Bullying Is A Major Social Problem Faced With Teenagers...

Bullying is a major social problem faced with teenagers throughout the world. Current national statistics, according to government sources, indicate that a varying 20% - 70% of kids have been bullied or have witnessed bullying, of which are most common in middle school. The most common types of bulling are verbal and social. Many students dread the physical and verbal aggression of their peers, and many more attend school in a chronic state of anxiety and depression. It’s reported that 70.6% of young people say they have seen bullying in their schools. (StopBullying). While bullying can result in reluctance to go to school and truancy, headaches and stomach pains, reduced appetite, shame, anxiety, irritability, aggression and depression are also frequent effects. Bullying can affect everyone, from those who are bullied, those who bully, and those who witness bullying. Bullying is linked to many negative outcomes including impacts on mental health, drug use, and suicide. It is important to talk to kids to determine whether bullying, or something else, is a concern at their school, because children will not always speak up for themselves. Kids who are bullied can experience negative physical, school, and mental health issues. Kids who are bullied are most likely to experience depression and anxiety, increased feelings of sadness and loneliness, changes in sleep and eating patterns, and loss of interest in activities they used to enjoy. These issues may persist intoShow MoreRelatedThe Relationship Between Bullying And Peer Relationship1596 Words   |  7 PagesThe Relationship Between Bullying and Peer Relationship In Middle Childhood Bullying is an unfortunate issue that many children face every day. When people think about bullying many imagine something like this; one child yelling at another to get his or her attention. Also, another scenario would be a child being bullied for their lunch or lunch money. However, today’s bullying issues have become much more severe. Unfortunately, today’s bullying antics could easily lead to physical and psychologicalRead MoreCyberbullying : A Serious Problem1544 Words   |  7 Pagestechnology and social media. With that advance comes incredible opportunity and chances. But also with that advance comes the serious evil and bad through cyberbullying. Thousands of people are cyberbullied every day, indirectly and directly through Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, DM, Instagram, Ask.fm, etc. Cyberbullying is a serious problem that effects people of all ages and causes incredible and devastating problems in our society. With the incredible advance in technology and soc ial media, cyberbullyingRead MoreSocial media is a phrase being thrown around a lot these days, but it can be difficult to answer1400 Words   |  6 PagesSocial media is a phrase being thrown around a lot these days, but it can be difficult to answer the question â€Å"What really is Social media?† Social media is essentially the websites and applications we use to create and share content about our every day lives, through participation on various sites. Information technology (IT) is the category that social networking falls under, and is rapidly changing while being integrated into many areas of modern day Australian life. The reason being, childrenRead MoreTexting Is Not Safe ! Haha1430 Words   |  6 Pagesnot a reason to do it, and the kids think they’re invincible. To them, texting is not distracting; they are so proficient at texting that they don’t feel it’s distracted driving.† (Hosansky 407). Taylor’s father raised an essential question: Are teenagers unaware of the damage that their favorite devices can cause if misused? Smartphones raise a serious concern, especially among parents. This is due to both the psychological damage and danger that smartphones place on their children whose brains areRead MoreBullying And Its Effects On Society1957 Words   |  8 PagesBullying is defined as â€Å"unwanted, aggressive behavior among people that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behavior is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Both persons who are bullied and who bully others may have serious, lasting problems.† In this day and age, there are so many places advertising a no bullying sentiment or trying to get people to donate money or read about how to stop the bullying that goes on in high school. These websites and foundations areRead MoreHigh Suicide Rates And Its Effects On The Youth3323 Words   |  14 Pageseffects on the youth. It will also continue onto exploring the culture and how that correlates back to the high suicide rates by exploring further into the cultural foundation and expanding upon the different pressures placed upon students. Students are faced with the burden of parental pressure, fear of disappointing society and losing face, and the accentuated importance on education. The primary research hypothesis would be that the suicide rates in Korea can be explained through the further venturingRead MoreSocial Networking And Its Effects On Society3236 Words   |  13 Pages When we hear the word â€Å"social networking† what comes to mind is: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Myspace, OoVoo and so on. While accessing these trendy resources, we can interact with others by messaging, video chatting, live streaming, instant chatting and overall fast pace communication. Society as we know it has evolved tremendously in regards to the way we communicate and interact with one another. There is a significant difference between the way we used to get in touch with our families andRead MoreAbercrombie And Fitch s Current Csr Policies And Activities2372 Words   |  10 Pagesfocus on the four main social responsibilities that AF highlights, which are environmental sustainability, diversity and human rights in the employment and its independent contractors, custo mer care, and the community. Environment Current CSR Policies and Activities AF highlights its care for environmental stewardship by embracing the 3 R’s concept – Reduce, Reuse and Recycle – to limit the size of its carbon footprint. It maintains water used for cooling and heating throughout its HVAC systems, whichRead MoreDevelopment Project: The Breakfast Club3012 Words   |  12 PagesSaturday detention. These five individuals come from different social groups and a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds are present, but in the end they discover that they are more alike than they assumed. In the beginning of the movie we learn that Brian, Andrew, Claire, John, and Allison attend Shermer High School in Shermer, Illinois, but are worlds apart due to the social cliques developed by peers and society. These social stereotypes have dictated the following labels for each individual:Read MoreThe History of Modern Day Parenting: Helicopter Parents Essay1943 Words   |  8 PagesThroughout the history of mankind, one thing has separated us humans from animals, which is parenting. In today’s world, you will not find any other animal that will take care of it’s offspring for 18 plus years, well except for bonobo monkeys. Now it is normal for parents to keep their kids from childbirth till the end of their education. However this brings up the question on where to draw the line, and what is the right way to raise a kid. There is one type of parenting that goes beyond the call

Ethical Issues Of Marketing Marketing Ethics - 871 Words

Ethical issues in Marketing - Marketing ethics deals with the moral principles behind the operation and regulation of marketing. Possible fundamental frameworks of analysis for marketing audit are: - Value-oriented framework, ethical problems on the basis of the values which they infringe honesty, autonomy, privacy, transparency. †¢ - Stakeholder-orientated framework, analyzing ethical problems on the basis of whom they affect: consumers, competitors, society as a whole †¢ - Process-orientated framework, analyzing ethical problems in terms of the categories used by marketing specialists; Research, price, promotion, placement Specific issues in marketing ethics: - Market research: ethical danger points in marketing research include: - Invasion of privacy – Stereotyping Market audience: ethical danger points include - targeting the vulnerable children, the elderly - Excluding potential customers from the market: selective marketing is used to discourage demand from undesirable market sectors or disenfranchise them altogether. Pricing ethics: list of unethical pricing practice: - Price fixing - Price skimming - Price discrimination - Price wars - Bid rigging - Dumping - Advertising and promotion, ethical pitfall: Issues over truth and honesty. Issues with violence, sex and profanity. Taste and controversy and negative advertising CRM systems are customer relationship management platforms. The goal of the system is to track, record, store in databases, and then theShow MoreRelatedEthical Issues Of Marketing Ethics1924 Words   |  8 PagesPatricia Werhane, â€Å"Ethics can be defined as the study of whatever is right and good for humans.† Ethics are defined as rules of behavior, code of conduct, ability to distinguish between the good and the bad. In general, ethical marketing is a process through which an organization or a company sells its products and services by using the fair means of ethical principles there by creating a strong customer relationship resulting in an increased value of stakeholders. Therefore, marketing principles includesRead MoreProduct Quality1288 Words   |  6 PagesAn essay on: â€Å"Marketing and ethics are like oil and water – they just don’t mix. There is no place for ethics in the cut-throat world of marketing†. Discuss The success of a product is always determined by how well it’s marketed. In that case marketing has an important role in every product that we produce. But when ethics is associated with marketing, it can’t go on one direction. It is like oil and water which does not mix together. What is marketing? Marketing is a societal process byRead MoreEthical Issues With Ethical Marketing Essay1333 Words   |  6 PagesIssues with Ethical Marketing Ethical problems in marketing starts with conflicts and disagreements. Each party in the marketing transaction brings expectations of how the business relationship will exist and how the transaction should be conducted. Some ethical problems in marketing research aren’t always the invasion of privacy and stereotyping. Selective marketing is used to discourage the demand from undesirable markets or just by disenfranchising them altogether. Examples of unethical marketRead MoreThe Driving Force Behind A Company s Financial Success Essay1251 Words   |  6 Pagescompany’s ability to market itself. Marketing goes beyond selling of a product. It involves â€Å"building strong brands and a loyal customer base intangible asset that contributes to the value of a firm† (Kotler Keller, 2012). The American Marketing Association, defined marketing as â€Å"Marketing is an activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers† (Kotler Keller, 2012). Since marketing plays such a vital role inRead MoreEthics in International Environments Essays1348 Words   |  6 PagesEthics in International Environments Introduction Global marketing opportunities usually form the pillar under which viability and profitability of international marketing depend upon. This merged with globalization of market today makes international marketing practices a concern globally that calls for moral responsibility (ethics) in conducting business (Danley, 1983). Ethics in international marketing poses many dilemmas and this is because value judgments differ among different culturesRead MoreEthics in Marketing Communication1082 Words   |  5 PagesEthical Challenges in Marketing Communication Ethics play an integral role in the development and sustenance of any personal or business relationship. Ethics determine the acceptable behaviors within a society and the overall behaviors of a business. Marketers must understand the impact ethics have on marketing communications and develop Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) strategies accordingly. This paper will discuss various ethical challenges facing marketers today, identify internalRead MoreEthical Issues Of Marketing Field Of Australia1450 Words   |  6 PagesEthical Issues in Marketing Field of Australia Introduction: Ethics is the principle of differentiating between right and wrong. In business and marketing process, a number of ethical issues are involved that may have a positive or negative impact on the company. The term Ethical marketing is not only a marketing strategy but also a philosophy. It encourages a company representative to be honest, fair, and responsible in all advertising. It also includes communication skill, leadership skill, teamworkRead MoreBook Report On Ethical Decision Making830 Words   |  4 Pages Ethics Hamed Alanazi Book Report Ethical decision-making 10th edition â€Æ' Ethics The book I chose is â€Å"Business ethics: Ethical decision-making† 10th edition is written by O. C. Ferrell, John Fraedrich, Ferrell. It was published by Cengage Learning in 2014. This book consists of almost 340 pages and five parts. According to Amazon this book is among top seller. Something extraordinary about this book is that, this book highlight several cases related to the business ethics that help the readerRead MoreWhat are Marketing Ethics?1545 Words   |  7 PagesDefinition of Marketing Ethics Marketing Ethics are the basic principles and values that govern the business practices of those engaged in promoting products or services to consumers. These are a set of criterion by which moral principles are considered within the marketing profession and execution of an advertising campaign for a business and/or organization. Marketing Ethics in Global Marketing Practice In recent years, owing to the internationalization of markets, businesses and production processesRead MoreEthics and Innovations in Marketing and Its Relevance with Consumer Behavior1654 Words   |  7 PagesETHICS AND INNOVATIONS IN MARKETING AND ITS RELEVANCE WITH CONSUMER BEHAVIOR Kishor N. Choudhary N.S.B.College, Nanded ABSTRACT: In order to be consumer-oriented, marketing will have to be truthful and ethical. That is why it is very important in marketing, as in any other field; to apply the principles of Ethics It is also important to apply the processes of innovation, to find new ways of marketing effectively. This Paper explains the concept of Ethics in Marketing and overview a number of issues

The writeup focuses on the lives of individuals Free Essays

Is a book that describes how low ranking and shy individuals have suddenly become   a public figure And the question will be that of what siginificance is homosexuality history in Africa? And how this information can help in the fight against the scouge of HIV AIDS ,inequality in socal status as well as gender violence in African continent. The writeup focuses   on the lives of individuals who do not comply with the societal conventios   in regards to marriage and love drawing from Epprecht and  Ã‚   books.HUNGOCHANI is a book written by Eppreth on nauthodox and nonconforming sexuality in southAfrica. We will write a custom essay sample on The writeup focuses on the lives of individuals or any similar topic only for you Order Now coupled therefore with intelligent writing from other writers one can get a clear image of individuals who do practice   what their environment expect as core values.Additional material includes several fictionalised accounts of same-sex relationships in southern Africa. The greatest shocker in Africa in the recent period is the emergence of terms like homosexuality,gay legal rights and homophobia and lesbianism all to the chagrin and annoyance of many. Ephereth   book also reported incidence of same sex marrage for instance in 1990,GALZ was founded in ZIMbabwe   with the objective   of enhancing interaction among the gay group members.They have moved further at resent by looking for how to form alliance with activist organization such as he womens;s right campaign group , organizations campaigning agaist HIV/AIDS and human rights groups. The aims of GALZ in Zimbabwe is therefore to increase gays rights awareness in a compound forum thereby facilitating the incorporation of this rights along with some of the other fundamental human rights.This is an area that civil organization are yet to have headway in south Africa.Ghana became in 1957 the first country in colonial Africa to gain its independence. Lesbians and gays, though, are still waiting to be liberated from a repressive British legacy: sodomy laws. A gay social life exists, mostly in the form of house parties, and a few queer-friendly clubs in the capital, Accra, but there are risks. Because homosexuality is illegal, club-goers, especially tourists, risk blackmail. If they don’t pay, social and legal consequences can be serious. The book examines   is   a mix of works in the gay and lesbian   associations and it uses journals and other significant materials   to make new record in this regards.the books gave atreatise on therecords of Lesbians   and gays in the Japanese pacific fight   issues like gayism,trangenderism a and also lesbianism.It delves in to queer roups interface in the growing international community and US ,it argues the meaning attributed to the various queer society and opes the eyes of readers to the development o gays and lesbians in the japan after the war . Mac Clelland article titled the social situation facing gay in japan   demonstreates how the society sees and reacts to Queers and reveals the whole organization of Japanese nation and the expent of tolerancr to sexual minorities as they have   a strong component of the   Human Rights policies constructed by the â€Å"Tokyo City Human Rights Policy Directive Manual released in 2000†. The promise to protect the human rights was made by Japanese government following resistance from the Japanese public,Queer activist group and human rights organization when the policy of 200 excluded the inclusion of gays How to cite The writeup focuses on the lives of individuals, Papers

Cold Inferno by Disarmonia Mundi free essay sample

Disarmonia Mundi is an Italian based melodic death metal band that is heavily influenced by the early Gothenburg scene with bands like At The Gates, Carcass and In Flames. With this in mind, I would personally recommend this to anyone who is a fan of that scene and any band like this. Its been six whole years since their last album, The Isolation Game, and it must feel great to be back. Cold Inferno has some features that the other albums before this didnt really have too much of. From what Im concerned with, no album prior to this have ever sounded quite as epic in sound quality nor have had any song longer than five minutes. With this album, we even get a seven minute long track which is track five(Im too lazy too look it up). Other than that, its mostly same old same old from here and frankly, while it is fun to thrash your head to, the lack of innovation and overall complexity seems boring after a while. We will write a custom essay sample on Cold Inferno by Disarmonia Mundi or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Not to say its bad. This album also boasts a shorter album length than its predecessors being only 45 minutes total, not long at all to be perfectly honest. At least if you do get bored, it wont be for long. The highlights for me is the seven minute track Ive mentioned, at least it is a but more melodic and, dare I say, a but more progressive in style than some of the other tracks. I otherwise find everything to bemore of the same to be honest. Though if,you want to find Neo-Gothenburg bands, I suggest you start here. I find this similar in style to All That Remains The Order of Things from much earlier this year where everything sounds mostly the same except for the long track or tracks. Just a slight comparison. If you compress this to something like Mind Tricks or The Isolation Game, this is far inferior in comparison. Without it, it is pretty solid regardless of its unoriginality. I give this an 8.5/10. It is just as brutal, if not, more brutal than their other works, but suffer s from lack of originally. I am the Grim Reaper, signing off.

5 Tips About Freelance Work

5 Tips About Freelance Work 5 Tips About Freelance Work 5 Tips About Freelance Work By Mark Nichol Self-employment is not for everyone, but many publishing professionals thrive, or at least survive, in a freelance capacity. Before you decide whether to join them, however, keep these factors in mind: You probably won’t get rich from freelance writing or editing, but the qualitative rewards are manifest. Self-employed editorial professionals are hereby excused from useless, time-wasting, poorly run meetings. (Freelancers sometimes need to attend in-person or online meetings as part of a project they’ve been hired for, but such gatherings tend to be more efficient than the average company or department to-do.) Freelancers also are fortunate enough to be able to avoid demoralizing company policies, depressing workplace ambience, petty office politics, inept managers, and annoying colleagues. Then there’s that whole commuting thing and no traffic reports (unless you want to tune in just for the sake of nostalgia). When you work at home, you also get to choose what kind of clothes you wear or whether you wear anything at all. But self-employment is a challenge, especially for those who do not have a strong aptitude for business management after all, you, as a freelancer, are running a business. Therefore, you have no one but yourself (unless you hire someone) to manage your finances or your marketing. Each year, if you’re a US citizen, you must submit a profit-or-loss statement and figure (and pay) a self-employment tax, and you should always be working on getting your next project while you’re completing your current one. Furthermore, your income will be variable. And if you’re paid a flat fee, false starts and dead-end ideas don’t earn you any money. Fiction writers, especially, have to put in seemingly endless hours in a gamble to earn a decent living in royalties and you’re nowhere near done even when the not-so-final draft of your manuscript is accepted. Still determined to go independent? Then follow my advice: 1. Find an anchor client. Your first priority is to enter into a relationship with a company that provides you with a steady source of work that provides you with enough income to get by. Everything else is just frosting on the cake, but bake the cake first. 2. Don’t be particular at first. Certainly, you should search your soul for what kind of content you’d like to work on. But when you’re starting out, accept any assignment that involves writing or editing words and, even though you should have a pay range in mind, be prepared to accept less compensation than is ideal. You can always ask for a â€Å"raise† later, and you can always increase your rate when you are engaged by new clients. 3. Be flexible about your rates. I’ve varied my hourly editing rate by up to $50, depending on the client. Online research will yield extensive information about the market rate for writing and editing in various media, in different industries, and so on. You may very well end up straddling two or more markets, and your pay rate may vary substantially. (Also, if you’re asked what rate you’ll accept, rather than offered one, propose a range with a $5-$10 differential starting at your minimum.) 4. Don’t give up your day job. Not right away, at any rate. Nights, weekends, summer vacations for educators these are the opportunities to wade into the freelance pool. Even if your steady job is making you mentally unsteady, stick it out until you have an anchor client. The transition period may exhaust you as you try to juggle full-time work, your personal life, and your efforts to start your own business, but you may be able to jettison your job sooner than you think. (Or you can work for a part-time salary and be self-employed, too.) 5. Keep it simple. You don’t need much in the way of infrastructure. You can probably get away without business cards. You don’t need a fancy-looking invoice template. Some self-employed people rent a small office or use an outbuilding as a way of separating their professional life from their personal one, but few of us can afford that luxury. Turning a spare room into an office, or using an existing study, or even setting aside part of a bedroom or a family room, is sufficient for most people. (But make sure others in your household know that when you’re on the clock, you’re off limits.) Remember, too, that self-employment will always be hard work but virtually any employment is a hard work, and being your own boss is its own reward. Note: The DWT Freelance Writing Course will re-open September, so stay tuned. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:100 Beautiful and Ugly WordsOne Sheep, Two Sheep, One Fish, Two Fish . . .Passed vs Past

religion essays

religion essays Syed Shah September 15, 2004 Mr. Flynn 305/01 Throughout history, people have established different systems of government. They have been based on different views of how people should be ruled. There are many types of governments. Some types of governments are democracy, republic, monarchy, communism and many others. The democratic government was first introduced by Ancient Greece. The democratic government is a political system in which the people of a country rule through any form of government they choose to establish. In modern democracies, supreme authority is used for the most part by people elected by vote. In a democratic government majority rules. Monarchy has been around since the Egyptians. The pharaoh was the King of the monarchy. A monarchy is a form of government in which one person has the hereditary right to rule as head of state during his or her lifetime. Monarchs include such rulers as kings and queens, emperors and empresses, tsars, and Kaisers. In a monarchy the person really doesnt deserve the position and the only reason they get it because of hereditary right or they were born into the royal family. I think a democratic government is better because it lets the people chose. They chose their leaders and the leaders they vote for are the ones that have similar ideas with them and the people know what the best is for the people. They experience everyday life and they know what the problem is in their society. In a Monarchy the King or Queen do what they think is right and they might not know what happens in the society. They dont know the problems the people are facing with unless advised. There are many different types of governments. Each government was suitable for its civi ...

How does the human body defend itself against pathogens Essay

How does the human body defend itself against pathogens - Essay Example Communicable illnesses are transmitted by germs particularly bacteria, viruses, and fungi. It is also important to explicate the fact that there are various points of entry of these germs into the human body. Some of these points of entry include the mouth, nose, and injured areas of the skin. Some illnesses are transmitted by insects such as malaria. There are three defence lines in the body. The first line of defence include the skin, second line of defence include the white blood cells, while the third line of defence involves the lymphatic system. Once germs or pathogens enter into the human body, the body reacts automatically to fight these germs. However, if the body is not in a position to confront these pathogens, the germs react by reproducing themselves and subsequently assault the numerous cells in the body in large numbers. The result is serious illnesses that can be life threatening. Other than pathogens, illnesses can also result due to abnormalities in the body itself. For instance, some diseases such as cancer are caused by abnormalities in the body, as mentioned earlier (Rosdahl and Kowalski, 2008). Nevertheless, the focus in this paper is pathogens. There are various ways that the body defends itself against disease causing pathogens or micro-organisms. The skin is the outer coating of the human body. In simple terms, the skin functions as a tool that blocks or barricades disease causing pathogens from entering the body. The outer layer of the skin is known as epidermis. This layer is important in defending the body against pathogens as it functions as a wall or blockade that blocks grime and pathogens out. The components that make up the skin are structured in a very compact way such that disease causing micro-organisms can penetrate only in case the skin is injured. The skin also prevents the entry of pathogens through notifying or sending signals to the immune system of an impending

Early twentieth century arts Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Early twentieth century arts - Essay Example The renaissance was a cerebration of the African-American heritage which was expressed through art, music, literature and dance (Watson 19). The Harlem renaissance began to wind down in the year 1929; this was partly caused by the great depression because financial necessities became of more importance than the artistic expression. Great waves, of the African-Americans, travelled to the northern cities so that they may seek employment opportunities in many factories, which were available in response to World War 1. These African-Americans were forced to settle in urban segregated housing, due to the social attitudes of the 20th century, and ended up creating metropolises. This caused that period of artistic and intellectual activity in the African American community, in New York, which finally lead to the Harlem Renaissance (Watson 19). The Harmon foundation was started by one of the many white Americans who expressed interest in the artistic eruption of the black Americans. He established the foundation in the city of New York. The main aim of the foundation was to recognize the African American achievements, in fine arts and also in other fields like, music, farming, relations, literature, race, education, science, religious service and business (Watson 19). Some scholars are today critics of the Harmon foundation. They say that the foundation puts emphasis on the celebration of the African-American cultural achievements and overlooks the difficult living conditions that are found in many black suburbs in urban settings. Many artists have been given support by the Harmon foundation. They include artists such as; Robert Russa Moton, Hale Woodruff, Palmer Hayden, Langston Hughes, Archibald Motley, Countee Cullen and Claude McKay. All the above named artists have all received various awards in fine arts and literature (Watson 19). Jackson’s works of Art

MS ITM Core Learning Objectives Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

MS ITM Core Learning Objectives - Thesis Example This objective can also be related with all three issues as it is highly important for all involved stakeholders to take their responsibility in the process of finding and implementing solutions. ECONOMICS OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE  » Issues of International Trade which deal with real transactions that involve physical movements of goods and services. Yes all are relevant. The first issue involves movement of energy resources, second issue involves health problems due to movement of goods and services by vehicles which generate poisonous gases, whereas airplanes use more energy resources to transport goods and services from one place to another.  » Theory of international trade and issues of trade policy. First two issues are relevant. Theories have been developed for trade of energy resources and pollution generated by vehicles using these fuels. Third issue is not relevant.  » Basics of International Finance theory & policy implications. All three issues are irrelevant. Internat ional finance trade involve balance of payment, exchange rate, global financial system, foreign direct investment, and the affect of these resources towards international trade MIS IN TRANSPORTATION  » Use IT-enabled management information systems. All issues are relevant because IT-enabled management information systems help to solve these issues  » Who, what, when, where, why, how of IT deployment. All are relevant because it is necessary to answer who, what, when, where, why and how the IT based management system should be used to solve issues.  » Examples of IT use from industry sectors All issues are relevant because examples of IT use in the transportation industry help to use appropriate IT model to solve these issues.  » Contemporary IT deployment for Global Intermodal...The learning objective is very relevant with the three issues discussed previously. All the three issues need proper Information system in order to solve them. The system should collect data and dete rmine the best appropriate way to resolve these issues. Therefore, a report must be prepared in a written form which should describe the plan, analysis and designs for construction and implementation of business information system. The report should be prepared by considering the above issues. For example, the report must ensure a plan which is useful to develop a system in order to find out the appropriate Energy Resources Transit Model. Employ electronic software to enhance oral and written communication about an information system Information systems have taken important place in the daily operations of any organization (Laudon and Laudon, 2010). The three issues being analyzed and discussed can also be related with this learning objective. To develop a proper information system to solve above issues, a suitable software must be designed which is helpful in oral and written communication for an information system. All the issues must be treated using software so best possible solution can be obtained. It is important to understand the different phases and dimensions associated with the system process in order to come up with proper systematic solutions for the all issues being discussed.

Effects of Marginalizing Social and Environmental Reporting

Effects of Marginalizing Social and Environmental Reporting AIM The aim of this research work is to observe and analyze the implications of marginalizing Social and Environmental reporting and explain how such reporting can be strengthened. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES Problem statement Conventional accounting reports place more emphasis on the financial performance of reporting entities compared to their social and environmental performance. Guidance on social and environmental reporting is currently provided by organizations outside the accounting profession, such as AccountAbility (AA) and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). We are going to discuss the implications of marginalizing social and environmental reporting. We will also shed light on how such reporting can be strengthened. Objectives To shed light on the above we will try to find out the following in our project: Identify what has impelled the need for social and environmental reporting. Identify how and why Social and Environmental reporting is being incorporated by entities into their reporting. Identify the alternative approaches to Social and Environmental reporting. Illustrate the relevance of the guidelines presented by organizations such as AccountAbility and Global Reporting Initiatives on Social and Environmental Reporting. Discuss the nature of voluntary disclosure. State the implications of marginalizing Social and Environmental reporting. Outline how such reporting could be strengthened and be effectively incorporated by reporting entities. RESEARCH METHODS The following methods were used to gather information to compile this project: Literature review was done. Previous working papers and journal articles of different accounting professionals and authors were analyzed in order to attain information that was both relevant and reliable in regards to social and environmental reporting. We also interviewed Mr Napolioni Batimala (Audit Manager à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" PWC) to derive the current information available regarding the issues concerning social and environmental reporting and its current stand. Case studies on three Fiji companies were conducted, in order to determine the situation in Fiji regarding Social and Environmental reporting. A qualitative data analysis of the results was carried out. These were selected based on their extensive environmental (FSC) and social (BAT) impacts. FMF was also considered, as it is the largest, manufacturing company in the country. British American Tobacco Fiji Ltd Fiji Sugar Corporation Flour mills of Fiji Library research was also conducted. Extensive archival research and literary research from respective journals was carried out in order to find extensive views and analysis and to get insight on past research and current thoughts on this topic. Annual reports were analyzed such as: British American Tobacco (2005 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 2007) FSC (2005 à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" 2008) Flour Mills of Fiji (2005-2008) Internet research was conducted as well. Proquest references were sourced to get hold of electronic journals for the issues of journals that USP library does not hold. The access of Internet references provided more up-to-date statistics and secular information that were available in library references. The South Pacific Stock Exchange (SPSE) website was also extensively visited. Corporate websites for these companies were also visited. This project was compiled from discussion generated in our group during meeting in which information obtained by the methods mentioned above were extensively analyzed. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The research topic we undertook reflected the social and economic reality of many countries. It no doubt is an indication of the future of many companies in Fiji itself. This project would not have been possible without the contribution of the following authorities and individuals for providing us with latest information and their views on social and environmental reporting. We are very appreciative to: Mr. Tevita Veituna Our Tutor Mr. Nacanieli Rika The Course Co-coordinator Mr. Napolioni Batimala à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å" Audit Manager (PWC) The organizations and individuals who have contributed information We would like to take this opportunity to thank anyone else who contributed towards the project in any way possible. DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY We, Rieaz, Moreen, Priya and Zafeen hereby declare that the information presented in this project is our original work and correct to date. All the working papers especially used in the literature review or in guidance of this project are clearly referenced in the bibliography with in text referencing given after the various quotations used. RATIONALE With the emergence of many social and environmental problems globally including gender discrimination in the workforce, and excessive use of child labor, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the thinning of the ozone layer and global warming, deforestation, species extinction, waste disposal, energy usage land, air, and water pollution, usage of toxic chemicals, and resource scarcity together with the occurrence of significant environmental disasters such as the Exxon Valdez oil spill and the Bhopal gas leakà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Lodhia, S., 2004: p.111) and the growing power of the media to air these issues worldwide together with the apparent popularity of vocal special interest groups such as Greenpeace and Amnesty International, has resulted in à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“increased community attention towards the identification of approaches to deal more effectively with these concernsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?(Wilmshurst Frost, 2000). This is what the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (2001) has to say, A combination of growing awareness of environmental issues by the general population and increased non-governmental organization (NGO) pressure and activity has led many corporations to reflect on and revise their corporate environmental responsibilities. This heightened anxiety amongst the members of society over the adverse effects of business operations on the physical and social environment has culminated into what is referred to as social and environmental reporting, or synonymously, corporate social responsibility reporting (CSR). Social and environmental reporting as acknowledged by Deegan (2006) is à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“reporting that typically involves the provision, to a range of stakeholders, of information about the performance of an entity with regard to its interaction with its physical and social environment, inclusive of information about an entityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s support of employees, local and overseas communities, safety record and use of natural resources.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? This seminar paper endeavors to report on the main issues concerning social and environmental reporting. Thus, it will seek to address the following issues in relation to social and environmental reporting: how specific accounting theories help us to understand it, its perceived benefits to the reporting entities and society and some alternative approaches to social and environmental reporting such as AccountAbility and Global Reporting Initiative. It is important to note that in Fiji, social and environmental reporting is voluntary in nature. Furthermore, the implications of marginalizing social and environmental reporting is also discussed together with suggestions on how this type of reporting can be strengthened. INTRODUCTION Conventionally, the accounting function of business organizations have been based on the accounting entity, measurement of economic events in financial terms and users of reports who are only concerned with the financial implications of entity on business position and performance. However, there has been emerging a new focus in business reporting in this era where there are now various stakeholders who are demanding information on social and environmental performance of entities to be disclosed as well as financial performance. These demands have increased pressures on entities to use social and environmental issues in the decision-making process. This is particularly vital for the South Pacific Island communities, which have been plagued by a range of environmental problems culminating in sea-level rise and unexpected climatic change in the Islands. These issues are also critical in Fiji and in recent years growing public awareness has resulted in closer scrutiny of the activities of the major industries that may be contributing to environmental degradation. The oil spillages in Suvaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s major industrial area, Walu Bay (Fiji Times, 19 April 1998; Fiji Sun, 2 Feb 2000) and many activities as such have provoked the need for appropriate environmental and social legislation in Fiji. Many companies throughout the world publish reports that discuss their economic, environmental and social performance. This evidently shows that companies today are now embracing sustainability as a corporate goal, rather than simply aiming for profitability. These practices represent moves towards sustainable development by these organizations, which require these entities to unequivocally consider various aspects of their economic, social and environmental performance. ( Deegan 2006 p.327) Such disclosure includes that in-printed form such as- Examples standalone environmental reports, triple bottom line reports, sustainability and annual reports. In addition information that is disseminated on the Internet via corporate websites. (Hooks van Staden 2007 p.197) These social reporting practices are often referred to as corporate social responsibility reporting, or sustainability reporting. The latter covers aspects of both financial sustainability and performance, and social and environmental sustainability.(Deegan 2006 p.329) The moral arguments for greater corporate social responsibility arise from the increases in size, power and spread of multinational companies, as well as an increased awareness of the impact of companies on the environment and local communities.(Adams 2004 pg.731) This increase in awareness has been brought about by the media, the Internet, and the action of non-governmental organizations. These social reporting practices are often referred to as corporate social responsibility reporting, or sustainability reporting. The latter covers aspects of both financial sustainability and performance, and social and environmental sustainability.(Deegan 2006 p.329) The moral arguments for greater corporate social responsibility arise from the increases in size, power and spread of multinational companies, as well as an increased awareness of the impact of companies on the environment and local communities.(Adams 2004 pg.731) This increase in awareness has been brought about by the media, the Internet, and the action of non-governmental organizations. Social and environmental reporting developed as stakeholders began to demand information on other aspects of an organizationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s operations, apart from their financial performance. Stakeholdersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ expectations and needs have extended to the entitiesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ social and environmental performance. These were in the form of widespread interest of stakeholders in terms of demand for social reports of entities, pressure from environmental lobby groups to increase environmental disclosures, and also the increased competitiveness of the business environment where stakeholders today demand more accountability and transparency from organizations, concerning the utilization of their resources. Our project will basically emphasize on social and environmental reporting by business firms. We will also shed light on the organizations outside the accounting profession namely, AccountAbility (AA) and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) who are providing guidance on social and environmental reporting. It also incorporates the implications of marginalizing social and environmental reporting and how such reporting can be strengthened and effectively be incorporated by reporting entities. The various theories relating to voluntary disclosure are looked at, such as the legitimacy theory, stakeholder theory and institutional theory etc. How the information is reported and what implications it might have on the users of social and environmental information, in helping make decisions is also discussed. An analysis on some Fiji companies has also been undertaken to determine the extent of environmental and social reporting. However, social and environmental reporting in Fiji, is voluntary in nature to this day. THEORETICAL UNDERPINNINGS The different theoretical perspectives need not be seen as competitors for explanation but as sources of interpretation of different factors at different levels of resolution. In this sense, legitimacy theory and stakeholder theory enrich, rather than compete for, our understandings of corporate social disclosure practices. (Gray, Kouhy and Lavers 1995 ) Specific accounting theories help us to understand social and environmental reporting, by seeking to explain why many organizations publicly release information about their social and environmental performance, even with the general lack of regulation in this area. That is, it helps us understand what motivates entities to release this information voluntarily. LEGITIMACY THEORY According to Lindblom, legitimacy is à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“a condition or status which exists when an entitys value system is congruent with the value system of the larger social system of which the entity is a part. When a disparity, actual or potential, exists between the two value systems, there is a threat to the entitys legitimacy.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?[1] This theory asserts that organizations continually seek to ensure that they are perceived as operating within the bounds and norms of their respective societies (which change over time), that is, they attempt to ensure that their activities are perceived by outside parties as being legitimate. Information disclosure is therefore vital to establishing corporate legitimacy.(Deegan 2006 pg.275) Under Legitimacy Theory, an entity would undertake certain social activities (and provide an account of this), if management recognizes that the particular activities were expected by the society in which it operates. It is part of their social contract, or as is often stated by companies, part of their license to operate. If an entity fails to undertake these activities that are expected by the community, it would be identified as breaching its social contract. This will result in the entity no longer being considered legitimate. Therefore this will have an effect on the support the entity receives from the society, and consequently its survival. Hence, success for an entity under this theory is impendent on it fulfilling its social contract. Lindblom, 1994 and Patten, 2000 state that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“according to legitimacy theory, social disclosure is a means to deal with the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s exposure to political and social pressuresà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (as cited in Freedman Jaggi 2005). Those companies without much regard to environmental and social performance might find it faced with sanctions or explicit regulations imposed on them. In addition, they may also find it very difficult to obtain resources and finance or find the support of the community in which it works in the form of employee dissatisfaction. Legitimacy theory assumes that society will allow an organization to continue operations up until the firm meets the societyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s expectation. And the firm generally meets expectations to avoid further government regulations on operations or bad effects on reputation. But if there are some expectations that the management feels are unreasonable, they may try to change stakeholder expectations or try to justify their actions. Legitimacy theory has been examined in numerous empirical studies with the results being fairly consistent in confirming the theory. For example the Deegan and Gordon (1996) study indicated among other findings, that there was a positive correlation between the environmental sensitivity of the industry to which the corporation belonged and the level of corporate environment disclosure. In addition, another study by Deegan, Rankin and Vought (2000) found that companies did appear to change their disclosure policies around the time of major company and industry related incidents. That is, social disclosure policies in the annual reports of companies tended to change when major social incidents or disasters occurred in the industry. However, legitimacy is not only achieved by the actual conduct of the organization. Legitimacy is gained as long as the society perceives that the firm is acting responsibly. But sometimes, the societyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s perceptions are quite misplaced as information disclosures, which are vital to establishing legitimacy do not give an accurate account of the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s activities. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“An organization may diverge dramatically from societal norms yet retain legitimacy because the divergence goes unnoticed.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?(Suchman, 1995, p. 574) So if society does not know that a firm is not acting ethically, then legitimacy cannot be threatened. Lindblom describes 4 strategies of legitimization that an organization can adopt. The firm may seek to: educate and inform its à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"relevant publicsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ about actual changes in the organisationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s performance and activities. change the perceptions of the relevant public without having to change the organisationà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s actual behaviour manipulate perception by deflecting attention from the issue of concern to other related issues through an appeal to, for example, emotive symbols change external expectations of its performance Hence, we can conclude from the perspective of this theory that, social and environmental reporting may be just a tool that entities use to legitimize or justify their operations. Particularly in the case of entities in industries which have extensive environmental and social impacts. For example, petroleum, oil or gas companies, tobacco producers, pharmaceutical companies, and manufacturing companies. STAKEHOLDER THEORY Stakeholder theory is concerned with how management addresses the various issues associated with relationships with stakeholders. In other words, it is how an organization manages its stakeholders. According to Freeman (1984), traditionally, the firms used the inputs of investors, suppliers and employees to convert inputs into usable outputs which customers use and return to the firm some capital benefit. By this, firms only address the needs and desires of those four parties which are investors, suppliers, employees and customers. Stakeholder theory acknowledges that there are other parties involved, including governmental bodies, political groups, trade associations, trade unions, communities, and associated corporations. This view of the firm is applied to identify the specific stakeholders of a corporation, that is, the normative theory of stakeholder identifies as well as examines the conditions under which these parties should be treated as stakeholders, the descriptive theory of stakeholder. The two make up the modern treatment of Stakeholder Theory. It attempts to describe, prescribe, and derive alternatives for corporate governance that include and balance a multitude of interests. In the ruling paradigm of corporate governance, those who invest their capital into any type of business, and those who risk losing their investment in parts or in total, have a right and a responsibility to govern the business they have invested into. Capital investors or principals either govern the business themselves, or they do so with support of agents or managers who they may appoint. One way to sum up the use of the stakeholder concept in the management literature and stakeholder theories is by reference to the framework suggested by Donaldson and Preston (22). It can be used in a number of ways, they identify a descriptive, and an instrumental and a normative aspect of stakeholder theory that can help understand and classify the different facets of stakeholder theory. They argue that: Stakeholder theory is descriptive as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“it describes the corporation as a constellation of cooperative and competitive interests possessing intrinsic valueà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (p.66). This is also known as the positive approach. Stakeholder theory is instrumental since à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“it establishes a framework for examining the connections, if any, between the practice of stakeholder management and the achievement of a variety of corporate performance goalsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? Lastly, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the fundamental basisà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? of stakeholder theory is normative and involves acceptance of the following ideas: à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“stakeholders are persons or groups with legitimate interests in procedural and /or substantive aspects of corporate activityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? and à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the interests of all stakeholders are of intrinsic valueà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? The difference between the three uses of stakeholder theory is explained by the fact that they imply different types of claims and include different forms of reasoning for their justification. Positive (or descriptive) uses of stakeholder theory make claims to truth and are justified through constative discourses, strategic (or instrumental) uses make claims of effectiveness and employ pragmatic discourses, and normative uses of stakeholder theory can entail different types of claims (rightness, goodness) and be justified through different types of discourses (moral, ethical). However, this research report is limited to explain that the stakeholder theory comprises of an ethical/moral or normative branch also known as the prescriptive branch and a positive or managerial branch. The ethical or normative branch of the stakeholder theory basically deals with fairness, that is, to treat all stakeholders the same. While the positive or managerial approach focus more on the ability of the stakeholders to influence or be influenced by a company. It is primarily a theory of the private-sector firm although the insights can be applied in parts to public sector settings. This is due to the circumstance that public management responsibilities are similar to private sector management tasks not only formally but also concerning the rising network nature of organizations in both spheres. It gives a more refined solution by referring to particular groups within society, that is, stakeholder groups while the Legitimacy theory discusses the expectations of society in general. Stakeholder theory recognises that as different stakeholder groups will have different opinions about how an organization should carry out its operations, there will be a variety of social contracts à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"negotiatedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ with different stakeholder groups, instead of one contract with society in general. Stakeholder Theory (Normative/Ethical Perspective): The ethical or normative branch of Stakeholder theory argues that all stakeholders have the right to be treated fairly by an organization, regardless of the resources that they individually control or how economically powerful they are. Therefore organizations should consider the rights of all parties affected by the operation of the entity. The definition of stakeholders in this case would include à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s objectivesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? (Freeman 1984). Stakeholder Theory (Positive/Managerial Perspective): The managerial or positive branch of stakeholder theory predicts that management is more likely to focus on meeting the expectations of powerful stakeholders. These are those that have the greatest potential to influence the firmà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s ability to generate profits, that is have the most economic power and influence over the firm. Under this perspective, management would be expected to undertake those economic, social and environmental activities expected by the powerful stakeholders, and also provide an account of these activities to these stakeholders. (Deegan 2006 p.298) Defining Stakeholders A stakeholder in an organization is by definition any identifiable group or individual who can affect or is affected by the achievement of the organizations objective (Freeman, 1984: 25). As a broad definition this includes many individuals or organizations for instance, governments, shareholders, creditors, employees and their families, local charities, local communities, media and so forth. It also allows the inclusion of groups such as terrorists and competitors (Phillips, 1997). For clarity this dilemma can partly be resolved by narrowing the definition in a meaningful way, that is, to divide the stakeholders into primary and secondary stakeholders. By following Clarksons argument (Clarkson, 1994), Mitchell et al. claimed that the use of risk as a second defining property for the stake in an organization helps to narrow down the stakeholder field to those with legitimate claims, despite the legitimacy of their relationship to the firm or their power to influence the firm. (Mitchell et al., 1997, 857). Therefore, a primary stakeholder was identified as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"one whose continuing participation to the corporation is vital as a going concernà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. While secondary stakeholders were identified to be à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‹Å"those who affect or influence, or are affected or influenced by the corporation but they are not engaged in transactions with the corporation and are not crucial for its survivalà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢. According to Clarkson, primary stakeholders must primarily be considered by management, as they are essential for the survival of a company. Also, in order for the company to succeed in the long run, it must primarily be administered for the benefit of all stakeholders. This definition may be related to the managerial branch of the stakeholder theory that will be discussed later. However, with the focus on primary stakeholders; it is challenged by the ethical branch of the stakeholder theory that all stakeholders have a right to be considered by management. Critiques of Stakeholder Theory There have been a variety of critiques of stakeholder theory from many viewpoints. Weiss (1995) discards the descriptive and instrumental usage of stakeholder theory and comes to a conclusion that the normative use à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“probably might be too limited and has a too weak foundation to be considered as either useful or valid.à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? Further critiques suggest that business interests are vital in both the identification of stakeholders and prioritizing their demands (Thomas, 1999; Banerjee, 2000). The stakeholdersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ needs and demands may be limited particularly where stakeholders groups have very different social, cultural and political agenda. A great deal of critique has been towards the level of engagement with stakeholders that is, little consultation instead of genuine dialogue and the exchange of ideas. That is, the stakeholderà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s needs are not taken seriously. INSTITUTIONAL THEORY Institutional Theory is a relatively new perspective that assumes that managers of an organization will develop or adopt new practices (such as social and environmental reporting) as a result of a variety of institutional pressures. For example, managers may be concerned that if they do not keep up with other entities in developing new practices, they will risk disapproval from some of their economically powerful stakeholders. SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY According to Godfrey, Hodgson and Holmes (2003), social contract has been described as à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“the interaction between individuals or organizations within society through implicit or explicit boundaries of behaviorà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬?, where implicit boundaries are moral obligations and explicit boundaries are regulatory requirements. Therefore, the social contract explains the boundaries of acceptable interaction between participants in a society. The social contract is sometimes used to explain the behaviour of firms where productive organizations are à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“subject to moral evaluations which transcend the boundaries of the political systems that contain them. The underlying function of all such organizations from the standpoint of society is to enhance social welfare through satisfying consumer and worker interests, while at the same time remaining within the bounds of justice. When they fail to live up to these expectations they are deserving of moral criticismsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? Thus, because of a businessà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ social contract with stakeholders within a community, it is expected to perform only those actions which are desirable and beneficial to the whole society, rather than having to the investors only. This will give the firm acceptance from the society. Hence, management responds positively to environmental and social issues, because it has it has moral obligations to the society and failure to exercise care while carrying out their activities i.e. doing misdeeds towards the community will result in introduction of regulatory requirements to control management performance on environment and employee, for example. POSITIVE ACCOUNTING THEORY: Positive Accounting Theory predicts that all people are driven by self-interest. As such, particular social and environmental reporting activities, and their related disclosure, would only take place if they had positive wealth implications for the management involved. Therefore motives for social and environmental reporting can be a result of a reporting entityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s desire to maximize financial returns for shareholders and (or) managers by using social and environmental reporting as a tool to maintain and enhance the support of economically powerful stakeholders. On the other hand, it may also be a result of an entityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s desire to discharge duties of accountability for the social and environmental impact the organization (potentially) has on a wide range of stakeholders. LITERATURE REVIEW Historical Development: Non-financial disclosure existed in a variety of forms in corporate reports in periods long before the 1990à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s.Studies have found that such voluntary disclosure have existed for a number of decades. For example, Unerman (2000a,b) found evidence of social disclosures in annual reports of the Anglo-Dutch oil company Shell since 1897,with these disclosures becoming more prevalent from the 1950s.Adams te (1998) analysed UK banks and retailers from 1935,Tinker mark (1987,1988) and Neimark (1992) analysed social-type disclosures in the annual reports of the US company General Motors from 1916.Studies by Campbell (2000) and others have examined social and environmental disclosures in companies from the 1960s and 1970s. Thus, the development of social and environmental reporting in the 1990s was a development of non-financial reporting practice rather than a completely new phenomenon. (Deegan 2006 p.331). A review on à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“ Social responsibility and impact on societyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? by Mohamed Zairi (2000) discusses the emerging commitment to address both environment and societal concerns, an area which is growing in terms of significance and proven to impact on business performances, reputation and corporate image. The observation made was that the world wide organizations have staged conferences to debate the relevance of social and environmental reporting on corporations and stakeholders. Also companies have started to make real headway in this area of reporting by proposing a framework that deals with social and environmental reporting and disclosing issues that concerns social and environmental reporting. According to Trevor Wilmshurst and Geoffrey Frost (2000) , they tried to analyze the link between the importances of, as stated by reporters of specific factors in the decision to disclose environmental information and actual reporting practices. They used Legitimacy theory as an explanatory theory of environmental disclosure. The legitimacy t

The Manifestation Of Sin :: essays research papers

The Scarlet Letter is a book of much symbolism. One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Pearl, the daughter of Hester Prynne. Throughout the story Pearl develops into a prominent symbol of the "A". In this essay the example of symbolism Pearl comes to represent will be explained.In the Scarlet Letter, Hester, for her sins, received a scarlet letter, "A" which she had to wear upon her chest for the rest of her life in Boston. This was the Puritan way of punishing her for her then criminal action of adultery. She wondered the streets to be given sour looks from all. This eventually caused so much mental and physical anguish that she eventually questioned why she should live if it weren't for her Pearl. Pearl was a bundle of life sent from god to remind her of her wrong doing each and every moment and as a walking sermon to preach against sin for others.Hester's wasted life the ultimate price that Hester paid for Pearl. With Pearl, Hester's life was almost never filled with joy, but instead a constant reminder of the harsh word adultery. Pearl would also make her own "A" to wear, and sometimes she played games wither her mother's trying to hit it with rocks. When Hester would go into the town with Pearl, the other children would make fun of her and Pearl and would yell and throw dirt at them. So in this case, Pearl symbolized the decimation of Hester's life and mental state. Although Hester had so much trouble with Pearl, she still felt that Pearl was her ultimate treasure. Pearl was really the only thing that Hester had in life. Surely if Pearl wasn't in Hester's life, Hester would have taken her own life. Once and a while, Pearl would bring joy to Hester's life, and that helped her to bare the guilt, lonesomeness, and isolation that became the main theme of her life. Pearl could be compared to weather, sometimes good, sometimes bad, but always changing. It was Pearl's pounding storms that gave Hester so much grief. Pearl's exuberant personality caused Puritans to believe she was a child of witchcraft and a mischievous little elf. But basically she represented everything that was the exact opposite of Puritan belief. Pearl's taunting and malice disposition sometimes even caused Hester to make outbursts like "Thou art not my child! Thou art no Pearl of mine!" Some would believe the "A" stood for anti-puritan for her wild soul could never be confined by the rules of the conservative Puritan Society.

Services Oriented Architecture Is the Future

Services Oriented Architecture is the Future The current buzz word in the Information Technology world is Service-oriented Architecture, also known as SO. Businesses are increasingly becoming interested in implementing SO but are reluctant to adopt what might appear to be a silver bullet due to the complexities involved in this hot new business model. Granted, SO is a new complex approach to building IT systems but it takes advantage of the companies existing assets making it an attractive option that will improve their current software architecture.SO has many benefits for businesses and if the inundation is implemented properly it represents huge cost savings in the software life cycle. Software architects should understand the concepts of SO along with the recommended best practices and standards for implementing a well structured architecture model to determine if SO is the right solution for their business. â€Å"A thoughtful, organized approach to enterprise SO enables compani es to implement, adapt and reuse business processes with unprecedented speed and ease.To enjoy the opportunities that enterprise SO delivers, companies need an open, flexible technology platform to integrate best practices and third-party solutions. In addition, they need business-focused, reusable enterprise services. When companies can design services that are reusable across the enterprise, as well as in different regional organizations and across departmental lines, they achieve an increased efficiency and productivity that in turn results in the ability to rapidly innovate with differentiating services to drive additional business success. (SAP accelerates the path to SO for customers, 2008) Many solutions are available to companies that handle complex network services which use well known standards and technologies hat have been working in the business for a long time so business leaders may discount SO as a new fad without understanding exactly what SO really is. Taking time to learn about this new method of doing business is strongly advised to the architects responsible for companies IT infrastructure so they can make an informed decision regarding how they will do business in the future and if SO would be a good option for them.Service-oriented Architecture is an infrastructure that hosts web services to support software requirements. Legacy applications and services are dad available as a web service that can be accessed using a common application interface. These service oriented concepts can be applied to business, software and other types of legacy systems. SO uses an easy to implement approach to developing IT systems that enables application interoperability and reuse of IT assets. As such, it enables business to offer services with existing applications that are supported by new technology rather than constrained by old legacy technology.SO is the framework that enables a business to change, adapt, partner, and reinvent it itself easily by dec oupling systems making them independent of their peer reverie. Many businesses have an infrastructure that consists of various applications offering services that run on a wide variety of technology which don't all work together. Global enterprises tend to suffer the most from this blend of various platforms such as UNIX, Linux, Windows, or mainframe systems that use different languages like . NET, JOKE, Java, C/C++, or COBOL..IT managers are concerned about the cost and time needed to remodel these services onto a common platform is to much and are hesitant to introduce a new business model that will require restructuring the foundation architecture. Fortunately with SO each application doesn't have to change the current platform they are working on, rather they would create Web Services that are allowed access to the current systems and then publish the web service so other applications can consume the service using a common interface. Web services provide a standard meaner of int erpretation between different software applications, running on a variety of platforms and/or frameworks. A Web service is a software system designed to support interoperable machine-to- machine interaction over a network. It has an interface described in a machine- resalable format (specifically WSDL). Other systems interact with the Web service in a manner prescribed by its description using SOAP messages, typically conveyed by using HTTP with an XML serialization in conjunction with other Web-related standards. (Zane & Abaca, 2006) In a SO implementation, Web Services act like building blocks where each block is a service that is linked to a business task, business object, or workflow. Because all of the building blocks fit together, you can assemble and reassemble them on the fly. Managing data across disparate systems is a constant challenge for all systems but SO tends to highlight the robbers related to duplicated or undefined data that isn't standardized, making data mapping very difficult and time consuming.In order to have a reliable infrastructure model, resources must be dedicated to the task of defining, standardizing, and maintaining the data that is used in all of the services that are offered. SO uses a standard business object model to easily define the data for services called a Business Object Document (SOD). A BODY is a business document that is exchanged between software components and provides a common messaging architecture. It provides the document structure and naming standards that are used o define and map meta-data to the XML documents which ensures both the publisher and subscriber can understand the content.By understanding the concepts behind SO and how web services and data management are used software architects are able to analyze their current systems and make an informed decision on the value SO would have for the business. Many benefits exist to companies that implement a well planned Service-oriented Infrastructure. Intero perability can be found throughout the enterprise, multiple user groups, multiple business processes, multiple application styles, and multiple delivery channels with the use of SO. Flexibility is greatly increased to adapt to business operation changes increasing the time to implement new services.Web Services reuse low-level components as well as high-level business services decreasing the cost of system management. Integrating disparate systems with a solution that is platform independent reduces the need to restructure the current infrastructure while still allowing the systems to work together in harmony. Service-oriented Architecture's good reputation in the information technology industry is growing at a rapid rate making it the software architects best choice when faced with the task of implementing business integration technology and is highly recommended for companies that need to streamline their business workflow.

versailles essays

versailles essays The Treaty of Versailles, which was a peace treaty that called for the end of World War 1(between Germany and the Allies), was defeated in the Senate by an unknown alliance of two forces. The two forces were President Wilsons all or nothing attitude and the strong opponents of the Treaty in the Senate. William Borah (Sen, Idaho), one of the irreconcilables, brings out a clear weakness in the Covenant of the League of Nations in his speech to the Senate. The weakness is that will any country really feel comfortable, or approve of, another countrys government dealing with their domestic affairs and concerns, especially if they have an army to support whatever they decide. He also brings up a point that no one would approve of a tribunal, with 41 other nations in it, to settle a problem that might arise between members of the nation because what one nation sees a vital, another nation may see as wasteful, which might just lead to another World War. The League as he describes it is contradictorial in all that it is to accomplish (force to destroy force, conflict to prevent conflict, militarism to destroy militarism, war to prevent war) and it cant work like that because it has no authority to back up its own judgment. This goes against Wilsons idea of the League because he helped create it and it is a very important and big step to him in creating a worldwide government (Doc A) The Treaty as portrayed in The New Republic is useless, which is a strong reason it shouldnt be passed. It wasnt useless in the sense that it would officially end the war, but in a sense that it would not moralize nationalism. The moralization of nationalism could be achieved by ending the separation of classes and ambitions that could only be enjoyed by some, not all, people in the country. According to the journalist the Treaty d...

break up of USSR essays

break up of USSR essays The Soviet totalitarian regime held the many nations of the USSR together for almost three quarters of a century; the disintegration of this political system brought with it economic and political instability as well as civil wars in the separated states. Why did the collapse of the communist regime in the Soviet Union have such a negative impact? The states struggled to coordinate market mechanisms and private ownerships into their economies. Rebellions and radical reform leaders emerged and years of ethnic tensions and feelings of frustrated nationalism erupted in this new, open society that Gorbachev created. The anti-Soviet revolution in 1991 shattered the authoritarian grasp of the Soviet Union ¡s communist party. As the Russian, Ukrainian and Belorussian leaders declared on Dec. 8th 1991  ¡The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics  ¡K is ceasing its existence ¡ (Mandelbaum 355). Mikhail Gorbachev ascended to power in 1985, bringing with him new ideas for radical changes in a struggling nation. Gorbachev demanded reforms however he did not anticipate the consequences. Society ¡s dissatisfaction, dissolutionment and despair with the way communism operated resulted in change (Resnick 7). Gorbachev ¡s reforms included glasnost (openness), democratization, and perestroika (economic restructuring). Glasnost ended information restrictions and permitted public discussion about the past and present. Citizens who had been too terrified to speak broke their silence. This  ¡openness ¡ had a revolutionary impact on the Soviet Union for its citizens had lived  ¡under a regime that felt no hesitation in executing innocent  ¡K that best hope of surviving lay in  ¡K abandoning any thought of independent public activity  ¡K and withdrawing into one ¡s private world ¡ (Mandelbaum 6). Gorbachev recommended introducing a market economy that included privatization and democratic freedom. His economic perestroika restru...

Impact of Corporate Governance in Curtailing Financial Risks in Dissertation

Impact of Corporate Governance in Curtailing Financial Risks in Organizations in the United Kingdom - Dissertation Example set of rules and regulations affecting the political, social and economic environment of a nation and the research aim at analysing the same in an analytical manner. In order to achieve above mentioned aims, the research focuses on objectives including: To analyse the impact and influence of corporate governance on the social, political and economic environment of the United Kingdom To investigate the reasons of financial risks and role of corporate governance in curtailing it To evaluate the contribution of corporate governance in offering transparency and systematic approach to deal with the social and business environment 1.3 Research Purpose The major purpose of the research is to identify the role of corporate governance in curtailing financial risks in financial institutions in the United Kingdom along with assessing its influence over the business and social environment. This would further help in understanding and analysing the loopholes pertaining to corporate governance. 1. 4 Research Gap The researcher accepts the fact that many researchers have followed single and multi cue approach for this particular subject but very few have used conjoint analysis approach that would be used to assess the importance of corporate governance in curtailing financial risks. It would further help in analysing its role in context to Saudi Arabia in the near future Chapter 2: Literature Review 2.1 Introduction The chapter starts with introducing the concept of Corporate Governance along with highlighting its role in curtailing financial risks in the financial institutions. It also highlights reasons behind a number of financial risks along with the need of introducing effective corporate governance measures. 2.2 Corporate Governance Clarke and Thomas (2004) defined corporate... Center of discussion in this paper is corporate governance as a set of processes and policies affecting the way an organisation is directed, controlled and administered in the political, social and business environment. The accountability of individuals and organizations in the society is assessed through corporate governance in an effective and efficient manner. Until very recently, the financial services sector in the United Kingdom has been managed and regulated in a unique self regulated environment where interested bodies stood up when problems arose and offered solutions. This system has several critics but the combination of efficient financial services organizations and cooperative government controlled and administered the industry in an exemplary manner. However, with a number of scandals, the state took the regulatory control of the area in the year 1997 offering very little scope to the self regulated process. It needs to be understood that corporate governance must have played a unique role in offering freedom to independent and government bodies in regulating and administering the industry. The state took the control because of a series of scandals lacking corporate governance. As per Stevenson’s report published in The Independent, one of the most unfortunate financial scandals include the Lloyd of London; the oldest and most trusted financial institution in the United Kingdom. The bank gambled its fortune along with the fortunes of few hundred investors and went under huge debts.

Business analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

Business analysis - Essay Example Retail is all about selling goods from businesses or individuals to the end user. In this industry retailers are often considered to be a part of the integrated supply chain. Large quantities or products are purchased by retailers from respective manufacturers. These purchasing process are either done through a wholesaler or directly from the producer and are then passed on to the end users in considerable small quantities. There are various mechanisms through which retailing can be done either in the form of fixed stores or markets or by delivery or door to door selling. The retail industry in the present scenario is considered to be the most competitive industry. As the consumer market demand is increasing there are many new players emerging in this segment which is making the competition fierce. It can be stated that customers are at a profitable end in terms of the scenario of retail industry with multiple players operating to deliver best services and goods at competitive prices . In context of global retail industry there are firms performing their operations through online websites, home delivery and even increasing convenience of users by electronic payment. Retailing is usually associated with providing services to a wide base of customers and encompassing wide range of products. This may include clothing to grocery or even any other household items. However the type of products which are included in a retail store are food products such as those which require facilities of a cold storage, durable goods or hard goods such as appliances, automobiles, sporting goods, electronics, furniture, etc., consumables or soft goods such as clothing, footwear, medicines, other fabrics, cosmetics and stationary, and the last type of product is arts. The importance of selecting a particular industry in this study is that it would help to identify the probable challenges which are affecting the industry. On the

Homosexuals in the Military Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Homosexuals in the Military - Term Paper Example These freedoms and rights are entitled to all American citizens, including homosexuals. However, behind the displayed screen of an apparently free and equal society, homosexuals cannot openly exercise some of the rights that other American citizens are allowed to. Military service is the example discussed here. Homosexuals often have two parallel lives or sides to them. In one they live openly as they please, associating themselves with whomever they please, dressing the way they want, speaking the way they want to speak and plainly living as they please just like everyone else in society. In the other, they must hide their real selves and conform to the masses in order to enjoy the rights and privileges of the average citizen or, more disturbingly, to avoid discrimination and overt hostility from others. It is the general state of things that the rights of a person end where the rights of another begin. As such, just as the right of free speech is subject to the limitation of not defaming or slandering others, the right of homosexuals to simply be their true selves and embrace their sexuality seems to be subject to the right of the masses to be shielded from behavioral aspects that they subjectively feel are immoral or unnatural. As such there are many instances where homosexuals who openl y display and even advertise their sexuality in the streets through the use of banners and advertisements are seen as offensive and many people act hostile against this, leading to discrimination. This same situation is the problem homosexuals experience while serving in the military.

Japan Westernization Paper Essay Example for Free

Japan Westernization Paper Essay Prompt: Discuss possible reasons why Japan was the only non-western state to nationalize and win recognition as an equal and how it managed to accomplish this in a mere half century. Thesis: Being aware of recent Western invasions in China, Japan had recognized the need to transform their institutions and its society, therefore, Japan embraced nationalism. By 1649, Japan had shut down contact with the European world with the exception of a Dutch outpost on Deshima Island in Nagaski harbor (this outpost however, was only allowed to receive one ship all year). The Japanese also allowed the Chinese to trade at Nagasaki (only under severe restrictions) and Korea could trade through the islands of Tusushima. Other than this however, Japan was isolated. In 1853, the U.S sent Commodore Matthew Perry (with 3 steam frigates) to force Japan into opening its ports to trade. Japan had lacked the technology to fight against the U.S and the European powers that soon followed. Slowly (while being under pressure however), Japan opened more ports granted extraterritorial rights and where able to determine Japan’s tariff polices. Like China, Japan seemed to be getting controlled by the European powers. However, young, vigorous leaders took control of the government of Japan forcing a dramatic reconstruction of the nations polices, administration, class structure, economy, technology and culture. These leaders tended to be young samurai warriors in the han (feudal estates) of Choshu and Satsuma. The samurai were able to employ some of the technological information introduced by the Dutch from their station in Nagasaki harbor (the shogunate had established an office for translating Dutch material in 1811) and by 1840, some of the Japanese were already casting Western guns and artillery. A new leader, Sakuma Zozan (one of the advocates of adopting Western military methods) believed that opening the country was necessary and beneficial. However, not everyone had agreed. In 1860 a group of samurai (from the conservative han of Mito) argued a different opinion and eventually, Mito loyalists assassinated Sakuma. In 1868, forces of Choshu and Satusma (along with several more remote hans) took control of the emperor’s palace in Kyoto and declared the end of shogunate. The emperor was put back into imperial power.

Effects Of Barapukuria Coal Mining On Environment Environmental Sciences Essay

Effects Of Barapukuria Coal Mining On Environment Environmental Sciences Essay The over increasing gap between supply of and energy is problem for many countries around the world. Governments are forced to examine different sources of energy in an attempt to create secure energy supply. The results of these examinations cover a large range of energy sources, not only traditional ones such as oil and gas, also nuclear-power and renewable resources. In addition governments are looking at increasing energy efficiency Because of the pressing need; there has also been a strategic shift in some countries back to using traditional fossil fuels. This has become more prevalent and widespread in developing countries where coal is the most dominant of traditional options used. There are two key reasons for this choice: first, there is abundant supply of coal; it is one of the cheapest ways to create electricity (Jaccard, 2005). The resurgence coal as an energy source may come as a shock to some because of environmental impacts it has had in the past .However, some countries that have remained dependent on coal for energy, such as the United States, have mitigated the environmental impacts with new technologies stringent regulation. The economic development of the country requires different types of fuels and energy. Because of deforestation, supply of traditional fuels are decreasing and becoming expensive day by day. Significant portion of export earning is being used for import of petroleum products and coal (Hamilton 2005). The key to creating reliable sources of energy is diversification. Since there are significant reserves of coal located in the northwest region of the country, and a belief within industry that further exploration may lead to the discovery of additional coal fields, this is a source of energy to consider. However turning to coal brings important concerns of policy makers, particularly about how to balance coal development with environmental concerns. The total national reserves of coal in 5 coal fields are estimated about 2.9 billion metric tons. Recovery rate of coal from reserves depends on the availability of technology and method of mining. Modern mining technology can ensure up to 85% recovery of coal from different reserves (Hamilton, 2005). Coal is a very important but dirty fossil fuel. Coal mining has severe environmental, ecological, human-health consequences. If not done properly, coal mining has potential to damage landscape, soils, surface water, groundwater, air during all phases of exploration and use. Coal mining has some unavoidable negative impacts on humans and the environment. In its review of the mining industry of Bangladesh, the U.S. Geological Survey states that the country has small reserves of coal, natural gas, and petroleum. In May 2011, the countrys overall coal production was around 3,000 tons a day, from the lone operational state-owned Barapukuria coal mine in Dinajpur. There are five coal field discovered such as Khalashpeer, Rangpur (1995) coal field depth at 257-483 meter which is about 12 Km2 in area and proven reserve coal is 143 (GSB), 685 (Hosaf) in million tones. Phulbari, Dinajpur (1997) coal field which is about30 Km2 in area and depth at 150-240 meter and reserve coal is 572 million t ones. Jamal gong, Jaipurhat (1965) coal field which is about 16 Km2 in area and depth at 900-1000 meter and proven reserve coal is about 1050 million tones .Dighirpar, Dinajpur (1995) coal field is at 327 meter depth and area not yet to known and reserve coal is about 200 (partly evaluated) million tones. The major findings were as under about Barapukuria, Dinajpur Coal Field Reserve of coal 390 Million tones, Depth of coal is 118-509 meter, Nos. of coal layer is 6, Average thickness of coal seam is 36 m, Composition of coal: ash 12.4%, Sulphur 0.53%, Moisture 10%, Rank of coal is Bituminous (high volatile), Calorific value of coal is 25.68 MJ/KG (11040 BTU/lb), Yearly Production is 1 million tones, Coal extraction method is Multi-Slice Long wall, During development of Barapukuria Coal Mine as well as load testing /trial run , coal as obtained from the mine, on the chemical analysis, confirmed composition of coal, Rank of coal and Calorific value of coal as predicted (Petrobangla, G ovt. Bangladesh, 2005). The state-owned company, Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation, which is commonly known as Petrobangla, is involved in oil and gas exploration, production, and distribution. It is also involved in the exploration for and production of such minerals as coal, granite, and limestone for the manufacture of cement. Nearly half the Bangladeshi population is food insecure, and nearly one quarter severely food insecure. Local food production should be strengthened, not sacrificed for industrial projects, said the Special Rapporteur on the right to food, Olivier De Schutter. The land under threat is located in Bangladeshs most fertile agricultural region where production of staple crops such as rice and wheat allows subsistence farmers to feed their families, and supports the entire countrys food needs. In addition to the destruction of agricultural land, waterways supporting over 1,000 fisheries and nearly 50,000 fruit trees may be destroyed. The water table may be lowered by 15-25 met ers over the life span of the mine. Access to safe drinking water for some 220,000 people is at stake, stated Catarina de Albuquerque, the Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation. The mine would cause noise and dust pollution through dynamite explosion. Coal dust will pollute the air. Water will be polluted from washing the coal, risking pollution of surrounding water bodies. Bangladesh has networks of hundreds of small rivers, meaning that water pollution in one area can spread over a large area (Petrobangla, Govt. Bangladesh, 2005). To prevent the mine from flooding, huge pumps would run 24 hours a day for the 30 years of the mining project, pumping up to 800 million liters of water a day out of the mine. Groundwater in an area covering about 500 square kilometers would be lowered. Wells would no longer provide enough water for farmers. Asia Energys solution is to distribute the water pumped out to farmers. Once the mining is finished, Asia Energy plans to create a huge lake, providing fresh water, fisheries and recreation, according to the company. But after 30 years of digging, the water will be toxic. As the civilization has advanced tremendously over the last century, the alternative source of power generation came in effect like nuclear power, which certainly replaced coal in the west. Assessing the coalmine and its versatile impact over the industrial revolution time, the researcher, end of the 20th century revealed that there is huge risk of health, potential air pollution, noticeable change in landscape, political and social problem, overall sustainability of the environment could get seriously affected by coal mine operation. Therefore, it is obvious that an assessment of the local environment should go prior and along the project of Barapukuria before any unexpected consequence over whelms this project. Energy is vital element of our daily lives, no matter where one lives (Petrobangla, Govt. Bangladesh, 2005). Regionally, the Barapukuria coal basin is located in the Dinajpur Shield of Bangladesh and is surrounded by the Himalayan Fore deep to the north, the Shillong Shield/Platform to the east, and the Indian Peninsular Shield to the west. The geologic and structural conditions of the basin were illustrated in details by Islam and Hayashi (Khan, 1991; Khan and Chouhan, 1996; Alam et al., 2003; Islam and Hayashi, 2008a; Islam et al., 2009). Structurally, the Barapukuria basin is a long, narrow, and shallow Permo Carboniferous rift basin. The basin trends approximately north-south for over 5 km, ranges from 2 to 3 km wide, and is over 550 m deep. Below a prominent unconformity, covered by an unstructured Pleistocene through Tertiary classic sequence, steeply dipping normal faults bound tilted half graven fault blocks. The northern, western, and southern boundaries of the basin are also truncated by several small-scale normal boundary faults. The faults and igneous dyke decrease the cohesion and friction angle and reduce the shear strength through fault plane and filling materials. The overall structures of the Barapukuria Basin imply a tectonically active highly disturbed zone (Wardell Armstrong, 1991; Bakr et al., 1996; Islam, 2005; Islam and Hayashi, 2008a; Islam et al., 2009). The Barapukuria half-graven basin is assumed to be related to its tectonic origin. The basin area is very close (about 200 km) to the convergence boundary of the Indian and Eurasian plates. As a consequence, the far field tectonic stress field is highly significant to the structure of this basin. A 5 km long Eastern Boundary Fault of the Barapukuria basin is the best structural evidence for recent tectonic activity. However, the basin geometry and its stress field are directly related to the tectonic displacement gradient. Usually, the Barapukuria type intracrationic half graben basin in a convergent regime is developed due to local crustal weakening, where archeology strongly affects the dynamics of basin formation (Buck, 1991; Cloetingh et al., 1995). In a gross sense, for the Barapukuria type half graben basin, displacement is greatest at the center of the fault and decreases to zero at the fault tips. The displacement of an initially horizontal surface that intersects the fault is greatest at the fault itself and decreases with distance away from the fault . This produces footwall uplift and hanging wall subsidence, the later which creates the sedimentary basin (Gibson et al., 1989; Contreras et al., 1997). It is apparent that the basin geometry is affect-ted by fault propagation and displacement is accumulated on the boundary fault. About 200 m vertical displacement occurred with 73oC dipping. Along the basin the fault length is about 5 km. The fault length: vertical displacement ratio is about 25:1. About 60 m horizontal displacement indicates recent tectonic activity and the basin is developed due to 60 m horizontal displacement of the boundary fault towards the east (Islam et al., 2009). The objectives of the research were: To know the chemical properties of the of the coal, coal water and nearby agriculture field and To know that whether these chemical parameters are polluting the environment of the area or not. Chapter 2 Review of Literature Global Coal Management policy continued to wait for approval from the Government for its Barapukuria coal projects plan of development. The projects environmental impact and feasibility studies had been completed, and mining operations could be done by open pit method. After coal preparation, the final product would be coking coal and thermal coal for both export and domestic use. The bituminous coal resource of 572 million metric tons was large enough for the mine to last more than 30 years at a mining rate of 15 Mt/yr. There are major environmental issues in the mining of coal that include land disturbance, water pollution, and impacts on air quality (World Coal Institute, 2007). There are number of environmental issues linked to both underground and surface mining and they concerns mostly the impacts on water and air quality. First acid mine drainage (AMD). It is caused by the oxidation of pyretic sulphur due to exposure of pyrite (FeS2) to air and water, it can cause acidity (or a decrease in the pH of water) and subsequent elevated concentrations of metals that are associated with sulphide mineralogy (Management Brent, 2005). AMD causes contamination if it gets into the water system. A second environmental concern related to mining is the leaching of metals into the water in the area. AMD and leaching of metals result in fish dying and negatively impact the plant life in the water .A third concern is the emissions of particulates from the mining process that degrade air quality. The primary causes of these particulates are dust due to the movement of vehicles used at all stages of the mining process. A fourth concerns is methane. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas released from the coal seams. Technology has been developed that captures and uses methane for heating or electricity generations (The Coal Authority, 2007). As of 1994, the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) requires that Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) be completed (Rajaram et al., 2005). These EIA consist of a two-stage clearance. First, a site clearance, followed by an environmental clearance. The complete process includes the following components: screening; scoping and consideration of alternatives; base line data collection ;impact prediction; assessment of alternatives; outlining of mitigation measures and an environmental impact statement; public hearings; environmental management plan; decision making; and monitoring (MoEF, 2001). In addition to conducting an EIA prior to operations, environmental statements must be submitted on an annual basis. Guidelines for reclamation activities are supplied under the EIA process, and reclamation is expected to proceed concurrently with mining operations. Although the planning of mine closure and reclamation is recognized as important, and thus should be incorporated into the mining plan, in India this is still at the embryonic stage (Rajaram et aI., 2005). The permission of the surface landowner must be sought prior to leasing of the subsurface minerals. There are two main options to obtain this consent: through written consent from the surface owner or a bond posted by the mine operator to cover any damages that might occur to the surface of the land (Hamilton, 2005). Evaluation of possible environmental impacts for Barapukuria thermal power plant and coal mine: In this study, an attempt was taken to conduct environmental impact assessment of Barapukuria thermal power and coal mining project through environmental, socio-economical and meteorological study. The analysis showed that, the Mn concentration was found in the satisfactory range. The pH was found slightly alkaline and surface water was bacteria contaminated. SO4 concentration was in the range of WHO standard. Calculated Sox loading was almost same of monitored emission. Corresponding estimated concentration of Sox was in acceptable range, which may not bring any matter of concern. In the study, an attempt was also made to evaluate the health impacts of SPM (suspended particulate matter) emitted from the combustion of coal in the power plant. The socio economic condition was also considered a dominating factor, for the EIA along with the chemical parameters since increased employment for t he project (Alam et al., 2011). Analysis of orientation of maximum horizontal tensional stress of the Gondwana Barapukuria coal basin, NW Bangladesh: By means of finite element modeling: This paper uses two-dimensional Finite Element Method (FEM) numerical modeling to analyze the orientation of maximum horizontal tensional stress of the Barapukuria coal basin in Bangladesh. An elastic plane stress model incorporating elastic rock physical properties for the coal basin area was used consisting of 2916 elements with a network of 1540 nodes (Md.Rafiqul Islam, 2009).The stress field at any point of the model is assumed to comprise gravitational and tectonic components. The tectonic component is assumed to act entirely in the horizontal plane in the far-field and at the model eastern boundary. Modeling results are presented in terms of four parameters, i.e. orientation of maximum horizontal tensional stress, displacement vector, strain distribution, and maximum shear stress contour line within the model. Results show th at the orientation of the maximum horizontal tensional stress axis is almost N45oE, which coincides with the regional stress field as studied by Gown et al. (1992). Coal mining impact on land use/land cover in jainta hills district of Meghalay, India using remote sensing and GIS technique: K. Sarma and S.P.S. Kushwaha conducted their study was undertaken to analyze the process of human-induced landscape transformation in the coal mined affected areas of Jaintia Hills district of Meghalaya, northeast India by interpreting temporal remote sensing data using geographic information system. The study revealed that most of the areas were dominated by grassland/non- forest in all the time sequence period of the study. Impact of surface coal mining on three Ohio watersheds ground water chemistry: Bonta et al. (1992) conducted a study to determine the effects of surface mining and reclamation on ground-water chemistry in three saturated zones in each of three small East Central Ohio water-sheds. The extensive disturbances of mining and reclamation: i) caused more changes in constituents concentration in the upper zone than the lower zone. Most of which were statistically significant increases, ii) affected ground-water chemistry in lower zones those that were not physically disturbed, iii) tented to increases the frequency of exceedance of regulated constituents in all saturated zones and (4) affected the chemistry of surface base flow water at the watershed outlets. Several constituents were still changing at the end of the project within all sites and zones (Anhaeusser and Maske, 1986). Mine-water chemistry: the good, the bad and the ugly: The mine discharged water and wastes for several times. They collected huge amount of water samples from different mine discharge and worked on them. They found that the discharged water could be useful sometimes but most of the times the nature is ugly (Banks, 1997). Trace elements emission factors from coal combustion: A research on increase in the mobilization of trace elements in the environment especially in the atmosphere. An accurate knowledge of factors related to the mobilization, particularly the enrichment mechanism of trace elements in the emitted particulate, is of fundamental significance for environmental impact assessment studies. In this work an analytical method is presented to calculate the trace element emission factors taking into account the enrichment of trace element (Cernuschi, 1987). Trace metals from coal-fired power plants: Derivation of an average data base for assessment studies of the situation in the European communities. The potential impact on different part of the ecosystem and man from the release of trace element from the coal fired power plants, they use twenty nine coal samples for their research, using the derived main values as well as taking into account of coal to be burnet in power plant of EC. The average trace element mobilization was predicted for fifteen elements for the year 1990, the global release so estimated range from 66.5 to 19,420 metric tons from Hg Zn, respectively (Sabbioni, 1983). Criteria for determining when a body of surface water constitutes a hazard to mining: Kendorsky et al. discussed that there are various criteria for determining the quality of surface water body. They worked hard in determining the water constituents that are exposed in mining activities (coal mining). The surface drainage (acid mine drainage, heavy metal contamination etc.) causes several environmental impact (Molinda, 1999). Various research work carried out on hydrogen ion concentration and nutrient status in soil: Soil pH varied widely from one soil series to another. Soil pH ranged from 4.32 to 7.64 in 0 15 cm depth and the soil pH ranged from 4.55 to 7.81 in 15 30 cm at Sonatala series (Huq, 2005). In dry season the soil pH of coastal areas of Bangladesh were recorded between 6.25 to 8.34 and in the wet season the soil pH of coastal areas were recorded between 5.74 to 7.96 respectively (Alam, 2004) The soil pH of Taras series under AEZ-5 ranged from 5.54 to 5.90 and the pH of Jaonia series were ranged from 4.82 to 6.09 under AEZ-6. Both of the series were in acidic in nature (Alam, 2005). The pH of the old Brahmaputra Floodplain soil ranged from 6.02 to 7.10 and that of Madhupur tract from 6.99 to 7.02 under different cropping patterns and tillage (Hossain et al., 2003).The optimum soil pH for crop production was considered to be between 6.5 to 7.0 (Tisdale et al., 1999). The pH of the soil class high land and medium high land under soil series Amnura was 4.2 to 5.7 and 4.7 to 6.3 respectively in upland which was acidic than wet land (SRDI, 1999). The soil pH of the high, medium high and medium low under Sathi upazila ranged from 7.4 to 7.9, 7.3 to 7.6 and 5.0 to 7.8 respectively (SRDI, 1992). The organic carbon content of soil at Sonatala series ranged from .58% to 1.08% in 0 to 15cm depth the organic carbon content of soil at the same series ranged from 0.58% to 0.89% in 15 to 30cm (Huq (2005). The organic matter content of soil of the Taras series under AEZ-5 ranged from 1.26% to 2.42% and the organic matter content in the Jaonia series were ranged from 1.68% to 2.52% under AEZ-6 (Alam, 2005). In the dry season the organic matter content of the coastal area of Bangladesh was recorded at the ranged between 0.29 to 1.08% and in the wet season the organic matter content in the same areas were ranged from 0.34 to 1.27% respectively (Alam, 2004). Organic matter values of the old Brahmaputra floodplain ranged from 0.64 to 1.77% and that of Madhupur tract from 0.21 to 1.69% under different cropping patterns and tillages (Hossain et al., 2003).The organic matter content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Singra upazila values from 1.31%, 1.89% and 2.59% respectively (SRDI, 2001a). The organic matter content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Madhupur upazila values from 2.45%, 1.24% and 2.31% respectively (SRDI, 2001a). The organic matter content in varied from 0.58 to 2.13% of BAU Agriculture farm and also found that the organic matter contents were relatively higher at the surface layer but decreased at soil depth (Mondol, 1998).The organic matter content varied from 0.79 to 2.35% in ten selected soil series of Bangladesh and also observed that the organic matter contents relatively higher at the surface but decreased at soil depth (Fakir, 1998).Present organic Carbon of some non- irrigated soils of Madhupur upazila ranged from 0.5 to 0.85% (Zaman and Nuruzzaman, 1995). The available P content ranged from 9.8 to 12.75ppm at 0-15cm in depth in Sonatala series and the same series the available P content ranged from 5.75 to 9.24ppm at the depth of 15 to 30cm (Huq, 2005). The available P content of the Taras series under AEZ- 5 ranged from 5.04 to 24.9 mg/kg and the available P content of the Jaonia series under AEZ- 6 ranged from 6.48 to 8.58 mg/kg (Alam, 2005). Available P values of the old Brahmaputra floodplain soil varied from 7.0 to 20.0 Â µgg-1 under different cropping patterns and tillages (Hossain et al., 2003). The available P content ranged from 6.7 to 10.4 mg/kg in Barkol series, 8.0 to 11.9 ppm in khadimnagar series, 9.6 to 13.2 ppm in Subalong series, 13.9 to 16.2 ppm in Tejgaon series, 16.2 to 17 ppm in Belabl series, 10.1 to 17.4 ppm in Sonatala series and 11.9 to 17 ppm in Silmondi series (Ahamed, 2002). The available P content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Mymensingh Sadar upazila values from 32 Â µgg-1, 410 Â µgg-1 and 1150 Â µgg-1 respectively (SRDI, 2001a). The available P content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Singra upazila values from 7.33, 7.20 and 60 Â µgg-1 respectively (SRDI, 2001a). Available P content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Madhupur upazila values from 6, 5 and 8 Â µgg-1 respectively (SRDI, 2001a). The available P content of the non-irrigated surface sub surface soil of Ghatail and Kalihati upazila were 4 to 4.2 ppm and 2 to 26 ppm respectively (Razzaque et al., 1998) The P content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Shahzadpur upazila values from 7 Â µgg-1, 9 Â µgg-1 and 6 Â µgg-1 soil, respectively (SRDI, 1997). Available P contents in Soan River valley soils of lower Shiwaliks of Himachal Pradesh were 2.0 to 29.0 mg Kg-1 (Kumar et al., 1995). The P content of high land, medium high and medium low land under Sathi upazila values from 34Â µgg-1, 34 Â µgg-1 and 17 Â µgg-1 soil, respectively (SRDI, 1992). The Exchangeable Potassium content ranged from 0.09 to 0.93me/l00gm soil at 0-15 cm depth in the Sonatala series and the same series the Exchangeable Potassium content ranged from 0.08 to 0.71me/l00gm soil at the depth of 15-30 cm (Huq, 2005). The Exchangeable K of the Taras series under AEZ-5 ranged from 0.14to 0.27cmol/kg soil and the Exchangeable K of Jaonia series were ranged 0.33to 0.50cmol/kg soil under AEZ-6 (Alam, 2005). In dry season, the potassium concentration of coastal area of Bangladesh were recorded at the ranged between 0.20 to 1.17me/l00g soil and in wet season the potassium concentration of the same areas were recorded at the ranged between 0.08 to 0.83me/ l00g soil respectively (Alam, 2004). The available K content of the Brahmaputra flood plain soil varied from 0.10 to 0.27meq 100-1 soil and that of Madhupur Tract soil from 0.10 to 0.21meq 100-1 soil under different cropping patterns tillages and depth (Hossain et al., 2003). The K content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Singra upazila values from 0.27meq l00g-1 soil, 0.30meq l00g-1 soil, and 0.34meq l00 g-1 soil, respectively ( SRDI, 200la). The K content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Madhupur upazila values from 0.21meq l00 g-1 soil, 0.13meq l00g-1 soil, and 0.16meq 100 g-1soil, respectively (SRDI, 200Ib).The K content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Singra upazila values from 0.16meq l00g-1 soil, 0.19meq l00 g-1 soil, and 0.13meq l00g-1 soil, respectively (SRDI, 200Ic). The exchangeable K of old alluvial soils of some basin was 0.04 to 0.87meq l00g-1 soil (Singh et al., 2000). The series with high clay content required higher level of exchangeable K than a sandy soil to reach the same concentration of soil solution (Ray chaudhuri and Sanayl, 1999). An experiment on some soil properties and found that the water soluble K positively and significantly correlated with exchangeable K (Yadav et al., 1999). The available S content of the Taras series under AEZ-5 ranged from 16.8 to 17.8 mg/kg and the available S content of Jaonia series were ranged from 12.8 to 19.8 mg/kg under AEZ-6 (Alam, 2005). The available S ranged from 4.20 to 33.9 ppm at 0-15 cm depth in the Sonatala series and the same series the available S content ranged from 1.30 to 30.70 ppm at the depth of 15-30 cm (Huq, 2005). The available Sulphur (S) of soil decrease with increasing the depth of soils. The available S of the Old Brahmaputra Floodplain soil varied from 4.00 to 20.00 Â µgg-1 (Hossain et al., 2003). A laboratory experiment conducted on selected ten soil I series and reported that the available S of Barkol, Khadimnagar, Subalong, Tejgaon and Belabo series ranged from 12.11 tol3.39 ppm, 11.55 to 13.85 ppm, 13.00 to 15.76 ppm (Ahamed, 2002).The S content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Mymensingh upazila values from 16Â µgg-1, 16 Â µgg-1and 13 Â µgg-1 soil, respectively (SRDI, 200Ic). The S status of the non-irrigated surface and sub-surface soils of Ghatail and Kalihati upazila were 2.5 to 47.5 and 2.0 to 30.00 mg/kg, respectively (Razzaque et al., 1998). The S content of high land, medium high land and medium low land under Shahzadpur upazila values from 13Â µgg-1, 23 Â µgg-1 and 7 Â µgg-1 soil respectively (SRDI, 1992). The Exchangeable Ca2+ content ranged from 5.74 to 8.23me/l00gm soil at 0-15 cm depth in the Sonatala series and the same series the Exchangeable Ca2+ content ranged from 4.13 to 6.16 me/l00gm soil at the depth of 15-30 cm (Huq, 2005). The Exchangeable Ca content of the Taras series under AEZ-5 ranged from 5.50 to 14.7cmol/kg soil and the Exchangeable Ca content of Jaonia series were ranged 12.7 to 14.0cmol/kg soil respectively under AEZ-6 (Alam, 2005). The exchangeable Ca content of higher land, medium high land and medium low land under Singra upazila values from 10.20meq l00g1, 15.21meq l00gl and 19.41meq 100g! soil, respectively (SRDI, 200la). The exchangeable Ca content of higher land, medium high land and medium low land under Madhupur upazila values from 0.8meq l00/g, 1.3meq l00/g and 1.3meq l00/g soil, respectively(SRDI, 2001b). The Ca content in non-irrigated surface and sub-surface soil of Ghatail and Kalihati upazila were 1.34 to 6.66meq l00/g and 1.9 to 5.62meq l00/g soil, respectively (Razzaque et al., 1998). Available calcium (Ca) content in some non-irrigated soils of Madhupur ranged from 0.37 to 3.73meq l00/g soil and the mean value was 2.52meq l00/g soil (Zaman and Nuruzzaman, 1995). The cation such as Ca2+ and Mg2+ at the concentrations of 0.68 to 1.98meq l00/g and 0.62 to 3.45meq l00/g soil, respectively (Matin and Anwar, 1994). Exchangeable Mg content in the non irrigated surface and sub surface soils of Ghatail and Kalihati Thana were 0.53-1.35 and 0.5-1.16emol/kg respectively. Portch and Islam (1984) reported that 21% soils of Bangladesh contain Mg below critical level and 25% below optimum level (Razzaque, 1995). Sewage sludge containing domestic wastes can have significant amount of Zn and Cu. The accumulation of Zn was found to affect microbial pollution in soils (McGrath et al., 1995). The range of available Zn content in some non-irrigated soils of Madhupur was 1.05-3.57 Â µgg-1and the mean value was 1.94Â µgg-1 (Zaman and Nuruzzaman, 1995). The Fe status of some soils of Rajasthan (Udaipur district) was 1.32-20.5 ppm (Mehra, 1994). An observed that 8% soils of Bangladesh contain Fe below optimum level (Porch and Islam, 1984). A general and specific investigation conducted across China soil and crop heavy metal contamination. He investigated Cd level in soil in contaminated areas throughout 15 provinces of the country. The results indicated that levels of Ch, Hg and Pb in soils were greater than the governmental standards. Cadmium ranged from 0.45 to 1.04 g/kg on average in the four cities and was as high as 145 mg/kg in soil (Wang et al., 2001). An experiment conducted on the status of separate components of natural ecosystems in the impact zone of the Nizhnekamsk industrial complex in the Tatar Republic, Russia. It was found that the contents of heavy metals in soils and plants of the impact zone were low. However, negative effect of heavy metals on the growth of lichens was observed. Changes in the degree of moistening of the study the Nizhnekamsk industrial complex have resulted in the transformation of the plant cover structure (Changes in species composition of the grass dwarf shrub later, appearance of hygrophytes, increasing role of mesohydrophytes in the phytocenosis, and the decay of trees) and in changes of population characteristics of common red backed vole (Morozkin et al., 2001). The total and available Pb concentrations of road dusts at city areas varied from 57.7 to 212 mg/kg and 0.030 to 2.03 mg/kg but from rural areas 6.2-1.7 mg/kg and 0.02-0.06 mg/kg, respectively. Usually, low Pb was observed from rural areas (Sattar and Blume, 1999). An studied on 30 soil samples from different parent materials in Bangladesh to determine the usual range of the quantities of trace elements and reported that DTPA extractable copper and iron ranged from1.0 to 14.2 mg/kg and 7 to 296 mg/k