Saturday, August 31, 2019

Pie Chart

Presentation Notes Cameron, highlighted in blue are things that need to be added to the powerpoint. Slide 1 – Landing Page (Sarah) †¢   UFC graphics Logo Slogan †¢   Consulting Firm Name & Slogan – †¢   Group Members Slide 2 – Background (Sarah) †¢   Ultimate Fighting Championship ® (UFC ®), started in 1993 as a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) organization. †¢ In 2001 UFC was purchased by Zuffa and restructured MMA into a highly organized and controlled combat sport †¢ Response to the UFC brand of MMA has been tremendous, resulting in a growing fan base that has developed steadily through the years.Slide 3- Background (Sarah) †¢   UFC is the worldwide benchmark for Fight Entertainment industry †¢   They lead the global mixed martial arts industry with 90% of market share Insert graphic here of MMA market share Slide 4- Market Share (Sarah) Insert PPV Breakdown chart here ADD PIE CHART HERE * UFC has de clined in PPV market share (within the fight entertainment industry) from 57% in 2010 to 51% in 2011. What to say: Slide 2: Background The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was created in 1993 as a medium to display multiple forms of martial arts and classify the most effective fighting style in a real life fight.Mainstream exposure damaged consumer perception of the product due to the violent and â€Å"no-rules† nature of the sport; and as exposure languished, so did profits. The company struggled to gain television exposure and found itself competing with professional wrestling, which is staged fighting, and traditional fighting programming such as boxing and martial arts tournaments. However, by 2003, UFC came under new management who wanted to change the strategic course of the company. Management saw the opportunity to rebrand itself from a sport to a sports entertainment organization categorized as â€Å"fighting†.It installed a new set of rules – elimi nating hair pulling, head butting, groin strikes and other dangerous maneuvers from the matches. Zuffa the parent company of UFC has given consumers an innovative option for fight entertainment. UFC blends the athleticism of boxing and mixed martial arts, the production value and character creation of professional wrestling, along with the drama of reality television into one unique product. Response to UFC has been very successful and fan base has been consistently growing for the past several years.Slide 3: Background The results have been very visible. UFC has now become a billion dollar empire that reaps profits from PPV, merchandise, and live events. It has grown progressively and through acquisitions it has become the industry leader and benchmark in the fight entertainment industry. By 2009, it was estimated that the UFC had captured 90% market share of mixed-martial arts entertainment. Slide 4: Market Share Even though UFC holds the majority of the MMA market share it barely contributes over half when talking about the PPV industry.Like the term â€Å"pay-per-view† suggest, you pay to view an event whether it be a live event or movie. Live events are segmented into more narrow of categories such as concerts, professional sports and college sports. UFC is listed under MMA PPV, which is considered as a fight entertainment, a sub-category of professional sports. In 2010 UFC held strong with having 57% of the market share of PPV in the fight entertainment industry. However one year later in 2011 it dropped to only having 51% of the PPV market share within the fight entertainment industry.

Friday, August 30, 2019

Exploring the Theme of Love in Duffy’s Havisham Essay

Duffy, writing from the twentieth century perspective, revisits the well known character from Great Expectations in a dramatic monologue, where she assumes the persona of Havisham to explore the innermost thoughts and feelings of a bitter woman destroyed by unrequited love and humiliation. Havisham appears to be written in the style of a Shakespearean sonnet, but does not end in a rhyming couplet, only continues in this style. This symbolises that there is no happy ending for Havisham and thoughts of her lover’s betrayal will haunt her throughout the rest of her life, her pain in ongoing and never ending. Duffy takes away Miss Havisham’s title; by doing this she strips her of her identity in society. Duffy’s use of an oxymoron and pejorative, ‘Beloved sweetheart bastard’, has an undercurrent of violence, and emphasises Havisham’s conflicting emotions about her ex lover. The use of dark, monosyllabic language like ‘dead’, coupled with the harsh ‘d’ sound shows how detached Havisham has become from her emotions. The metaphor ‘dark green pebbles for eyes’, reflects how her soul has been hardened to all feelings and emotions. The isolated noun ‘spinster’ reflects Havisham’s own isolation from society, through her embarrassment at being jilted at the altar. Havisham ‘stink[s] and remember[s]’, the olfactic image shows that Havisham is consumed by her past and that every part of her is tainted by it. Duffy employs an aural animalistic image, ‘cawing’ that strips Havisham of her femininity and in her wardrobe Havisham’s dress is ‘yellowing’, reflecting her own decay. Havisham is afraid to look in ‘the slewed mirror’ because she fears herself and then she questions ‘who did this to [her]’, whether she is responsible for what she has become. Duffy uses darkly erotic and sensual images as Havisham imagines emasculating her lover, and a violent plosive, ‘bite’, to emphasise her desire to emasculate him, just as her femininity was taken from her. The oxymoron ‘love’s hate’ reflects Havisham’s conflicted emotions, that her past has disturbed her present and future. Duffy employs a violent plosive, ‘red balloon bursting in my face’, with a denotation that emphasises her desire for revenge. There is a violent, isolated, onomatopoeic, aural image that represents her pain, her past and her suffering. Havisham longs for ‘a male corpse’ which implies her desire to torture and gain revenge on her ex lover. Duffy shows us that it is not only Havisham’s heart that has broken, but her mind is broken too, she has been destroyed by her ex lover and this has distorted her view on her life and herself.

Thursday, August 29, 2019

Global warming in saudi arabia Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Global warming in saudi arabia - Research Paper Example This paper will analyze the major cause of global warming in Saudi Arabia, its impacts, some mitigation measures that should be taken and the response of the country towards climate change policies. Introduction Saudi Arabia, one of the hottest and driest countries in the world, is approximately situated between East longitudes 37 and 56 and North latitudes 17 and 31. The average yearly rainfall in the Kingdom ranges from 80 mm to 140 mm apart from the southwestern mountains. Utmost summer temperatures frequently go beyond 45 degrees Celsius while virtual humidity is very low and skies are usually clear. These increases in the maximum temperatures are as a consequence of global warming (Alkolibi, 225). Depledge indicates that Saudi Arabia’s attitude on climate change is plainly established on its fears over the likely negative effects of climate change lessening policies on its economy. They fear that these measures will sharply reduce their export thereby affecting the econom y. These fears are expected, since Saudi Arabia relies heavily on the oil sector, which accounted for 77 percent of government incomes in 2002. Due to this, oil exporters are the most shown to endeavor to cut greenhouse gases, and will be likely to bear costs higher than those of the mitigating developed countries will. This is because being an oil producing country, there is a lot of combustion taking place in its industries, thus increasing the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (12). Despite being a major oil producing country, Saudi Arabia also has a banging population; 29 million people and growing at a rate of 2 percent a year. This means that the country has pressure since this population is not able to sustain its present standard of living on the declining oil revenues. In order to maintain this population, pressure is mounted on the oil resources thus emitting more carbon in the atmosphere. In turn, this accelerates global warming in the country thus making it hotte r and drier. Watchdog groups and western diplomats allege that the Saudis realize that a global accord to regulate carbon emissions is possible and they are trying to suspend it as long as possible (McEvers, 14). McEvers further states that most of the people in Saudi Arabia do not consider climate change as a big concern despite the country experiencing very high temperatures (11). Moreover, there are a number of weather-related catastrophes in the nation for instance sandstorms, long-term droughts and frequent severe floods. These are the adverse effects of global warming in the country yet the population is ignorant about it. Furthermore, projections indicate that most of the country’s cities located at the Coasts are likely to be submerged in a few decades to come (12). Low rainfall and high temperatures plus high inconsistency of both factors greatly affect agriculture in the country. This is because these conditions lessen soil moisture, damage the soil by mechanical we athering and augment evapotranspiration. These conditions have a damaging effect on water accessibility and agriculture and depict Saudi Arabia a very poor country in terms of agricultural production and water resources (Alkolibi, 225). A quantitative estimation by the British Hadley Center GCM experiment forecasted that climatic change in consequence of global warming is anticipated to lead to reduction in agricultural food production in dry regions situated in the lower latitudes. This

Wednesday, August 28, 2019

The experiences of American Civil War Veterans in April 1865 Research Paper

The experiences of American Civil War Veterans in April 1865 - Research Paper Example Coming home after four years of war must have had a lasting impact on the veterans. Posttraumatic stress, loneliness and physical injury were some of the things they went through. In other words, they literally went through hell. It must have killed them inside to know that they had to put on a bright face to reassure their loved ones and the nation as well that everything was okay. As evidenced from the wide range of memoirs, autobiographies and civil war diaries present in the annals of American history, individual experiences of the soldiers varied. As their experiences varied, so did their sentiments, hopes and future aspiration. Perhaps, one thing that they shared was a sense of pride and nationalism. The war was finally over. Confederate General Robert Lee had surrendered his authority to the Union under LTG U.S. Grant on April 9, 1865. Background In order to achieve clarity, it is important to place the civil war into its proper historical context. This begins with an understa nding that the issue of slavery in the United States was in the center of the worst internal conflict the country has ever experienced. The plantation elite, most of who were in the South ripping the benefits of slavery and forced labor in their tobacco, wheat and sugarcane plantation lacked the enthusiasm to relinquish their slave. They openly opposed abolition and maintained that it was within their rights to own property. Their argument was that abolition was repugnant to the constitutional right to own property. However, due to the rise of humanitarianism, the issue of slave ownership came under sharp criticism amid calls for the abolition of slavery. The anti-slavery campaign was the ethical cornerstone of the Republican presidential campaign in 1860 spearheaded by Abraham Lincoln1. Upon ascension to presidency, Lincoln vowed to champion for the emancipation of all slaves in the spirit of protecting human dignity under the ‘all men are equal’ mantra. The subsequent election of Abraham Lincoln angered a section of Southern states for fear that Lincoln would make good on his abolition pledge. In 1861, South Carolina alongside ten other Southern states wrote to the federal government declaring their intention to secede from the continental USA. Subsequently, the eleven states declared their secession after forming the Confederate States of America. The period that ensued is considered the mother of all internal conflicts. The resultant series of upheavals claimed the lives of thousands of American civilians and soldiers and leaving property worth millions of dollars destroyed. Slavery was central in the American civil war since the South remained adamant to relinquish their slaves even after Lincoln issued the historic Emancipation Proclamation after provoking his presidential powers. The president pushed for the inclusion of emancipation in the constitutional definition of liberty2. This marked the Thirteenth Amendment to the US Constitution. A frican American slaves fled from their owners and sought refuge in the Union camps as the war raged on. It is prudent to underscore the significance of the issue of slavery since it was the sole reason behind the conflict. April 1865 Going by the memoirs, books, journals and diaries of veteran soldiers, the period beginning April 9 to April 30 was poignantly etched in the minds of the entire nation. This was a period of uncertainty and the atmosphere was tense. Historians believe that

Tuesday, August 27, 2019

Elder Abuse (CASE) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Elder Abuse (CASE) - Essay Example Elder abuse is a serious health as well as social problem and a major cause of death and injuries. According to NCEA statistics, those experiencing abuse have a 300% higher risk of death. The aim of this paper is to discuss the characteristics of abusers and victims, the types of abuse and how one at risk can seek help by looking at the case of Ms. Sanders. Ms. Sanders is 72 years old and with a declining health status hence at risk of elder abuse. Although her son Simon has taken over the responsibility of taking care of her, this does not prevent the abuse as research shows that most abuse is perpetrated by family members and to make matters worse, he abuses prescription medications. There are various types of elder abuse according to APA (2014) and (NCEA 2014) : physical; verbal, emotional or psychological; sexual; financial or exploitation and neglect. Physical abuse occurs through hitting, kicking, shoving, physical restraints and other methods that cause injury to the victim. Warning signs include: bruises, burns, broken bones, and repeated unexplained injury. Verbal, emotional or psychological abuse involves name calling, threats, intimidation, and disrespectful comments that cause fear or emotional distress to the victim. Warning signs of this abuse include: unusual depression, uncommunicative, unreasonably suspicious or unexpl ained changes in behaviour. Sexual abuse involves inappropriate tuouching, sexual contact or rape and can be recognized if the victim has bruises on breasts or genital areas or unexplained vaginal bleeding. Financial abuse is in the form of fraud, forgery, identity theft, home improvement scams and predatory lending (California Department of Justice, 2014). For such elders, their life circumstances do not match their financial assets, there are unusual bank activities like ATM withdrawals. Neglect may not be intentional

Monday, August 26, 2019

Questios about graphs Lab Report Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Questios about graphs - Lab Report Example Such is the best solution rather than closing down the company. The number of firms remains steady in neither short-run, whereby no firm can enter nor exit. When the market price exceeds the average variable cost, the revenue generated by the firms will then cover the variable cost and some revenue left over to offset the fixed costs. The quantity supplied by each company will decrease and remain steady to where it can sustain to operate in the conditions. Thus, the quantity supplied in the market may not meet the required demand by the customers since the quantity will neither decrease nor increase till the firms are out of operating at loss (Caimcross 66). Q3. b) Monopoly is a market where production is under the control of a single supply. The marginal revenue is less than the average revenue because when the monopolists wants to sell more, they must reduce the price on each unit; this prevents the competition from happening. Q4. b) Economic profits are driven to zero when the demand curve, as well as the average total cost curves, are tangent to each other. In this case, the prices are equal to average total cost and thus the firms will earn zero economic profits. The quantity of outputs in the monopolistic competition is much smaller than the quantity that minimizes average total cost. But in perfect competition, price is equal to the minimum average total cost thus the companies produce at their efficient scale. The price in monopolistic competition is greater than marginal cost since the firm has the market power unlike in perfect competition where it is equal to marginal cost. Q5. b) Oligopoly is where a few firms exist in the market. The oligopolies face the downward sloping demand curve. In this case, the rival firms cannot follow a price increase by one firm hence demand will be relatively elastic and rises in the price that will lead to a fall in total revenue of the firm. Also, the rivals

Sunday, August 25, 2019

How can Coca Cola further increase their customer base in reference to Case Study

How can Coca Cola further increase their customer base in reference to marketing strategies - Case Study Example This implies that the Company has a multi-million consumer base all around the globe. Customers for Coca-Cola products comprise of retail outlets, restaurants, and local distributors, among others, who purchase the products and later sell or serve them to actual consumers. However, unlike Pepsi, Coca Cola does not refresh its brand image. For instance, the Company has been using a single slogan for decades, without incorporating new sounds and faces. This is an aspect that makes the Company get affiliated to older generations, while Pepsi is seen as the hype face of the younger people (Baron 237-241). Coca-Cola’s distribution network is also one of its strong points. The Company has the largest bottling system, in the liquid soft drinks category. This is due to the fact that Coca-Cola sells its products to bottlers and canning companies, fountain wholesalers or retailers, as well as, distributors. This means that Coca Cola mandates the bottlers to produce and package its produ cts, formulated from syrups and concentrates, into recognized finished drinks. However, as has been clear on analyzing the CSD industry, Pepsi follows a similar distribution network, where all producers are incorporated into the parent company’s operation framework. This gives the implication that, to avoid being overtaken by Pepsi, Coca Cola must devise additional distribution strategies (Thompson and John 36-42). In consideration of the nature of competition in the market, the soft drinks industry has numerous players, hence relatively high rivalry. Principal competitors, therefore, include manufacturers, distributors and bottlers of locally, nationally or globally marketed beverages. Coca-Cola...For instance, the Company should target individuals with special dietetic needs in society. The best illustration of this strategy is the recent Coca Cola introduction of Coke zero to the market. Coca Cola should embark on producing diet versions of the rest of its renowned beverag e brands. It is also notable that people prefer portable drinks like cans and plastic bottled sodas, over the traditional glass bottle. Therefore, Coca Cola should increase its plastic bottled sodas, not only in specific markets, but everywhere. This way, they will be able to cater for the large customer base comprising of travelling individuals or working persons’ with tight schedules. In addition, in order to outdo Pepsi, Co. in regard to the size of customer base, Coca Cola should focus more on foreign markets. This is because the customers in the domain country seem to be loyal to either of the two CSD giants, implying that the statistics weigh in favor of both. Venturing more into foreign markets would, therefore, place Coca Cola at an advantage of widening its customer base thus staying ahead of Pepsi. Distribution analysis As indicated in the findings section, Coca Cola has not been able to distribute their products effectively in the rural areas, particularly in developing countries. Therefore, the Company should ensure that it distributes its products to the rural areas by involving merchants and other retailers for distribution purposes.

Saturday, August 24, 2019

The small entrepreneurial firms and the larger firms and their Essay

The small entrepreneurial firms and the larger firms and their characteristics - Essay Example The essay discusses that product or service innovation has become an integral part of almost every business these days. Most of the firms implement several strategies to improve their product range through renovation of the existing products and services to satisfy the customers. Fundamentally, product innovation or service innovation refers to the process of introducing certain new goods or products and services or the process of modifying the existing products or services to retain the present consumers or to attain certain new customers. Entrepreneurial firms are the firms which are being established by an individual or more than one individual. The owners of the entrepreneurial firm are comparatively more flexible to take strategies and make decisions regarding specific matters than the larger firms. The owners of the entrepreneurial firms are known as the entrepreneurs. These entrepreneurs are free to choose their business process and financial statistics. These entrepreneurs ar e accountable for the profit and loss of their business. An entrepreneurial firm can be a family joint venture or non family venture, where the partners are equally responsible for the profit and the loss of the company and all the partners have the equal rights to take part in any kind of decision making process. The larger firms have more exposure than the small firms with the greater amount of capital, large number of manpower, improved technology and definitely huge brand recognition in wider range among others. The large firms are either the advanced form of the small firms or these are the firms which have been established with higher amount of capital or finance in hand. These firms involve large number of investors and shareholders, who have the right to take decisions in the business matters (Kerzner, 2009). The major objective of the study is to highlight the small entrepreneurial firms and the larger firms and their characteristics. The paper would also include the advant ages and disadvantages faced by a small entrepreneurial firm while making innovation in terms of their products and services over the larger firms. There would be a summative conclusion for the overall discussion. Advantages and Disadvantages of Small Entrepreneurial Firms in Innovation of Products and Services Entrepreneurial firms are the sources of opportunities where an individual or more than one individual can explore the facilities available, according to their own determined ways. Entrepreneurial firms give the owner the independence to think, to plan and to execute the plans according to the requirement. The small entrepreneurial firms are more flexible to make decisions and to choose various strategies regarding the need of the business. The entrepreneurial firms do not involve too many investors or shareholders, and they include a simple managerial structure with less possibility of hierarchy system (Hughes, n.d.). In the present scenario, most of the firms and companies are focusing on innovation of their products and services. Innovation provides the firms with the opportunity of exploring their potential and the scope of retention of the customers. The small entrepreneurial firms are more probable to make innovation of products and services as they involve a simple managerial structure and the decision making process

Abraham, Issac and Regan Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Abraham, Issac and Regan - Essay Example This brief vignette brings to mind the first line of Anna Karenina, â€Å"Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.' Joan and Kate are both unwise 'in their own way.'Consider the case of Joan's wasted life. Early in her career Joan took a highly ethical stand on an issue central to academia, student grading. Specifically, she refused to grade students on the basis of anything other than the work they submitted and her assessment of it. Undeniably, this decision effected the arc of her entire career. However, this is no reason to remain embittered throughout her life. Many people at the age of fifty deeply regret decisions they made with little thought half a lifetime earlier. This does not condemn them to a live of regret. Joan's academic discipline is not specified but if it were anything other than cost intensive-scientific research (history, languages, writing) she might have continued with her research.She could easily have moved from the 'ath letic factory' she could not see eye-to-eye with into teaching at smaller, private universities without a deep commitment to athletics and admiration for her academic integrity. Joan is unwise to have abandoned her personal search for fulfillment because a significant, but single aspect – her career – was unexpectedly disrupted early on in her adult life.Kate, in a nutshell, is leading an unexamined life. She viewed her early unethical behavior as 'unfortunate'. However, nowhere does the case mention that she made use of her profile and success.

Friday, August 23, 2019

International Business Management Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

International Business Management - Assignment Example The third measure used in managing foreign exchange risks is by use of foreign bank accounts and loan. Under this method, surplus currency is deposited in a foreign currency account (Mazin, 2007). Moreover, businesses may borrow foreign currency to make purchases. b) In a company that is trading in a country where the currency is weakening compared to its strengthening currency, the ultimate solution is to use the foreign currency option (Mazin, 2007). The foreign currency option ensures that the price of the goods is set at a premium and this helps to protect importer from fluctuations in price and allows the importer to take advantage of strengthening in local currency (Mazin, 2007). Q2. a) When an enterprise intends to achieve foreign expansion, it is critical for it to make three critical decisions. One of the major decisions that the business should make is of which markets it will enter and when to make the entry (Godfrey, Jack and Verzi, 2007). A company should first identify the industry in which it will operate and the products or services it will be offering. The second decision that organization make when looking to achieve international expansion is on the scale of their entry (Godfrey, Jack and Verzi, 2007). ... b) Decision on the mode of entry into a foreign market has great impact on the success of international entry and the amount of resources required in achieving foreign expansion. There are four mechanisms that are used as modes of entry to a foreign market (Godfrey, Jack and Verzi, 2007). Exporting is the first mode of entry where products manufactured in one country are marketed and sold in another country. Exporting eliminates the need to set up facilities in the foreign country and therefore the costs associated with exporting are those on marketing (Godfrey, Jack and Verzi, 2007). To effectively the export business, a firm must coordinate with importer, government and the transporter. The second mode of entry is licensing where a firm in the foreign country gains rights to use properties of the licensor (Godfrey, Jack and Verzi, 2007). Property takes the form of patents, trademarks and production methods. The firm that gains these rights pays a fee to the licensor for the technic al assistance and other property rights given. The licensor firm makes little investment and this ensures that is high return on investment. Firms seeking foreign expansion may also rely on joint ventures. The objective of pursuing a joint venture include enhancing market entry, sharing of profit and losses, sharing of technology, allowing businesses a chance to conform to government requirements and to benefit from shared product development (Godfrey, Jack and Verzi, 2007). The fourth mode of entry in foreign expansion is foreign direct investment (FDI). FDI refers to ownership of resources in the foreign country. Resources transferred to a foreign country include technology, personnel and capital. FDI may be achieved via establishing new firm in a

Thursday, August 22, 2019

Heineken Environment Analysis Essay Example for Free

Heineken Environment Analysis Essay The bargaining power of suppliers The suppliers of raw materials to Heineken Company are mainly farmers. Therefore, the threat for power of supplier is high. The bottle supplier for Heineken is provided by Heye Glas Nederland which is fully supplied the green bottle for the worldwide distribution of Heineken beer. In the past, Heineken kept only 33% its stake in Heye Glas in order to secure the supply of high quality export bottles at a lower cost to meet the needs for demand but now Heineken has kept 100% stake in 2002. Beer is produced by water, barley, hops and yeast. These ingredients are supplied by farmers. Heineken also mentioned that competition for agricultural products from the biofuels industry that is affecting their costs. The bargaining power of buyers The buyers in this industry have many choices as there are many companies serving beer. This will increase the choice of the customer and hence the threat for power of buyers is high. For example, for serving customer at the pub, there are a lot of beer brands for them to fit their taste such as Guiness, Carlsberg, Tiger. Therefore, buyers now have a choice to choose the one they like. As a result, choosing of customer for what kind beer they want to drink will bring threats for Heineken. The threat of potential new entrants Nowadays, an explosion of smaller brewers has entered the market during the past decade that making the industry much more competitive. Heineken is one of the largest brewers in the world and they have to share market with other brewer. The barrier in the beer market is low. Therefore, the threat of potential new entrants for Heineken is high. This will make Heineken considering to create innovation or uniqueness into their product that can  sustain competitive advantages in the beer market. The threat of substitutes Beer is a kind of beverage which contains alcohol. However, people can switch to drink wine which also is alcohol drink. Customer’s taste is not similar so that they have right to choose what they want to enjoy, so this will affect the beer market as well as Heineken Company. As a result, the threat of substitute for beer market is high. The extent of competitive rivalry Heineken has achieved the economy of scale in the market especially in Europe. It holds about 30% of market share in European beer market. Since the beer market is growing, so the competitors will try to attain their growth targets. The large brewer like Heineken tends to enforce their own strategies to the beer industry and due the economies of scale they will produce higher quality and unique products which can make their own place in the market, hence keep themselves growing to achieve their target. Internal analysis of the company Analysis the resources Tangible: Since Heineken know that their plant and equipment is a key for company production, they invest so much in the infrastructure to make sure that their operation is working efficiently. For example, Heineken have four breweries in Russia, all those use KHS Till plant technology. This equipment at Heineken’s packaging can processes 50 liter kegs in addition to 30 liter at an output of up to 140 kegs an hour. As a result, the two-lane machine can operate with one racking, six washing and sterilizing stations. Intangible: brand name is most valuable asset of the Heineken Company, they has built this name Heineken with premium brand. The company recognizes that brand is very important key for them to develop a strong presence globally in the beer market so that Heineken have a lot of marketing activities for its brand name. Furthermore, branding is also a highly defensible competitive advantage for Heineken; this would bring strength to company expansion. Hence Heineken Company can stretch their production internationally and add more money for company. Management capability: Heineken implemented a number of new initiatives in the area of leadership development in 2004. One is a new leadership competency model that defines behavior expectations from all senior managers at Heineken. The model takes Heineken company ambitions and values as a starting point and translates these into the leadership behavior required from senior managers. With marketing differentiation using different message within normal media advertising can also have differentiating effect. This differentiation will bring strengths for Heineken. When most advertisers are pursuing essentially the beer market with the same message like showing gregarious groups of males in public houses having an enjoyable night out. In the other hand, Heineken managed to differentiate its beer by using a series of advertisements employing humour and the caption Heineken refreshed the parts other beers can not reach. Organizational structure In 2005 Heineken announced that it was created a new top management structure, this would drive and support growth as a global organization. In order to connect functions, operation and finance in a more effective way, the company create a new more streamlines Executive Board. Hence change would lead to create strengths for operating regions and global functions. Furthermore, Heineken has grown substantially over the past four years. The new structure is better suited to the present organization and ensures faster decision-making. In the beer market where the consolidation process is accelerating and rapid introduction of innovations is essential, this is crucial to the achievement of Heineken’s long term ambitions. Culture Heineken is proud of they are one of the world’s great beer companies. Hence their culture will reflect the company view and values. These values create so many strengths for company to develop their environment within the  company. Heineken based on the value that they respect their employees, business partners, customers, shareholders and all others who are connected to the company. Furthermore, Heineken make life more enjoyable by bring enjoyment to life, they also encourage this core value within the working places and atmosphere within the company. In addition, company has a fundamental belief in the concept and delivery of quality, it is also reflected in their other activities such as their social and employment policies. This will create benefit and value both for Heineken and their reputation. As a result, these values define Heineken corporate culture and working methods which help company to do the business successfully.

Wednesday, August 21, 2019

Projet de thèse professionnelle

Projet de thà ¨se professionnelle Projet de thà ¨se professionnelle  «Faut-il rà ©glementer et contrà ´ler davantage les entreprises qui communiquent sur leurs engagements responsables, afin de pouvoir dà ©celer celles qui pratiquent le Greenwashing ? » Il existe trois catà ©gories de communication: Les deux premià ¨res font parties de la communication externe cest-à  -dire celle qui sadresse à   lenvironnement de lentreprise. la communication dite institutionnelle: Elle met en avant les engagements et les valeurs de lentreprise. Elle permet de sensibiliser le public à   des enjeux de socià ©tà © importants, et parfois mà ªme au soutien de grandes causes. La plupart du temps, les agences qui rà ©alisent ces campagnes publicitaires le font à   titre gracieux: on parle de campagne  «pro bono » (bà ©nà ©vole). la communication dite  «produit/service »: Issue de la stratà ©gie marketing, elle vise à   promouvoir un produit ou un service, soit directement auprà ¨s des consommateurs, soit indirectement auprà ¨s des prescripteurs tels que les journalistes. Ces deux types de communication font parties de la communication publicitaire. Ces communications sont destinà ©es à   porter à   la connaissance dun public lexistence dun produit, dun service (communication  «produit/service) ou dune action (communication institutionnelle). Elles visent à   susciter ou à   accroà ®tre le dà ©sir dacquà ©rir ce produit, dutiliser ce service ou de modifier un comportement. La dernià ¨re catà ©gorie de communication se diffà ©rencie des autres. Elle na pas les mà ªmes cibles. la communication dite interne: Dirigà ©e vers les salarià ©s de lentreprise. Ce type de communication consiste à   informer et expliquer de manià ¨re optimum lenvironnement qui entoure les salarià ©s, les guider autant que possible, et crà ©er un climat de confiance et dappartenance à   lentreprise afin de maximiser les performances de lorganisation. Le secteur emploie aujourdhui prà ¨s de 70 000 personnes en France; les entreprises lont bien compris, la communication reprà ©sente un facteur de croissance à ©conomique. Dans le cadre de cette thà ¨se, nous allons nous concentrer davantage sur la communication qui nous intà ©resse, celle dite institutionnelle. On constate que le secteur de la communication a du retard face à   sa responsabilità © environnementale, contrairement aux autres secteurs, mais il est en train de rattraper son retard, comme nous pourront le voir par la suite. II/ Justification de la problà ©matique Intà ©ressà ©e depuis mon plus jeune à ¢ge par là ©cologie puis plus rà ©cemment par le dà ©veloppement durable, il à ©tait à ©vident pour moi que ma thà ¨se professionnelle porte sur ce sujet. Étant en majeure Marketing et Communication, jai choisi en tant que sujet large la communication des entreprises sur le dà ©veloppement durable. Communiquer sur une dà ©marche de dà ©veloppement durable permet aujourdhui aux entreprises damà ©liorer (ou de maintenir) leur image. En effet, de nos jours, les entreprises sont trà ¨s soucieuses de limage quelles reflà ¨tent dans lesprit des consommateurs. Cette image est omniprà ©sente en communication dentreprise (interne et externe). Elle permet de và ©hiculer rapidement et efficacement un message synthà ©tique et constitue une rà ©elle valeur ajoutà ©e dans la communication. Depuis quelques annà ©es, avec la mà ©diatisation des dà ©sastres environnementaux (tels que la dà ©forestation ou le rà ©chauffement climatique) et les rà ©sultats dà ©tudes scientifiques alarmants sur là ©puisement de nos ressources naturelles , nous assistons à   une prise de conscience de la part des pouvoirs publics, de certaines entreprises mais aussi des citoyens. Ces derniers deviennent de plus en plus soucieux du sort de notre planà ¨te, mais aussi plus critiques face à   notre mode de vie, notre manià ¨re de produire et de consommer. Les mentalità ©s changent, et les achats responsables se multiplient. De plus en plus de personnes se disent prà ªtes à   payer plus cher un produit issu du commerce à ©quitable, ou du moins en accord avec la nature et l‘à ©thique. Ces personnes sont à   lorigine dune nouvelle faà §on de penser et dacheter: on les appelle les  «consomacteurs ». Les entreprises lont compris, actuellement, pour garder leur image ou lamà ©liorer, il faut quelles soient respectueuses de lenvironnement et soucieuses de son avenir. Beaucoup dentre elles ont donc adoptà © une stratà ©gie de communication verte revendiquant ainsi leurs engagements pour le respect de lenvironnement et pour une socià ©tà © durable. Nà ©anmoins, se forment deux catà ©gories dentreprises qui communiquent: celles qui ont rà ©ellement pris conscience de lurgence de cet engagement et qui ont concrà ¨tement modifià © leur manià ¨re de produire et de consommer. Le meilleur exemple que jai trouvà © pour illustrer cette catà ©gorie est celui de lentreprise industrielle Lafargue, qui, depuis 30 ans poursuit une politique environnementale ambitieuse en intà ©grant lenvironnement au coeur de la stratà ©gie du groupe comme un facteur de compà ©titività ©. celles qui profitent de leffet de mode du dà ©veloppement durable, pour en faire leur publicità ©, sans pour autant prendre dengagements rà ©els dans cedomaine. Elles pratiquent ce que lon appelle le greenwashing (à ©coblanchiment en Franà §ais). Cette dernià ¨re catà ©gorie dentreprises dà ©crà ©dibilise totalement le concept du dà ©veloppement durable ainsi que ses enjeux urgents. Les consommateurs ne savent plus qui ment et qui dit la và ©rità ©. Certains pensent mà ªme que le concept de dà ©veloppement durable est purement commerciale (un peu comme Halloween en France). Face à   ce phà ©nomà ¨ne, on peut alors se demander: Faudrait-il rà ©glementer et contrà ´ler davantage les entreprises qui communiquent sur leurs engagements dans le dà ©veloppement durable, afin de pouvoir dà ©celer celles qui pratiquent le greenwashing? III/ Concepts, mots-clà ©s Plusieurs mots clà ©s nà ©cessitent des dà ©finitions et explications: Communication: La communication (externe) dà ©signe lensemble des moyens mis en oeuvre pour diffuser des informations sur un produit dans une optique de vente. Malgrà © là ©volution des termes ( «rà ©clame » dans les annà ©es 1930,  «publicità ©Ã‚ » dans les annà ©es 1970 et  «communication » aujourdhui), le but de la communication a toujours à ©tà © de faire vendre des produits, des services, pour le compte dannonceurs et toujours afin de gà ©nà ©rer un retour sur investissement. Elle sert à ©galement à   augmenter la notorià ©tà © de produits, dorganisations, dentreprises et à   promouvoir leurs images. Son rà ´le est ,par consà ©quent, avant tout à ©conomique. Elle permet ainsi aux entreprises de crà ©er de la richesse et des emplois en dà ©veloppant leur notorià ©tà © et leurs dà ©bouchà ©s commerciaux sur des marchà ©s de plus en plus vaste et concurrentiels. Dà ©veloppement durable: Terme issu de lexpression anglophone  «sustainable development ». Selon la Commission Mondiale sur lEnvironnement et le Dà ©veloppement, le dà ©veloppement durable peut se dà ©finir de manià ¨re consensuelle comme  «la capacità © des gà ©nà ©rations prà ©sentes à   satisfaire leurs besoins sans compromettre laptitude des gà ©nà ©rations futures à   couvrir leurs propres besoins. » Cette dà ©finition donnà ©e en 1987 manque de prà ©cision. Le dà ©veloppement durable est une alternative au modà ¨le de dà ©veloppement actuel (excà ¨s, gà ¢chis, surexploitation, surconsommation). Face à   lurgence de la crise à ©cologique et de là ©puisement des ressources, seule lidà ©e dune croissance à ©conomique en accord avec les principes environnementaux permettra à   lhomme de survivre durablement dans des conditions favorables. Ci-dessous le schà ©ma rà ©capitulatif du dà ©veloppement durable autour de ses trois piliers: le Social, lÉconomique et lÉcologique. Le dà ©veloppement durable repose sur un certain nombre de principes: La prà ©caution, la prà ©vention et lanticipation (mà ªme en labsence de certitude scientifique) La solidarità © (sociale, gà ©ographique et gà ©nà ©rationnelle) Le dialogue ( avec lensemble des  «parties prenantes ») Là ©thique et la bonne gouvernance ( transparence de lentreprise, interne et externe) La responsabilità © (par exemple le concept du pollueur/ payeur) Greenwashing: Terme anglophone pouvant à ªtre traduit par  «verdissement dimage », mais il est à ©galement appelà ©  «Ãƒ ©co-blanchiment » ou  «maquillage vert ». Le Greenwashing consiste à   mettre en avant les efforts dune entreprise en termes de dà ©veloppement durable et de protection de lenvironnement, alors mà ªme que ces efforts ne sont pas rà ©els. Ce terme trouve son origine dans la contraction des mots  «green » (vert) et  «brainwashing » (lavage de cerveau). Il a à ©tà © employà © pour la premià ¨re fois dans le titre dun article de la revue  «Mother Jones » au dà ©but des annà ©es 1990. Le terme est aussi utilisà © pour dà ©signer le rapprochement dune entreprise avec lONU dans le cadre du Global Compact. Publicità © mensongà ¨re: Selon le Code du Droit des Affaires,  «la publicità © mensongà ¨re est une dà ©formation de la publicità © commerciale qui prà ©sente le produit ou le bien à   vendre, prestation de services à   accomplir, sous un jour trompeur et inexact en vue dattirer ladhà ©sion de la clientà ¨le. » Il faut distinguer la publicità © mensongà ¨re de la publicità © trompeuse. Une publicità © est mensongà ¨re lorsquelle contient une information fausse, alors quune publicità © de nature à   induire en erreur (interaction ou omission de certains à ©là ©ments dans le message)est trompeuse pour le consommateur (mà ªme si elle ne comporte pas de fausses informations). La publicità © mensongà ¨re ou trompeuse constitut un dà ©lit depuis la loi du 2 Juillet 1963. Cette loi a par la suite à ©tà © remplacà ©e par larticle 44 de la Loi Royer du 27 Dà ©cembre 1973, afin dà ©tendre le champ dapplication du texte. Dà ¨s que la publicità © mensongà ¨re ou trompeuse est communiquà ©e au public, il y a dà ©lit (il est instantanà ©e). Nà ©anmoins, pour quil y ait infraction ,il faut dabord une và ©ritable publicità ©, cest-à  -dire des actes destinà ©s à   attirer lattention du public, soit par voie à ©crite, soit par voie orale ou visuelle. Publicità ©: Forme de communication cherchant à   attirer lattention dun public prà ©alablement ciblà © (consommateur, usager, utilisateur, ), dans le but de linciter à   adopter un comportement souhaità © (acte dachat, à ©lection dune personnalità © politique incitation à   là ©conomie dà ©nergie, ) Selon le Code du Droit des Affaires, tout moyen dinformation du public portant sur la composition dun produit constitue une publicità © dà ¨s lors quil accompagne lobjet proposà © et que le consommateur est conduit à   en prendre connaissance pour guider son choix. IV/ Synthà ¨se provisoire de littà ©rature Problà ©matique: Faudrait-il contrà ´ler et rà ©glementer davantage les entreprises qui communiquent sur leurs engagements dans le dà ©veloppement durable, afin de pouvoir dà ©celer celles qui pratiquent le Greenwashing? Face à   cette problà ©matique, plusieurs hypothà ¨ses sont à   poser. Tout dabord, une premià ¨re notion doit à ªtre và ©rifià ©e. Le dà ©veloppement durable est-il un concept acquis par la socià ©tà ©? Les Franà §ais savent-ils le dà ©finir? Ont-ils pris conscience des enjeux quil relà ¨ve? Ho: La notion de dà ©veloppement durable est acquise en France. En 1999, 12 ans aprà ¨s la naissance de ce concept, seuls 9% des Franà §ais donnaient un contenu à   cette notion. Deux ans plus tard, Monoprix et EDF lanà §aient leurs campagnes sur le dà ©veloppement durable. La premià ¨re campagne de sensibilisation  « le dà ©veloppement daccord mais seulement sil est durable » a accà ©là ©rà © le mouvement, 20 % des Franà §ais comprenaient alors ce concept. En 2007, seulement 65% des Franà §ais interrogà ©s à ©taient capables den parler Aujourdhui, en 2010,  «le dà ©veloppement durable » est une expression qui fait partie du langage courant. Selon une enquà ªte rà ©alisà ©e par le Ministà ¨re de lÉcologie, de lÉnergie, du Dà ©veloppement durable et de la Mer, 97% des Franà §ais dà ©clarent avoir dà ©jà   entendu parler de lexpression. Ce fort pourcentage est en partie due à   toute la communication à   ce sujet (campagnes de sensibilisation, crà ©ation dun ministà ¨re dà ©dià © à   lenvironnement, publicità © verte en pleine expansion, ). Pas plus tard quaujourdhui, jai pu constater lampleur que ce concept prend petit à   petit dans la socià ©tà ©. En effet, des dizaines de panneaux publicitaires annoncent la semaine consacrà ©e du 1er au 7 avril, consacrà ©e au dà ©veloppement durable . Voici quelques exemples parmi tant dautres de publicità © que lon peut voir actuellement dans les rues de Paris. Notre premià ¨re hypothà ¨se est và ©rifià ©e. Effectivement, et heureusement, en 2010, la grande majorità © des Franà §ais se prà ©occupent, plus ou moins, de lavenir de notre planà ¨te. Tout le monde sait par exemple que les piles ne se jettent pas à   la poubelle, quon ne laisse pas leau couler quand on se brosse les dents, que la douche vaut mieux quun bain, ou encore quil faut faire une croix sur les fraises en Dà ©cembre. Ces petits gestes du quotidien, les Franà §ais sont de plus en plus nombreux à   les faire. Ils changent leurs comportements et leurs habitudes. Ce changement de mentalità ©, les entreprises lont bien remarquà © et analysà ©. Nous verrons par la suite comment elles sy sont adaptà ©es, alors que la tendance du  «moins consommer, consommer mieux » sinstalle progressivement dans le pays. Maintenant que notre premià ¨re hypothà ¨se est và ©rifià ©e, nous devons chercher à   savoir: existe-t-il dà ©jà   une rà ©glementation et un contrà ´le effectuà © sur la communication publicitaire faà ®tes par les entreprises? Si oui, alors quelle autorità © est compà ©tente? H1: La communication publicitaire des entreprises est rà ©glementà ©e et contrà ´là ©e. Des autorità ©s sont chargà ©es de la bonne application des rà ¨gles. Le secteur de la communication dispose dun encadrement rà ©glementaire. Il existe en France deux grands principes de cet encadrement: la rà ©gulation et lautorà ©gulation. Le premier principe, la rà ©gulation, est dictà © par le cadre là ©gislatif et juridique franà §ais, via les lois. Il doit à ©galement à ªtre conforme à   des lois au niveau europà ©en, appelà ©es directives. On peut par exemple citer la 2006/114/CE qui dà ©finit comme trompeuse  «toute publicità © qui, dune manià ¨re quelconque, y compris sa prà ©sentation, induit en erreur ou est susceptible dinduire en erreur les personnes auxquelles elle sadresse ou quelle touche et qui, en raison de son caractà ¨re trompeur, est susceptible daffecter leur comportement à ©conomique ou qui, pour ces raisons, porte prà ©judice ou est susceptible de porter prà ©judice à   un concurrent ». Le deuxià ¨me principe, lautorà ©gulation, est reprà ©sentà © par le Code de lICC (Chambre Internationale du Commerce). Il sagit des limites qui encadrent la publicità ©, au-delà   des obligations là ©gales, visant à   ce que le consommateur ne soit pas trompà ©, choquà ©, induit en erreur, ou incità © à   reproduire des comportements nocifs, dangereux. Il existe des instances qui ont pour rà ´le dappliquer ces principes et de sassurer de leur bonne exà ©cution. Plusieurs autorità ©s sont compà ©tentes pour rà ©guler la publicità © franà §aise. La premià ¨re et sà »rement la plus importante sappelle lARPP (Autorità © de Rà ©gulation Professionnelle de la Publicità ©). Elle a pour mission de mener une action en faveur dune publicità © loyale, và ©ridique et saine, dans lintà ©rà ªt des consommateurs, du public et des professionnels de la publicità ©. Les contrà ´les de lARPP se font autant avant la diffusion de la publicità © quaprà ¨s. En France, les professionnels savent quil y a des rà ¨gles à   respecter quant à   la manià ¨re de faire une publicità ©. Ces rà ¨gles obà ©issent à   une triple logique danticipation, de concertation et de responsabilisation. Nà ©anmoins, ces rà ¨gles portent uniquement sur le contenu de la publicità ©, et en aucun cas sur les questions relatives à   la promotion du produit ou service. Ce nest pas le cas de toutes les autorità ©s. En effet, le Conseil Paritaire de la Publicità © (CPP), le Conseil de lÉthique Publicitaire (CEP) et le Comità © de rà ©daction sont des instances associà ©s à   lARPP qui gà ¨re toutes rà ©glementations en amont (cest-à  -dire avant la diffusion au public de la publicità ©) Le CEP agit principalement sur les problà ¨mes dordre à ©thique que contiendraient une publicità ©. Le CPP, lui , sert dintermà ©diaire entre l‘ARPP et les associations (qui ont des attentes face au contenu des publicità ©s). Enfin, le Jury de Dà ©ontologie Publicitaire (JPD) contrà ´le les publicità ©s en aval, donc aprà ¨s leur diffusion. Il a pour mission de communiquer les plaintes faà ®tes à   lencontre de publicità ©s et de campagnes dà ©rogeant aux rà ¨gles à ©tablies. Pour finir, lARPP ne reà §oit aucune subvention de la part de lÉtat: elle est complà ¨tement indà ©pendante. La deuxià ¨me instance compà ©tente en matià ¨re de contrà ´le publicitaire est connue: il sagit du Conseil Supà ©rieur de lAudiovisuel (CSA)C‘est un peu la police de la publicità © (et plus gà ©nà ©ralement de l‘audiovisuel). Il sassure du respect par tous les opà ©rateurs des lois et de la rà ©glementation de la communication audiovisuelle en vigueur. Il est en droit de sanctionner ceux qui sont en infraction contrairement à   l‘ARPP qui n‘a qu‘un rà ´le de contrà ´le. Le CSA est une autorità © administrative à ©galement indà ©pendante des pouvoirs publics. Dautres instances secondaires ou indirectes peuvent à ©galement intervenir de temps à   autre face aux entreprises qui ne respecteraient pas les rà ©glementations là ©gales obligatoires dans leurs publicità ©s. (par exemple la direction gà ©nà ©rale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la rà ©pression des fraudes ou encore des associations chargà ©es de la protection des consommateurs). De nombreuses recommandations ont à ©tà © crà ©Ãƒ ©s concernant le domaine du dà ©veloppement durable. La dernià ¨re a à ©tà © validà ©e le 18 juin 2009 par le Conseil dAdministration de lARPP: il sagit des nouvelles rà ¨gles de dà ©ontologie publicitaire, qui ont à ©tà © rà ©Ãƒ ©crites conformà ©ment à   lengagement pris dans la Charte pour une publicità © à ©co-responsable signà ©e en avril 2008 avec les pouvoirs publics. Ces rà ¨gles se rà ©sument en deux axes: quand il y a une promesse relative au dà ©veloppement durable: ne pas induire le consommateur en erreur. dans tous les cas, ne pas reprà ©senter de comportements contraires aux principes communà ©ment admis du dà ©veloppement durable. La premià ¨re hypothà ¨se est và ©rifià ©e, comme on la vu ci-dessus, le secteur de la publicità © est bel et bien rà ©glementer. Pourtant, le Greenwashing est un phà ©nomà ¨ne bien prà ©sent. On a à ©galement constater que ces instances sont toutes indà ©pendantes. On peut alors se demander si ces juridictions sont assez compà ©tentes? Doivent-elles à ªtre renforcà ©es par une intervention des pouvoirs publics afin de mieux surveiller les entreprises, et de stopper toute action de Greenwashing ? Doit-on crà ©er une instance spà ©cifique au dà ©veloppement durable, pour gà ©rer ce phà ©nomà ¨ne? H2: Une intervention des pouvoirs publics est nà ©cessaire pour garantir le respect des rà ¨gles de la communication publicitaire. Dix ans aprà ¨s la signature du protocole de Kyoto en 1997 sest crà ©Ãƒ © un grand ministà ¨re de lÉcologie, de lÉnergie, du Dà ©veloppement durable et de lAmà ©nagement du Territoire. Cette mà ªme annà ©e se dà ©roula le Grenelle de lEnvironnement (octobre 2007). Ces deux actions tà ©moignent de la volontà © des pouvoirs publics de faire de lenvironnement une priorità © nationale. Lors dinterrogatoires, les Franà §ais sont nombreux à   penser que ce nest ni aux citoyens, ni aux entreprises dagir et de prendre des mesures environnementales mais bel et bien aux pouvoirs publics de rà ©glementer et dexercer un contrà ´le sur leurs propres rà ©glementations. LÉtat franà §ais a mis en place des actions de sensibilisation au dà ©veloppement durable, et exige des rà ¨gles dà ©ontologiques à   ce sujet. Il se dit prà ªt à   renforcer les contraintes et les obligations envers les entreprises, sans à ©pargner le secteur de la communication. Le parlement europà ©en est intervenu rà ©cemment sur la question de limpact du marketing et de la publicità © (avec par exemple le lien entre la maigreur des mannequins et les comportements alimentaires des adolescentes). Cette thà ©matique pourrait aboutir à   davantage de rà ©glementations, comme par exemple, un encadrement plus strict de lespace publicitaire (type affichage) ou encore laccà ¨s à   limage limità © pour des produits polluants. LÉtat doit donc rà ©glementer davantage le secteur de la publicità © tant au niveau national quau niveau europà ©en. Nà ©anmoins, il na pas pour rà ´le de contrà ´ler ce domaine car des autorità ©s telles que lARPP ou le CSA sont compà ©tentes pour cette mission. De plus, louverture de lARPP aux associations devrait se traduire par une sensibilità © accrue sur les questions environnementales et des pratiques mieux pensà ©es en amont. Si cela nà ©tait pas le cas, une intervention rà ©glementaire serait alors possible. Lhypothà ¨se H1 nest pas và ©rifià ©e. Effectivement, lÉtat a pour rà ´le dencadrer et de rà ©glementer le secteur de la communication publicitaire mais cela doit se faire sans intervention de sa part car des instances sont là   pour se charger de la bonne application de ces rà ¨gles. Nà ©anmoins, il serait judicieux pour ces instances de crà ©er un service spà ©cifique, uniquement rà ©servà © aux publicità ©s vertes, aux problà ¨mes de Greenwashing et plus largement au dà ©veloppement durable. Nous avons vu que le secteur de la communication publicitaire à ©tait rà ©glementà © et contrà ´là © par des autorità ©s compà ©tentes et que les rà ¨gles à   lencontre de toute publicità ©  «verte » mensongà ¨re sà ©taient multiplià ©es depuis ces dernià ¨res annà ©es afin de mieux surveiller toute enfreinte. On peut alors se demander quelles sont les consà ©quences à   la non obà ©issance de ces rà ¨gles pour les entreprises? Que risquent-elles? H3 : Les entreprises qui pratiquent le Greenwashing sexposent à   de lourdes sanctions. Pour và ©rifier cette hypothà ¨se, il faut dabord se demander si le Greenwashing peut-à ªtre qualifià © de  «publicità © mensongà ¨re ». Selon la dà ©finition de la publicità © mensongà ¨re, qui consiste à   cacher un à ©là ©ment du produit ou du service afin dattirer ladhà ©sion de la clientà ¨le, le Greenwashing reprà ©sente bel et bien une sorte de publicità © mensongà ¨re (ou publicità © trompeuse), car les entreprises font croire aux consommateurs potentiels ce quils ont envi dentendre. Le dà ©lit de publicità © mensongà ¨re est instantanà ©e (le caractà ¨re trompeur sapprà ©cie dà ¨s le moment oà ¹ la publicità © est communiquà ©e au public). Selon le dictionnaire permanent du Droit des Affaires,  «mà ªme sil se manifeste lors de chaque communication au public, le dà ©lit de publicità © mensongà ¨re constitue une infraction unique qui ne peut à ªtre poursuivie et sanctionnà ©e quune seule fois. » Selon les articles L. 121-6 et L. 213-1, les infractions à   la rà ©glementation sur la publicità © mensongà ¨re sont passibles des sanctions suivantes: amende pouvant aller jusquà   37 500 euros. emprisonnement dune durà ©e maximum de deux ans. Les peines annoncà ©es peuvent à ªtre cumulables ou non (selon la gravità © du mensonge ou de la tromperie) De plus le maximum de lamende prà ©vue ci-dessus peut-à ªtre portà © à   50% des dà ©penses de la publicità © constituant le dà ©lit. En cas de rà ©cidive, les plafonds des amendes diffà ¨rent. (selon la clà ©mence des magistrats). Le tribunal peut exiger de la part des parties ou de lannonceur la communication de documents utiles ou de justificatifs . En cas de refus, il est en droit de saisir ces documents, et peut prononcer des pà ©nalità ©s de retard allant jusquà   4 500 euros par jour à   compter de la date de demande des documents. En tout à ©tat de cause, la sanction de la publicità © mensongà ¨re ne peut pas à ªtre assortie de linterdiction des droits civiques. Nà ©anmoins, le ministà ¨re public, le juge dinstruction ou le tribunal saisi des poursuites peuvent tous les trois ordonner la cessation de la publicità ©: cette mesure est exà ©cutoire nonobstant toutes voies de recours. Notre hypothà ¨se est và ©rifià ©e; des sanctions importantes sont appliquà ©es si les entreprises pratiquent de la publicità © mensongà ¨re ou trompeuse. Pourtant, pour de puissantes entreprises, les montants des amendes ne reprà ©sentent que trà ¨s peu, en tout cas pas assez pour les dissuader denfreindre la rà ©glementation. On sait maintenant que les entreprises pratiquant le Greenwashing prennent des risques et sexposent à   des sanctions importantes. On peut alors se demander quels sont les risques du Greenwashing, pour les entreprises qui prennent de rà ©els engagements environnementaux? H4 : Le Greenwashing dà ©crà ©dibilise le concept du dà ©veloppement durable ainsi que les entreprises qui sengagent dans de rà ©elles dà ©marches environnementales. La tentation de pratiquer le Greenwashing est grande pour les entreprises: elles rà ©pondent aux attentes des consommateurs en communiquant sur ce quils veulent entendre: qualità © du produit, à ©thique de lentreprise qui se dit irrà ©prochable du point de vue social et environnemental. Comme on la vu ci-dessus, ces pratiques qualifià ©es de  «verdissement frauduleux » sont dangereuses pour les entreprises malhonnà ªtes. Mais le danger le plus inquià ©tant se trouve au niveau du concept en lui-mà ªme. En effet, en le manipulant, les entreprises frauduleuses le vident de sa substance, renforà §ant ainsi la mà ©fiance, voire la dà ©fiance, des publics face à   linstitution. Certains consommateurs voient dà ©jà   à   travers le concept du dà ©veloppement durable une pure manipulation des entreprises pour se dà ©culpabiliser et se blanchir tout en assurant leurs ventes. Cette manià ¨re de penser est trà ¨s inquià ©tante quand on sait que certaines entreprises sont exemplaires dans leur politique environnementale, et que leur dà ©marche est plus que rà ©elle. Pour ces entreprises modà ¨les, le Greenwashing est dà ©sastreux en terme dimage. Beaucoup de ces entreprises trouvent dangereux de vouloir communiquer à   tout prix sur leurs engagements pris en faveur du dà ©veloppement durable. Cest pourquoi peu dentre elles communiquent à   ce sujet. Cest le cas des hypermarchà ©s  «Cora », engagà ©s depuis le dà ©but des annà ©es 90 dans une và ©ritable politique en faveur du dà ©veloppement durable. Lentreprise na jamais voulu communiquer à   ce sujet. Ces entreprises comme  «Cora «Ã‚ », pensent que la confiance est perdue dà ¨s quil y a exagà ©ration ou arrogance: elles limitent volontairement leur communication mà ªme si pour beaucoup dentre elles, le dà ©veloppement durable reprà ©sente un acte fort de management. Pour certains annonceurs,  «parler denvironnement ne peut que faire du bien à   lenvironnement ». Dans un sens, ils ont raison car grà ¢ce à   cette mà ©diatisation, la plupart des Franà §ais connaissent à   prà ©sent le dà ©veloppement durable et savent mà ªme le dà ©finir correctement. Pourtant, si des entreprises communiquent sur leurs engagements de dà ©veloppement durable, sans quaucune mesure ne soit prises en parallà ¨le, elles parlent bel et bien de respect de lenvironnement , tout en continuant à   le polluer autant quavant. De plus ce trop-plein dinformation prà ©sente à ©galement un cà ´tà © pervers. Gà ©nà ©ralement, ces informations sont donnà ©es sans explication, sans mode demploi, hors contexte, de manià ¨re incomplà ¨te voire mà ªme contradictoire. Cette vague dinformations à   outrance est contre- productive, et peut mà ªme conduire à   un  «ras-le-bol » gà ©nà ©ral des discours à ©cologiques. Face aux entreprises, qui, comme on la vu, ne communiquent que peu, il y a des entreprises, qui elles, au contraire, vont se venter de leurs produits respectueux, de leurs soucis environnementaux. En rà ©sumà ©, certaine communiquent à   outrance sur leurs faux engagements, tandis que dautres , honnà ªtes et engagà ©s, se tairont. Alors, qui ment? Qui dit la và ©rità ©? Qui se prà ©occupe vraiment de la planà ¨te? Qui se donne une image de bon samaritain alors quil ne lest pas? Le Greenwashing sà ¨me le dà ©sordre et le doute dans la tà ªte des consommateurs. On peut alors se demander quelles sont les consà ©quences du Greenwashing pour les consommateurs? Ont-ils conscience de ce phà ©nomà ¨ne vert frauduleux? H5 : Le Greenwashing renforce la mà ©fiance des consommateurs vis à   vis de lhonnà ªtetà © des entreprises. Certaines publicità ©s vont à   lencontre du concept de dà ©veloppement durable. Le phà ©nomà ¨ne de Greenwashing est loin dà ªtre marginal. 64% des grandes entreprises dà ©clarent mettre en avant  «souvent » ou  «de temps en temps » des arguments sociaux et environnementaux dans leurs communications. Certaines entreprises se disent » vertes » alors que la nature mà ªme de leur produit est en contradiction totale avec le respect de lenvironnement (exemple des entreprises automobiles, des laboratoires de produits chimiques ou encore des socià ©tà ©s pà ©trolià ¨res). Ces pratiques ont des impacts certains, comme linstauration du doute et de la confusion sur ce qui est vraiment à ©cologique et ce qui ne lest pas. Ces impacts, non nà ©gligeables, vont à   lencontre du concept de dà ©veloppement durable. On peut en rà ©pertorier trois principaux: lincitation à   lutilisation excessive de ressources et/ou dà ©nergie. Les publicità ©s nous encouragent au gà ¢chis. Par exemple, plusieurs marques de lessive encouragent les enfants à   se salir comme bon leur semblent, en insistant sur la facilità © à   faire disparaà ®tre les tà ¢ches. En tenant ce discours, ces publicità ©s encouragent les personnes à   multiplier les cycles de lavage en machine et ne tiennent pas compte des impacts que cela peut avoir sur lenvironnement. le fait de dà ©laisser un produit au profit dun autre, à   plus fort impact nà ©gatif sur la nature. Lexemple qui illustre le mieux cet impact est celui de la publicità © de Cristalline en fà ©vrier 2007, qui tenait le discours suivant:  « Qui prà ©tend que leau du robinet a toujours bon goà »t, ne doit pas en boire souvent! » La marque nous incite à   consommer de leau en bouteille, alors que leau du robinet est dune grande qualità ©, des plus contrà ´là ©es et offre une meilleure à ©quation environnementale que leau en bouteille. La ville de Paris et la socià ©tà © de gestion des eaux parisiennes ont portà © plainte contre la marque. la banalisation ou le dà ©ni denjeux environnementaux. Ainsi, la marque Diesel sortit en 2007 une publicità © montrant une gamme de và ªtements spà ©cialement adapter au rà ©chauffement du climat, et reprà ©sentant cette adaptation , face au climat , joyeuse et facile. Le constat est alarmant; en France, selon une à ©tude effectuà ©e par lARPP et lADEME, sur les 17 129 visuels publicitaires analysà ©s dans le cadre de là ©tude, 508 messages ont un lien avec lenvironnement. Sur ces 508 messages publicitaires, 62 ont fait dà ©bat et 30 ont posà ©s problà ¨mes. Lutilisation du thà ¨me environnemental dans la publicità © a à ©tà © multiplià © par 3 en un an. V/ Plan provisoire Introduction: Rappel sur lurgence de lapplication du concept de dà ©veloppement durable à   tous les niveaux et dans tous les domaines. I/ Le concept de dà ©veloppement durable: une obligation pour chacun A/ Au niveau des citoyens (par exemple le tri sà ©lectif) B/ Au niveau des pouvoirs publics et des États ( engagements à   respecter tels que le protocole de Kyoto) C/ Au niveau des entreprises ( la RSE, la loi NRE) II/ Les dà ©rives du concept: Surmà ©diatisation, phà ©nomà ¨ne de Greenwashing A/ Les causes de ces dà ©rives. B/ Les consà ©quences du verdissement dimage. III/ Le contrà ´le des dà ©rives A/ Les rà ¨glementations obligatoires en terme de communication publicitaire. B/ Les autorità ©s en charge du contrà ´le de la publicità ©. C/ Les sanctions du non respect du dispositif rà ©glementaire. Conclusion: Que faut-il mettre en p

Tuesday, August 20, 2019

Canadian Senate Analysis

Canadian Senate Analysis The current government of Canada has remained in place since the British North America Act, 1867, which established the Parliament for Canada to be comprised of three parts: the Crown, the Senate, and the House of Commons.[1] Unique to Canada’s government, which is based on the Westminster Parliamentary System, is that the upper house of parliament, or the Senate, is comprised of unelected officials. For a large portion of Canada’s history there has been a debate concerning the Senate, largely concerning its unelected officials. While there has consistently been a discussion on if the Senate should be changed, Canada’s political parties cannot agree on if this change should be a reform of the Senate or its abolishment. In recent years this debate has been revitalized due to scandals concerning senators, Stephen Harper’s commitment to reform the Senate, and the Supreme Court ruling on what would need to be done to reform the Senate. While it is understandab le that some may want to push for the Senate to be abolished, this is much too drastic of a step for Canada to take and should not be taken just for simplicity’s sake. Democracies function and exist on mechanisms that help balance the power of the governing bodies to ensure that no one body or official has too much power and abolishing the Senate before attempting to reform it would give the House of Commons too much power. Prime Minister John MacDonald’s words are often used in explaining what the Senate does when he said that they are â€Å"the sober second thought.†[2] The reasoning for this is that by having politicians that are concerned for the long term stability and integrity of Canada and its laws and not concern themselves about being reelected and the perpetual campaign or about politics. Essentially they can give their full attention to being the check on the House of Commons. In addition, section 54 of the Canadian Constitution states that bills which deal with any aspect of money, including appropriating revenue or creating or removing a tax, must originate from the House of Commons.[3] What this then causes, because most bills deal with issues of revenue or taxes in some manner, the vast majority of bills come from the House of Commons, which creates a unique dynamic between the two houses.[4] The dynamic that is crated is an uneven balance between the two in terms of the am ount of work that is done. The House of Commons is the primary body that creates legislation and the Senate largely provides review and second thought on the issues addressed in legislation. While this may be the original thought, there are flaws to it. Many ideas on how to change the Senate have been proposed over the years, but to understand the current debate the most it is best to look at what each major political party current proposes. Currently the common discourse about the Senate is divided into three areas: main the status quo; keep the Senate, but reform it; or abolish the Senate in its entirety. Political parties of Canada have often differed on how the Senate should be approached and dealt with along the three lines. The New Democratic Party (NDP), especially in recent years, has been vocal proponents of abolishing the senate. The NDP has even gone as far as creating a website to promote the idea of abolishing the Senate, citing its unelected nature and high costs as reasons for it to be abolished.[5] The Conservative Party, on the other hand, has taken a different route and has attempted to reform it. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party attempted to create a system whereby senators would be elected by the provinces for nine years.[6] The legislation that proposed this came in 2011, but the constitutionality of this effort immediately came into question and went to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court responded in 2014 when it ruled that any Senate reform must go be approved by at least seven provinces and half of the population.[7] The Liberal Party has not been as loud as the others, but did eject the senators that were part of the Liberal Caucus and released a statement declaring their support for reform of the Senate and the ejection of the senators from the caucus is the first step.[8] Each of the major political is in favor of some change to the Senate, which is a reflection of the opinion of Canadians. In addition to the political parties siding on the Senate being altered in some way, a majority of Canadians are in favor of some sort of change. According to a poll by Angus Reid conducted in April of 2015, 86% of Canadians are in favor of a change.[9] However, while an overwhelming majority of citizens are in favor of a change, there is a deep divide on what kind of change should exist. In the same poll by Angus Reid, 45% of Canadians are in favor of a reformed Senate while 41% are in favor of the Senate being abolished entirely.[10] Just as with the political parties, this mirrors the debate and contention between the political parties on exactly what should be done. Compared to the 2013 poll by Angus Reid on the same topic, in a year filled with news about scandals concerning senators, 50% of Canadians were in favor of abolishment vs. 43% for reform.[11] This shows, like with many topics, the interest and concern of people will differ a lot depending on how senators are conductin g themselves and how the Senate is functioning. The reason why the vast majority of criticisms that have been leveled against the Senate are about its unelected senators is because that is its biggest flaw. While it can be argued that removing the time consuming process of elections it gives senators a different set of priorities to focus on the work of Parliament, this is the exact reason why it is bad. By being selected rather than elected, senators are then beholden to those that choose them rather than the citizens of Canada. This then means that if a senator does not do a good job, or do the job at all, according to Canadians, it is a difficult process to get rid of them. Since these senators are then beholden to those that choose them, this creates a dangerous mechanism for internal party politics whereby those that are actually selected to be a senator may not be deserving of the position. On the contrary, as the NDP accuses the Conservative Party of doing, those that do work for the party or the Prime Minister may end up a s a senator as a favor.[12] The Senate is an undemocratic and authoritarian instrument that has to be reformed. Regardless of the scandals that have occurred or if the senators take advantage of their position, the critical point is there exists a need for senators to be elected. In the overall discourse, the idiosyncrasies of reform matter little as long as the process towards elections. What the Conservative Party proposed is a good step and is not a bad way to reform the Senate. An important part of this proposal that should be in all other proposals is that senators should have a longer term than those in the House of Commons. This is to help preserve some of the original motivations for the creation of the Senate, which is to have senators think about and be concerned for the long term integrity and development of Canada. Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservative Party’s efforts to reform the Senate have been described as failures, but they actually began one of the most important steps to changing the Senate: discovering the process. The Supreme Court ruled that reform or abolishment of the Senate cannot be done unilaterally by the House of Commons, which caused the Conservatives to cease their efforts and Prime Minister Harper to say that the ruling â€Å"leaves [them] with little choice† but to abandon their efforts.[13] Contrary to what Stephen Harper may say, the Supreme Court’s ruling gives the Conservatives and all of Canada reason to pursue reform and creates the parameters of how. The Supreme Court ruled that in order to reform the Senate, at least seven provinces would need to approve in addition to half of Canada while abolition would require unanimous consent.[14] Although this is a daunting process, if we take into account that 86% of Canadians want change, i t is not impossible. While this 86%, when broken down accounts for 45% that are for reform and 41% that are for abolition, it can be assumed that many of those that want abolition would much favor reform rather than no change in the event that a vote was given to the general population. Overall, the strengths and arguments for reform outweigh those of abolition. In addition to paving the way on how reform of the Senate must occur, the Supreme Court also gave a strong argument for reform over abolition: it is easier. While there may be arguments to be made for to having a unicameral parliament and abolishing the Senate, this path is too far to go without attempting reform first. If we are to accept that a bicameral legislature and Senate is part of our cultural heritage and that it does have merit in providing a check and balance to the actions of the House of Commons, there should at least be some effort to preserve it with reform. Some of the criticisms that have been used against the Senate including the significant cost to taxpayers compared to the lack of work can be rectified with reforming and making senators elected officials. By becoming elected officials, they are then accountable to the people that elected them into office and can easily be voted out if th ey do any work or their work is not sufficient to their electorate. While there many strengths to reforming the Senate, there does exist problems that must be considered. The first, and possibly biggest, obstacle in regards to reforming the Senate is its inability to create bills concerning the allocation of revenue or use of taxes. Already this creates a great hindrance on the work of the Senate and is one of the reasons why the Senate does not produce nearly the same amount of bills as the House of Commons. If the event of serious efforts and progress to reform the Senate, it would have to be addressed if the Senate would be able to create bills concerning money or if the restriction would remain in place. On one hand, the removal of such restriction would encourage senators to produce more bills, but would diminish the role and authority of the House of Commons Insight into this can be drawn from Australia’s Parliament, which has an elected Senate, but still requires all money bills to begin in the House of Representatives, which is the low er house of the Australian Parliament.[15] This causes the same imbalance that occurs in Canada’s Parliament where the House of Representatives produce the vast majority of bills while the Senate produces much less, but gets to spend much more time in committee work.[16] When looking at the overall discourse and benefits presented by reforming the Senate, it is something that should be pursued by Canada. The Senate still plays an important role by providing committee work, which the House of Commons often does not have enough time to do, and provides a needed balance. However, an unelected Senate is an artifact of an old system of government that must be updated to become more democratic. While there are strong arguments to be made for abolition, it should not be considered before at least attempting to reform. In addition, it is easier to reform rather than abolish so it is rational to at least turn the Senate into something Canadians want before losing it forever. References A Legislative and Historical Overview of the Senate of Canada. A Legislative and Historical Overview of the Senate of Canada. Accessed April 27, 2015. Abolish the Senate. Roll up the Red Carpet: Its Time to Abolish the Senate. Accessed April 29, 2015. Angus Reid. Future of the Senate: Majority of Canadians Split between Abolishing, Reforming the Red Chamber. Accessed May 3, 2015. CBC News. Canadas Senate: Sober Second Thought. CBCnews. July 9, 2010. Accessed April 25, 2015. Cody, Howard. Lessons from Australia in Canadian Senate Reform. Canadian Parliamentary Review. Accessed May 3, 2015. Constitution Acts, 1867 to 1982. Legislative Services Branch. Accessed April 26, 2015. Fine, Sean. Stuck with Status Quo on Senate, Says Harper after Courts Rejection. The Globe and Mail. Accessed April 29, 2015. Parliamentary Institutions. Parliamentary Institutions. Accessed April 25, 2015. Trudeau Leads on Senate Reform: Liberal Leader Takes Concrete Action to Remove Partisanship and Patronage from the Senate. Accessed May 3, 2015. [1] Parliamentary Institutions, parliamentary Institutions, accessed April 25, 2015. [2] CBC News.,Canadas Senate: Sober Second Thought, July 9, 2010, accessed April 25, 2015. [3] Constitution Acts, 1867 to 1982, Legislative Services Branch, accessed April 26, 2015. [4] A Legislative and Historical Overview of the Senate of Canada, A Legislative and Historical Overview of the Senate of Canada, accessed April 27, 2015. [5] Abolish the Senate, Roll up the Red Carpet: Its Time to Abolish the Senate, accessed April 29, 2015. [6] Sean Fine, Stuck with Status Quo on Senate, Says Harper after Courts Rejection, The Globe and Mail, accessed April 29, 2015. [7] Sean Fine, Stuck with Status Quo on Senate, Says Harper after Courts Rejection, The Globe and Mail, accessed April 29, 2015. [8] Trudeau Leads on Senate Reform: Liberal Leader Takes Concrete Action to Remove Partisanship and Patronage from the Senate, accessed May 3, 2015. [9] Angus Reid, Future of the Senate: Majority of Canadians Split between Abolishing, Reforming the Red Chamber, accessed May 3, 2015. [10] Angus Reid, Future of the Senate: Majority of Canadians Split between Abolishing, Reforming the Red Chamber, accessed May 3, 2015. [11] Angus Reid, Future of the Senate: Majority of Canadians Split between Abolishing, Reforming the Red Chamber, accessed May 3, 2015. [12] Abolish the Senate, Roll up the Red Carpet: Its Time to Abolish the Senate, accessed April 29, 2015. [13] Sean Fine, Stuck with Status Quo on Senate, Says Harper after Courts Rejection, The Globe and Mail, accessed April 29, 2015. [14] Sean Fine, Stuck with Status Quo on Senate, Says Harper after Courts Rejection, The Globe and Mail, accessed April 29, 2015. [15] Howard Cody. Lessons from Australia in Canadian Senate Reform, Canadian Parliamentary Review, accessed May 3, 2015. [16] Howard Cody. Lessons from Australia in Canadian Senate Reform, Canadian Parliamentary Review, accessed May 3, 2015.

Monday, August 19, 2019

The Other Side of Big Business :: essays research papers

The Other Side of Big Business In America in the 1880s, big business began to flourish due to the likes of J.P. Morgan and Andrew Carnegie. They established this by being very successful businessman themselves, and doing what they had to do to be successful, such as cut corners, whether it be in the likes of sanitation and working conditions, or pay lower wages because of the resources provided. Naturally, some sacrifices needed to be made in order to achieve this goal. But in the long run, I believe that it was well more then worth it. Many historians and big business critics argue that they did this in selfish and corrupt ways that only hurt America. I am going to argue that what was done was necessary for the prosperity of this nation, and that this was the best alternative. Before the 1880s, all of America was mainly independent upon themselves for the resources they needed to survive. Our economy was based on farming and livestock. Then along came the idea of big business. The changes that took place after the civil war involved more then just a change of technique and productivity. By the beginning of the twentieth century, the nations major sectors, like banking, oil refining, railroads, and steel, were controlled by a small number of larger corporations. This rise was also accompanied by an increase in the number of millionaires. At the beginning of the Civil War, there were only 400 millionaires in the United States. By 1892, the number had risen to 4,047.1 The emergence of the modern corporation was accompanied by many positive developments. Between 1890 and 1929, the average urban worker put in one less day of work a week and brought home three times as much in pay. The proportion of families confined to the drudgery of farm life declined by half . By 1929, nine out of ten Americans had electricity and indoor plumbing, four-fifths had automobiles, two-thirds had radios, and nearly half refrigerators and phonographs. At the same time, infant mortality fell by two-thirds, and life expectancy increased by twenty years.2 There were many differences between smaller businesses before the 1870s and the larger ones after. The most obvious, involved the corporation's larger size and capitalization. The typical business establishment before the 1870s was financed by a single person or by several people bound together in a partnership. As a result, most businesses represented the wealth of only a few individuals.

Sunday, August 18, 2019

Freedom :: Essays Papers

Freedom This book was written in the middle to late twentieth century. Generally, this book dealt with Indians living in East Africa. The book is set in native Tanzania where Vassanji was raised after his family moved from his birthplace Nairobi. This book is a collection of short stories that chronically move from the narrator’s early childhood until he returns to his homeland years later to find that much has changed from his childhood. There are many issues that are intertwined into the text that Vassanji incorporates to relay his stories. Being a part of the lower class Indian community in Tanzania during the 1950’s, there is much class struggle. There is an instance early in the book where massive discrimination is evident in the book. â€Å"Schools went through preparation and drill for the royal visit.† â€Å"But to my great disappointment only the higher forms were allowed to welcome the princess.† The narrator overcame this discrimination by working through the crowd and essentially got a glimpse of the young queen. This was one of the more symbolic scenes in the book. The narrator overcame oppression here on a small scale as he later will by leaving Africa and going to a University in North America. The market place called the â€Å"Mnuda† was a place of massive thievery and just not a good place to go. However, many members of the â€Å"community† would go to the â€Å"Mnuda† to pick up odds and ends. The point is that this is a low class society we are dealing with. Later on there is a mention of green government trucks that randomly show up in the streets of Tanzania during the night. Green government trucks just give the impression that the government has something to fear if they are sending out â€Å"watchdog† trucks to keep an eye on the demos or population. This example just shows the kind of totalitarian government that was in place during the mid-twentieth century in this part of Africa. Just a reminiscent of 1984 and the concept of â€Å"big brother † mentioned in that novel. It seems this type of ruling is in place around the narrator at this time. The family of the narrator would go on to have their own lives. When the narrator prepares for going to the University, he talks about his sisters already married.

Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God and Holden Caulfield in The Catc

"Dey all useter call me Alphabet 'cause so many people had done named me different names," Janie says (Hurston 9). The nickname "Alphabet" is fitting in Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God because Janie is always changing and rearraging, never the same. Janie Crawford was constantly searching for happiness, self-realization, and her own voice. Janie dares not to fit the mold, but rather defy it to get what she wants. On the journey to find her voice, she marries three separate men and each one of these men contribute to Janie’s quest in different ways. In the beginning, the pear tree symbolizes Janie’s yearning to find within herself the sort of harmony and simplicity that nature embodies. However, that idealized view changes when Janie is forced to marry Logan Killicks, a wealthy and well-respected man whom Janie’s Nanny set her up with. Because Janie does not know anything about love, she believes that even if she does not love Logan yet, she will find it when they marry. Upon marrying Logan, she had to learn to love him for what he did, not for that infallible love every woman deserves.  After a year of pampering, Logan becomes demanding and rude, he went as far to try to force Janie to do farm work. It was when this happened that Janie decided to take a stand and run away with Joe. At this time, Janie appears to have found a part of her voice and strong will. In a way, she gains a sense of independence and realizes she has the power to walk away from an unhealthy situation and does not have to be a slave to her own husband. After moving to Eatonville and marrying Joe, Janie discovers that people are not always who they seem to be. While Joe at first seemed to be easy-going and friendly, she wa... ... stay" (Salinger 205). He is repulsed by fake people and wants to be satisfied by something real--something true he can grasp onto. Just as Janie is similar to Holden, Holden is also similar to Janie. Janie is a woman who has overcome the rules and restrictions she was given. Janie was nothing but "a rut in the road. Plenty of life beneath the surface but it was kept beaten down by the wheels" (Hurston 72). Eventually, Janie made it her purpose to rebel against this mold. By the end of the story, Janie has accomplished finding and conquering self-actualization, she has reached her enlightenment through the her marriages to Logan, Jody, and Tea Cake. It is apparant when she tells Pheoby, â€Å"You got tuh go there tuh know  there..Two things everybody's got tuh do fuh theyselves. They got tuh go tuh God, and they got tuh find out about livin' fuh theyselves" (Hurtson 183).

Saturday, August 17, 2019

To What Extent Does Market Liberalisation Influence Competition In Gas And Electricity Sector

ABSTRACT Market liberalization is a modern concept adopted by many governments around the world. It has gained fame due to its ability to enhance efficiency and quality due to competition. This paper presented an analysis of the liberalization of gas and oil sectors in the United Kingdom. The analysis was limited to the level and effects of downstream liberalization of these sectors. The approach adopted by this paper included review of several sources that relate the various changes that have taken place in the UK electricity and Gas sector since 1980s. From the analysis of the concept of liberalisation and its application in the gas and electricity sectors in the UK, it is evident that it is directly linked to the introduction of competition. Liberalisation in these sectors involved unbundling of downstream infrastructure and activities, opening up the sectors for competition. The fact that UK produces most of its electricity and gas makes it to have full control of its downstream liberalisation. UK has effectively managed to introduce and maintain downstream competition enhancing the impact of liberalisation in the sectors. In addition, the separation of the activities of the sectors promotes free competition in the downward segment of the two industries as the government is in a position to offer independent regulatory framework that promotes liberalisation i n the sectors. INTRODUCTION Market liberalisation has been a major policy in most developed economies in regard to electricity and gas sectors[1]. The push of introducing competition through privatisation in the gas and electricity sectors emerged in the 1980s with the United Kingdom and the United States pioneering liberalisation in these sectors with a success[2]. The adoption of liberalisation in the gas and electricity sectors has resulted to shift from state owned vertically integrated monopolies to privately owned, liberalised market participants that operate under government regulations are well as environmentally conscious environment[3]. Consequently, the traditional approach to doing business in the gas and electricity sectors has been changed as the industries move from large dependence on the capacity to reliance on short-term market price signals, flexible energy policies and tentative environmental regulations[4]. Therefore, the ultimate approach adopted in introducing downstream liberalisation in the oil and gas sectors was through the introduction of various reforms by the government that initiated a shift from government owned monopolies to a competitive formation[5]. As much as the eventual benefit of downstream liberalisation is increased efficiency and competitiveness that results to lower prices for commodities in the market, government regulations play a central role in regulating operations of these sectors[6]. This paper will focus on analysing downstream liberalisation in the gas and electricity sectors in UK and how it promotes competition BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON ELECTRICITY AND GAS SECTORS IN THE UK The underlying principles for reforms in this sector was that privatisation of the sectors would provide better competition than direct state ownership[7]. The analysis of the two sectors was conducted independently for development of deeper insights of the level liberalisation as well as future prospects in terms of downstream competition.The Gas SectorUK is the third largest consumer of gas in the world. Its use of gas is not limited to a source of energy as its use as a fuel in electricity generation is on the increase as the use of coal is being dropped due to its heavy carbon footprint. Most of the gas used in the UK is sourced from its offshore gas fields; however, this is bound to change in the future as its deposits are diminishing[8]. The offshore production process in UK is very competitive with numerous fields exhibiting diffuse ownership.[9] Onshore pipeline operations are dominated by Transco as much as there are 11 other independent pipeline operators in the UK[10]. Dow nstream competitiveness is also boosted by over 100 wholesale gas outlets who mainly deal with gas shipment. Compared to other countries in Europe, competition in UK’s gas sector is very steep due to the boundless extraction potential in its offshore sources,[11] enhancing downstream competition. Before liberalisation of the gas sector in UK, wholesale gas contracts were restricted take-or-pay commitments, long-term and linked to international oil prices. The emergence of liberalisation in the 1990s resulted to competition with an upsurge of players[12]. This automatically resulted to reduced contract periods, take-or-pay commitments were lessened, and the price of gas is no longer linked to the oil prices. Furthermore, the UK has implemented measures that promote relationships between gas transports as a service and gas supply as energy has enhanced the level of stratification of the gas sector as more wholesalers enter into the business[13]. Subsequently, the process of production of gas and transportation of gas in the UK are separated and operated by different companies. The UK gas pipeline system is connected to the mainland Europe which functions in two ways. Most of the connection is used for gas export purposes to other European countries while during winter the pipeline is used for importation to bridge the demand gap as production is slowed down during those times[14]. The large size of Europe market relative to UK results to price arbitrage between UK and Europe, which in most cases increases the wholesale prices of gas in UK. The effect of low level of downstream liberalisation in the European gas sector makes the shift in gas prices in UK insignificant due to poor levels of downstream competition in Europe[15]. The 1972 Gas Act resulted to the merger of the coal gas supply industry to a government owned monopoly. This monopoly was reinforced by the fact that the government owned all onshore gas infrastructures. The liberalisation program was introduced in 1980s by formulation of the Oil and Gas Act of 1982 that aimed to introduce competition in the sectors[16]. This act passively promoted competition through the development of a better framework for awarding contracts[17]. The 1986 Gas Act initiated privatization of government owned BG Company as an effort of cultivating liberalisation and competition in the gas sector. However, real competition in the gas sector in UK emerged in 1990s. This was boosted by the Gas Act of 1995 that promoted unbiased competition in the gas market where production process and transportation process were separated and price control for storage and transportation was split[18]. This was an important aspect that promoted an increase in the number of players in th e field promoting competition.The Electricity SectorThe process of liberalisation of the electricity sector in UK was initiated in 1990[19]. This was initiated by splitting of the government owned Electricity Company into four companies[20]. Three companies were involved in generation while one was involved in transmission of electricity in UK. The two non-nuclear companies were privatised by 1991while the nuclear company remained a public company. The supply system was transferred to 12 regional private companies[21]. The main aspect of this shift of ownership from government to private in the electricity sector was the horizontal downstream severance, which resulted to competition. To enhance downstream competition, the pool system was introduced with the aim of centralizing trade in the electricity as well as develops a balance between demand and supply[22]. The pool system is a single price system that is defined by the bids offered by the generators. The government also introdu ced regulated reintegration of the electricity production and supply sectors as an approach to promoting efficiency. In 2001, the pool system was abandoned in favour of the wholesale market framework based on New Electricity Trading Agreements (NETA) that promoted integration of gas and electricity sectors as gas became a major fuel for electricity generation in the UK[23]. The introduction of NETA as the main regulatory system in the electricity sector enabled the development of effective linkages between the regulated monopoly of balancing and the competitive market. This system promoted segregated downstream ownership, which has reduced the number of regulations needed to guarantee non-biased access to the networks. Downstream competition is no longer managed by price regulations. Quality has become the main threshold of downstream regulations resulting to intensification of quality controlled competition[24]. There are numerous reasons that affect the process of liberalisation in this segment Firstly, the changes in the UK electricity sector were based on reforms that aim to develop competition through privatization[25]. The argument was that a pro-competitive industry is better that one that is devised based in regulations in managing maker powers. The privatization of electricity generation required numerous regulations, which require a long period of time to completely eliminate all the anti-competitive forces in the sector. Secondly, the use of regulations is slowly defining activities that promote completion in a sector that had a high level of monopoly. The competition problem in this sector emerge due to various activities require application of natural monopoly. These challenges are handled by sustained changes in the regulatory framework to promote complete downstream liberalisation in the electricity sector[26]. The strong vertical relationship in the electricity sector also results to complications where downstream competition problems affect upstream competition[27]. For instance, capacity problems at one production unit may require other production system to alter their production to compensate the deficit. Likewise, vertical competition is easy to distort due to availability of various avenues that may promote distortion of competition. This is common where the returns of the market are regulated below the monopoly price. As a result, competitive activities by former monopolies results to various challenges with regard to regulations[28]. The main successes realised in the reforms of the electricity sector in the UK is the implementation of the Ofgem proposal[29]. This proposal has resulted to extension of NETA by introducing tradable electricity, financial firm, and development of market based electricity production system. Generally, the electricity reforms taking place currently aims to completely eradicate regulation systems such that the downstream liberalisation in the electricity sector is fully realised to promote full-scale competition, where the operations of the sectors are fully controlled by the market forces[30]. DESCRIPTION OF ELECTRICITY AND GAS SECTORS IN THE UK From the above preview of what is happening in the electricity and gas sectors in the UK, it is evident that the sectors are moving towards the realization of complete liberalisation as regulations loosen. The development of regulations was initiated with a focus on price regulation but as time went by, they are mainly focussed on quality control. These changes have raised some issues that require detailed analysis to develop a comprehensive presentation of how downstream liberalisation in these sectors promotes competition.Downstream Gas sectorThis is majorly driven by the 1995 act provisions that define the activities of downstream gas sector and how competition is achieved. To be able to analyse the process of downstream competitiveness, it is necessary analyse the elements of the code as it determines how downstream competition in the gas sector is achieved. The first aspect of the code is that the shippers book supply to the national transmission system for a 12-month period whe re the price of supply are determined by location of injection point[31]. Gas is bought and sold by Transco based on flexibility mechanism to ensure no shortfalls are experienced as a result of shippers’ imbalances[32]. Transco is also responsible of ensuring the available inventory sustains peak seasons such as during winter[33]. Analysis of the offshore gas mining fields reveals intense liberalisation strategies that promoted competition. Specifically, the North Sea gas fields in UK are managed by 25 different operators that share 129 gas exploration licences[34]. The introduction of various players in the production process automatically eliminated monopoly, which has been a major problem in downstream gas liberalisation. However, government still regulates the production process of gas resulting to partial liberalisation in the production system[35].Downstream oligopoly in the gas sectorThe fact that gas supply is limited to a few locations that are mostly offshore and some imported from a few countries that are globally known for their huge amounts of gas reserves, there are very few players in the production and supply of gas in the UK. The ability of UK to produce its gas locally makes its supply chain manageable and directed to full liberalisation covering both upstream and downstream[36]. Oligopoly as a market structure in the gas sectors has been in existence in the UK since 1970s with its upstream market. The perception of oligopoly in the UK gas sector is founded on the fact that a market that is exposed to perfect competition has players that have fewer concerns about the operations of their counterparts. An action by one players results to a reaction by the other. For instance, if one firm is unable to meet its production requirements, another company increases its supplies to ensure the gap left by the other firm is levelled. Similar case is evident in product pricing where all the companies develop almost similar pricing partly regulated by regional needs within the UK[37]. Therefore, UK gas supply system is operated based on oligopoly of its 25 main supplies from the offshore gas fields where the final price of the gas is determined by the effects of informal collision between the suppliers. The collision price of gas in UK is also affected by the global oil price that is normally used as a reference point in most cases. The fact that currently there is no excessive dominance in the downstream segment as most government operations have been privatized; the prices charged by the wholesale suppliers is similar.Implications of liberalisation in UK’s Gas SectorBefore the concept of liberalisation was introduced in the gas sector in the UK, there was a high level of monopoly in the gas production system with the government owning almost all offshore gas fields in the UK[38]. Liberalisation has resulted to entry of new players with government monopoly being eliminated and competition taking its roots. However, downstream gas sector in the UK is not fu lly liberalised as in the case of upstream due to high levels of government regulations in an effort of ensuring supplies meet the demands and prices are regulated within acceptable standards. Furthermore, the high costs of investments needed in downstream segment of UK’s gas sector limit entry of new players resulting oligopoly as the main approach to downstream competition in the gas sector. Therefore, downstream liberalisation in the gas sector has opened it up to competition through processes that resulted to separation of the production chain from supply chain, introduction of competition through privatization of government monopolies, and development of regulatory frameworks that control areas that are still affected by natural monopoly[39].Downstream Electricity SectorThe production of electricity in the UK has undergone numerous changes since early 1990s when coal and nuclear dominated the generation system. New plants that operate using gas and nuclear have been inst alled while several coal and oil based plants have been shut down as the country embraces the spirit of green energy. The concept of liberalisation is also evident in the system as most of the new generation systems developed from the 1990s are privately owned[40]. The introduction of private companies in the power generation automatically resulted to the decline of dominance in the sector by national power and power gen which are state owned companies. This is evident as government dominance in power generation is lowest in the UK as compared to the rest of Europe. The success of UK electricity sector is founded in its effective regulatory framework that has protected it from the faults that were evident in California and Australia when downstream liberalisation was introduced[41]. The regulatory system adopted in downstream electricity sector in the UK is market based. Moreover, the UK downstream electricity sector is devised based on strong market incentives that promote entry of new players as a way of fostering competition[42]. NETA has successfully managed to keep the wholesale electricity prices low making it possible for new players to enter into the production system and compete favourably. The fact that the transmission system is still monopolised, downstream liberalisation is limited to production as much as the government has set various measures to ensure it does not interfere with downstream and upstream liberalisation[43]. The government has initiated various regulatory changes that promote competition between market players. The main aspect that promotes completion is the market share that is defined by a company’s effectiveness and competitiveness. The most important aspect of liberalisation in the electricity production system is to introduce competition as the main aspect of promoting innovativeness and efficiency among the players in the sector[44]. The success of UK system is founded in its approach that promoted competition amid independent producers and existing government firms. Competition as a result of liberalisation of the UK’s electricity downstream sector was promoted by development of regulation of monopolies in the sector with the aim of eliminating the traditional vertical integrated system. Liberalisation broke down the structure into three sections, which were downstream, transmission, and upstream where competitive markets replace the vertically integrated firms with government monitoring and regulation. The approach to liberalisation in the UK’s electricity sector was based on transmission system operators (TSOs)[45]. This system is based on the concept that ownership and transmission planning are integrated components of the market and system operation[46]. The state ownership of the transmission system is central to the success of the system as it ensure unbiased treatment of the firms involved in the downstream production of electricity. More so, the use of TSOs has enhanced coordination between the electricity producers enhanci ng competitiveness as information exchange is encouraged[47]. The electricity market is complex due to inability of the producers to store the produced power in large quantities and the existence of varied demand conditions. The need of electricity production system to meet the demand needs and flexibility makes the process of downstream liberalisation to be regulated to ensure system stability[48]. The lack of constant consumption pattern in electricity results to price volatility in the wholesale electricity market. These complexities tend to play down on competition as reliable supplies are used during peak seasons resulting to instances of oligopoly in the downstream electricity sector. Generally, there are some complexities in downstream electricity sector in UK; however, the introduction of liberalisation that has been subjected to continuous improvement to ensure liberalisation is fully realised has created competition as evident in the introduction of the pull system that resulted to competition lowering prices[49]. NETA is another major body that not only enhanced competition in the electricity sector but also resulted to further drop of prices as players increased promoting price competitiveness[50]. The recent vertical reintegration in the UK electricity sector where large electricity producing companies are acquiring retail distribution businesses this is another factor that will further enhance competitiveness in the sector as players develop links that offer them direct access to the final consumer of their product[51]. CONCLUSION The analysis of the concept of liberalisation and its application in the gas and electricity sectors in the UK reveals its direct link to the introduction of competition due to the introduction of many players in the downstream segment and the eventual opening up of the segments to market forces that are ineffective to monopolistic market structure[52]. The paper examined a historical account of the regulatory changes in the process of liberalizing the UK gas and electricity sectors providing links between liberal policies and regulations and opening up of the sectors to competition. The most evident aspect of liberalisation that promoted competition was the privatization of government monopolies in the production of electricity and gas in the country. Specifically, it was evident that the process of liberalisation of gas and electricity sectors is affected by the types of commodities that are handled by the players in the two industries. Furthermore, the fact that UK produces most of its gas and electricity locally makes it an interesting participant in downstream liberalisation. However, the uniqueness of the properties of electricity and gas require infrastructural systems that are managed by the government to ensure a level playing field for the downstream segments in the gas and electricity industries in the UK. References Primary sources International Decisions OECD. 2005. The Benefits of Liberalising Product Markets and Reducing Barriers to International Trade and Investment: the Case of the United States and the European Union. OECD Economics Department Working Paper 432, Paris National Legislation Great Britain. 2009. UK offshore oil and gas: first report of session 2008-09, Vol. 1: Report, together with formal minutes. London, UK: The Stationery Office Great Britain. 2011. 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