer documents via existing network and computer network within the enterprise increases the efficiency of the economic process in terms of documentation, data processing and other administrative functions. Also in the SMEs, ICT and communications applications in this area may be the company much faster and can bring value and management company offering its effectiveness. Using advanced ICT systems, such as being ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and KMS (Knowledge Management System) enables enterprises to store, distribute and use their knowledge and know-how. For example, databases with a history of clients increase the flexibility and support given by managers and employees to customers. Regarding the internal environment of enterprises, the Internet and electronic commerce, offers significant potential in reducing transaction costs and time. If the type of B2B commerce, digital technology reduces the information asymmetry between buyers and suppliers provided. In fact, adoption of electronic commerce will reduce costs of transfer; increase transaction speed and superior build business relationships. Prerequisites for participation in a digital economy are the availability of accessible ICT with reasonable price and ability to use them. Currently, there are still many people who can not benefit fully from the opportunities offered by ICT because these prerequisites are not met. Using ICT in SMEs is important economically. E-business idea is crucial when talking about ICT, but refers to accessing, providing and sharing information in the networks business, ie making business into advanced digital economy. Although companies today continue to use cost savings by using ICT, ICT is increasingly recognized as an important tool for innovation and revenue growth. New services and new ways of working in networks of value occurred. Competition between enterprises is conducted in new ways and cooperation lies in their work. Knowledge-intensive activities have become more important. Companies are increasingly focused on their core competencies and outsource processes such non-core business. Currently, the vast majority of world countries have adopted proactive policies priority to create an environment conducive to sustainable development information and communication technologies (ICT) especially that between developed and developing or poor countries has created a digital gap (Digital Divide). Romania, like other emerging countries, is faced with the phenomenon known as the digital gap, that gap that exists in use of ICT in organizations, between different layers of society in the country to other countries. Digital divide concept is closely related to information society theory. Using these indicator researchers measured the extent to which certain segments of the population can participate in the information society. The gap is caused by social and economic inequalities between groups that influence access to digital information. These differences or inequalities arising from operating knowledge of computers and technology use by those present on the labor market and the marginalized, rich and poor, young and old. No wonder that the current economic crisis digital divide, in terms of Romania, to provide a surge. As the economy continues to be in crisis compared with other EU countries, differences in adoption and development of ICT will continue to increase. Finally it is possible for Romania to face a new crisis, a crisis of e-accessibility, but only if no measures are taken to support the adoption of sustainable ICT

Salem Witch Trials V. The McCarthy Hearings :: essays research papers

The McCarthy Hearings are referred to as "witch-hunts" because of their similarity to the Salem witch trials. The McCarthy hearings are trials in which Senator Joe McCarthy accuses government employees of being Communists. He exaggerates and exploits the evidence and ruins many reputations just as the girls do in the Salem witch trials. The accused, in both cases, are used as scapegoats for society’s problems and the only way to escape direct punishment is to admit to guilt.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Joseph McCarthy and the girls from Salem begin to accuse people of being either Communists or witches to obtain, something they crave, power. No one actually has hard evidence to support these accusations, including the accusers. The more people they accuse the bigger the lies get. The girls in Salem begin to cry out that these witches are sending their spirits on them. The even go to the extent to start shivering, passing out, and mocking the accused as they walk into the room. Abigail Williams also sabotages, Elizabeth Proctor, one of the women she accuses of being a witch. When Abigail witnesses Marry Warren, the Proctors servent and one of the accusers, making a puppet and sticking a needle in it’s stomach for safe keeping Abigail knew it would be taken to her home at the Proctors. So she decides to claim she was stuck with a pin by Elizabeth Proctor through the technique of voodoo and Elizabeth is arrested that night for witchery. As for McCarthy he accuses anyone he sees. He even began to question the integrity of George C. Marshall and even President Eisenhower. He also, started an investigation on the Army. He never gave any kind of reliable evidence, he just started pointing fingers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Instead of trying to fix the problems in their society they blame the problems on something else so they won‘t have to deal with them. In 1692 a few girls got sick, they blame it on witch craft instead of thinking that maybe they were faking it or they got some kind of unknown sickness. In 1950 people begin to think differently than one another and have new ideas, people blame it on Communists instead of embracing the new ideas and learning and politely debating them.

Archetypal Shame Society Essay examples -- German Literature Heroic Ep

Archetypal Shame Society Certainly one of the greatest works of German literature to date, Das Nibelungenlied is arguably the finest example of the heroic epic in all of Western literature. Ostensibly, Das Nibelungenlied is a story of deception, betrayal, and vengeance interwoven with themes of fate and the relationship between love and despair. The poet reproaches the main character, the queen Kriemhild, for her selfishness in sacrificing the lives of thousands of loyal knights to exact her revenge on those who betrayed and murdered her husband. However, underlying the story of Das Nibelungenlied is a tacit critique of its hypothetical society, which itself closely resembles the society of the poet’s audience. Hence, the poet intends to effect discourse amongst his audience regarding the political state of its society, and indeed this theme is even recapitulated in the very act of the epic’s reception. The premise for the poet’s political theory of the Nibelungenlied society is the same as that of English philosopher Thomas Hobbes in his essays on the state of nature and the social contract. Hobbes believed that man, in his natural state, was driven by the primitive impulses of desire, aggression, fear, and most of all, survival. For the most part, the lives of uncivilized men were short and brutish. Thus, to protect themselves from each other and external threats, men entered into a social contract, in which they created an entity with authority to rule and power to defend. Nevertheless, this agreement is hardly a solution to the problem of man’s natural aggression towards his fellow man; it merely glosses over it. Perfect evidence of the Nibelungenlied society glossing over natural aggression are the knightly exhibi... ...ext has to be such that the audience member learns nothing new about himself or herself in his or her self-conscious reflection of that text. In this way, the audience member realizes the society of the epic is analogous to his or her own. There are natural urges that man has, such as aggression, for which the state will provide suitable outlets. However, one must be wary that during the sublimation of these natural urges, one does not neglect to recognize the implications of these urges, because it is these impulses that drive and form our societies yet at the same time threaten their existence. To be sure, an audience listening to a reading of Das Nibelungenlied might well be a sublimation of adventure-seeking or intellectual stimulation, but whatever it is, if it sustains the society, it should never be glossed over, for it may also destroy the society it serves.

The Use of Capital Punishment in America Essay examples -- Capital Pun

The Use of Capital Punishment in America The use of capital punishment in the U.S. is a growing concern for most American citizens. According to statistics, seventy percent of Americans are in support of the death penalty, while only thirty percent are against it. These statistics show that few people are against capital punishment (â€Å"Fact† 1). With the use of the death penalty growing the controversy is becoming more heated. With only twelve states left not enforcing it the resistance is becoming futile (â€Å"Fact† 4). Many debates have been made and even clauses have been invoked, such as, the â€Å"Cruel and Unusual Clause† that was invoked by the Supreme Court in 1962 (Meltsner 179). The use of death as a punishment has been viewed as â€Å"cruel and unusual,† but in further research the view of what is considered â€Å"cruel and unusual† has been reduced drastically (Berns 31). America’s method of punishments has been reduced from several extremely painful execution method s, to four quick and less painful punishments. They consist of line of execution, gas chamber, electric chair, and the most popular lethal injection (â€Å"Ways† 1-4). The debate about the death penalty consists in both ethical and religious viewpoints. The death penalty should be legalized in all fifty states, to deter from crime, keep repeat offenders off the streets, and alleviate prison costs from the taxpayers. On the other hand, there have been some men and women that have been wrongfully accused and executed for murder. Since the 1900’s at least 416 people have been wrongfully executed causing great concern for the accuracy of the death penalty (â€Å"Death† 4). According to an examination of the â€Å"Death Penalty and Legislature,† Henry Schwarzchild calculated that if the courts were to â€Å"carry out the death penalty for every murder, then we would be executing 400 persons per week (Bedau 366). At the same time this small number of mistakes is nothing compared to the problems society would face without the death penalty. The concern of the death penalty not only pertains to social problems, but also to biblical aspects as well. Walter Berns states many passages from the Bible that support the death penalty, but after careful research he determines that the passages can be interpreted in many different ways. To read this passage from Genesis someone might think that the death penalty is suppo... ...sy and debate that could continue in years to come. Works Cited 1. Bedau, Hugo. The Death Penalty in America Third ed. New York: Oxford University P, 1982. 2. Berns, Walter. â€Å"Crime and the Morality of the Death Penalty.† For Capital Punishment. New York: Basic Books P, 1974. 3. Carelli, Richard. â€Å"Court refuses to outlaw Florida electric chair.† Washington 19 Jan. 1999. http.//web.lexus-nexus.com/universal (20 Jan. 1999). 4. â€Å"Death Penalty Facts.† 7 June 1995. http://susers.aol.com/mcluf/deathf.htm (20 Jan. 1999). 5. â€Å"Death Penalty Fact Sheet.† http://www.ohio.net/~mhs/civics/capp/-factsheet.htm (20 Jan. 1999). 6. Kieter, Richard. â€Å"On the Front Line: Law enforcement views on the Death Penalty.† Feb. 1995. http://www.essential.org/dpic/dpic.r03.html (5 Feb. 1999). 7. â€Å"Nine Lives: Myths and Facts about the Death Penalty.† http://www.ninelive.org/myths. htm (20 Jan. 1999). 8. Meltsner, Michael. â€Å"The Supreme Court and Capital Punishment.† Cruel and Unusaul. New York: Random House P, 1973. 9. â€Å"Ways to be Executed by the Death Penalty. http://www.ohio.net/~mhs/civics/capps/ execution.htm (20 Jan. 1999).

Big Issue – Interview

How has Big Issue evolved over the years and has It been able to stay true to its Orlando/core values? Franchise Idea 0 less rigor; social entrepreneurs go around the world Message has gone out self help / working with people In the margin Core values have been consistent throughout the years 2.How did you come to be involved in Big Issue? Were you recruited or did you seek it out? Curious to understand the organizational fit. Recruited Brought considerable experience in the commercial area 0 capable of expanding businesses Stephen brought strategy and focus to a very commercial chancy proposition Walk the talk / communicate core values and principles 3. Does a charity like yours actively think about a AS analysis, like any other corporation?Running a charity is the same as running a business Charities need an operational framework in order to evolve and deliver objectives However, they are not always In control of all elements of the AS as It Is a lively organization totally reliant on the success of the people 4. How much of the current structure is a direct result of the AS actions that your management team has taken? It Is However, some elements are not a direct result of the AS In order to get money from trusts, the environment dictates that you need to evidence what you have done There are requirements of the world that often override an Internal AS framework 5.Are you happy with the current structure and how would you like to see Big Issue's AS evolve? Need some people on the ground as they are currently understaffed 6. Strategy: What is Big Issue trying to achieve? Medal brand (education) Brokerage strategy Make a meaningful impact on the lives of people who are socially and financially excluded Solution C] for what is going on in society 7. Skills / Style / Staffing: What are your selection criteria for vendors?Skills: Big Issue: IT, HER, infrastructure, journalists, write, advertise C] enterprise Vendors: focused Style: Belief in the mission 0 unifyin g Shared belief in what we are here to do Tough parent / caring / listening 0 stick with standards Realism and good customer service Staffing: Big Issue: 75 people Ruinations / IT / HER); charity (25) Vendor population of 2,000 (need 30 people @ less than ?ask a year to help manage he vendors) Struggle to get support 0 efficient model 0 need more people on the ground 8.Systems / Structure: How you do you support Big Issue vendors? They have a badge process, which is time limited and requires vendors to check in regularly At every check point, a new badge is issued to the vendor This facilitates performance managing 9. Shared Values: How would you describe the vendor community Vendor community: code of conduct; see value of the choice they make to change 0 this can unify However, there is no defined agenda; not faith based; prepared to put something in

Job Fair Brochure Essay

We offer full time and part time quailty care. Organizational Culture Our company culture values employees who are motivated, energetic, creative, and dedicated. We will have weekly meetings to gather creative ideas to create fun learning experiences for the children. We value input that leads to growth. Employees must be trustworthy, team players, and have strong communication skills. Taya’s child development center is set up within functional and geographic structure. Our functunal structure focus on our employees working together because of their expertise to meet the childrens needs. We have a director, assisant director, lead teachers, assistant teachers, and teachers aids that work together. Our geographic structure focus on to make sure we are meeting the need of the community. We are dedicated to serve the children in our neghborhood. We are a full time service child development center. I selected functional structures because in order to run a child development center I need experience and educated teacher to work together to provide high quality child care. Employees grouped together because they have the same expertise of the same jobs, so they can easily communicate and share information with each other. They can often make decisions quickly and effectively by working together. â€Å"A functional structure also makes it easier for people to learn from one another’s experiences and improve their skills† (Jones, 2007). I also selected geographic structures because we have to make sure we are providing care for the need of the neighborhood. I think functional and geographic structures will help to build and strong business. I would have a Sole proprietorship child development center. I will operate a daycare center business in my name. I will be the only owner and I will hirer qualified teachers to help me run my child development center. My company is dedicated to serve the children and parents need in our community. We will meet the needs of each child indiviually. We will cater to infants, toddlers, and perschoolers in our community. We will help nuture and guide the children through social emotional, sensory and congnitive skills. We will provide fun learning experience for each age group of children. We will offer full time and part time care to meet the needs of our families in the community. We will offer music, yoga, and spanish enrichment learning classes. My business will help the children and parents in the community. I have selected organizational culture for my company values and norms that influence how people and groups behave and interact with one another. I want to create a happy and fun enivornment for my staff , parents, and children. My company culture values employees who are motivated, energtic, creative, and dedicated. We will have weekly team meetings to gather creative ideas to create fun learning experiences for the children. We value input that leads to growth. Employees must be trustworthy, team players, and have strong communication skills. The values I want my company to develop are excellence, stability, predictability, profitability, economy, creativeness, morality, and usefulness. â€Å"Company norms specify or prescribe the kinds of shared beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors that a firm’s members should hold and follow. Norms are informal but powerful rules about how employees should conduct themselves if they want to be accepted and successful† (Jones, 2007). Organizational culture will allow my staff interact with one another and create a fun learning experience for the children and each other. It will also allow us to work in a fun loving environment. References Jones, G. R. 2007). Introduction to business: How companies create value for people. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY I  certify that  the attached  paper is my original work. I am familiar with, and acknowledge my responsibilities which are part of, the University of Phoenix Student Code of Academic Integrity . I affirm that any section of the paper which has been submitted previously is attributed and cited as such, and that this paper has not been submitted by anyone else. I have identified the sources of all information whether quoted verbatim or paraphrased, all images, and all quotations with citations and reference listings. Along with citations and reference listings, I have used quotation marks to identify quotations of fewer than 40 words and have used block indentation for quotations of 40 or more words. Nothing in this assignment violates copyright, trademark, or other intellectual property laws. I further agree that my name typed  on the line below is intended to have, and shall have, the same validity as my handwritten signature. Student’s  signature (name typed here is equivalent to a signature): Shawntaya Lewis