Study On The Flatiron Building Anthropology Essay

[ Outline: This is a 5 page term paper written in MLA format explicating why any interior decorator in the modern epoch should be interested in the Flatiron Building, constructed in 1902 in New York. The paper gives a description of the most bewitching architectural characteristics of Flatiron edifice that make it alone and admirable. The paper relies on 2 beginnings. ]The Flatiron BuildingEric Nash clearly describes the Flatiron edifice located in New York City. Its building was completed in 1902 and it is one of the most popular and best known skyscrapers in the universe that derives its name from its Fe like form. It is an energetic combination of Renaissance and Gothic architectural manners. It is made up of broad, good designed 22 narratives which are divided into three parts, viz. , the beginning, the center and the terminal, merely like a classical Grecian column. The Flatiron ‘s dramatic form and its exceeding tallness stretch its classical attire uneasily.1 Picture demoing the beginning, the center and the top of the Flatiron 1 Eric Nash, Manhattan Skyscrapers. ( New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1999 ) 121. Eric Nash clearly shows that the edifice was constructed utilizing structural steel frame with extended air current brace intentionally made to defy crabwise force per unit area from the air current. This reflects recent credence of the all-steel skeleton for skyscrapers in New York. The skeleton steel framing of Flatiron edifice is light and less susceptible to fire amendss as compared to press, therefore doing the edifice stronger and more lasting. Use of steel skeleton in building of Flatiron made it possible for the edifice to be elevated higher up to twenty two floors as opposed to lade bearing walls that antecedently restricted the tallness bearable by their tonss. The edifice was constructed on a rectangular cuneus piece of land giving it its authoritative captivating visual aspect from the land to the sky. He farther argues that unlike New York ‘s early skyscrapers taking the signifier of towers that were constructed lifting from a lower blockier weight like the modern- day Singer Building, the Flatiron edifice has limestone and glassy terra cotta faCade which is divided into a triangular base, shaft and capital.2. Eric Nash observed that Flatiron ‘s ornate but restrained frontage was made utilizing terra-cotta panels and rock making signifiers that simulate any effects of rustication, doing it long lasting. Rusticated limestone is uniformly detailed from the land of the Flatiron edifice to the sky to guarantee that there are slender opportunities of Flatiron ‘s devastation by environmental conditions. The Flatiron ‘s masonry insularity, its outer tegument of rock and glazed terra-cotta protects it from any rough conditions conditions which could otherwise destruct the edifice. Besides this, the Flatiron ‘s rustication and to a great extent prornamented forms of these walls, every bit good as the cautiously sized Windowss, give the faCades a heavy visual aspect, this is attractive to the eyes 3 2 Nash 123 3 Nash 125Picture demoing Flatiron ‘s outer tegumentAndrew Dolkart observed that the multistory oriels in the middle, which are outstanding in many of Burnham ‘s Chicago edifices, are merely hardly perceptible on the busy, more enclosed tegument of the Flatiron. This greater ocular weigh of the repartition of the overall design into a distinguishable base, a insistent middle, and a crowning valance extended to 22 narratives, makes the whole Flatiron appear column-like, separating the edifice from the remainder. He farther observed that the long, thin triangular footmark of the Flatiron extrudes up through all its 20 two narratives. With all three facades confronting the streets, this tall, thin edifice was designed to ever hold really well-lit office infinites. At the vertex of the Flatiron edifice, the triangular tower, which is merely 6.5 pess ( 2 metres ) broad and a tallness of 80 seven Meters is seen to depict an ague angle that is approximately estimated to be 25 gr ades when viewed from bird ‘s oculus position. The ague angled corners bring out a dramatic, exaggerated position which is alone and extremely admirable. 44Andrew Dolkart. Architecture Development of New York City and the Birth of Skyscraper. ( Columbia: Columbia University 2009 ) . 11 Eric Nash farther observed that the most acute angle of the Flatiron points north, doing the edifice to look like it has a small deepness like a wall leaned precariously against the sky, separating it from any other edifice in the vicinity. The inside of the Flatiron has queerly shaped broad offices with their walls cutting through an angle on their manner to skyscraper ‘s celebrated point. This gives the edifice rather a beautiful and attractive expression. The gravity-defying semblance of the edifice is further enhanced by the tremendous valance projecting sharply from the top of the edifice, giving the whole matter a top-heavy visual aspect. The elements of Flatiron ‘s design tantrum in comfortably with the general development of the house in which the edifice was constructed.5 Harmonizing to Andrew, The unconventional triangular batch coupled with exceeding tallness transformed architectural conventions of Flatiron into a beautiful alone construction. The edifice stuffs used for Flatiron were cost effectual, efficient and made it possible for it to be rapidly erected. Flatiron was so a perfect architectural solution to America ‘s turning business districts in the twentieth century. It consists of 13,400 square metres of office infinite and decidedly one of the Stockholm ‘s new landmarks. The dramatic ocular presence of this uncommon perpendicular mass is what makes the edifice immediately celebrated both with tourers and those in the humanistic disciplines coping with the nature of New York ‘s modernity.6 5 Nash 136. 6 Dolkart 13.DecisionThis paper started by depicting the form and location of the Flatiron edifice constructed in 1902 in New York. It further discussed in item the design and architectural characteristics of the edifice that make it really alone despite the fact that it was constructed over 100 old ages ago. Its characteristic structural division into three parts, the beginning, the center and the terminal gives it a alone appealing visual aspect. Its alone triangular form design and the cuneus shaped piece of land where the edifice was erected spring it an first-class position hence it is easy distinguished from all other edifices in the vicinity. The edifice ‘s little breadth of merely two metres and exceeding tallness of 80 seven metres lodging twenty two storey distinguishes it from ancient heavy broad edifices. While seting more accent on the singularity and lastingness of the stuffs in building of Flatiron edifice used such as the radical steel frame which is less suscep tible to fire unlike Fe, the limestone covering arising from the land to the sky to protect the edifice from rough conditions conditions, and the white terra cotta tegument in the Italian Renaissance manner which gives the edifice a extremely admirable dramatic position. From the findings of this paper, it is obviously clear that the Flatiron edifice is rather a alone edifice in both the construction and the design and hence any designer or interior decorator would be interested in its construction and design.Plants CitedNash, Eric. Manhattan Skyscrapers. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1999. Dolkart, Andrew. Architecture Development of New York City and the Birth of Skyscraper. Columbia: Columbia University 2009.Siteshypertext transfer protocol: //hermis.alberta.ca/ARHP/Details.aspx? DeptID=1 & A ; ObjectID=4665-0499 hypertext transfer protocol: //www.nyc-architecture.com/GRP/GRP024.htm

What’s wrong with Walmart?

Adding to the articles provided in the class, I chose â€Å"Walmart Mexico Bribery Case† and â€Å"Walmart Offers Jobs to Veterans†. Reading these articles, I once more thought that Walmart is a huge company. Walmart employs about 1. 4 million people in the United States. They operate more than 10,800 retail units under 69 banners in 27 countries. In 2013, the magazine ‘Fortune’ ranked Walmart as a biggest company in the United States. These numbers all show that Walmart is a large company and it is hard to operate. Walmart have a central office in Arkansas, and the chief executive and board member make all the important decisions and policy of the company. However, if the company has so many employees and the shops, it is difficult to control all the employees. Thus in the ‘Pollutant Dumping Case’, the Walmart California store improperly disposed hazardous waste. The central office had a comprehensive and industry-leading hazardous waste program, but this issue made it clear that some of the workers were not aware how to handle hazardous waste. Additionally, the other article was about the Walmart protest movement. At first, I did not know about the OUR Walmart, but I was surprised to find this organization. I could not find out how big the organization is, but the existence of OUR Walmart itself tells us that Walmart have many workers and the worker’s opinion is hard to reach to the chief executive. As a result they make protest movements to claim for better wages and improved working conditions. All in all, the recent Walmart issue is the evidence that the central office is struggling to control all of the shops in the U. S. and the other countries. All of the big companies with shops in many locations will suffer to manage the workers. To solve this problem it is necessary to make manual, guidelines, instructions, hotlines, help lines, and audits. If the company failed to make these systems and have a high commitment with the top manager, the company will likely to corrupt or make mistakes like Walmart.

Advantages Of Women Entrepreneurs Business Essay

Advantages Of Women Entrepreneurs Business Essay In India women entrepreneurs play a very pivotal role. They are not only educated, talented, confident, ambitious and career oriented but they also know their minds. This helps them to juggle the tasks, manage all the chores and strike a fine balance between the professional and personal lives. They have a good foresight, patience, negotiating and budgeting skills. Today, women have demonstrated their multitasking ability. Women entrepreneurs can certainly initiate, organize, plan and operate their small and medium venture efficiently. Affirming this notion, Ms. Husain Chairperson and Managing Director of Shanaz Husain Group of companies elaborate, â€Å"the women who is creative finds greater freedom to translate her creativity and ideas when she has her own enterprise. For those women without high professional qualifications and those who are from a lower economic sector, entrepreneurship is a means of earning money and contributing to the family income. However, the challenge fo r the larger sections of women in India lies in crossing the threshold, overcoming barriers and discovering their own potential and identity. The climate is more conducive today and the time is right.† C:UsershclDesktopwomen-business.jpg ADVANTAGES OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS Advantages of women entrepreneurs are as follows: 1. Emotional Intelligence Women are more emotionally intelligent than man and possess good interpersonal skills which are vital for framing strategies and building support. 2. Multitask Orientation Women have the ability of handling many tasks at the same time like talking on the phone, reading their mails, scheduling what else needs to be finished for the rest of the day and giving excellent results. They balance their families and career simultaneously effectively. Men are known to have been more troublesome with multitasking tending to focus on one or two things, thus wasting opportunities. 3. Self-Branding Attitude Woman entrepreneurs are extremely passiona te by nature and enthusiastic about their choices, talking about them and sharing their thoughts. They emphasize the benefits of their services to their potential clients and are aware of how to highlight the positive features. 4. Patience Women entrepreneurs are very patience by nature and have great vision. Visionary entrepreneurs giving up on their dreams after only some months as a consequence of becoming impatient with the process only proves that the vision is not enough. The ability to wait and see is a key attribute in order to receive positive outcomes and women have it naturally. 5. Motivation Women entrepreneurs have a great passion for the work and a commitment to society. If they have the drive to pursue entrepreneurship, it means they are not afraid of taking any risks and will also make monetary gains. They possess the inner strength to continue and searches all possible means to share their business ideas with others. The increasing number of women entrepreneurs can promote economic and social equity which facilitates self-fulfillment for individuals, and improve the use of valuable human capital. Feminine traits and talents can be seen as sources of power with great advantages for entrepreneurship. In the near future women may be closing the venture capital gender gap.

Effect of Taxation on the Economy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Effect of Taxation on the Economy - Essay Example This also leads to a less desirable allocation of the society's resources, thereby bringing about an additional loss in the overall well being. This loss is often referred to as the excess burden of the tax. It is a measure of the inefficiency of the tax, which is to say that it takes more than 1 of private output resource and income to finance 1 of public expenditure. Estimates predict that the taxes would positively use resources only to a certain extent after which these resources will escape into informal sector and diminish tax growth and efficiency. This paper examines the effects of different types of taxes as well as the tax rates on the economic efficiency of the country. It will first give an overview of the types of taxes that are levied and their relevance after which it will compare the tax revenues and the tax rates. It will be followed by a case study to amplify the effects of taxation on the economy. Taxes are direct and indirect in nature of collection. If the taxes are collected directly from the individuals and organisations on whom they are imposed then we refer to them as direct taxes while the taxes that are collected from person other than the one on whom it is imposed it is referred to as indirect tax. Taxes can be divided into two major categories. ... It is often argued that if the present system of levying income tax is replaced with the broad consumption based tax system it would greatly improve the economic efficiency on many accounts. It would eliminate the influence of taxes on the timing of consumption and it may also subject different sources of income to be included in the tax base and similar tax rates which would have otherwise not come under the tax net. A broader tax base would also help in lowering the overall marginal tax rates hence giving a wider choice to the consumer. (James,2006) The lesser the tax system influences the economic choices of the firms and the consumers the more efficient it will be.Income tax by its nature affects two major house hold decisions. Firstly it reduces the price of current leisure in relation to its current consumption. This induces the households to cut back on their consumption and labor supply and increase the leisure. Secondly by taxing the capital income, the income tax brings dow n the price of current consumption in comparison to the future consumption thus discouraging house holds to save more thereby lowering the investment potential of the economy. (Tuomala 1990) On the other hand the consumption based tax influences only the buying decision of the individuals and the returns to the capital income are left untaxed. To make a tax base broader and more neutral it is imperative to lower marginal tax rates. This way the comprehensive tax will improve the economic efficiency to a large extent. Tax Rates v/s Tax Revenues. Higher tax rates levied by the government equally affects all individuals in the society. The

Marketing plan for NIKE Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing plan for NIKE - Essay Example Nike was founded on January 25th 1964 by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight as Blue Ribbon Sports. The company adopted the name Nike on May 30, 1978 and began marketing its products and services under its own brand. Today, the company operates retail stores under the Niketown name. In addition, the company is known worldwide for sponsoring a great deal of sports activities and supporting many sports teams. The Nike brand is presently found in many countries across the world notably in the United States, Europe, Asia Pacific and the Americas (Esty & Winston, 2009). Courtesy of its innovative design and effective marketing strategies, the company has obtained a very huge position in the sports markets in these regions. More importantly, Nike’s products are usually associated with high quality and this has been a major boost for the company over the years. Situation analysis Company mission and objectives Nike has always been focused to the realization of its goals, mission and object ives. More importantly, the organization has a strong sense of values which have created a kind of organizational culture often admired by many organizations. The mission of the organization is â€Å"to bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world† (Esty & Winston, 2009) In this regard, it is seen that Nike actually exists in order to ensure that the world is well supplied with quality equipment, shoes, apparels and other quality products. The focus of Nike is to bring a new reality to the world of athletics. In the same way, Nike’s vision stresses on the aspect of people and profit and the need to implement sustainable principles within the market. The organization greatly appreciates the dynamic nature of the market and is therefore at the forefront in instituting the very changes that are almost imperative for its continued success. One major goal of the organization is always the creation of partnerships in the hope of adding value. In this regard , Nike UK has been a strong force in creating valuable partnerships with other organizations and the social media which has seen the creation of such brands like Nike. A combination of these vision, values and goals have been the core marketing formula for the organization. In this regard, the organization has seen much progress and success (Rigsby & Greco, 2003). Products Nike engages in the production of various types of sports equipment. The initial products were track running shoes. However, the company has greatly diversified its product line and manufactures shoes, shorts, jerseys and base layers for various types of sporting activities. The Nike Air Max was the initial shoe line introduced by the company back in 1987 and has remained popular for a long time. Some of the recent products introduced include Nike NYX, Nike SB and Nike 6.0 Shoes all for skateboarding. Similarly, the company launched a type of cricked shoes known as Air Zoom Yorker which are designed to be very eff ective and are actually 30% lighter than the competitors in the market (Katz, 2012). While Nike is majorly known for athletics products, it should be noted that the organization actually produces an assortment of products for basketball, combat sports, golf, football and many other sporting activities. In addition, the Nike brand has been very popular across the world in youth, hip hop and Chav

Annotated Bibliography for Africas Hunger Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Annotated Bibliography for Africas Hunger - Essay Example its failure to offer food security to its people, many people think that Africa unproductive, but it is an agriculturally productive continent, but lacks ways of managing its food production, and has poor farming practices and, therefore, the yields are minimal. "13 Million People threatened by Food Crisis in Africa" Telegraph.co.uk. 9 Mar. 2012. Web. 10 Mar.2012.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/9133915/13- million-people-threatened-by- food-crisis-in-Africa.html. This newspaper article highlights issues pertaining to the food crisis in Africa and its effect on the people of Africa. HIV/AIDS has resulted in deaths in the past years since it was discovered in Africa. This has affected the workforce. More people die and others become sick and cannot work anymore. This has made it impossible for some African countries because they lack personnel to work in industries for production of food. For this reason, the rate of poverty still goes high as people do not earn an income. HIV/AIDS has resulted further to deaths resulting in desperation amongst some Africans to the extent that they are discouraged to work and produce food. In the end, they die of hunger. The contents of this newspaper article give information on how this situation has become life threatening in Africa. This book was written following a hearing that had been held in 1984, on the basis of African affairs; inclusive of the hunger problem that had started to become a problem in the continent. They spoke of the unfair trade markets and how it affected the people’s trading of goods across continents. Unfair trade markets has also contributed to hunger in one way or another, the exportation of food crops has become very lucrative in Africa, but the problem arises because the crops being exported are being underpaid and the freight charges are high. This still hinders the growth of GDP. It contributes to hunger as it increases the rate of hunger in the population due to

Management Control Systems Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Management Control Systems - Essay Example Management control systems refer to the ways a company collects information to manage and control the activities regarding accomplishment of organizational goals and objectives in an effective manner. It is a fact that without proper management, no goal can be achieved in a timely manner as various difficulties can arise in this process which need a proper resolution. A management control system helps management and employees perform their assigned activities in a proper manner using the information stored in it. Management control systems refer to the way a company collects information to use it to accomplish organizational goals and objectives in an effective manner. A management control system helps employees and management in performing their assigned activities in a proper manner using the information and guidelines stored in the system. Management control systems deal with every system of a company, which may include accounting methods, employee benefit programs, performance ap praisal, and performance improvement systems. However, companies need to use management control systems as packages to make the most efficient use of these systems. ... s, activities, tasks, goals and objectives, and guidelines regarding every particular department and business process which managers and employees can use to perform their respective activities. For example, when the top management of a company has to hire new employees for any particular department of the company, they refer to the guidelines stored in the management control system which help them perform candidates’ selection and evaluation in a defined manner. It also helps managers assign relevant tasks and duties to new employees. Moreover, they assist top management in performing performance and productivity analyses, as well as in developing employee benefit programs. Today, the business world is changing rapidly because of the changes in technology, nature of competition, and consumer behaviors. Companies need to change their management control systems accordingly to benefit from the ongoing changes instead of leaving behind in the race of competition. Companies need t o demonstrate their knowledge regarding change to react positively to the changes in the external environment to maintain the key performance indicators, as well as the levels of productivity and profitability. Managers of companies need to link operational control and strategic planning by using the guidelines of management control systems. As Asel (2009, p. 4) states, â€Å"the focus of MCS is not only on one form of control like performance measures but on multiple control systems working together. They can use management control systems to direct all administrative matters, as well as to manage the issues of employees. 3. Management Control Systems as Packages As Sandelin (2008, p. 324) states, â€Å"the functionality of a control package depends on internal consistency, specifically on the

Jewish resistance people Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Jewish resistance people - Research Paper Example Moreover, some Jews went into hiding in order to escape the brutalities of war. Passive resistance was also shown in the form of spiritual resistance, religious resistance as well as cultural resistance by the Jews (Henry and Lang, 2014). Others also got Visas from foreign states as were deported to other safe places. These were some of the forms of resistance that the Jews exhibited towards the war. However, following the plights experienced by the Jews, there were several individuals who helped them. Some of these include the individuals as well as organizations. However, amongst the individuals, both men and women contributed commensurately. Some of the individuals who helped the Jews include Feng-Shan Ho, Hugh O’Flaherty, Giorgio Perlasca and Chiune Sugihara (Tec, 2013). Both Ho and Chiune Sugihara issued transit visas to the Jews to help them leave the country. Giorgio issued fake passports that helped Jews travel to neutral countries. Hugh was a preacher who concealed approximately 4000 Jewish escapees. Others include Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz, Frank Foley, Aristides de Sousa Mendes, Dimitar Peshev as well as Raoul Wallenberg (Henry and Lang, 2014). Raoul issued fake passports as well as housed thousands of Jews. Dimitar prevented Bulgarian government from deporting Jews from Bulgaria to Germany to be victims of Holocaust. Both Frank and Mendes also offered thousands of visas to aide in deportation of the Jews. Georg Ferdinand on the other hand convinced Prime Minister of Sweden to allow the Jews to be deported to Sweden. The female individuals who helped the Jews include Irena Sendler, Klara Baic, Anna Igumnova, Jeanne Daman as well as Johanna Eck. Others include Suzanne Spaak, Sofka Skipwith Elisabeta Strul and Maria Agnese Tribbioli (Longerich, 2010). The other ladies who helped the Jews include Luvidga Pukas, Lois Gunden, Caecilia Loots, as well as Antonina Gordey. Sofia Kritikou, Bronislava

Nursing Practice in Context 4 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Nursing Practice in Context 4 - Assignment Example When the body digests proteins, there is usually the generation of waste products. These wastes become part of urine. Diabetes destroys the tiny blood vessels and holes, which act as filters when they are overburdened (Bruce & Paxton, 2008). After some years, the filters will stop functioning properly and some of the important proteins will leak into urine causing a condition called micro albunuria (American Diabetes Association, 2006). The initial symptom of the chronic diseases is the buildup of fluids at various body parts. Other signs entail insomnia, loss of appetite, and lack of concentration (American Diabetes Association, 2012).Chronic kidney disease (CKD) leads to premature mortality, low quality of life, and high life expenditures. Different diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and obesity have played greater roles in the increase of chronic kidney diseases (Bruce & Paxton, 2008). The research indicated that obesity relates with diabetes and hypertension and the three ar e the major leading causes of chronic kidney diseases. In U.S, the numbers of adults with obesity have been doubling for the past three-decade (Bruce & Paxton, 2008). ... It will not rely on whether an individual looses weight through maintaining diet, exercising or undergoing bariatric surgery. The conducted studies reveals that weight loss reduces the rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes and obesity. People should ensure that they maintain their diet and exercise in order to lose weight as it will help them in reducing the rates of obesity, hypertension, and diabetes (McBride & Korczak, 2007). Question 2 (B) The paper highlights the nursing care of Mrs. Mrs. Douglas Douglas who is 74 years old. She is a diabetic with many complications and she is admitted for surgery tomorrow. The two nursing problems that Mrs. Douglas has are nutritional deficit and electrolyte imbalance. She also has impaired skin integrity. The two nursing interventions explained in the paper are the acute and community care focus. Two evaluation criteria for each intervention will also be explained Priority Problem 1 Nutritional deficit and fruit imbalance One of the identifie d medical problems entails nutritional deficit and fluid imbalance. Mrs. Douglas is experiencing these problems because of her poor nutritional habits and she does not know about the illness processes. The assessment data used to support this diagnosis is the subjective data of the patients’ nutritional habits. Mrs. Douglas stated that she takes 1-2 glasses of juice and water per day, lack of knowledge of what to eat or drink, and sometimes she lacks appetite because of the bad taste in her mouth. The objective data that supports the diagnosis entail obesity and kidney disease. These are caused by taking food with high cholesterol, not doing enough exercises, and failure to take enough

Theories of juvenile deliquency Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Theories of juvenile deliquency - Assignment Example In order to belong, youths have the ideology that they have to be rich and famous. Economically underprivileged adolescents may be pressured to obtain money in unlawful ways, such as stealing and the like. The thinking of the youth today must be transformed and they should be made aware that they have to be critical in choosing their peers. Another theory is that of Albert Bandura. His theory is known as the â€Å"Social Learning Theory†. Bandura points to the environment as the cause of possible criminal acts committed by the youth. He reasoned that the adolescent observes his environment and tries to imitate what he sees. In this specific theory, family, peers, and media can directly influence the behavior of the youth (Kartha, 2010). The picture on the right suggests the effect of media on today’s youth. Juveniles are usually in want of entertainment and their common sources of this are the television and the internet. Viewing shows that can either directly or indire ctly promote violence can affect the mind of the viewing minor. Without authoritative parental guidance, he might be led to thinking that what he views is acceptable by society. To reduce cases of juvenile delinquency, parents are compelled to monitor the shows and websites their children see.

IM Not Scared Essay Example for Free

IM Not Scared Essay In comparison to his peers Michele reveals a level of maturity that his friends do not have. He defends Barbara before Skull can obscenely exploit her. Barbara is constantly harassed for being the only girl in the ‘gang’. Not even Michele could comprehend ‘how she put up’ with them, assuming it was the ‘fear of being left alone’. Barbara as well as Michele, is too innocent to distinguish the best for their own wellbeing. Michele has morals and instinctively knew that ‘there was something dirty’ with Barbara’s punishment. Unlike Michele, Skull has no remorse. Skull has the audacity to abuse people as he desires. Michele does not engage is exploiting others, in fact he obtains the rational reasoning of an educated adult. The most imperative case in which Michele expresses maturity is when he discovers Filippo. Initially Michele acts childish proclaiming Filippo as his, evidently influenced by Skull’s flawed and selfish logic-‘finders keepers’. Michele also behaves in that manner due to the lack of exposure of such situations. This is the only way he knows how to handle the ‘secret discovery’. Michele observes the discovery of a boy in a hole as a mysterious adventure that he must solve. But the height of Michele’s developing maturity is exposed through the continual visits to Filippo. Michele takes responsibility for Filippo’s wellbeing by ‘bathing his eyes’. The flaws of the adults force Michele to lose his rightful youth and take on the problems of adulthood. The adults in the novel have no redeeming justifications as to why they kidnapped and caused Filippo to become a ‘tormented soul’. Maturity may result in betraying promises in order to do the right thing. Despite Michele being obligated to his father, he recognises the wrong his parents have committed. Michele’s ‘oath was crumbling away’. He combats his fears and is ‘not scared of anything’ in attempt to save Filippo from his ominous death. Michele is punished for trying to do the moral thing. Michele is a character who demonstrations a significant transition from naivety to maturity. While Michele is obtaining maturity the adults are losing it by betraying their duty of parenthood and morality. Innocence no longer exists in Michele’s world because he has been exposed to the heinous realities of the world. Michele is able to distinguish the difference between reality and imagination and realises ‘it’s men you should be afraid of, not monsters’.

A Cultural Review of Germany in the 1940’s According to Essay Example for Free

A Cultural Review of Germany in the 1940’s According to Essay It has been said, to understand the present a person must know and understand the past. Focusing on that quote specifically to understanding the past is what The Diary of Anne Frank allows the reader to do. There are many different cultures around the world and many cultures within cultures. Looking specifically at Germany in the time period of the 1940’s, the reader can see that there in fact is a culture within in a culture. The great thing about this piece of literature is that it is the actual person in the culture writing what is going on during that time frame. The Diary of Anne Frank lets the reader dive into a part of history that the culture was different from any other and experience what it was like to be a Jew in the 1940’s in Western Europe. It is sort of ironic how during that time period there were people living in peace and people living in turmoil. This diary only tells about her experience while she is hiding out, but it also gives reference to what is going on outside her family’s hide out. So from that point of view the reader can get the view of what the culture was like while Jewish people were hiding out and what is was like to be taken away and put in a concentration camp. Living in peace may mean how the German people are living because they do not have to face persecution from the government or it could mean how the Jewish that are living in hideouts are at peace because they have not been sent to a concentration camp yet. On the other hand living in turmoil can mean that the Jewish people are living fear of being caught and taken to a concentration camp and that the people that are already in the camps are already in turmoil. When it is said that someone is living in fear means that they are fearful because something may happen to them. In this case it is the fact that they could be taken away from their families if they are caught in hiding. In Anne Frank’s case, she is afraid because she wants to be an actress and those dreams may never come true. It is also the fear of not knowing. Being in suspense of not knowing what is going to happen is sometimes worse that what actually is going to happen. While Jewish people are living in hideouts there is no doubt they are living in fear. The reader can tell that in fact all of the residents with Anne Frank are living in fear because every time something happens they assume that it is the Green Police coming to get them. Living in the concentration camps is living in hope. Not knowing what is going on outside the fence of the camp is left up to the imagination of the person looking out it. Sometimes the only way to move on in life, especially living in a concentration camp, is to hope for something better. Just like when it comes to religion, people believe that there is a higher power. It gives them hope to move on to the next day because if there was no higher power to believe in and give a cause for living then in fact what would be the reason to live. The reader can see this evidence because the father of Anne Frank tells everyone that they do not have to live in fear anymore and they can live in hope that the war will end. It may be far fetched to say that freedom was still available to the Jewish people. But while hiding out there was still some freedom that they could enjoy. Meal time was something that everyone looked forward to during the day. Just being able to eat was such a moral booster. Even though it was just maybe a potato and bread, it still had an effect that gave them strength to move on to the next day. Life in the German concentration camps was equally unbearable. After arriving, the Jews found the camps weren’t much better than the railway’s cattle cars. Row after row of barrack-style houses stood in the center of these camps. Inside each barrack there was little more than beds, three or four high with little space between them and hardly any room in which to move. There was little food and water there too. Thousands in the camps died from starvation, disease, and exposure to the elements. Others were shot at the whim of the Nazis guards. Those Jews that worked had their lives spared but were fed only enough to keep them alive. No one knows for sure how many children were killed but it is estimated at between 1. 2 and 1. 5 million. The children that survived did so because they were hidden in homes, basements and convents or lived with Christian families who concealed their identities. By the end of the war six million Jews had been killed in one way or another inside and outside concentration camps across Europe. Never in human history had so many been killed because of who they were. Jews not immediately selected for extermination faced a living death in the concentration camp, which also included non-Jewish inmates, many of them opponents of the Nazi regime. The SS, who ran the camps, took sadistic pleasure in humiliating and brutalizing their helpless Jewish victims. They get up at 3 am. They have to dress quickly, and make the bed so that it looks like a matchbox. For the slightest irregularity in bed-making the punishment was 25 lashes, after which it was impossible to lie or sit for a whole month. Everyone had to leave the barracks immediately. Outside it is still dark or else the moon is shining. People are trembling because of lack of sleep and the cold. In order to warm up a bit, groups of ten to twenty people stand together, back to back so as to rub against each other. There was what was called a wash-room, where everyone in the camp was supposed to wash. There were only a few faucets and there were 4,500 people in that section. Of course there was neither soap nor towel or even a hand-kerchief, so that washing was theoretical rather than practical. In one day, a person there came a lowly person indeed. They used to get half a liter of black, bitter coffee. That was all they got for what was called breakfast. At 6 a. m. a headcount and they all had to stand at attention, in fives, according to the barracks, of which there were 22 in each section. They stood there until the SS men had satisfied their game-playing instincts by humorous orders to take off and put on caps. Then they received their report, and counted us. After the headcount work started. They went in groups some to build railway tracks or a road, some to the quarries to carry stones or coal, some to take out manure, or for potato-digging. latrine-cleaning, barracks or sewer repairs. All this took place inside the camp enclosure. During work the SS men beat up the prisoners mercilessly, inhumanly and for no reason. They were like wild beasts and, having found their victim, ordered them to present their backside, and beat them with a stick or a whip, usually until the stick broke. The victims screamed only after the first blows, afterwards they fell unconscious and the SS men then kicked at the ribs, the face, at the most sensitive parts of a person’s body, and then, finally convinced that the victim was at the end of their strength, The SS would order another Jew to pour one pail of water after the other over the beaten person until they woke and got up. A favorite sport of the SS men was to make a boxing sack out of a Jew. This was done in the following way: Two Jews were stood up, one being forced to hold the other by the collar, and an SS man trained giving him a knock-out. Of course, after the first blow, the poor victim was likely to fall, and this was prevented by the other Jew holding him up. After the fact, Hitlerite murderer had trained in this way for 15 minutes, and only after the poor victim was completely shattered, covered in blood, his teeth knocked out, his nose broken, his eyes hit, and they released him and ordered a doctor to treat his wounds. That was their way of taking care and being generous. Another customary SS habit was to kick a Jew with a heavy boot. The Jew was forced to stand to attention, and all the while the SS man kicked him until he broke some bones. People who stood near enough to such a victim often heard the breaking of the bones. The pain was so terrible that people, having undergone that treatment, died in agony. Apart from the SS men there were other expert hangmen. These were the so-called Capos. The name was an abbreviation for barracks police. The Capos were German criminals who were also camp inmates. However, although they belonged to us, they were privileged. They had a special, better barracks of their own; they had better food, better, almost normal clothes. They wore special red or green riding pants, high leather boots, and fulfilled the functions of camp guards. They were worse even than the SS men. In each section stood a gallows, for being late for the head count, or similar crimes, the camp elder hanged the offenders. Work was actually unproductive, and its purpose was exhaustion and torture. At twelve noon there was a break for a meal. Standing in line, we received half a liter of soup each. Usually it was cabbage soup, or some other watery liquid, with-out fats, tasteless. That was lunch. It was eaten in all weather under the open sky, never in the barracks. No spoons were allowed, though wooden spoons lay on each bunk probably for show, for Red Cross committees. One had to drink the soup out of the bowl and lick it like a dog. From 1 p. m. till 6 p. m. there was work again. I must emphasize that if we were lucky we got a 12 oclock meal. There were days of punishment when lunch was given together with the evening meal, and it was cold and sour, so that our stomach was empty for a whole day. Afternoon work was the same: blows, and blows again. Until 6 p.m. At six there was the evening headcount. Again we were forced to stand at attention. Counting, receiving the report. Usually we were left standing at attention for an hour or two, while some prisoners were called up for punishment parade-they were those who in the Germans eyes had transgressed in some way during the day, or had not been punctilious in their performance. They were stripped naked publicly, laid out on specially constructed benches, and whipped with twenty-five or fifty lashes. The brutal beating and the heart-rending cries all this the prisoners had to watch and hear. In conclusion, the reader can see that life, even though hard, was easier in the hideouts than it was in the concentration camps. Even if everything was still the same except the physical abuse then life would still be easier in the concentration camp. The Diary of Anne Frank gives us great insight to life while hiding out. Unfortunately she was unable to give us an account for the camps because she eventually died before the camps were liberated. But the saying, to understand the present a person must know and understand the past, is really true in these events. Hopefully for some culture history will not repeat itself.

Indian Accounting Standards: Barriers and History

Indian Accounting Standards: Barriers and History Introduction In the year 2005, European Union made it mandatory for all the companies which were listed have to comply with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) requirements when presenting their financial statements. This marked the beginning when International Accounting standard Board (ISAB) was professed as â€Å"legitimate’’. Ever since then IFRS has spread swiftly across the world. Initially there were few hindrances like by the end of year 2004 â€Å"full text of endorsed IFRS was not even available in several EU languages’’. This research examines the evolution and obstacles to convergence of Indian Accounting Standards to IFRS starting 1st April 2011 when all the listed companies in India, will be required to present their financial statements in accordance with IFRS regulations. This research also highlights the need for the country like India, to converge their Local GAAP to IFRS. American Writer Mark Twain once commented on  India and said  Ã¢â‚¬Å"the cradle of the human race ,the birthplace of human speech ,the mother of history ,the grandmother of legend, and the great grandmother of human speech of the tradition.’’ India is now seen as one of the fastest growing economies in the world. The increase of number of Indian companies being listed at various stock exchanges may it be NASDAQ, NYSE or LSE, the takeovers of companies like Corus by TATA or the exponential increment of Foreign Direct Investment in the country does indicate that India is now the destination where everyone wants to be a part of it. The strong economic growth, technological advancements, inflows of foreign exchange and the ever-increasing interest of almost every nation to be a part of this growth embraces the requirement of a common language in financial statements. (Purvis, gernon, and Diamond [1991]). Various studies done by researchers have concluded that â€Å"principle based standards are better enforced than rule based† and this becomes one of the reasons why harmonisation is becoming more and more essential. As far as advantages and disadvantages in adhering a common accounting rule there are still concerns within a country leave apart the issue of international convergence (Ray Ball, 2006). Only time will tell whether this convergence really serve the purpose or it was just a decision made in haste to be a part of so called IFRS â€Å"brand names’’ countries. IFAC Compliance Programme IFAC was founded in 1977 with New York as its Headquarters. Its initial purpose was â€Å"the development and enhancement of a coordinated worldwide accounting profession with harmonised standards†(brennan,1979). Presently it is â€Å"a global organisation for the accountancy profession† and as at 10th August 2009 IFAC has 158 members from 122 countries representing 2.5 million accountants. â€Å"Its formal mission is stated as being â€Å"To serve the public interest,IFAC will continue to strengthen the worldwide accountancy profession and contribute to the development of strong international economies by establishing and promoting adherence to high quality professional standards ,furthering the international convergence of such standards and speaking out on public interest issues where the profession’s expertise is most relevant. To carry out this mission ,we work closely with our member bodies and regional accountancy organisations and obtain the input of regulators, standard-setters, governments and others who share our commitment to creating a sound global financial architecture†(IFAC,2006). IFAC does not set International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) are not set by IFAC rather these are set by International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) . The IFAC Board formed â€Å"the Member Body Compliance Program† to ensure that all the members adhere to the standards set by IFAC for its membership. The primary objective of which was to encourage members and strive for improvement in this area of compliance. The IFAC Compliance program is overseen by the Compliance Advisory Panel. The primary objective of Compliance Advisory panel is to make sure that the IFAC compliance program is properly implemented as well as properly operated by the staff members of IFAC. Statements of Membership Obligations The IFAC Board through its Statement of Membership Obligations (SMOs) issue guidelines for the members to assist in implementation of â€Å"International standards† which are issued by IFAC and International Accounting Standard Board (IASB). The motto of SMOs is to provide pre-requisites for â€Å"quality assurance† and to investigate any disciplinary actions against any members. All the IFAC members also have to participate in a program which is in three parts. The main purpose of this programme is that it â€Å"seeks to understand whether and how the SMO requirements are being fulfilled†.  The information from this program helps the compliance committee to evaluate whether the members have prudently adhered to all the SMO requirements. These responses by the Members are taken on a periodical basis. Any changes in â€Å"legal and regulatory environment† or any other development made by any member is to be informed to this committee. This information is also updated in a questionnaire which is available online, by all  the members and if there are any changes  than the members are supposed to inform  the compliance committee which publishes these updated responses on IFAC website. Part 1 of this questionnaire is â€Å"Assessment of the Regulatory and Standard-Setting Framework†.  This Questionnaire provides information  from its members about their â€Å"regulatory and standard-setting framework in their jurisdiction†. Part 2 is â€Å"SMO Self Assessment† which requires members to fill  up a â€Å"self assessment questionnaire† which indicates how the members have incorporated or  implemented  international standards which are issued by IFAC and the IASB. This questionnaire also helps the committee to know whether all the members have adhered to professional standards set by the governing bodies. Part 3, of the questionnaire is about â€Å"Action Plans†. This questionnaire requires that members to â€Å"to develop action plans, including identifying tools, resources, and regulatory changes to address areas identified through the Part 2 self-assessment†. Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 questionnaires are accessible to public at large. Literature Review â€Å"Harmonization, standardization, and uniformity are all terms used in the literature and in previous research† (Iordanis N.Floropulos, 2006). According to Van der  Tas (1988): â€Å"Materially measurable harmonization is an increase in the degree of comparability and means that more companies in the same circumstances are applying the same accounting method to an event or giving additional information in such a way that the financial reports of more companies can be made comparable.’’ Harmonisation can be understood as a procedure by which the gap between different accounting practices are reduced (Doupnik,1987). Sir David Tweedie, Chairman of International Accounting Standards Board said â€Å" If they all use the same methods and the accounting for one transaction is the same in Sydney, as in Seattle, as in Strasburg, and in Sheffield , then they will know where they are, and there is a demand for that type of certainty.†(FEI 2001). Mark T.Bradshaw and Gregory S.Miller(2007) also reiterated the same and argued that the evidences are in favour of a single set of Accounting Standards which will â€Å"increase the comparability of accounting information across the countries that differ economically, politically ,and culturally†. Emphasising the need for a â€Å"common set of accounting standards† IASB, laid three broad objectives: a)  Improvement : Improvement in existing standards, b)  Convergence : Reducing the gap between different accounting standards followed in different geographical regions, c)  Leadership : Addressing issues not resolved and developing new standards( Geoffrey Whittington,2005) â€Å"The principles behind the adoption of International Accounting Standards by different countries have always been the subject of controversy in accounting literature† (D.Zeghal, K.Mhedhbi, 2006).India’s decision to converge to IFRS is perceived by many researchers as premature decision. Although harmonisation of accounting standards not only enhances the quality of financial reporting, increases the comparability of financial statements but without considering of â€Å"country specific environment factors† the logic/reasons for such convergence will be forfeited. Talaga and Ndubizu (1986) insisted â€Å"that a country’s accounting principles must be adapted to its local environmental conditions†. In fact, Perera(1989a) went much ahead and stated that â€Å"the accounting information produced according to developed countries is not relevant to the decision models of less developed countries†. Case studies by different researchers with respect to developing countries have not reached any consensus whether the convergence or so called â€Å"follow the Bandwagon approach† for IFRS’s will have or is having any positive effect on economic growth. It is yet to be seen that whether India will adopt IFRS or will converge its accounting standards to IFRS. Larson (1993) studied the economic growth effect of African countries with and without these standards. His results show a positive correlation in economic growth rate with adoption of IFRS’s when adapted with â€Å"country’s local condition†. But Woolley (1998) researched the effect of such convergence or adoption of IFRS’s in Asian countries and he concluded that there are â€Å"no significant differences in the economic growth rates†. This again emphasises the fact that researchers have distinct opinion on whether IFRS adoption results in better economic growth or does not have any significant role. Researchers like Wolk, Francis ,and Tearney (1989) argued that ,harmonisation of accounting standards is â€Å"beneficial for developing countries because it provides them with better-prepared standards as well the best quality accounting framework and principles†. Chamisa (2000) studied the â€Å"usefulness of IAS’’ for developing countries. In his case study of Zimbabwe, he argued that these standards do have a positive impact on the emerging financial markets in the developing countries. â€Å"Economic conditions are a major determinant in the development of a country’s accounting system† D Zeghal, K Mhedhbi (2006). No doubt with the present economic growth in India  which is presuming better than in any other developing nation, IFRS will definitely boost this growth. India, by adopting IFRS gives a platform for itself where the financials can be compared easily with the peers across the globe.  According to Alhashim and Arpan (1992), who argued that â€Å"environmental forces influencing accounting are economic forces, social forces, the legal system, culture, and the political system†.   Though the legal structure or political system or culture might have an impact of financial reporting but there are other factors which have greater impact than these. One of these can be the education standards of the professionals in a country. As IFRS are more principle based so lots of prudence will be required from the professionals .  Cooke and Wallace (1990) added to these and argued that factors such as Size of business, education level, history of country, level of wealth, their development of financial markets may have influence on accounting standards. Accounting standards are governed by economics and politics( Watts,1977 ; Watts and Zimmerman,1986) so convergence has more or less enhanced integration of markets and politics across the borders (Ball,1995). D Zeghal, K Mhedhbi (2006) gave five hypotheses on the basis of these environmental forces. In his first Hypothesis he argues that if the country economic growth increases then the chances of adoption of the International Accounting Standards increases. This hypothesis correlates with the present status of a country like India which is exponentially growing. To maintain this growth rate it needs to be in line with global standards which will increase it â€Å"legitimacy†. As a result of which the foreign investments will increase. In the second hypothesis he argues that the probability of adoption of IFRS increases with the increase in education level. This simply means that there is a positive relationship between educational level and the competence of the professional accountants. This hypothesis indicates that â€Å"in countries where the educational level is low and expertise is weak, there is a real barrier to the adoption of IAS†.  This infers that if a country wants to adopt IFRS then it needs to strengthen its educational level. This raises few concerns if test this hypothesis with the current situation in India where there is scarcity of experts who have good knowledge of IFRS. In his third Hypothesis which states that if a developing country has â€Å"high degree of external economic openness it will be more inclined to adopt IAS†. India being one of the fastest growing nations with increasing foreign investments is an ideal case for adoption of IFRS’s as per this hypothesis. Sir David Tweedier, IASB Chairman restating uniformity of accounting standards argued â€Å"As the world’s capital markets integrate, the logic of a single set of accounting standard is evident. A single set of international standards will enhance comparability of financial information and should make the allocation of capital across the borders more efficient. The development and acceptance of international standards should also reduce compliance costs for corporations and improve consistency in audit quality.† Abdelsalam and Weetman (2003) argued that a factor like â€Å"familiarity and language† seems to favour countries which are Anglo-American because of obvious reasons. One being Anglo-American predominantly had a greater influence in the formulation and development of IASB and the other being, English being language of communication. Chamisa (2000) found that he anticipates that the developing countries which have â€Å"Anglo-American culture† will find it easier to adopt IFRS. This becomes the Fourth Hypothesis. In his Fifth and final hypothesis D Zeghal and and K Mhedbi states that developing countries which have capital markets are most likely to adopt/converge to IFRS. This hypothesis emphasises the need and why India as a country should adopt IFRS. With the present scenario where all capital markets are hitting new lows, Indian markets are performing far better than any other markets across the globe. But one should always In a recent report by world bank, it has been reported that Asian countries are recovering from the present financial crises.  Research done by Adhikari and Tondkar (1992) showed the similar results, that adoption of a â€Å"particular accounting system† is effected by the existence of capital market. Adhikari Tondkar (1992) specifically argued that â€Å"country’s level of economic growth has a positive effect on the development of accounting system and practices†. L.L.Rodrigues, R.Craig(2007) in their research by using â€Å"Hegelian dialectic concept of thesis, antithesis and synthesis† gave  innovative approaches for convergence of  local accounting standards with IFRS’s. They went on to and argued that â€Å"in modern society, the global harmonization of accounting standards might be regarded as uncontroversial, unremarkable, and inevitable†. Hegel in his â€Å"theory of dialectic† laid a concept which states that â€Å"contradiction is regarded as the root of all change† (hegal, 1969). He argued that change is inevitable and brings in a new structure or a concept( a thesis) which always have contradictions, which is always opposite to what stated (antithesis) but which brings in something new which is in-between both the concepts(synthesis). Referring to this concept L.L.Rodrigues, R.Craig argued that A thesis to be a â€Å"support for globalization of accounting† and Antithesis can be said to be â€Å"conflict area† that means opposing globalization of accounting. As a consequence of thesis and antithesis another view is generated this is referred as synthesis. They outlined few proposals which arose due to thesis and antithesis.  In one of the proposals they argued that all the companies should follow their national accounting standards and prepare their financial statements accordingly. At the same time these companies should also enclose few annexure in the form of reconciliation with the International accounting standards (hoarau, 1995). In their second proposal they argued that countries should â€Å"seek regional harmonization of accounting standards† (European Union or ASEAN countries). Analysing the â€Å"regional paradigm† of harmonisation of accounting standards, Saudagaran and Diga (1997, p.2,16-7) claims that in 1997 European Union supported the idea of regional harmonisation and also in the year 1992-1993 AFA â€Å"pursued regional  harmonization as a policy objective†. Referring to The Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) which is an â€Å"an Islamic international autonomous non-for-profit corporate body that prepares accounting, auditing,  governance, ethics and  shari’a standards for Islamic financial institutions and the industry†. These standards â€Å"are either mandatory or used as guidelines by the regulators in.the kingdom of Bahrain, Dubai International financial centre ,Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, Sudan and Syria (http://www.aaoifi.com/overview.html). These arguments are in favour of â€Å"dual standards†. Also many countries have adopted IFRS but not for all companies rather they have two tier system. One for big corporate houses and the other for small and medium-sized entities (SMEs). Because it is the cost factor which is bothering these smaller entities. But this view is not supported by the big international accounting firms, who caution that â€Å"a two standard system, where some companies continue to use national GAAP ,may be difficult to maintain in the long run.[and] governments and national setters [should] develop formal convergence plans to eliminate these dual standards†(Larson and Street ,2004,p.113). L.L. Rodrigues and R.Craig also argued that companies might think full adoption of IFRS but practically it will more like to have â€Å"ostensible compliance† that is â€Å"in the form of window dressing to appease capital markets or other users of financial information†. Chand (2005) throws a caution on Developing countries who are tempted to be a part of so called IFRS compliance members without evaluation the â€Å"cost and benefit involved in implementing IFRS†. He also emphasises the need to â€Å"improve the level of professional expertise in IFRS† before adoption or convergence to IFRS. Similar caution was advised by Shyam Sunder (2009) in his commentary â€Å"IFRS and the Accounting Consensus† stating â€Å"Get aboard if you do not wish to be left behind on the platform† cannot be a reason to converge or adopt IFRS. He argues that the standards should be developed not just as rules but rather it should be restricted to principles. Secondly a single set of accounting standards should be applied to companies especially those which are traded as it helps investors/stakeholders to compare them with their peers across the globe. Further he argues that there should be a body which must be consisting of professionals and experts which can act as a regulatory just as Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) does in United States. He emphasis the need of educating professional to a level that they can interpret IFRS’s in a prudent manner. Financial Accounting Standard No. 157 (FASB 2006) which states that the companies can value their assets in any one of the three methods given in this standard. These methods are mark-to-market or mark-to-model or mark-to-judgement. The last method gives liberty to companies to value â€Å"as they deem fit†. Warren Buffet called this as â€Å"mark-to-myth†. Clarifications on such concept of â€Å"fair† valuation are needed as it gives an opportunity for accountants to mislead the users of the financial statements. He argues that the standard setters should minimize this â€Å"need for judgement† by properly responding to the queries/objections/sug gestions raised by the professionals on these standards. Shyam Sunder (2009) also stated a practical reason as far implementation of IFRS’s goes. He states any professional anywhere across the globe â€Å"who has been drilled to memorize the specifies† of their own national accounting standards will find it quite difficult to now thoroughly understand and cope up with the clauses of IFRS’s. Also there is only one language in these internationally acceptable accounting languages and that is English only. So those nations like China, Japan or say Italian or German would not find exact version of these standards. And we are talking about a common language of Financial Reporting. One of the past presidents of The Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAI) states â€Å"people who invest overseas naturally want to be able to keep track of the financial health of the securities issuers. Convergence of accounting standards is the only means to achieve this. Only talking the same language one can understand each other across borders†. N.C.Shil (2009) argues that though harmonisation will give an effect in the form of â€Å"global community as a single entity†. But there are major concerns when it comes to adoption of IFRS’s in United States where US GAAP is still functional. And it is yet to be seen as how far they will converge or they will just adopt. Secondly, different countries have â€Å"different legal, economic, social and cultural environments† and it is very essential to analyse these differences as they just cannot be written off just to make sure that we are in line with internationally acceptable reporting standards. Thirdly, they emphasised the need of implementation not just adoption. It is quite a tedious task to implement without adequate  regulatory authority. IFRS’s are principle based standards so again load of prudence will be required by the professionals who were implementing rules based accounting standards till date. Another issue which is inevitable is the scarcity of skilled manpower in developing countries. China has reported a â€Å"shortfall of 300,000 qualified accountants and is likely to require a further three million† in times to come (N.C.Shil, 2009). More or less the same is the condition if we talk about India. At present with the current state of affairs â€Å"The ROC Mumbai has over 150,000 registered companies out of which approximately 50 percent file their documents. Over 5,000 new companies are registered every year.ROC Mumbai has 4 staff who are employed to scrutinize these fillings, none of them of whom are Chartered Accountant or Company Secretaries’’.  Analyse the situation of now if India without a proper infrastructure (skilled manpower) adopt or converge to IFRS.   The concern at this hour is whether the adoption is â€Å"merely as a label† or there is a serious commitment to it. If the IFRS’s are adopted with such an  intension then this will lead to increase in  transparency , substantially  decrease â€Å"information asymmetry, uncertainty and estimation risk†, and as a will result in  Ã¢â‚¬Å"lower cost of capital and higher market liquidity†(Leuz and Verrecchia, 2000; Lambert et al., 2007a). This hypothesis was analysed by H.Daske,L.Hail,C.Leuz and R.Verdi (2007) who examined IFRS adoption by 24 countries between 1988 to 2004  and concluded that these the firms show a substantial decrease in cost of capital and exhibit â€Å"higher market liquidity† after converting themselves from their Local GAAP to IFRS.  The problem faced even by European countries was the lack of clarity at the time of first-time adoption of IFRS. This issue still persists and there are still no clarifications on â€Å"tra nsactions of specific nature such as pension and other post-retirement benefits† (R.K.Larson, D.L.Street 2004). â€Å"The focus tends to be on what the rules say, not on how they are implemented in practice’’  (Ray Ball, 2006). In practice this has been a major concern even in Europe where implementation is still a major concern. Developing countries like India need to understand that mere restructuring or reorganisation of the standard setting body would not resolve this crisis. But including Government agencies on their board will overcome this tedious task of implementation (Peter Carlson,1997). â€Å"The harmonisation of such standards is regarded to be neither practical nor truly valuable† (Goeltz, 1991, p.85) possibly because â€Å"investors may have developed adequate coping mechanism so that their financial decisions are not impeded†(Choi and Levich,1991,p.2) Because different users require different information it is difficult to satisfy their financial reporting needs with the constraints of a set of inter national accounting standards. A survey of 112 companies in India ,by Ernst Yong showed 67% of them welcomed the decision of convergence to IFRS. But majority of them were susceptible with the deadline set by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and the reasons stated were quite obvious. One being the cost, whether it up gradation of IT software or cost of skilled manpower. The other reason was the jugglery in the statutory laws. The Tax laws, Companies Act 1956  and all other statutory laws are yet to be modified and in a manner that they are in line with the IFRS regulations. Taking a clue from the nations who have already transited to IFRS India as a country needs to analyse the cost benefit ratio before implementing these IFRS regulations. â€Å"UK companies recorded an average of  £ 625,000 for IFRS conversion training in 2005†. Also Securities Exchange commission has reported that â€Å"average US corporation will spend nearly $ 32 million in IFRS adoption cost†. Also there is a mixed feeling of whether India will follow full IFRS regulations or will opt for â€Å"modified country specific version† like in European Union ,Singapore, Japan or Australia. Ray Ball(2006) on â€Å"International Financial reporting Standards: Pros and Cons† argued that without any doubts the â€Å"high quality† standards have now been  adopted by more than 100 countries is in itself commendable. On the other side he predicts the problems with the â€Å"fascination† of IASB and FASB with â€Å"fair value accounting†. When market prices are available, for any assets, then the opportunity of manipulation by managers decreases. However there is a flaw that the managers can still manipulate by using â€Å"mark-to-model† accounting. This particular clause in IFRS increases gives an opening to managers to fabricate the valuations as per their discretion. However , IASB and FASB are determined to go move ahead with â€Å"fair value accounting† and FASB member L.Todd Johnson commented â€Å"The Board has required greater use of fair value measurements in financial statements because it perceives that information as more relevant to investors and creditors than historical cost information. Such a measures better facilitate assessing their past performance and future prospects. In that regard, the Board does not accept the view that reliability should outweigh relevance for financial statement measures† Ball, Robin and Wu(2003) investigated â€Å"the relationship between accounting standards and the structure of other institutions on the attributes of financial reporting system†. The study was based on four Asian countries namely Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. They argued that these countries have a greater influence towards International Accounting Standards which as a result should produce high quality financial reporting. But the â€Å"institutional structures that provide incentives to issue low quality reports† (Robert W. Holthausen, 2003). Hence Ball, Robin and Wu predicted that outcome of such structure will have a negative impact of financial reporting. Researchers are also of the view that the manner in which the European Union is formed, in the same manner Asian Countries can come together and come to a common consensus which allows â€Å"free mobility of capital, Labour and enterprises across the national borders of its member countries†.( Peter Carlson, 1997). Inida History and Overview India is a Sovereign, Secular, Democratic Republic country. It has a Government or rather â€Å"Parliamentary system of Government†. The President is the constitutional head .In the states it is the Governor who acts as a representative of the president. There are 28 states and 7 Union territories. Each and every part of the country has a different and unique â€Å"demography, history and culture, dress, festivals, languages etc†. India is â€Å"seventh-largest country by its geographical area, second most populous country and the most populous democracy in the world†. In India, responsibility of maintaining high standards in accounting, auditing and ethical standards are bestowed on the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). The Institute was established in 1949 under an act of Parliament. The headquarters of this accounting body is in New Delhi. The Institute also has five regional offices situated in Mumbai, Chennai, Kanpur, Kolkata, and New Delhi, along with these regional offices the Institute has 117 branches across the country. The Institute has also 19 chapters outside India and an office in Dubai. Presently the Institute has enrolled 350,000 students and 140,000 members. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India is presently the Second largest accounting Body in the world. The Institute has maintained high standards of applicability of Accounting and Ethical standards in India. Except the recent saga of Satyam Computers no major incidence of this stature had ever been reported from India. Applicability of IFRS in India Under the new system the following companies or entities will have to comply with the IFRS requirements: a)  Companies which are listed in any of the recognised stock exchanges. b)  Banks, Insurance companies and Financial Institutions c)  Companies which in the preceding year had a turnover or more than Rs 1 billion. d)  Companies which in the preceding year had borrowings in excess of Rs 250 million. e)  Holding or subsidiary of any of the above companies At present IFRS is not applicable to SME’s. Differences between the prsent regime under local GAAP and IFRS There are issues which really putting doubts in the mind of professionals or the users of financial statement which needs immediate attention. Following are few of them: 1)  As per the companies act 1956, there are specified rates for depreciation to be charged to assets by every company. The clause states that every company must charge a minimum rate of depreciation to each and every asset held. IFRS does not recognise this concept of â€Å"minimum depreciation†. 2)  In India, every amalgamation must be approved by the High Court. There is no such obligation in IFRS regulation. 3)  Clause 41 of the listing agreement clearly states that there should be a separate presentation of  extraordinary items in the financial reporting of the listed companies whereas IFRS prohibits such presentation of extra-ordinary items. 4)  IFRS conversion will have a direct impact on the reporting of Indian Banks. The transition to IFRS will affect reported net-worth, capital adequacy and available capital for all Indian Banks.  Report on â€Å"IFRS convergence: Challenges and Implementation Approaches for Banks in India† argues that there will be a â€Å"significant impact† on the Banking industry in India particularly in the reporting of Financial Instruments, Derivatives and provisions to be made in case of loss on loans and advances. The† Financial parameters† such as Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) and â€Å"valuation metrics† on the basis of which the analysis is done, predictions on future aspects of the company are made will change drastically once IFRS is implemented.

Loss of Innocence in To Kill a Mockingbird :: Free Essay Writer

Loss of Innocence in To Kill a Mockingbird  Ã‚   "Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets turned to red slop; grass grew on the sidewalks, the courthouse sagged in the square."(Lee 9). This environment, as Scout Finch accurately describes, is not conducive to young children, loud noises, and games. But, the Finch children and Dill must occupy themselves in order to avoid boredom. Their surroundings are their boundaries, but in their minds, they have no physical confines. Although the physical "boundaries were Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose's house two doors to the north..., and the Radley Place three doors to the south,"(Lee 11) Jem, Scout, and Dill find ways to use the limits, in conjunction with their imaginations, to amuse themselves. The children are the ones who change the old town and make it full of unexpected events. In the same way as the children, the adults of the novel play games that come from their imaginations and, they themselves are the ones who provide t he fear for everyone in the county to fear. "Maycomb County had recently been told that it had nothing to fear but fear itself"(10). The adults and the children share the fact that they both play games, but a difference also exists between them. The children enact their entertainment, knowing that the games could get violent, but in the end, when the games are over, all the players are able to return home. On the other hand, the adults play their adult games, hurting anyone who does not play by the given rules, and not everyone is fortunate enough to return home. The children pretend to be violent at times but the adults actually are violent. As the children move through the novel, they use these games to develop from their innocence to a level of experience by actualizing the realities of their games through the lives of the adults. Through their own games and through the games of the adults, the children learn values of respect, courage, and understanding. As most children naturally do, Jem, Scout, and their newly-found friend Dill find amusements to make the days pass with excitement. When they first meet Dill, they are beginning the "day's play in the backyard"(11). The implication is that it becomes routine for them to play and that each day brings on a different experience.

Country of Origin Meat Labeling :: essays research papers

A large problem that has arose in our country is Country of Origin (COO) meat labeling. Imported meat is not labeled with its origin and has become a great problem because of the lack of universal packaging and processing laws. The United States imports meat from 26 foreign countries. This means when you buy a package of hamburger from your local grocery store it could contain meat from anywhere in the world. Other countries meat isn’t the same quality as US meat. Some meat comes from countries such as china where it is legal to feed livestock ground up bone meal from scraped animals. In which that bone meal can carry such diseases such as mad cow disease or a variety of other ailments. Other variances to US policy are things such as pesticides (rodent killer), insecticides (bug killer), and herbicides (weed killer). And when these poisons are used around livestock, they eat them also and are incorporated into the meat you buy at the supermarket. Furthermore, some foreign countries have no sanitation in the way livestock are produced. Some are grown on disease and urine infected water and food. So without labeling of meat origins, the consumer does not know what they are buying which should be immediately changed. The opposition to meat labeling laws claims it is â€Å"too much regulation and cost to gyrate through unnecessary protocols just to label the meat†. But obviously the opposition really has no defense and just doesn’t want their product to plummet once the truth is shown to the consumer. Once labels are applied to meat countries with notorious standards and unsanitary practices will be justly shut out of the market.

Wuthering Heights, Chapters 11-23 :: Free Essay Writer

Wuthering Heights, Chapters 11-23 Chapters 11-12 After her long absence from Wuthering Heights, Nelly decides to return in order to speak with Hindley. However, instead she meets Hareton who does not remember her and greets her with a hail of stones and curses. No doubt these actions have been copied from Heathcliff. Nelly runs away. The next day, Heathcliff comes to the Grange and embraces Isabella, much to the annoyance of Cathy. Heathcliff tells her ‘I’m not your husband, you needn’t be jealous of me.’ Edgar challenges Cathy and Heathcliff regarding their relationship. Heathcliff takes the position that Cathy has wronged him and that he will be revenged. Cathy taunts Edgar encouraging him to fight with Heathcliff. Edgar strikes Heathcliff and then goes to get assistance in order to have him removed from the house. Heathcliff, realizing that he will be outnumbered, leaves. Cathy is asked to choose between Heathcliff and Edgar, but Cathy will not answer her husband. Instead, she locks herself in her room refusing to eat. Edgar then decides to persuade his sister Isabella to pursue Heathcliff, as their relationship would end the link between Cathy and Heathcliff. After a few days without food, Cathy calls for Edgar begging forgiveness. She is delirious and talks about her childhood with Heathcliff and she has a foreboding of her death. Nelly insists on keeping the windows in her bedroom closed, but Cathy staggers to them and throws them open claiming she can see Wuthering Heights. She goes on to speak about her death, but that she will wander the world until she is with Heathcliff. Edgar is appalled to find Cathy in such a weakened state and scolds Nelly for not telling him sooner. That night Isabella runs away with Heathcliff and Edgar disowns his sister for this scandal. The doctor arrives and predicts that Cathy will not survive the illness. Chapter 13-15 Cathy is in fact pregnant and Edgar tries to nurse her back to health. He hopes for a male heir. Isabella has married Heathcliff and writes to Edgar begging his forgiveness, but this is ignored. She then writes to Nelly and asks her to visit Wuthering Heights. She is distraught at the way Heathcliff treats her. In the letter she tells of her loneliness, as Hareton, Joseph and Hindley are rude to her. She regrets having married Heathcliff and cannot see any way for her to escape. When Heathcliff learns of Cathy’s illness he blames Edgar for this. Nelly visits Wuthering Heights, but she can give no words of comfort to Isabella from Edgar who still will have no contact with her. Heathcliff is eager to learn about Cathy’s situation, clearly hurting

Bangladesh’s National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) Essay

Due to Bangladesh’s extreme vulnerability to climate related impacts, adaptation is necessary for the political and economic survival of the country (Ali, 1999; Sajjaduzzaman et al, 2005). Since developing countries have been historically less responsible for the emissions that cause climate change, it is the responsibility of developed countries to finance the cost of adaptation in addition to development aid commitments (Article 4.4 UNFCCC, 1992). To this end, the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) provides support for adaptation under a global governance system, and has made National Adaptation Programs of Action (NAPA) a requirement for all Least Developed Countries (LDCs) in order to provide the space for participatory approaches and community-level inputs in adaptation policy-making (Ayers et al, 2009). Here, the rationale is that the impacts of climate change are experienced locally, so adaptation programs need to be formulated and implemented at the local level (Ayers 2011). The Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LEG) affirms that â€Å"†¦ early engagement of people at the grassroots level will be important in ensuring successful implementation of NAPA initiatives† (LEG, 2002:2). The Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF), together with the United Nations Development Program and the Global Environment Facility, has provided funding for its highest priority NAPA project: a $10.8 billion Coastal Afforestation project (20102013) which aims to reduce â€Å"†¦ climate  change hazards through coastal afforestation with community participation† in the coastal districts of Barguna and Patuakhali (Western Region), Chittagong (Eastern Region), Bhola, and Noakhali (Central Region) (Figure 1) (Ministry Of Environment and Forestry (MOEF, 2005:24). Bangladesh is  one of the first countries to implement a community-based adaptation (CBA) project as part of its NAPA, and intends on using this project as a template for other vulnerable regions in Bangladesh (MOEF, 2008). Before this project is used as a template, it is important to analyse its effectiveness. This report will explore the role of the UNFCCC’s NAPA scheme in supporting or hindering a participatory approach to adaptation in Bangladesh’s CBA coastal afforestation project. Specifically, the focus question will be whether the coastal afforestation project is effective in facilitating adaptation at the grassroots level. BACKGROUND The Bangladesh NAPA identifies coastal communities as being the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and proposes 15 projects that would meet their â€Å"urgent and immediate adaptation needs† (MOEF, 2005:4). The vulnerability of coastal communities in Bangladesh is also emphasised in the Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC, 2001). Coastal zones are the highest priority sector in the NAPA due to the importance of the economic resources being affected, the urgency, severity and certainty of severe climate change impacts, and because coastal areas comprise 32% of the countries land space, with over 35 million people living just 1m above sea level (Agrawala et al, 2003). Bangladesh’s flat deltaic topography with low elevation and its geographical location that sits at the intersection of three river basins puts it at risk of flooding and tidal inundation, droughts, tropical cyclones and storm surges (Rawlani and Sovacool, 2011). In addition, Bangladesh is exposed to impacts from the melting of the Indian and Himalayan glaciers (Rawlani and Sovacool, 2011). These factors combined mean that every area in Bangladesh is prone to four types of floods- flash floods, riverine floods, rain floods, and storm surge floods (Figure 2) (Mirza, 2002). Furthermore, all sectors and regions of  Bangladesh are vulnerable the impacts of climate change (Figure 3) (Rawlani and Sovacool, 2011). The sites for the coastal afforestation project were selected based on their extreme vulnerability to climate change impacts (MOEF 2008). METHODOLOGY Adaptation refers to adjustments in ecological, social and economic systems in response to the impacts of climate change (IPCC, 2007). Whereas adaptive capacity is the ability of a system to adjust to the impacts of climate change- to moderate potential damages, take advantage of opportunities, or cope with the consequences, resilience goes further to include the degree the system is capable of selforganisation, and able to learn and adapt to changes (Folke, 2006; Jerneck and Olsen, 2008; Magis, 2010). For this reason, a resilience framework with the following criteria will be used to analyse the effectiveness of the coastal afforestation project: Diversity in adaptation approaches involving a mix of technological, ecosystem based, governance and behavioural adaptation approaches. Effective governance and institutions that are seen as legitimate are critical for delivering sustainable adaptation outcomes (Bahadur et al, 2013). This is because they can facilitate learning and â€Å"experiment in safe ways, monitor results, update assessments, and modify policy as new  knowledge is gained† (Carpenter et al, 2001:778). Preparedness and planning requires relevant and timely information, and integration with existing institutional processes (Bahadur et al, 2013). An acceptance of uncertainty and change at all scales- individual, organisational and systemic- to adjust adaptation actions to changing circumstances so that co-benefits can be realised and perverse outcomes avoided (Bahadur et al, 2013). The level of community involvement and ownership is essential as to ensuring projects reach the most vulnerable (Bahadur et al, 2013). This is a key factor in reducing vulnerability to climate change under CBA (Pouliotte et al, 2009). Mainstreaming climate change into development planning to achieve climate resilient development is necessary for reducing vulnerability to climate change (Bahadur et al, 2013:55). COMPARISON The NAPA project demonstrates systems thinking by a willingness to learn from past policy mistakes. The Forestry Department has adopted a more participatory approach to forest management due to criticisms that past projects resulted in overharvesting and overgrazing due to a lack of community ownership over coastal mangroves (Rawlani and Sovacool, 2011). Since the1980s, rising poverty and population growth combined with an  absence of land-use policies has resulted in a loss of over 40,000 ha of forests along the eastern and central coasts of Bangladesh due to clearing for agriculture, shrimp farming, salt pan and settlements (MOEF, 2008). The project document reviews these past issues and has put in place measures for livelihood diversification so that natural resources are not exploited (MOEF, 2008). The project aims to diversify livelihoods through its â€Å"triple f† model of â€Å"Forest, Fish, and Food†, which integrates aquaculture and food production within the afforested and reforested plantations so that community income sources are diversified (Sovacool et al, 2012). The FFF model currently focuses on drought and flood resistance fruit and vegetable crops. Through a combination of agriculture, fishing and producing palm oil the project has so far provided an income stream for 1,150 families and community training on nursery and plantation management to 12,200 coastal people (Rawlani and Sovacool, 2011). However, as one local states, â€Å"we have developed saline tolerant crop varieties but the concentration of salinity is going up. We cant keep on producing crops when land is flooded and water salty†¦ Adaptation has its limits† (Rawlani and Sovacool, 2011: 860). Evidently, the FFF model fails to encourage a diversity of livelihood options, and thus equip locals with the adaptive capacity to adjust adaptation actions to changing circumstances. By contrast, an NGO in the village of Subarnabad- the Institute of Development Education for Advancement of Landless (IDEAL)- has implemented a CBA project that allows the community to choose their own livelihood options (Figure 5), thus giving them full ownership and providing a range of options so that they can adjust their income streams if circumstances change. The climate impacts emphasised by the NAPA project correlate with community responses recorded in an independent household survey in one of the target sites, the Noakhali village (Figure 4) (Ayers, 2011). However, the adaptation options listed by respondents focused on addressing systemic issues like lack of access to  government services and NGOs, high poverty rates, low social mobilisation, low literacy rates and insecure land tenure (Ayers, 2011). Coastal afforestation was never raised as a priority adaptation option (Ayers,  2011). The project has sponsored 6000ha of community-based mangrove plantations, 500ha of non-mangrove mount plantations, 220ha of dykes, 1000km of embankments, and building sea gates to prevent salt water intrusion into rivers (Sovacool et al, 2012). These initiatives reveal the project’s focus on reducing the physical exposure to climate change impacts (Ayers, 2011). However, respondents in Noakhali framed risk in terms of addressing development issues that cause vulnerabilities to climate change impacts in the first place (Ayers, 2011). One example is the project’s introduction of early warning information and disaster preparedness systems in 20 of the most vulnerable towns (MOEF, 2008). In discussions about the risks of cyclones and storms with fishermen in Noakhali, they revealed that information provision was not the problem- radios had already been provided by a local Red Crescent program, but financial pressure to pay back the loans meant that fisherman would ignore the bad weather warnings (Ayers, 2011). Therefore the preferable adaptation option here would be putting in place a better micro-credit system. This case illustrates the importance of addressing the underlying issues that expose vulnerable groups to climate change impacts. It also shows that a lack of coordination between government and existing institutions can waste funding and exacerbate vulnerabilities. Therefore, community involvement in identifying vulnerabilities and adaptation responses is essential to building resilience on the ground. DISCUSSION A lack of community involvement and ownership over the implementation of the project can be attributed to the NAPA preparation process. The process involved consultation with local level stakeholders- representatives from local government, local NGOs, farmers and women- through regional consultation workshops (Ayers, 2011). However, power dynamics within communities meant that politically powerful stakeholders dominated the discussions to the exclusion of less powerful stakeholders- basically, the most vulnerable were not involved in the NAPA preparation process (Ayers, 2011). Furthermore, the participation of local stakeholders focused on prioritising pre-identified adaptation options (Ayers, 2011). This ‘top down’ approach combined with the framing of ‘risks’ as climate  change impacts rather than vulnerabilities explains why the adaptation options in the NAPA conflict with those prioritised by the targeted communities (Ayers, 2011). This is due to a global framework of adaptation that â€Å"†¦ casts adaptation as a response to the ‘additional’ impacts of climate change†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ â€Å"rather than the factors that make people vulnerable to these changes (which are often closely connected to existing development needs and problems)† (Ayers, 2011:63). The LEG (2002) guidelines stress the importance of â€Å"bottom-up, participatory approaches† (2) to adaptation and the NAPA project emphasises â€Å"the participation of men and women at the grassroots- level†(MOEF, 2008:22), so what institutional approach is needed to meet these ends? Ayers et al (2009) suggest reframing the adaptation discourse under the UNFCCC in terms of vulnerability instead of impacts, as this would allow vulnerable communities to identify, prioritise and implement climate resilient development activities and thus operationalize CBA. CBA requires an engagement with local institutional structures-be it public, private or civil societyfrom the beginning of the NAPA development process- to ascertain which institutions or features of institutions are needed for climate resilient development in that particular context (Ayers et al, 2010).  In practise, this means more coordination between the government of Bangladesh and local institutions to develo p mechanisms for mainstreaming climate resilient development. Opportunities for collaboration already exist in Bangladesh, but need to be harnessed. For example, the NGO IDEAL has successfully implemented CBA in the South-Western village of Subarnabad by providing training and technical support as well as access to loans and a savings bank to adopt new livelihoods strategies of their choosing to suit their situation (Pouliotte, 2009) (Figure 5). In turn, this has had a mobilising effect on the community, which can be seen in the strategies being employed without the help of the NGO- by learning from neighbours and building networks (Pouliotte, 2009). The effect of this project in reducing vulnerabilities by diversifying livelihood options shows that climate change adaptation activities need to be built into community driven development programs. Another NGO in Bangladesh, The Arsenic Mitigation and Research Foundation (AMRF), has facilitated the establishment of ‘Village Committees’ made up of women in arsenic-affected  villages who collect 3 Dhakas from each resident per month and lobby local government for funding to not only operate and maintain the deep tube wells, but also encourage activities in other sectors like education, sanitation, and village infrastructure (Rammelt et al, 2011). These committees have the funding, lobbying power, and legitimacy to potentially carry out climate resilience development programs as well. A barrier for LDCs to mainstreaming climate change into development planning is the funding issue of ‘additionality’. This is why deepening community involvement through community-based organisations- in collaboration with government- is the institutional approach needed to carry out climate resilient development. CONCLUSION Although the NAPA project in Bangladesh reflects community perceptions on the impacts of climate change, vulnerable communities were given little opportunity to identify and address the underlying development issues that cause vulnerability to such impacts (Ayers, 2011). This exposes the problem with facilitating CBA within the confines of impacts-based adaptation policy-making under the UNFCCC. Therefore a new framework is needed that defines adaptation more broadly; that addresses the drivers of vulnerability, and recognises that â€Å"development is risk management†Ã‚  (Commission on Climate Change and Development, 2009: 9). APPENDIX Figure 1 Source: MOEF 2008:4 Figure 2 Source: Mirza et al, 2003:48 Figure 3 Source: Rawlani and Savacool, 2011:863 Figure 4 Source: Ayers, 2011:74 Figure 5 Source: Pouliotte et al, 2009:42 Reference list Ali, A (1999) Climate change impacts and adaptation assessment in Bangladesh, Climate Research, 12: 109-116 Agrawala, S, Ota, T, Ahmed, A.U, Smith, J, van Aalst, M (2003) Development and climate change in Bangladesh: focus on coastal flooding and the Sundarbans, OECD, Paris Available at: http://www.oecd.org/env/cc/21055658.pdf Accessed: 25 July, 2013 Agrawal, A (2008) The role of local institutions in adaptation to climate change, Social Development Department, World Bank, Washington, March Available at: http://www.icarus.info/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/agrawal- adaptation-institutions-livelihoods.pdf Accessed: 25 July, 2013 Ayers, J (2011) Resolving the adaptation paradox: exploring the potential for deliberative policy-making in Bangladesh, Global Environmental Politics, 11(1): 62-89 Ayers, J, Dodman, D (2010) Climate change adaptation and development: the state of the debate, Progress in Development Studies, 27 (6):161-168 Ayers, J, Huq, S (2009) Supporting adaptation through development: what role for ODA? Development Policy Review, 27 (6): 659-784 Bahadur, A.V, Ibrahim, M, Tanner, T (2013) Characterizing resilience: unpacking the concept for tackling climate change and development, Climate and Development, 5 (1):55-65 Commission on Climate Change and Development (2009) The human dimension of climate adaptation: the importance of local and institutional issues, April Available at: http://www.ccdcommission.org/Filer/report/HUMAN_DIMENSIONS.pdf Accessed: 26 July, 2013 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 2007b, Australia and New Zealand. Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Available at: http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/ar4/wg2/en/contents.html Accessed: 15 July, 2013 IPCC (2001) The Science of Climate Change, Third Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel of Climate Change, Available at: http://www.ipcc.ch/publications_and_data/publications_and_data_reports.shtml#. Ufpg2T89UN Accessed: 26 July, 2013 Folke, C (2006) Resilience: the emergence of a perspective for social-ecological systems analyses, Global Environmental Change, 16(3):253-267 Jerneck, A, Olsson, L (2008) Adaptation and the poor: development, resilience and transition, Climate Policy 8, 170-182 Magis, K (2010) Community resilience: an indicator of social sustainability, Society and Natural Resources, 23:401-416 Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) (2005), National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA), Bangladesh Available at: http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/napa/ban01.pdf Accessed: 20 July, 2013 Ministry of Environment and Forests (2008) Community- based adaptation to climate change through costal afforestation in Bangladesh, Bangladesh Mirza, N.M.Q, (2002) Global warming and changes in the probability of occurrences of floods in Bangladesh and implications, Global Environment and Change, 12:127138 Pouliotte, J, Smit, B, Westerhoff, L (2009) Adaptation and development: livlihoods and climate change in Subarnabad, Bangladesh, Climate and Development, 1:31-46 Rammelt, C, Masud, Z.MD, Boes, J, Masud, F, Masud, A (2011) Beyond medical treatment, arsenic poisoning in rural Bangladesh, Social Medicine, 6(1): 22-30 Rawlani, A.K, Savacool, B.K (2011) Building responsiveness to climate change through community based adaptation in Bangladesh, Mitigation and Adaptation strategies for global change, 16:845-863 Sajjaduzzaman M.M, Koike, N (2005) Mangrove plantation destruction in Noakhali Coastal Forests in Bangladesh: a case study on causes, consequences, and model prescription to halt deforestation, International Journal of Agriculture and Biology 7 (5):732-734 Sovacool, B.K, D’Agostino, A.L, Meenawat, H, Rawlani, A (2012) Expert views of climate change adaptation in least developed Asia, Journal of Environmental Management, 97:78-88 Sovacool, B.K, D’Agostino,A.L, Rawlani, A, Meenawat, H (2012) Improving climate change adaptation in least developed Asia, Environmental Science and Policy, 21:112-125 UNFCCC/LEG (Least Developed Countries Expert Group) (2002) Annotated guidelines for the preparation of National Adaptation Programs of Action (NAPA), Bonn, July Available at http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/publications/annguid_e.pdf Accessed: 25 July, 2013 UNFCCC(1992) The United Nations Convention on Climate Change Available at: http://unfccc.int/resource/docs/convkp/conveng.pdf Accessed: 24 July 2013