Western Farmers Dbq

From 1880-1906, western farmers were affected by multiple issues that they saw as threats to their way of life. The main threats to the farmers were railroads, trusts, and the government, because these institutions all had the power to drastically affect the ability of the farmers to make profits. Therefore, the farmers were not wrong to feel frustration toward those institutions when the institutions caused the farmers to live lives of increasingly extreme poverty.The main source of agrarian discontent with the railroads was a result of the rising railroad rates that made it increasingly difficult for the farmers to make a decent living by shipping their crops via freight trains. In a book called The Octopus, a farmer named Dyke planned to ship his hops and was shocked upon discovering that the railroad rate had increased from two cents per pound to five cents per pound, rendering him unable to make any profit at all (Document H).This practice of raising the railroad rates without w arning was unfair to the farmers and made it virtually impossible for any farmer to make a profit by shipping his crops. The farmers were also largely affected by the activity of trusts and banks and the control that trusts exerted on their particular lines of business. In a book by James B. Weaver the argument is made that trusts were in complete control of the situation, having power over both the producer of raw materials and the consumer of the products (Document F).In most cases, the farmers fell under both categories, and the trusts often took full advantage, buying raw goods from farmers at very low prices that made it very difficult for farmers to profit and selling back the completed goods at high prices the farmers could barely afford if at all. The Eastern banking conglomerates were especially powerful due to their ability to call in debts and repossess homes of the farmers. The picture in The Farmer’s Voice, a Chicago newspaper from the late 1880s, depicts the pow er an eastern banker held over the poor western farmers who are unable to pay their bills.The trusts did have an extremely high degree of control with little to no opposition, so the farmers were right to disapprove of trusts and call for legislation to disband them. The government’s actions concerning the inflation of the American dollar were extremely detrimental to the ability of the average farmer to make a living. In president William McKinley’s acceptance speech in 1896 (Document B), McKinley argues that free silver would decrease the value of money, and â€Å"no one suffers so much from cheap money as the farmers and laborers. The decrease in the value of money caused by inflation would make the farmers’ crops almost worthless. The farmers’ complaints regarding the government were valid due to the failure of the government to stop inflation, which is shown in the table comparing the population to the money in circulation (Document C). The amount o f money in circulation increased constantly from 1880 to 1895. It could be argued from the railroads’ point of view that if the prices weren’t increased to keep up with inflation, the railroads would be unable to make profit.In a testimony before the Senate Cullom Committee, George W. Parker, vice-president of the Cairo Short Line Railroad, testified that if the railroads kept their prices at constant levels, they would go bankrupt (Document G). However, the main problem with the railroads the farmers had was not necessarily the rising prices, but the fact that the prices rose without warning. It was extremely difficult to plan shipments and end up making profits. J. Lawrence Laughlin wrote that the farmers are wrong to blame the decrease in prices of wheat on the scarcity of gold (Document E).Laughlin claimed that such a decrease was simply a result of global overproduction of wheat. While he made a valid point, it did not change the fact that wheat prices were still extremely low and the government could still have been at fault. The farmers still had reason to be angry at the government due to the government’s failure to protect the farmers from such a global overproduction by implementing a tariff on foreign wheat and its failure to regulate railroads and trusts, leaving them free to excavate the pockets of the farmers as deeply as they pleased.It was certainly not easy being a western farmer in the late 19th century to the early 20th century. The farmers were complete slaves to the more powerful industries, especially the railroads. The farmers had valid reasons to be discontent with the circumstances. The railroads and other trusts had complete control of the markets and trade systems, while farmers faced constantly rising shipment prices and constantly decreasing crop prices and sales. The government simply stood idly by and watched the farmers be manipulated and taken advantage of by the titans of industry, forcing the farmers into increasingly severe poverty.

A Dirty Job Chapter 13

13 CRY HAVOC, AND LET SLIP THE GOGS OF WAR! Watching Madeline Alby die had shaken Charlie. It wasn't her death so much, it was the life he'd seen in her minutes before she passed. He thought: If you have to stare Death in the eye to be able to take the life out of your moments, then who better to do it than the man who shaves Death's face? â€Å"Cheese wasn't in the book,† Charlie said to Sophie as he walked her out of the shop in her new runner's stroller – which looked like someone had crossbred a carbon-fiber bicycle and a baby carriage and ended up with a vehicle you could use to take a day trip to Thunderdome – but it was strong, easy to push, and kept Sophie safely wrapped in an aluminum frame. Because of the cheese, he didn't make her wear her helmet. He wanted her to be able to look around, see the world around her, and be in it. It was watching Madeline Alby eat cheese with every ounce of her being, like it was the first and best time, that made him realize that he had never really tasted cheese, or crackers, or life. And he didn't want his daughter to live that way. He'd moved her into her own room the night before, the bedroom that Rachel had decorated for her with clouds painted on the ceiling and a happy balloon carrying a happy bunch of animal friends across the sky in its basket. He hadn't slept well, and had gotten up five times during the night to check on her, only to find her sleeping peacefully, but he could lose a little sleep if Sophie could go through life without his fears and limitations. He wanted her to experience all the glorious cheese of life. They strolled through North Beach. He stopped and bought a coffee for himself and some apple juice for Sophie. They shared a giant peanut-butter cookie, and a crowd of pigeons followed them down the sidewalk feasting on the river of crumbs that flowed from Sophie's stroller. The World Cup soccer championships was playing on televisions in bars and cafs, and people spilled out onto the sidewalks and out into the street, watching the game, cheering, jeering, hugging, swearing, and generally acting out waves of elation and dejection in the company of new companions who were visiting this Italian-American neighborhood from all around the world. Sophie cheered with the soccer fans and shrieked with joy because they were happy. When the crowd was disappointed – a kick blocked, a play foiled – Sophie was distressed, and would look to her daddy to fix it and make everyone happy again. And Daddy did, because a few seconds later, they were all cheering again. A tall German man ta ught Sophie to sing â€Å"Goooooooooooooooooooooal!† the way the announcer did, practicing with her until she got the full five-second sustain, and she was still practicing three blocks away, when Charlie had to shrug at confused onlookers as if to say, The kid's a soccer fan, what can you do? As naptime approached, Charlie looped through the neighborhood and headed up through Washington Square Park, where people were reading and lounging in the shade, a guy played guitar and sang Dylan songs for change, two white Rasta boys kicked a Hacky Sack around, and people were generally settling in for a pleasant and windless summer day. Charlie spied a black kitten sneaking out of a hedge near busy Columbus Avenue, stalking a wild McMuffin wrapper, it appeared, and he pointed it out to Sophie. â€Å"Look, Sophie, kitty.† Charlie felt bad about the demise of Bear, the cockroach. Maybe this afternoon he'd go to the pet shop and get a new friend for Sophie. Sophie screamed with glee and pointed to the little cat. â€Å"Can you say ‘kitty'?† Charlie said. Sophie pointed, and gave a drooly grin. â€Å"Would you like a kitty? Can you say ‘kitty,' Sophie?† Sophie pointed to the cat. â€Å"Kitty,† she said. The little cat dropped on the spot, dead. Fresh Music,† Minty Fresh answered the phone, his voice a bass sax sketch of cool jazz. â€Å"What the fuck is this? You didn't say anything about this? The book didn't say anything about this? What the fuck is going on?† â€Å"You'll be wanting the library or a church,† Minty said. â€Å"This is a record store, we don't answer general questions.† â€Å"This is Charlie Asher. What the fuck did you do? What have you done to my little girl?† Minty frowned and ran his hand over his scalp. He'd forgotten to shave this morning. He should have known something was going to go wrong. â€Å"Charlie, you can't call me. I told you that. I'm sorry if something has happened to your little girl, but I promise you that I – â€Å" â€Å"She pointed at a kitten and said ‘kitty' and it fell over, stone dead.† â€Å"Well, that is an unfortunate coincidence, Charlie, but kittens do have a pretty high mortality rate.† â€Å"Yeah, well, then she pointed to an old guy feeding the pigeons and said ‘kitty' and he dropped over dead, too.† Minty Fresh was glad that there was no one in the store right then to see the look on his face, because he was sure that the full impact of the willies dancing up and down his spine was blowing his appearance of unflappable chill. â€Å"That child has a speech disorder, Charlie. You should have her looked at.† â€Å"A speech disorder! A speech disorder! A cute lisp is a speech disorder. My daughter kills people with the word kitty. I had to keep my hand over her mouth all the way home. There's probably video somewhere. People thought I was one of those people who beats their kid in department stores.† â€Å"Don't be ridiculous, Charlie, people love the parents who beat their kids in department stores. It's the ones who just let their kids wreak havoc that everybody hates.† â€Å"Can we stay on point, Fresh, please? What do you know about this? What have you figured out in all your years as a Death Merchant?† Minty Fresh sat down on the stool behind the counter and stared into the eyes of the cardboard cutout of Cher, hoping to find answers there. But the bitch was holding out. â€Å"Charlie, I got nothin'. The kid was in the room when you saw me, and you saw what it did to you. Who knows what it did to her. I told you I thought you were in a different league than the rest of us, well, maybe the kid is something else, too. I've never heard of a Death Merchant who could just ‘kitty' someone to death, or cause anyone to die outside of normal, mortal means. Have you tried having her use other words? Like puppy?† â€Å"Yeah, I was going to do that, but I thought it might fuck up property values if everyone in my neighborhood suddenly fell over dead! No, I didn't try any other words. I don't even want to make her eat her green beans for fear she'll kitty me.† â€Å"I'm sure you have some kind of immunity.† â€Å"The Great Big Book says that we're not immune to death ourselves. I'd say the next time a kitten comes on the Discovery Channel my sister could be picking out caskets.† â€Å"I'm sorry, Charlie, I don't know what to tell you. I'll check out my library at home, but it sounds like the kid is a lot closer than we are to how all the legends portray Death. Things tend to balance, however, maybe there's some positive side to this, uh, disorder she has. In the meantime, maybe you should head over to Berkeley, see if you can find anything at the library there. It's a repository library – every book that's printed goes there.† â€Å"Haven't you tried that?† â€Å"Yes, but I wasn't looking for something specific like this. Look, just be careful going over. Don't take the BART tunnel.† â€Å"You think the sewer harpies are in the BART tunnels?† Charlie asked. â€Å"Sewer harpies? What's that?† â€Å"It's what I call them,† Charlie said. â€Å"Oh. I don't know. It's underground, and I've been on a train when the power goes out. I don't think you want to risk it. It feels like their territory. Speaking of that, from my end they've been conspicuously silent for the last six months or so. Not a peep.† â€Å"Yeah, the same here,† Charlie said. â€Å"But I suppose this phone call might change that.† â€Å"Yeah, it probably will. But with your daughter's condition, we might be in a whole new game, too. You watch your ass, Charlie Asher.† â€Å"You, too, Minty.† â€Å"Mr. Fresh.† â€Å"I meant Mr. Fresh.† â€Å"Good-bye, Charlie.† In his cabin on the great ship, Orcus picked his teeth with the splintered femur of an infant. Babd combed his black mane with her claws as the bullheaded death pondered what the Morrigan had seen from the drain on Columbus Avenue: Charlie and Sophie in the park. â€Å"It is time,† said Nemain. â€Å"Haven't we waited long enough?† She clacked her claws like castanets, flinging drops of venom on the walls and floor. â€Å"Would you be careful,† Macha said. â€Å"That shit stains. I just put new carpet in here.† Nemain stuck out a black tongue. â€Å"Washerwoman,† she said. â€Å"Whore,† Macha replied. â€Å"I don't like this,† Orcus said. â€Å"This child disturbs me.† â€Å"Nemain is right. Look how strong we've become,† Babd said, stroking the webbing that was growing back between the spikes on Orcus's shoulders – it looked as if he had fans mounted there, like some ornate samurai armor. â€Å"Let us go. The child's sacrifice might give you your full wings back.† â€Å"You think you can?† â€Å"We can, once it's dark,† said Macha. â€Å"We're stronger than we've been in a thousand years.† â€Å"Just one of you go, and go in stealth,† said Orcus. â€Å"Hers is a very old talent, even in this new body. If she masters it, our chance may have passed for another thousand years. Kill the child and bring its corpse to me. Don't let her see you until you strike.† â€Å"And her father? Kill him?† â€Å"You're not that strong. But if he wakes to find his child gone, then maybe his grief will destroy him.† â€Å"You don't have any idea what you're doing, do you?† said Nemain. â€Å"You stay here tonight,† said Orcus. â€Å"Dammit,† said Nemain, slinging steaming venom across the wall. â€Å"Oh, pardon me for questioning the exalted one. Hey, head of the bull, I wonder what comes out of the other end?† â€Å"Ha,† said Babd. â€Å"Ha. Good one.† â€Å"And what kind of brain do you find under the feathers?† said Orcus. â€Å"Oh! He got you, Nemain. Think about how bad he got you when I'm killing the child tonight.† â€Å"I was talking to you,† Orcus said. â€Å"Macha goes.† She came in through the roof, tearing up the bubble skylight over the fourth floor and dropping into the hallway. She moved as silent as a shadow down the hall to the stairs, then appeared to float down, her feet barely touching the steps. On the second floor she paused at the door and examined the locks. There were two strong dead bolts in addition to the one in the main plate. She looked up and saw a stained-glass transom, latched with a tiny brass latch. A claw slipped quickly through the gap, and with a twist of the wrist the brass lock popped off and clattered on the hardwood floor inside. She slithered up and through the transom and flattened herself against the floor inside, waiting like a pool of shadow. She could smell the child, hear the gentle snoring coming from across the apartment. She moved to the middle of the great room, and paused. New Meat was there, too, she could sense him, sleeping in the room across from the child. If he interfered she'd tear his head from his body and take it back to the ship as proof to Orcus that he should never underestimate her. She was tempted to take him anyway, but not until she had the child. A night-light in the child's room sent a soft pink band of light across the living room. Macha waved a taloned hand and the light went out. She trilled a small purr of self-satisfaction. There had been a time when she could extinguish a human life in the same way, and maybe that time was coming again. She slid into the child's room and paused. By the moonlight streaming through the window she could see that the child lay curled on her side in her crib, hugging a plush rabbit. But she couldn't see into the corners of the room – the shadows so dark and liquid that even her night-creature eyes couldn't penetrate them. She moved to the crib and leaned over it. The child was sleeping with her mouth wide open. Macha decided to drive a single claw through the roof of her mouth into her brain. It would be silent, leave plenty of blood for the father to find, and she could carry the child's corpse that way, hooked on her claw like a fish for the market. She reached down slowly and leaned into the crib so she'd have maximum leverage for the plunge. The moonlight sparkled off the three-inch talon and she drew back, and she was distracted for an instant by its pretty shininess when the jaws locked down on her arm. â€Å"Motherfu – † she screeched as she was whipped around and slammed against the wall. Another set of jaws clamped onto her ankle. She twisted herself into a half-dozen forms, which did nothing to free her, and she was tossed around like a rag doll into the dresser, the crib, the wall again. She raked at her attacker with her claws, found purchase, then felt as if her claws were being ripped out by the root, so she let go. She could see nothing, just felt wild, disorienting movement, then impact. She kicked hard at whatever had her ankle and it released her, but the attacker on her arm whipped her through the window and against the security bars outside. She heard glass hitting the street below, pushed with all her might, shape-shifting at a furious rate until she was through the bars and falling to the pavement. Ouch. Fuck!† came the shout from out on the street, a female voice. â€Å"Ouch.† Charlie flipped on the light to see Sophie sitting up in her crib holding her bunny and laughing. The window behind her had been shattered, and the glass was gone. Every piece of furniture except the crib had been overturned and there were basketball-sized holes in the plaster of two walls, the wooden lath behind it splintered as well. All over the floor there were black feathers, and what looked like blood, but even as Charlie watched, the feathers started to evaporate into smoke. â€Å"Goggy, Daddy,† Sophie said. â€Å"Goggy.† Then she giggled. Sophie slept the rest of the night in Daddy's bed while Daddy sat up in a chair next to her, watching the locked door, his sword-cane at his side. There was no window in Charlie's bedroom, so the door was the only way in or out. When Sophie awoke just after dawn, Charlie changed her, bathed her, and dressed her for the day. Then he called Jane to make her breakfast while he cleaned up the glass and plaster in Sophie's room and went downstairs to find some plywood to nail over the broken window. He hated that he couldn't call the police, couldn't call someone, but if this is what one phone call to another Death Merchant was going to cause, he couldn't risk it. And what would the police say anyway, about black feathers and blood that dissolved to smoke as you watched? â€Å"Someone threw a brick through Sophie's window last night,† he told Jane. â€Å"Wow, on the second floor, too. I thought you were crazy when you put security bars all the way up the building, but I guess not so much, now. You should replace the window with that glass with the wire running through it, just to be safe.† â€Å"I will,† Charlie said. Safe? He had no idea what had happened in Sophie's room, but the fact that she was safe amid all the destruction scared the hell out of him. He'd replace the window, but the kid was sleeping in his room from now until she was thirty and married to a huge guy with ninja skills. When Charlie returned from the basement with the sheet of plywood and hammer and nails, he found Jane sitting at the breakfast counter, smoking a cigarette. â€Å"Jane, I thought you quit.† â€Å"Yeah, I did. A month ago. Found this one in my purse.† â€Å"Why are you smoking in my house?† â€Å"I went into Sophie's room to get her bunny for her.† â€Å"Yeah? Where's Sophie? There might still be some glass on the floor in there, you didn't – â€Å" â€Å"Yeah, she's in there. And you're not funny, Asher. Your thing with the pets has gone completely overboard. I'm going to have to do three yoga classes, get a massage, and smoke a joint the size of a thermos bottle to take the adrenaline edge off. They scared me so bad I peed myself a little.† â€Å"What in the hell are you talking about, Jane?† â€Å"Funny,† she said, smirking. â€Å"That's really funny. I'm talking about the goggies, Daddy.† Charlie shrugged at his sister as if to say, Could you be any more incoherent or incomprehensible? – a gesture he had perfected over thirty-two years, then ran to Sophie's room and threw the door open. There, on either side of his darling daughter, were the two biggest, blackest dogs he had ever seen. Sophie was sitting, leaning against one, while hitting the other in the head with her stuffed bunny. Charlie took a step toward rescuing Sophie when one of the dogs leapt across the room and knocked Charlie to the floor, pinning him there. The other put itself between Charlie and the baby. â€Å"Sophie, Daddy's coming to get you, don't be afraid.† Charlie tried to squirm out from under the dog, but it just lowered its head and growled at him. It didn't budge. Charlie figured that it could take the better part of one of his legs and some of his torso off in one bite. The thing's head was bigger than the Bengal tigers' at the San Francisco zoo. â€Å"Jane, help me. Get this thing off of me.† The big dog looked up, keeping its paws on Charlie's shoulders. Jane swiveled on her bar stool and took a deep drag on her cigarette. â€Å"No, I don't think so, little brother. You're on your own after springing this on me.† â€Å"I didn't. I've never seen these things before. No one's ever seen these things before.† â€Å"You know, we dykes have very high dog tolerance, but that doesn't give you the right to do this. Well, I'll leave you to it,† Jane said, gathering up her purse and keys from the breakfast bar. â€Å"You enjoy your little canine pals. I'm going to go call in freaked out to work.† â€Å"Jane, wait.† But she was gone. He heard the front door slam. The big dog didn't seem to be interested in eating Charlie, just holding him there. Every time he tried to slither out from under it, the thing growled and pushed harder. â€Å"Down. Heel. Off.† Charlie tried commands he'd heard dog trainers shout on TV. â€Å"Fetch. Roll over. Get the fuck off me, you beast.† (He ad-libbed that last one.) The animal barked in Charlie's left ear, so loud that he lost hearing and there was just a ringing on that side. In his other ear he heard a little-girl giggle from across the room. â€Å"Sophie, honey, it's okay.† â€Å"Goggie, Daddy,† Sophie said. â€Å"Goggie.† She stumbled over and looked down at Charlie. The big dog licked her face, nearly knocking her over. (At eighteen months, Sophie moved like a small drunk most of the time.) â€Å"Goggie,† Sophie said again. She grabbed the giant hound by its ear and dragged it off Charlie. Or more accurately, it let her lead it by the ear off of him. Charlie leapt to his feet and started to reach for Sophie, but the other hound jumped in front of him and growled. The thing's head came up to Charlie's chest, even with its feet flat on the ground. He figured the hounds must weigh four or five hundred pounds apiece. They were easily twice the size of the biggest dog he'd seen before, a Newfoundland that he'd seen swimming in the Aquatic Park down by the Maritime museum. They had the short fur of a Doberman, the broad shoulders and chest of a rottweiler, but the wide square head and upturned ears of a Great Dane. They were so black that they appeared to actually absorb light, and Charlie had only ever seen one type of creature that did that: the ravens from the Underworld. It was clear that wherever these hounds had come from, it wasn't from around here. But it was also clear that they were not here to hurt Sophie. She wouldn't even make a good meal for animals this size, and they certainly could have snapped her in two long before now if they'd meant her harm. The damage in Sophie's room the night before might have been caused by the hounds, but they had not been the aggressors. Something had come here to hurt her, and they had protected her, even as they were now. Charlie didn't care why, he was just grateful that they were on his side. Where they'd been when he first rushed into the room after the window broke, he didn't know, but it appeared that now that they were here, they were not going to go away. â€Å"Okay, I'm not going to hurt her,† Charlie said. The dog relaxed and backed off a few steps. â€Å"She's going to need to go potty,† Charlie said, feeling a little stupid. He just noticed that they were both wearing wide silver collars, which, strangely, disturbed him more than their size. After the stretching it had gotten over the last year and a half, his Beta Male imagination fit easily around two giant hounds showing up in his little girl's bedroom, but the idea that someone had put collars on them was throwing him. There was a knock at the front door and Charlie backed out of the room. â€Å"Honey, Daddy will be right back.†

Be Happier by Consuming Less

Andres Martinez Garcia Section 1010 03/18/13 Prof. Cheryl L. Flanigan Essay 2 Be Happier by Consuming Less Consumerist is a social and economic order that encourages the purchase of goods and services in ever greater amounts. In the American consumption, people do not know how much is enough, do we really need all we buy? Or we just buy it because everyone else has it? Does it make us any happier? In the article â€Å"The New Politics of Consumption: Why Americans Want So Much More That They Need† Juliet Schor shares with us her point of view about American Consumption.In Schor’s article says, â€Å"The average American now finds it harder to achieve a satisfying standard of living than 25 years ago† (411). Also that â€Å"The competitive consumption, the idea that spending is in large part driven by a comparative or competitive process in which individuals try to keep up with the norms of the social group with which they identify as a reference group† (41 2). Finally she believes that â€Å"Low income children are more likely to be exposed to commercials at school, as well as home† (413). Our personal consumer choices have ecological, social, and spiritual consequences.Much of what we purchase is not essential for our survival or even basic human comfort but is based on impulse, a momentary desire, and there is a hidden price that we, and future generations will pay for it too. The American economy’s ultimate purpose is to produce more consumer goods, not better health care, education, housing, transportation, but to provide more stuff to consumers. First, in Schor’s article she says, â€Å"The average American now finds it harder to achieve a satisfying standard of living than 25 years ago† (411).Nowadays people have to work longer hours than 25 year ago, to be able to pay all their desires. Having more and newer things each year has become not just something we want but something we need. The idea of mor e, ever increasing wealth has become the center of our identity, and this looks like an addiction. For example, my aunt Maria works 5 days a week to be able to pay all her bills and sometimes does overtime. She might have a lot of new and cool things, but she doesn’t even have time to enjoy all these things because she has to be working just to pay all she has.My aunt has a salary of $9. 25 per hour and getting a check of $740 biweekly which she have to use to pay her car $200, plus her phone $85, personal stuff $150, and the list keep going. I have worked 40 hours a week, going to classes full-time with little satisfaction. Without working that long, I am less stressed, and I prefer to learn how to spend less money, than spending more, and live stressed all the time. People should take more responsibility for themselves and their families and think outside of the box when it comes to life.Working less hours and buying fewer products is a good way to start. Also, Schor says, â€Å"The competitive consumption, the idea that spending is in large part driven by a comparative or competitive process in which individuals try to keep up with the norms of the social group with which they identify as a reference group† (412). People try to be in the same level that everyone else; if they see that somebody bought something, they will try to have that, just because that person has it. An example is the iPhones people are obsessed with them.The first iPhone was the 3G, then 3GS, 4, 4S, and the 5 that is the last one that just came out. All of these iPhones do almost the same functions; they just changed the size, and some other little things. People spend a lot of money buying the iPhones; the prices are between $300 and $500. The point is that people want to keep up with the newest things, just because other people will have it. For example, my cousin Heysus who is 23 years old, have been buying all the iPhones, because all his friends have them, and whenev er came a new iPhone, he ordered it immediately to keep up with what his friends have.Another point is that people with less income, tend to watch more TV, in Schor’s article says, â€Å"Low income children are more likely to be exposed to commercials at school, as well as home† (413). Television and marketing are a big influence of how people spend their money. We watched an example of it in the movie of Super-Size Me, of how the companies spend a lot of their money on marketing, because they know that people is going to buy their products. We need to make people conscious about the problem that we all have as a society.Without our consumer impulse to buy the newest, coolest things on the market, there would be no market. People should think more about what they buy, and should not do unnecessary purchases I think that some people keep worrying more about what they can buy, and how they can have better and newest things instead of be worrying about how they can live h appier, and less stressed. An individual does not necessarily have to live as a rich person to be happy. The thought of shorter hours working is a wealth of opportunity and adventure that no Disneyland or Las Vegas vacation can offer.It is actually stress-free and can help us to have time to more valuable parts of our life, like having more time to spend with our family and friends. Finally, as a student that works and studies at the same time, I have to be a smart consumer. I ask myself what I need and what I really don’t. Why do I need a car? Is it necessary to have a laptop when we have a library full of computers? We all need to learn that how to spend our money in a better way, and know that we do not need to have the newest and coolest things that the market offer us to be happy.As we saw in the article â€Å"The New Politics of Consumption: Why Americans Want So More That They Need† Juliet Schor shares with us her point of view about American Consumption. In Sch or’s article says â€Å"The average American now finds it harder to achieve a satisfying standard of living than 25 years ago† (411). Also that â€Å"The competitive consumption, the idea that spending is in large part driven by a comparative or competitive process in which individuals try to keep up with the norms of the social group with which they identify as a reference group† (412).Finally she believes that â€Å"Low income children are more likely to be exposed to commercials at school, as well as home† (413). We need to learn that how to be a smart consumer, and do not spend more of what we can afford. Works Cited Schor, Juliet. â€Å"The New Politics of Consumptions: Why Americans Want So Much More Than They Need. † Searching For Causes. New York: Harper. 1999. 410-414. Print. â€Å"Consumption. † Wikipedia. Web. 26 Feb. 2013. Super Size Me. Dir. Morgan Spurlock. Perf. Morgan Spurlcok , Daryl Isaacs. 2004. DVD.

The Supreme Court Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The Supreme Court - Assignment Example This is a clear indication that both have equal protection of the law regarding the rights that human beings should enjoy. This decision overrules the one offered by Plessy v Ferguson that allowed segregation in state- sponsored schools. The state should not provide separate educational facilities based on race since all people are equal, they should receive equal treatment. The court ruled de Jure segregation as a violation of Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution of the United States. This crucial factor paves way for the civil rights movements and integration (Losco and Baker, 2011, p. 15). Question 2 Why do liberals oppose health insurance to cover laws such as abortion restrictions while favoring laws that require contraception? Answer Liberals feel that abortion is a personal choice that people should not interfere with since it involves a woman’s body, her future, and personal health. Liberals feel that the life of children and parents is better when abortion is l egal. This is because it prevents women from undertaking desperate measures to obtain illegal abortions. Provided abortion happens in a medically controlled environment with proper medical practitioners, then it should not be restricted. In areas where people have limited knowledge concerning contraceptives and sex education, abortion is necessary to control families in a state. Abortion is necessary in cases of rape, where the health of a woman is in risk, incest, congenital disorder, and financial constraints. Liberals require health insurance to cover the laws favoring contraception since they play a significant role in reduction of abortions (Losco and Baker, 2011, p. 19). An affirmative action is an action that favors those who tend to suffer from discrimination. Question 3 How can family, peers and school influence someone’s opinion on affirmative action? (6 points) Answer Families influence the affirmative action that one takes in a situation. The close bond and relati onship that exists between family members’ influences a person’s decision. This bond forces people to weigh things differently and act accordingly to appease them. Peer pressure and school also influence a person’s affirmative action. In schools, teachers discourage discrimination as it leads to conflict among individuals. The law of a state also does not give room for discrimination making its practice a violation of law, which should face accusation (Losco and Baker, 2011, p. 27). Peer pressure is tremendously influential, as one tends to act the way peer friends act. Depending on the level of education of the peer group and their beliefs, the group interferes with the decision that one makes. The group might affect a person positively or negatively, and hence, every person has a responsibility to ensure that the effect is to their advantage. Question 4 Why did the Dred Scott decision make the Civil War more likely and lead to the 14th Amendment of the US Cons titution? (7 points) Answer The Dred Scott decision is a ruling of the Supreme Court that the people of African descent could never become U. S. citizens. The court ruled the slaves as private property and, hence, led to Civil war. The slaves are people just like the citizens and oppose the way the citizens treat them as chattels. This gave them the motivation to oppose slavery since even in freed states; the free slaves enjoyed the rights of citizens. From the opposition experienced, the government found an amendment that is

Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Human Resource (HR) Research Paper

Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Human Resource (HR) Careers - Research Paper Example From this discussion it is clear that professional in Human Resource (PHR) is a certification awarded to individuals who have at least 2 years experience in human resources. In addition, it aims at recognizing individuals who portray strong logistical orientation, extensive skills in program orientation and use of outlined policies to make decisions related to management of human resources. The major advantage of a PHR is that it allows individuals to acquire strong mastery of strategic management, compensation and benefits, risk management as well as workforce planning and labor relations.This paper highlights that  Senior Professional in Human Resource (SPHR) certificate is the highest level in the human resources certification.   Being awarded to human resources professionals who have a minimum of six years in a complex human resources management, SPHR has an advantage of allowing individuals to design and plan human resources policies. On the other hand, Global Professional i n Human Resource (GPHR) is a certification awarded to professionals who develop and implement human resources strategies at an international level. In addition, it involves controlling international projects and managing human resources departments of international companies. Of the three certifications, my current choice is PHR. This is based on the fact that it would enhance my current career in identification of basic policies that relate to HR management and rules set by Society for Human Resource Management.

Explain the structure and operation of TNCs in the Food Industry Essay

Explain the structure and operation of TNCs in the Food Industry - Essay Example The present study would analyse the structure and operations of the Transnational Corporations in the food industry. According to the United Nations Economic and Social Council a Transnational Corporation is defined as an â€Å"enterprises which control assets – factories, mines, sales offices and the like in two or more nations across the globe (Jenkins, p.1). The global food industry comprises farming, production, distribution and retail sectors. The industry is expected to grow at 3.5 percent growth on a compounded basis and is expected to be valued at approximately 7 Trillion US dollars by 2014. Traditionally, Europe has the largest share in this mammoth industry segment but presently Asian giants like India and China are also emerging as potential markets in the food industry (IMAP, 2010, p.4). The figure below represents the composition of the food industry and the percentage of individuals employed by each of the units. It is very clear from the figure that non-residential catering industry employs the highest number of individuals followed by retailing industry. There are two types of value chains that are prevalent in the industry, namely the producer driven value chain and the buyer driven value chain. Producer driven value chains are employed by large multinationals including transnational companies and the product manufacturers who assume leadership and play a major role in coordinating with other market players. On the contrary, buyer driven chains are characterised by the presence of large market players who play the most influential role in managing different decentralised units (United Nations Industrial Development Organization, 2009, p.3). Producers in the food industry constitute of farmers, fishermen etc who use natural resources. The product in this stage is said to be in the input stage where raw materials are used to make the finished product (Kannan, Sivakumar & Gilani, 2010). Transformers

Heart of Darkness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Heart of Darkness - Essay Example The Conrad’s story seems to unfold the dark moments that might be frightening to the readers, however it does point out the benefit of civilisation. For instance, the story accounts for the civilisation that transformed the one time dark country Britain (Conrad 36). The tradition brought to the Dark Continent by the white man did not sound impressive to the blacks, but it has transformed the community to illuminate better practices, which they did not acknowledge in the first place. The modern methods of cultivation are good news to people that knew little about the existence of modern method of increasing agricultural yields (Conrad 56). Another important instance that is impressing in the novel is the modern education system. The system enabled the continent to transform from its traditional systems, which produced little in terms of industrialisation as well as globalisation. Education was the only viable way through the Dark Continent could receive the new light. Conrad observes that Africans embraced the old technology in doing their things. It did not appear to them that the society could apply scientific ways of doing the daily activities. The fruit of introduction of science to the dark part of the world brought light that is shining in this region. The roads that the colonial masters developed did not only helped the colonial masters to exert their autocratic rule in the dark world, but also enabled the blacks to enjoy trading their goods. However, the novel gives a fiery tale of inhumanity projected to the innocent blacks in the name of civilisation. The verbal abuse to the Africans by the colonial masters is disgusting. It is arguable that better ways were applicable in introducing modernity (Conrad 125). The author described the killing of the Africans as if they did not have the right to live or to chose what is good for their lives or not. The white figures did not regard blacks as human beings moreover; they did

Urban Water Cycle Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Urban Water Cycle - Essay Example The Consent Decree does not contain a completed schedule both for upgrades and construction. In other words, the Decree is not by all means a full resolution of claimed violations. In the Decree, Akron is required to submit an updated long-term control plan detailing the construction of every project. Akron was required to upgrade its Water Pollution Control station so as attain a minimum secondary treatment capacity of 130 million daily by not later than October, 15, 2017. In the same way, Akron was also needed to separate the sewers for the combined sewer outflow outfalls at Racks 8, 13, 21, and 25, as well as 30 within eight years of lodging the decree. The city was imposed with fines amounting to more than $1 billion for more than 4,000 violations of the federal Clean Water Act over the years (Davidson, ‎Howard and ‎Jacobs 825). Therefore, the courts held that the decree as not fair, adequate, reasonable, and in the best interests of the public. The ruling implies tha t rates of more than 300,000 Akron together with the suburban residents who make use of the city’s sewer system would be boosted on a less expensive plan. The sewer clean-up was necessary since it was a threat to the ecosystem of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Cleveland area is also dealing with the same problem. The Akron/Cleveland CSO area covers about 167 square miles and includes majority of the Akron metropolitan area. The population is about 352,000. When it rains heavily, the industrial and domestic wastewater exceeds the capacity of the Akron Waste Water Treatment overflowing into the Ohio Canal, Little Cuyahoga River, Cuyahoga River, and Camp Brook. It may cost the City of Akron about $1.4 billion to implement its long-term control plan. In the plan, the green infrastructure would reduce the storm water from getting into the sewers. They would rely

Sweatshops & Anti Sweatshop Movement Assignment

Sweatshops & Anti Sweatshop Movement - Assignment Example This essay discusses that sweatshop workers often labor long hours for very low pay, despite of laws mandating overtime pay or a lowest amount wage. Child labor laws may be debased, or sweatshops may have dangerous materials and situations. Employees may be issued to employer mistreatment without an easy way, if any way, to protect themselves. The anti-sweatshop movement in the U.S. and other developed economies has, in recent years, effort to use consumer boycotts to eliminate sweatshop working conditions and child labor in less developed economies. Unions and college student associations have been leading the drive for sweatshop boycotts. The anti-sweatshop movement acknowledged a great deal of well-liked attention when it was found that Kathie Lee Gifford's garments company had engaged Honduran sweatshop workers to manufacture her line of clothing for Walmart. Roughly 10% of the workers engaged in this task were amid the ages of 13 and 15. A 75-hour workweek was the standard in th ese factories. When this became revealed, Kathie Lee Gifford condemned these sweatshops and affirmed that she was uninformed of the working conditions in these factories. In reaction to the anti-sweatshop movement, several organizations have been formed or have extended their roles to observe working conditions in less urbanized countries. Among the major organizations helping this function are the Workers Rights Consortium (WRC), the Fair Labor Association (FLA), Verità ©, and Social Accountability International (SAI).... Critics of sweatshops dispute that the minor gains made by employee of some of these organizations are overshadowed by the negative costs such as poor wages to augment profit margins and that the institutions pay less than the severyday expenses of their workers (Archon Fung, Dara O'Rourke, Charles F. Sabel, 2008 ). Often times, economists are inquired about sweatshops. Individuals often believe that sweatshops are ethically wrong and thus question why they exist. However, they are not ethically wrong. In fact, sweatshops are in reality one of the first optimistic signs of growth for those in developing countries (Raymond C. Miller, 2008). It is difficult to describe a low wage. Americans often gasp at the earnings for which those in developing countries are eager to work. A low wage by American standards does not essentially consider it a low wage. One must evaluate the wage by the standards in the nation in which it is being compensated In the United States; $5 per hour would be de emed an objectionable wage because it is below our minimum wage. Likewise, the citizens of the United States enjoy a privileged standard of living. Those who are measured poor still drive cars and own televisions. However, in other nations this is not the case. In developing countries, the main apprehension is often food and shelter. When the standards of living are so little, the money can go a lot further. Supporting Reasons Sweatshops are also main signs of escalation in developing nations. As more and more of these shops unlock, more and more individuals can locate work. The rivalry for labor will persist to push wages higher. This boost in employment and

Democratic Deficit in European Union Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Democratic Deficit in European Union - Essay Example Across Europe, irrespective of which member nation they stay in or their individual economic welfare or political preference. Thereby, whether or not the European Union apparently does have a democratic deficit, there is an increasing conception that the EU is an undemocratic system and that something must be done about it. There is no sole elucidation of the democratic deficit in the European Union. Explanations are wide-ranging. However, it is likely to establish a restricted figure of standard assertions about the democratic deficit. One specified assertion, that there is no competition for the regulation of political power is the fundamental aspects of almost all recent hypothesis of democratic administration. Even if a state is procedurally democratic, in terms of having representative bodies and checks and balances upon the exercise of authority, it is not considerably democratic except there is open opposition for administrative officer and over the direction of the democratic schema. Put it another way, the European Union is nearer to a type of open-minded repression than a form of democratic administration. There are five standard assertions about the democratic deficit in the European Union. The first assertion is that European incorporation has amounted to a rise in administrative power and a decline in national legislative regulation. At the domestic strata in Europe, the key organizations of representative government are the national assemblies. National assemblies may have little authority of legislative amendment, however, each legislature can hire and fire the cabinet, and the executive is held to account by legislative scrutiny of government ministers. Contrary executive actors are prevailing at the European level; national ministers in the Council and the government appointees to the European Commission. These European Union strata executive actors are principally beyond the regulation of national assemblies. Even with the set up of European affairs co mmissions in all national assemblies, cabinet secretaries when talking and voting in the council national officials in working cohorts of the Council, and bureaucrats in the Committee when drafting or carrying out legislation, are majorly separated from national legislature scrutiny and regulation. Consequently, it is regularly asserted that European incorporation has meant a reduction in the supremacy of national assemblies and a rise in the authority for executives. The second assertion is that the European Legislature is too frail but succeeding reforms of the European Union pacts since the mid 1980s have raised the authorities of the European Legislature, precisely as the majority of deficit academics had promoted. However, an essential percentage of European legislation is still passed under the discussion process, where the European Legislature lacks the authority to make corrections or obstruct legislation. The third assertion is that, in spite the expanding authority of the European Legislature, there is no democratic regulation of the European Union political workplace or over the direction of the EU strategy schema. Citizens vote for their governments, who sit on the Committee and nominate commissioners. Citizens also vote for the European Legi

Learning log Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Learning log - Essay Example I think that a company should consider remunerating sales people well because they intrigue the revenue sources for the company hence deserve a motivation. Given the work they do they should be motivated more and with all the sources available. The company in an insurance setting should also consider the economic situation and always make policies that make the work of sales people easier in terms of adjustable terms (Sukiennik, Bendat & Raufman 2007). What I would do differently next time is to make a list of all the clients and categorize them according to need as opposed to handling them one at a time. I would also ensure I do more research on the subject I intend to share with the clients to make them see the need of purchasing insurance policies. This is prompted by the rising demand for insurance schemes and policies. In the future I would also ensure that I create a stress free work environment as it only adds more burdens (Honey 2000). As a volunteer teacher in the NGO schools I had an interesting experience of interacting with teenagers of ages 6-12 years. What I did was majorly to creatively formulate activities for the kids which brought together so many kinds of games. I had to ensure that the activities that we come with were always new and up to date as the leadership of the school highly discouraged traditional learning. This made me have the roles of linking between a topic and the likeliness by the children. What I think is that the school should allow for all forms of learning for the kids. As opposed to rote memorization and spoon feeding as practiced in the school currently, the learning should be student centered and generated (Rijlaarsdam, Bergh & Couzijn 2005). This is as portrayed by the â€Å"Cognitivism Learning Theory† which according to my experience helped me do my job well. Therefore what I would do differently entails allowing

Report on Robi Introduction Essay Example for Free

Report on Robi Introduction Essay Robi, formerly known as Telekom Malaysia International (Bangladesh), commenced its operation in 1997 under the brand name Robi among the pioneer GSM mobile telecommunications service providers in Bangladesh. Later, on 28th March, 2010 the company started its new journey with the brand name Robi. About our Shareholders: Robi is a Joint Venture company between Axiata Group Berhad (70%) and NTT DOCOMO INC. (30%) Axiata Group Axiata is one of the largest Asian telecommunication companies focused on high growth low penetration emerging markets. The Group, including its subsidiaries and associates, has over 130 million mobile subscribers in Asia and serves the needs of Asia by providing affordable and innovative mobile services covering over 1. 5 billion people across 10 countries. The Group provides employment to over 25,000 people across Asia. NTT Docomo NTT DOCOMO is Japans premier provider of leading-edge mobile voice, data and multimedia services. With more than 56 million customers in Japan, the company is one of the worlds largest mobile communications operators. Building on a solid foundation of research and development, and guided by its customer-first philosophy, the company leverages the power of mobile communications to enable customers to enrich Page 1 of 5 Miscellaneous Policy Robi Axiata Limited HR Policy Manual Proposed By : Chief Human Resources Officer Approved By: Management Council Effective : 01 July 2011 Version : 01 Document ID: RAx/HR/001/11 their lives. DOCOMO is expanding its global reach through offices and subsidiaries in Asia, Europe and North America, as well as strategic alliances with mobile and multimedia service providers in markets worldwide. Our Purpose WE EMPOWER YOU: We are there for you, where you want and in the way you want, in order to help you develop, grow and make the most of your lives through our services. Our Guiding Principles and Code of Conduct Maintaining the highest ethical standards and integrity in our operations is a crucial factor at Robi. Therefore we have introduced our Guiding Principles that we expect our employees to embed in their minds and uphold in discharging their responsibilities. Our Code of Business Ethics safeguards our ethical standards by clearly defining our way of working. With such systems in place we ensure that we do business with a conscience and safeguard our employees from exploitation. We expect our employees to exemplify the guiding principles in their work and regulate their actions by the stipulations in the Code of Conduct. Robi employees hold themselves accountable to a set of Guiding Principles for the organization. Our Guiding Principles are at the core spot of our action†¦ action that will empower us to achieve excellence! No matter what we do, in order to realize our purpose, we hold ourselves accountable to the following overarching guiding Principles for our rganization: Page 2 of 5 Miscellaneous Policy Robi Axiata Limited HR Policy Manual Proposed By : Chief Human Resources Officer Approved By: Management Council Effective : 01 July 2011 Version : 01 Document ID: RAx/HR/001/11 We will be Creative in our way of work We will be Open to ideas and change, We will be Respectful and earn respect We will be Ethical in our endeavors We will take a Simple approach in the way we work With Passion we will perform We will take Ownership of our actions Being Transparent will be our stance Our Code of Conduct sets out the fundamental standards to be followed by us in our everyday actions on behalf of the Company. We must abide the following code of conduct: †¢ Conduct the Company’s business with honesty and integrity and in a professional manner. Build relationships with customers, vendors and fellow employees based on trust and treat every individual with respect and dignity. Become familiar with and comply with the Company policies and procedures. Avoid any activities that could involve or lead to involvement in any unlawful practice or any harm to the Company’s reputation or image. Avoid actual or potential conflicts of interests in all transactions. Provide accurate and reliable information in records submitted; safeguard the Company’s confidential information. Promptly report to the Company any violations of law or Company policies that come to the employee’s attention, and cooperate fully in any audit, enquiry, review or investigation by the Company. . †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Page 3 of 5 Miscellaneous Policy Robi Axiata Limited HR Policy Manual Proposed By : Chief Human Resources Officer Approved By: Management Council Effective : 01 July 2011 Version : 01 Document ID: RAx/HR/001/11 All employees must uphold these standards in the conduct of company business. If a decision is not covered by the Code, seek guidance from the Divisional Heads or Human Resources. Our approach to People The purpose of Robi is â€Å"empowering you† – our customers, our stakeholder, and our employees. It is HR’s vision to handhold the company, be its strategic partner, adding value in each step taken towards making Robi the employer of choice. We engage our employees and inspire them to achieve excellence. To ensure excellence, we devise people policies that are relevant and rigorous. Our policies assure that decisions will be consistent with and contributive to Company objectives. The Policy manual is an important guide for management in decision-making that affects employees terms of employment, working conditions and development prospects. The Manual truly belongs to the company as well as to the employee. Characteristics of this Manual The Manual has the following essential characteristics: †¢ Robi people olicies are consistent with the Company’s other policies such as finance policy, business policy. The policies are reflected with the countrys existing law to ensure fairness. †¢ †¢ †¢ Policies are fair, flexible and realistic. Policies and procedures will be reviewed when there are major changes. People policies are applicable for all permanent employees of the Company. The policies are clearly stated so that employees can clearly understand them. Also HR will make necessary policy interpretations to the employees. Page 4 of 5 Miscellaneous Policy Robi Axiata Limited HR Policy Manual Proposed By : Chief Human Resources Officer Approved By: Management Council Effective : 01 July 2011 Version : 01 Document ID: RAx/HR/001/11 Policy Amendment process HR existing policies may be reviewed and will be revised in the policy manual. The Head of HR will review existing people policies and procedures and recommend for necessary changes in it. Also HR will assess and examine the need for introducing any new policy issues and bring those to the notice of the Management Council. The ultimate decision and approval rest on the management authority. Once the management council approves any new policy or amendments to existing policy, it will become the part of the Robi People policies Procedures Manual. Notwithstanding anything contained in this manual, the Management Council has the discretionary power to make exceptions to any of the policy of this manual. It is very important that all concerned understand and comply with the people policies at the work place. Non-compliance of Company policy is clearly violation of policy and merits disciplinary actions. Page 5 of 5 Miscellaneous Policy

Developing Sustainable Tourism in Malta

Developing Sustainable Tourism in Malta Introduction To understand what an exactly tourism management specialization is and have awareness what I am studying at school I had to first understand what is nowadays tourism and how to manage it. It is important for me that I have good understanding of what I am writing about and what is the area that I should base my project. Let me specify what tourism is and connected to that tourism management in order to continue and narrow down the research problem. Everyone in our lives was tourist at some point, and to define what tourism is can be difficult. Tourism is when people travel no more than one year to different environment for leisure, business or other purpose. Tourism is a dynamic and competitive industry that requires the ability to constantly adapt to customers changing needs and desires, as the customers satisfaction, safety and enjoyment are particularly the focus of tourism businesses. Tourism management is mostly about setting a plan or a solution for problem of course within tourism sector. It is about taking the decision regarding to our aims and resources. Tourism is one of the biggest earning incomes in each of the countries around the world. It is important to manage it well to changing needs mentioned before. Tourism industry include: transport, accommodations, food and beverage, establishments, shops, entertainments and events, activity facilities, and a variety of hospitality service providers who deliver service to individuals or groups traveling away from home. Tourism product is not produced by some organization, specific people or group, or governmental agency; rather, it is defined as â€Å"a satisfying visitor experience.† Tourism definition is about every activity and experience that a tourist meets during his or her entire trip away from home. As this project has to be based on my internship experience that I had in my second semester I want to give a touch of information where I have been and what I did. In year 2010 I had great opportunity to have my work placement in 5 stars Corinthia St. Georges Bay Hotel situated in small but exotic country Malta. I was working in different areas beginning from food beverage, events planning, weddings and finishing at front desk. This time gave me big competence how hotels work, and how hospitality is important. Finally I could implement my knowledge from school in to practice and having a great start for my future career. Destination Malta is a small island situated in the bottom of south Europe, lies in a strategic position, between Europe and North Africa. Lack of natural resources, the strength of Malta, hasalwayslied squarely with its geographic position and the island has a checkered history of foreign rulers from the Phoenicians, Romans, Normans, Arabs, Spanish, Knights of St. John, the French and lastly the British. The island was a great fortress economy, with a 150-year reliance on the British armed forces. Post independence, in 1964, the island sold itself and became manufacturing hub, particularly in the textile and surprising the electronics industry, and bolstering its nascent tourism industry. In the early 1990s, the island became EU membership, and starts developing its services industry and reduces the reliance on the tourism sector. Malta became a member of the European Union on 1 May 2004 and accept the Euro currency on 1 January 2008. In accordance with the accession to the EU, new knowledge-based activities were spawnedsuch as financial services, remote gaming, information and communications technologies, and aviation services increasing the clout of the island state. Well positioned after the international recession, Malta want to stay competitive and attract foreign investment with a variety of professional services, low costs, save and stable investment climate and fiscal advantages. Corinthia St. Georges Bay I would like to give you some of the information about the hotel that I had my internship in. Internationally luxury hotels in such a destinations like: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Libya, Malta, Portugal and Russia. Created by the Pisani family of Malta in the 1960s, the Corinthia brand stands in that proud tradition of Mediterranean hospitality and its signature services communicate the ‘Warm smiles, Inspired Flavours and Pleasant Surprises of its Maltese heritage. All Corinthia hotels feature beautiful conference areas, extensive leisure and business tourist facilities, and are each renowned for their uniqueness of character. Corinthia Hotels portfolio includes two award-winning properties: The CorinthiaHotelBudapest, Hungary winner of Europes ‘Best Hotel Architecture Award and member of ‘The Most Famous Hotels in the World andCorinthia Hotel Prague in the Czech Republic the first hotel ever to win Best Gastronomy Concept in the Czech Republic and a recipient of the ‘5 stars and 6 stripes designation from renowned US reviewer Seven Stars and Stripes. The Corinthia Hotels portfolio also features the elegant Corinthia Palace Hotel and Spa and the splendid Corinthia Hotel St Georges Bay in Malta the one that I have been, The superior five-star CorinthiaHotelTripoli, Libya, the modern Corinthia Hotel Lisbon in Portugal and the renowned CorinthiaHotelSt. Petersburg, Russia. Malta issue In my internship report project I had to find and solve problems, or find some innovation connected with the hotel that I worked in, or area within the tourism industry. One of the problems in hotel was communication. I found out that minimum 75% members of Corinthia St. Georgs Bay hotel who are building service for the customers in fully booked 250 rooms do not speak more than 2 languages. What we can officially read on the main website of the Corinthia St. Georgs Bay hotel is that languages spoken at the hotel are: English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Italian, Danish, Portuguese, and Romanian. It surprised me the most, because this is not only the problem of communication inside the hotel but also outstanding lack of professionalism which is simply giving customers lies. While taking care about communication problems in a Corinthia St. Georgs Bay I also noticed that motto to all of employees sounds: smile, greed and eye contact. Human communication consists of 93% body language and paralinguistic cues, while only 7% of communication consists of words themselves so it includes exactly hotel motto, which was not used by member staff properly. In conclusion, my internship report was based on solving the communication inside the hotel. This problem didnt occur only in Corinthia St. Georges Bay hotel but also in almost every different hotel around Malta. Weak communication between hotels, bad organization, lack of information for tourists, uncertainty of guests, mistakes that leads to misunderstanding. It gave me big sign that there is a lot of work to do, to implement better strategy to do not lose customers, and develop Malta in such a way that problem of communication will disappear. In such a way that hotels will more cooperate with each other, suppo rt tourism industry when they have the same goals and take care about social benefits. It requires a lot of dedication from citizens and government, so I will try to find the way to make it real. As I am a tourist management student I dont want to solve hotel problem. I would like to find some more challenging issues, so I would like to undertake sustainable Malta development. For that I will use just example of my hotel as one of the many similar amenities around the island to understand what benefits they can have or actions they have to take in order to achieve success. Sustainable development of destinations is about managing the visitor impact on a local destinations economy, social fabric and physical environment in a way which benefits everybody, residents, businesses, landowners and visitors alike, both now and in the future. These principles can be applied to all tourism destinations notably small islands with unique fauna and flora and to all areas and forms of tourism whether niche or mainstream, rural, coastal or urban. The best way of looking at this complicated relationship is through the idea of place shaping or place making, the principle that everything in a place is linked thats why I mentioned about communication problem that appear on the island. This is particularly the case with the complex range of components that make up any visitors unforgettable experience and the best time in Malta. So from small problem this was communication and bad connection, not only in Corinthia St. Georges Bay but around hotels in Malta general, the cooperation is weak, and to make it better the idea is that we need to involve all actors on the island for together cooperation. Group project Malta development and repair the links in the service chain so not only hotels but also citizens, natural environment and economy will have benefits from sustainable development. What exactly sustainable development is and the whole idea behind this words I will explain in later chapter. Before that, I would like to make problem formulation which will be the main road ahead my project. Problem formulation Malta is no longer good competitor in the basic sun and sea package, due to the much extended offers by larger and often newer destinations which could handle higher expectations of visitors. For Malta the basic sea and sun concept was not enough to handle the pressure of other holiday destinations and could not stand its own ground. It was clear therefore that what had basically fuelled the growth of the Maltese industry in the last decades could no longer sustain the growth and development of the industry. Malta therefore had to think creatively and to innovate in order to rejuvenate the Malta tourism offer. Having in mind that Malta situation is bad and to make it better, I tried to create the cooperation of all actors on the island with sustainable destination development to beat the competition and rejuvenate nowadays position, but at the same point keeping the safety of natural environment which will be supported by local community and group working of Malta services. In order to do that I came up with problem formulation which will help me to solve or particularly give an idea how Malta could stand up again. In conclusion, this report is going to be based on solving the following problem formulation: How sustainable destination development of Malta can interconnect all social area and tourism industry, in order to innovate unique experience on the island, and rejuvenate the Malta tourism offer, without destroying the natural environment? In order to help me to solve this main problem, I think that is going to be really helpful if I consider some sub questions in this project. What is sustainable development? How we can connect social area together with tourism industry if its possible? Why Malta need rejuvenation? How to protect the nature ? To help me answer these sub questions I will use different types of models and theory. Relevant sources of information and critically chosen secondary data. The way I will structure my project and get better understanding of my vision you can see in methodology part. Therefore a major fraction of secondary data includes carefully chosen web-pages and provided academic papers, such as specialization books. Methodology Following this introduction, the dependence of SIDS on tourism is briefly described. Section 3 assesses the economic impact of tourism on the Maltese economy, while section 4 deals with environmental impact of tourism on the same islands. Some preemptive and corrective measures for the promotion of sustainable tourism are suggested in section 5. Section 6 concludes the paper with the optimistic note that tourism itself is sharpening our awareness of the evils of environmental degradation, and this could be conducive towards the adoption of sustainable tourism policies and measures. Sustainable tourism Sustainable tourism is very often considered as keeping the balance between economy and environment concerns. It is clear that economic activity has an impact on the environment and that this has feedback effect on the economy itself. This is especially true in the case of tourism, which makes use of environmental resources. This is especially true in the case of tourism, which makes use of environmental resources. Tourism depends on good looking and well kept surrounding environment which is pleasant and attractive to tourists, and negative environmental impacts caused by tourism itself, could destroy the image of the tourism destination in the long run. Sustainable tourism may be regarded as developed and managed tourism that remains viable in the long run and does not degrade the environment in which it exists to such an extent that it prohibits the successful development of other activities. This project deals with the issue for small island states in the developing country (SIDS), Malta. In many small developing island degradation of natural environment caused by tourism is commonplace. However, many SIDS may not be a form of ongoing activities to other, more environmentally friendly actions that are not associated with serious economic difficulties. The paper therefore takes in to consideration preemptive and corrective measures to find solution between the bad sides of environmental degradation and the benefits of economic growth and development. Sustainable tourism development does not only protect the environment it shows us the proper consideration of host peoples, communities, cultures, customs, lifestyles, and social and economic systems. It is tourism that can give benefits to those who are on the target site, and that does not destroy and degrade the milieu in which they live and from which they must earn a living after the last tourist has flown back home. It is tourism that renovate the material life of local communities, without the loss of traditional employment systems, acculturation or social disruption. Thus tourism is brought within the debate on sustainable development in general. Sustainable tourism development takes into consideration three main points: The necessary interactions between the environment and economy Long-term time scale. Inter nad intra-generational equity ensuring the needs of modern society without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. From my own observations, sustainable tourism, as described above is new idea, and it is important to fully understand it in the tourism industry, as the concept and its consequences. Many people still define sustainable tourism mainly with tourism growth. Sustainable tourism development seems to be one of the main priorities of the current tourism policies. It is not only a goal to bring the number of visitors or build the required number of hotels and destinations. Quality versus quantity is still a painful decision and compromise in the tourism industry goes usually with words more and bigger is best. Promoting Malta as an experience Malta had to base its product on something different from the basic availability of sun and beautiful sea which will always feature in their offers. History of Malta became very interesting due to the all Mediterranean happenings that had influence on Maltase culture background. Malta in fact has the oldest freestanding man-made structures, older that pyramids in Egypt, made in stone in the world and can pride itself on 23 known pre-historic temple sites as well as a whole chain of other structures, remains and buildings. The Maltese have a mixed cultural profile with an Arab based language. Malta is located exactly in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea and is an island that has influence from east and west. Malta has also the uniqueness of having two official languages Maltese and English. Malta also features in the Acts of the Apostles as an island that was converted to Christianity in AD 60 which is documented in the said Acts of the Apostles. Malta therefore could claim to have a variety of unique features that together could create a special value offer that could lead to a whole series of specific products that can attract to different segments of the market as well as to specific niche markets that are looking for something specific to do in visiting a particular destination. Malta is not a big island and it is important that visitors will not only rise the number of guests in hotel but also frequenting the whole Malta attractions. In fact visitors will feel as part of the local culture and taste the local life where the population becomes on of the elements in experience product. This is synonymous to saying that visiting the destination amounts to an exposure that is much broader than the limited interest that one might have started with in choosing Malta for a destination. Therefore, we should not promote Malta as a destination but we should start promoting it as an experience. This implies that the value provided t o the visitor derives from the experience and not just from the services consumed. Promoting Malta as an experience creates opportunity to competitive with other tourism destinations and attracts different market segments. Before Malta can be an unforgettable experience it requires lot of changes in development and society area. To change the way Malta is received by tourists, we need to look on Malta situation over the years, and have in mind that if something goes wrong, we can lose Malta clients once again as this had Maltese tourism statistics This table shows number of tourists visiting Malta till 1999 year. In this table we can clearly see that Malta over 40 years has become a very popular tourism destination and from year to year the number of tourist has been increased very quickly. In 1999, the number of visitors to Malta amounted to 1,214,230 of which about 85 percent were stay over tourists and the remaining percentages were cruise passengers. The amount of incoming visitors has increased rapidly between 1960 and 1980, as can be seen in Table 1. There was a relatively large decrease in tourist inflows between 1980 and 1985, but the numbers picked up rapidly again during the last half of the eighties and the nineties. Densities The number of tourists staying on the island becomes even three times more than population and makes big density on the island which can be roughly translated into 30 thousand tourist staying for a whole year, given that on average, each tourist stayed in Malta for about 9.1 nights. This is equivalent to about 8% of the population, and, as expected such high densities exert heavy pressure on the environment and infrastructure of the Maltese Islands, where population density is already extremely high, with about 1200 persons per square kilometre. Visitors nationality The most important market for Malta tourism is Great Britain that set up the number of 34 % of all visitors. The second largest market is Germany, which contributed some 17% of tourists to Malta in recent years. Also a major tourism market to Malta was Italy, France, North Africa and the Netherlands. In recent years there was a tendency for the percentage of British tourists to decrease. At present there is an attempt to attract more tourists from North America. Socio-economic background To get a great holiday in Malta, unfortunately we have to spend large sums of money. National Tourism Organisation pointed out that the prices of attractions are too high and decrease the motivation of tourists that wants to visit Malta. They also showed that prices of tour operators offer are lot more expensive compared to similar countries such as Greece and Spain. Due to this fact the decreasing number of tourists coming to Malta has been noticed, just because tourists cannot afford it. National tourism organisation surveys results for the British market indicate that a large proportion of Summer tourists (51% in 1993) were managers, directors or belong to the well paid professions. It would appear therefore that Maltas tourists are not typically low income earners. Seasonal Pattern Malta tourism is very seasonal, the majority of inbound tourists arriving in the May to October period in 1999, reached about 82 % of tourists arrived during these months, including 46% arrived during the shoulder months and 36% during the summer months (July to September). The remaining 18% arrived during the November to Jan period (the Winter months). This of course means that the problem of tourist density in summer is even worse. Maltese tourism authorities are trying to attract tourists to Malta during the winter, even if they success there will be no reduction during the winter. Average Duration of Stay In recent years, the average stay per tourist was about 9.4 in 1995 to about 9.1 nights in autumn 1999. It was about 13 days in the seventies and has fallen to 12 nights in the eighties. The overall average length of stay concealed significant differences between groups of tourists. Tourists, who are usually in a 3-star hotels and resorts, stay longer than other categories of hotels for accommodation. The shortest stays pertain to tourists in 5 star hotels so also Corinthia St. Georges Bay which has really big prices and are mainly focused on higher class of community at the same time keeping the low experience in the hotel and basic their luxury only on amenities as service failed due to the clients expectations.. Tourist Accommodation The number of tourist establishments in 1999 was 246 it is a big number including hotels, restaurants and amenities around the island with 40191 tourists. Tourists usually choose 3-star (51 hotels) and 4-star (34 hotels) category, with a share of about 77 percent of the total available hotel beds. Middle class could afford it and these kind of hotels had the biggest income. Five star hotels accommodation accounted for only 14 percent, really low number of total hotel beds. However government focused on building more 4 and 5 stars hotel to attract and change the offer of luxury hotels to increase the low percentage in these accommodations. In 1999 the average annual occupancy rate in all establishments was around 58 percent. As is the case with the length of stay, the overall occupancy average conceals considerable variation between different types of accommodation and different seasons. In 1999, the highest occupancy rates were for 4 star hotels (with 80%). while the lowest were for 1 star hotel with 14%. In the summer months occupancy rates tend to be almost twice as high as they are in the winter months, and in August of that year they overall average might have exceeded 90%. Actually I could see this during my internship and compare what kind of people visit 5 stars hotel and what their expectation of holidays are focused on and I would say that around 50% of guests were not satisfied. Economic Contribution The direct contribution of tourism to the economy can be measured in terms of its contributions to GDP, to the balance of payments and to gainful employment. In recent years, tourists are spending directly contributed about 15% of the gross domestic product Malta and 25% of the proceeds of foreign currency for goods and services. Malta is a multiple analysis of tourism, tourism seems to indicate the costs are usually higher leverage, where the majority of exports, due to tourism-related value-added production is relatively high. Tourism also contributed to the national economy through international transportation, as the large number of tourists of the domestic airline Air Malta used in regular and charter flights to car rentals. In recent years, transportation costs, which is related to tourism, about 5 percent of foreign exchange inflows from exports of goods and services. There are no statistics on the full contribution of tourism to employment in Malta published. As already mentioned, it is not easy to determine, as the contribution of tourism expenditure creates jobs in nearly all sectors of the economy. However, it is known that in 1999, the hotel industry, which agreed in Malta almost exclusively on the development of international tourism, about 9,000 jobs, which represents 6 percent of the total economically active population. This, of course, does not represent all the jobs generated by tourism. LldMB the total amount will be 21000, provided that the employment generated by tourism as the ratio of total employment in the important contribution of tourist expenditure (including transport) to GDP. 6. At present, tourism does not contribute as much as the production of the Maltese economy, in terms of income and employment..However, the economic contribution of tourism is growing while that of ¸ manufacturing is declining, and it is quite possible that within a decade the share of GDP originating from tourism will overtake that originati ng from manufacturing. Unfortunately, the Malta Tourism Authority to us sometimes resembles the planning office in the old Soviet bureauracy. Good in production statistics to better identify problems and what the future will bring, but something is not bleak, as the targets set by them. Holidays in Malta and tourism is an important source of employment in Malta, and perhaps, with an unemployment rate above 8 per cent drop in tourists no long-term threat to the economy of the island magic. With official figures showing worrying signs that the number of tourists visiting Malta in 2006 are similar, perhaps even down from 2005 may be an opportunity for island flights operating system from the United Kingdom seems to have dropped all the important summer season. Holidays in Malta and tourism is an important source of employment in Malta, and perhaps, with an unemployment rate above 8 per cent drop in tourists no long-term threat to the economy of the island magic. Malta development To take a closer look on Malta situation, the most suit model of destination development is Butler model. The aim of this model is look at destination how they develop and grow. Tourism industry is very dynamic as any other and can change rapidly. Therefore, the Butler Model is a way of studying tourist resorts to see how they change to current demands and trends to stay on the market. These changes can then be compared to the predictions as shown on the model. We can see the similarity of what was happening in Malta when the destination was becoming popular and had more visitors each year. Malta popularity was growing and as a tourism destination achieved success. The problem appears now when Malta has stagnation time, and has to take some actions in order to rejuvenate and stop decline process. Unfortunately what Butlers model is missing is being more specific and shows to low outside factors that can also have influence on a destination. But from the latest news that was stated on official Malta webpage what we can read is: Unfortunately the Malta Tourist Authority to us sometimes resembles a planning office in the old Soviet bureauracy. Good at producing statistics, excellent at identify problems and what the future needs, but failing miserably to deliver anything like the targets they set. Holidays in Malta and the related tourist sector are a major source of employment in Malta, and with unemployment running at over 8 per cent any fall in tourists could spell long term damage to the islands economy. With official figures showing worrying signs that the number of tourists for 2006 visiting Malta could be similar, or perhaps even down from 2005, the opportunity for the island to have low cost flights operating from the UK appears to have slipped by for the all important summer season. Holidays in Malta and the related tourist sector are a major source of employment in Malta, and with unemployment running at over 8 per cent any fall in tourists could spell long term damage to the islands economy. Destination development as a plan not only refreshes the tourism offer but has to convince that the whole product needs to be supported by any other operators. Specially this process connects and creates a bound with the stakeholders. Both local suppliers, as well as international distributors in the market will have benefits if they will stay behind the plan. This is being achieved in some way but this process is long and is not completed yet. The change also needs to convince local community to act as a Malta product and help in order to achieve together goals. The problem is that the local community is the host and the tourist is the guest and the communication and service between them needs to be open to spread the experience and genuine hospitality. The public authorities are being integrated in this process. It is good that actions has been taken to warn the local by Malta Tourism Authority since 2000 and regular meetings are organized with the public authorities, both local and central. This process has to be refreshed each time to ensure and remind how support from partners is important. The distribution element is very significant. The good point is that Malta tourism operators are much more aware of what they could offer and more responsive comparing to traditional tour operators. The government has the idea that they could not only serve usually offers to visitors but could focus on experience of Malta which can be shown in different manner and can be associated at the same time. Malta has developed a Web site that is very popular and easy to use for each of the guests. Currently www.visitmalta.com is visited by 4 000 persons per day, who on average download ten pages each. Also a corporate Web site has been I am sure that this is big process of innovation. Malta need to forget about old style tourism product and change the way of distribution, refresh the offer and change the position on the market. However, tourism is a service that people creates when they travel to get the service that they pay for. Social dimension is very important if Malta want to turn its product to unique experience. Not only are people involved as suppliers and as clients but the whole social aura actually provides the context within which the product can be designed and the delivery determined. The soft element of the infrastructure is therefore of absolute importance. The process was started in 1999 but it is still very much in progress. Malta is currently facing a problem of a misunderstanding between what government manages to promote and what they manage to deliver. Clearly this innovative process is not deep enough and the social dimension of new strategy has not yet been fully understood. Malta should tr y to obtain as much help among the various stakeholders in the tourism industry. The Government of Malta is providing leadership by developing the strategy. A main purpose is to find the way to engage in as much education and motivation as possible to have guaranteed that this innovative process and the management of change required does take root. The challenge is great but the change is necessary. Small islands states and tourism It is known that small islands states are much more depend on tourism more than larger countries do. The reason for this could be that when we compare two different states, small islands economy has much more tourism-related activities than others. Islands like Malta are trying to expand export markets in sells, but it is not successful as these countries wish to be. Looking from different perspective, the natural environment including unique climate and landscapes of Malta gives some advantages in tourism activities. Because of this reason, government set up tourism as priority, and tries to get as much as they can from Malta potential by taking care of the most for them industry. Go Developing Sustainable Tourism in Malta Developing Sustainable Tourism in Malta Introduction To understand what an exactly tourism management specialization is and have awareness what I am studying at school I had to first understand what is nowadays tourism and how to manage it. It is important for me that I have good understanding of what I am writing about and what is the area that I should base my project. Let me specify what tourism is and connected to that tourism management in order to continue and narrow down the research problem. Everyone in our lives was tourist at some point, and to define what tourism is can be difficult. Tourism is when people travel no more than one year to different environment for leisure, business or other purpose. Tourism is a dynamic and competitive industry that requires the ability to constantly adapt to customers changing needs and desires, as the customers satisfaction, safety and enjoyment are particularly the focus of tourism businesses. Tourism management is mostly about setting a plan or a solution for problem of course within tourism sector. It is about taking the decision regarding to our aims and resources. Tourism is one of the biggest earning incomes in each of the countries around the world. It is important to manage it well to changing needs mentioned before. Tourism industry include: transport, accommodations, food and beverage, establishments, shops, entertainments and events, activity facilities, and a variety of hospitality service providers who deliver service to individuals or groups traveling away from home. Tourism product is not produced by some organization, specific people or group, or governmental agency; rather, it is defined as â€Å"a satisfying visitor experience.† Tourism definition is about every activity and experience that a tourist meets during his or her entire trip away from home. As this project has to be based on my internship experience that I had in my second semester I want to give a touch of information where I have been and what I did. In year 2010 I had great opportunity to have my work placement in 5 stars Corinthia St. Georges Bay Hotel situated in small but exotic country Malta. I was working in different areas beginning from food beverage, events planning, weddings and finishing at front desk. This time gave me big competence how hotels work, and how hospitality is important. Finally I could implement my knowledge from school in to practice and having a great start for my future career. Destination Malta is a small island situated in the bottom of south Europe, lies in a strategic position, between Europe and North Africa. Lack of natural resources, the strength of Malta, hasalwayslied squarely with its geographic position and the island has a checkered history of foreign rulers from the Phoenicians, Romans, Normans, Arabs, Spanish, Knights of St. John, the French and lastly the British. The island was a great fortress economy, with a 150-year reliance on the British armed forces. Post independence, in 1964, the island sold itself and became manufacturing hub, particularly in the textile and surprising the electronics industry, and bolstering its nascent tourism industry. In the early 1990s, the island became EU membership, and starts developing its services industry and reduces the reliance on the tourism sector. Malta became a member of the European Union on 1 May 2004 and accept the Euro currency on 1 January 2008. In accordance with the accession to the EU, new knowledge-based activities were spawnedsuch as financial services, remote gaming, information and communications technologies, and aviation services increasing the clout of the island state. Well positioned after the international recession, Malta want to stay competitive and attract foreign investment with a variety of professional services, low costs, save and stable investment climate and fiscal advantages. Corinthia St. Georges Bay I would like to give you some of the information about the hotel that I had my internship in. Internationally luxury hotels in such a destinations like: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Libya, Malta, Portugal and Russia. Created by the Pisani family of Malta in the 1960s, the Corinthia brand stands in that proud tradition of Mediterranean hospitality and its signature services communicate the ‘Warm smiles, Inspired Flavours and Pleasant Surprises of its Maltese heritage. All Corinthia hotels feature beautiful conference areas, extensive leisure and business tourist facilities, and are each renowned for their uniqueness of character. Corinthia Hotels portfolio includes two award-winning properties: The CorinthiaHotelBudapest, Hungary winner of Europes ‘Best Hotel Architecture Award and member of ‘The Most Famous Hotels in the World andCorinthia Hotel Prague in the Czech Republic the first hotel ever to win Best Gastronomy Concept in the Czech Republic and a recipient of the ‘5 stars and 6 stripes designation from renowned US reviewer Seven Stars and Stripes. The Corinthia Hotels portfolio also features the elegant Corinthia Palace Hotel and Spa and the splendid Corinthia Hotel St Georges Bay in Malta the one that I have been, The superior five-star CorinthiaHotelTripoli, Libya, the modern Corinthia Hotel Lisbon in Portugal and the renowned CorinthiaHotelSt. Petersburg, Russia. Malta issue In my internship report project I had to find and solve problems, or find some innovation connected with the hotel that I worked in, or area within the tourism industry. One of the problems in hotel was communication. I found out that minimum 75% members of Corinthia St. Georgs Bay hotel who are building service for the customers in fully booked 250 rooms do not speak more than 2 languages. What we can officially read on the main website of the Corinthia St. Georgs Bay hotel is that languages spoken at the hotel are: English, French, German, Spanish, Russian, Italian, Danish, Portuguese, and Romanian. It surprised me the most, because this is not only the problem of communication inside the hotel but also outstanding lack of professionalism which is simply giving customers lies. While taking care about communication problems in a Corinthia St. Georgs Bay I also noticed that motto to all of employees sounds: smile, greed and eye contact. Human communication consists of 93% body language and paralinguistic cues, while only 7% of communication consists of words themselves so it includes exactly hotel motto, which was not used by member staff properly. In conclusion, my internship report was based on solving the communication inside the hotel. This problem didnt occur only in Corinthia St. Georges Bay hotel but also in almost every different hotel around Malta. Weak communication between hotels, bad organization, lack of information for tourists, uncertainty of guests, mistakes that leads to misunderstanding. It gave me big sign that there is a lot of work to do, to implement better strategy to do not lose customers, and develop Malta in such a way that problem of communication will disappear. In such a way that hotels will more cooperate with each other, suppo rt tourism industry when they have the same goals and take care about social benefits. It requires a lot of dedication from citizens and government, so I will try to find the way to make it real. As I am a tourist management student I dont want to solve hotel problem. I would like to find some more challenging issues, so I would like to undertake sustainable Malta development. For that I will use just example of my hotel as one of the many similar amenities around the island to understand what benefits they can have or actions they have to take in order to achieve success. Sustainable development of destinations is about managing the visitor impact on a local destinations economy, social fabric and physical environment in a way which benefits everybody, residents, businesses, landowners and visitors alike, both now and in the future. These principles can be applied to all tourism destinations notably small islands with unique fauna and flora and to all areas and forms of tourism whether niche or mainstream, rural, coastal or urban. The best way of looking at this complicated relationship is through the idea of place shaping or place making, the principle that everything in a place is linked thats why I mentioned about communication problem that appear on the island. This is particularly the case with the complex range of components that make up any visitors unforgettable experience and the best time in Malta. So from small problem this was communication and bad connection, not only in Corinthia St. Georges Bay but around hotels in Malta general, the cooperation is weak, and to make it better the idea is that we need to involve all actors on the island for together cooperation. Group project Malta development and repair the links in the service chain so not only hotels but also citizens, natural environment and economy will have benefits from sustainable development. What exactly sustainable development is and the whole idea behind this words I will explain in later chapter. Before that, I would like to make problem formulation which will be the main road ahead my project. Problem formulation Malta is no longer good competitor in the basic sun and sea package, due to the much extended offers by larger and often newer destinations which could handle higher expectations of visitors. For Malta the basic sea and sun concept was not enough to handle the pressure of other holiday destinations and could not stand its own ground. It was clear therefore that what had basically fuelled the growth of the Maltese industry in the last decades could no longer sustain the growth and development of the industry. Malta therefore had to think creatively and to innovate in order to rejuvenate the Malta tourism offer. Having in mind that Malta situation is bad and to make it better, I tried to create the cooperation of all actors on the island with sustainable destination development to beat the competition and rejuvenate nowadays position, but at the same point keeping the safety of natural environment which will be supported by local community and group working of Malta services. In order to do that I came up with problem formulation which will help me to solve or particularly give an idea how Malta could stand up again. In conclusion, this report is going to be based on solving the following problem formulation: How sustainable destination development of Malta can interconnect all social area and tourism industry, in order to innovate unique experience on the island, and rejuvenate the Malta tourism offer, without destroying the natural environment? In order to help me to solve this main problem, I think that is going to be really helpful if I consider some sub questions in this project. What is sustainable development? How we can connect social area together with tourism industry if its possible? Why Malta need rejuvenation? How to protect the nature ? To help me answer these sub questions I will use different types of models and theory. Relevant sources of information and critically chosen secondary data. The way I will structure my project and get better understanding of my vision you can see in methodology part. Therefore a major fraction of secondary data includes carefully chosen web-pages and provided academic papers, such as specialization books. Methodology Following this introduction, the dependence of SIDS on tourism is briefly described. Section 3 assesses the economic impact of tourism on the Maltese economy, while section 4 deals with environmental impact of tourism on the same islands. Some preemptive and corrective measures for the promotion of sustainable tourism are suggested in section 5. Section 6 concludes the paper with the optimistic note that tourism itself is sharpening our awareness of the evils of environmental degradation, and this could be conducive towards the adoption of sustainable tourism policies and measures. Sustainable tourism Sustainable tourism is very often considered as keeping the balance between economy and environment concerns. It is clear that economic activity has an impact on the environment and that this has feedback effect on the economy itself. This is especially true in the case of tourism, which makes use of environmental resources. This is especially true in the case of tourism, which makes use of environmental resources. Tourism depends on good looking and well kept surrounding environment which is pleasant and attractive to tourists, and negative environmental impacts caused by tourism itself, could destroy the image of the tourism destination in the long run. Sustainable tourism may be regarded as developed and managed tourism that remains viable in the long run and does not degrade the environment in which it exists to such an extent that it prohibits the successful development of other activities. This project deals with the issue for small island states in the developing country (SIDS), Malta. In many small developing island degradation of natural environment caused by tourism is commonplace. However, many SIDS may not be a form of ongoing activities to other, more environmentally friendly actions that are not associated with serious economic difficulties. The paper therefore takes in to consideration preemptive and corrective measures to find solution between the bad sides of environmental degradation and the benefits of economic growth and development. Sustainable tourism development does not only protect the environment it shows us the proper consideration of host peoples, communities, cultures, customs, lifestyles, and social and economic systems. It is tourism that can give benefits to those who are on the target site, and that does not destroy and degrade the milieu in which they live and from which they must earn a living after the last tourist has flown back home. It is tourism that renovate the material life of local communities, without the loss of traditional employment systems, acculturation or social disruption. Thus tourism is brought within the debate on sustainable development in general. Sustainable tourism development takes into consideration three main points: The necessary interactions between the environment and economy Long-term time scale. Inter nad intra-generational equity ensuring the needs of modern society without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. From my own observations, sustainable tourism, as described above is new idea, and it is important to fully understand it in the tourism industry, as the concept and its consequences. Many people still define sustainable tourism mainly with tourism growth. Sustainable tourism development seems to be one of the main priorities of the current tourism policies. It is not only a goal to bring the number of visitors or build the required number of hotels and destinations. Quality versus quantity is still a painful decision and compromise in the tourism industry goes usually with words more and bigger is best. Promoting Malta as an experience Malta had to base its product on something different from the basic availability of sun and beautiful sea which will always feature in their offers. History of Malta became very interesting due to the all Mediterranean happenings that had influence on Maltase culture background. Malta in fact has the oldest freestanding man-made structures, older that pyramids in Egypt, made in stone in the world and can pride itself on 23 known pre-historic temple sites as well as a whole chain of other structures, remains and buildings. The Maltese have a mixed cultural profile with an Arab based language. Malta is located exactly in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea and is an island that has influence from east and west. Malta has also the uniqueness of having two official languages Maltese and English. Malta also features in the Acts of the Apostles as an island that was converted to Christianity in AD 60 which is documented in the said Acts of the Apostles. Malta therefore could claim to have a variety of unique features that together could create a special value offer that could lead to a whole series of specific products that can attract to different segments of the market as well as to specific niche markets that are looking for something specific to do in visiting a particular destination. Malta is not a big island and it is important that visitors will not only rise the number of guests in hotel but also frequenting the whole Malta attractions. In fact visitors will feel as part of the local culture and taste the local life where the population becomes on of the elements in experience product. This is synonymous to saying that visiting the destination amounts to an exposure that is much broader than the limited interest that one might have started with in choosing Malta for a destination. Therefore, we should not promote Malta as a destination but we should start promoting it as an experience. This implies that the value provided t o the visitor derives from the experience and not just from the services consumed. Promoting Malta as an experience creates opportunity to competitive with other tourism destinations and attracts different market segments. Before Malta can be an unforgettable experience it requires lot of changes in development and society area. To change the way Malta is received by tourists, we need to look on Malta situation over the years, and have in mind that if something goes wrong, we can lose Malta clients once again as this had Maltese tourism statistics This table shows number of tourists visiting Malta till 1999 year. In this table we can clearly see that Malta over 40 years has become a very popular tourism destination and from year to year the number of tourist has been increased very quickly. In 1999, the number of visitors to Malta amounted to 1,214,230 of which about 85 percent were stay over tourists and the remaining percentages were cruise passengers. The amount of incoming visitors has increased rapidly between 1960 and 1980, as can be seen in Table 1. There was a relatively large decrease in tourist inflows between 1980 and 1985, but the numbers picked up rapidly again during the last half of the eighties and the nineties. Densities The number of tourists staying on the island becomes even three times more than population and makes big density on the island which can be roughly translated into 30 thousand tourist staying for a whole year, given that on average, each tourist stayed in Malta for about 9.1 nights. This is equivalent to about 8% of the population, and, as expected such high densities exert heavy pressure on the environment and infrastructure of the Maltese Islands, where population density is already extremely high, with about 1200 persons per square kilometre. Visitors nationality The most important market for Malta tourism is Great Britain that set up the number of 34 % of all visitors. The second largest market is Germany, which contributed some 17% of tourists to Malta in recent years. Also a major tourism market to Malta was Italy, France, North Africa and the Netherlands. In recent years there was a tendency for the percentage of British tourists to decrease. At present there is an attempt to attract more tourists from North America. Socio-economic background To get a great holiday in Malta, unfortunately we have to spend large sums of money. National Tourism Organisation pointed out that the prices of attractions are too high and decrease the motivation of tourists that wants to visit Malta. They also showed that prices of tour operators offer are lot more expensive compared to similar countries such as Greece and Spain. Due to this fact the decreasing number of tourists coming to Malta has been noticed, just because tourists cannot afford it. National tourism organisation surveys results for the British market indicate that a large proportion of Summer tourists (51% in 1993) were managers, directors or belong to the well paid professions. It would appear therefore that Maltas tourists are not typically low income earners. Seasonal Pattern Malta tourism is very seasonal, the majority of inbound tourists arriving in the May to October period in 1999, reached about 82 % of tourists arrived during these months, including 46% arrived during the shoulder months and 36% during the summer months (July to September). The remaining 18% arrived during the November to Jan period (the Winter months). This of course means that the problem of tourist density in summer is even worse. Maltese tourism authorities are trying to attract tourists to Malta during the winter, even if they success there will be no reduction during the winter. Average Duration of Stay In recent years, the average stay per tourist was about 9.4 in 1995 to about 9.1 nights in autumn 1999. It was about 13 days in the seventies and has fallen to 12 nights in the eighties. The overall average length of stay concealed significant differences between groups of tourists. Tourists, who are usually in a 3-star hotels and resorts, stay longer than other categories of hotels for accommodation. The shortest stays pertain to tourists in 5 star hotels so also Corinthia St. Georges Bay which has really big prices and are mainly focused on higher class of community at the same time keeping the low experience in the hotel and basic their luxury only on amenities as service failed due to the clients expectations.. Tourist Accommodation The number of tourist establishments in 1999 was 246 it is a big number including hotels, restaurants and amenities around the island with 40191 tourists. Tourists usually choose 3-star (51 hotels) and 4-star (34 hotels) category, with a share of about 77 percent of the total available hotel beds. Middle class could afford it and these kind of hotels had the biggest income. Five star hotels accommodation accounted for only 14 percent, really low number of total hotel beds. However government focused on building more 4 and 5 stars hotel to attract and change the offer of luxury hotels to increase the low percentage in these accommodations. In 1999 the average annual occupancy rate in all establishments was around 58 percent. As is the case with the length of stay, the overall occupancy average conceals considerable variation between different types of accommodation and different seasons. In 1999, the highest occupancy rates were for 4 star hotels (with 80%). while the lowest were for 1 star hotel with 14%. In the summer months occupancy rates tend to be almost twice as high as they are in the winter months, and in August of that year they overall average might have exceeded 90%. Actually I could see this during my internship and compare what kind of people visit 5 stars hotel and what their expectation of holidays are focused on and I would say that around 50% of guests were not satisfied. Economic Contribution The direct contribution of tourism to the economy can be measured in terms of its contributions to GDP, to the balance of payments and to gainful employment. In recent years, tourists are spending directly contributed about 15% of the gross domestic product Malta and 25% of the proceeds of foreign currency for goods and services. Malta is a multiple analysis of tourism, tourism seems to indicate the costs are usually higher leverage, where the majority of exports, due to tourism-related value-added production is relatively high. Tourism also contributed to the national economy through international transportation, as the large number of tourists of the domestic airline Air Malta used in regular and charter flights to car rentals. In recent years, transportation costs, which is related to tourism, about 5 percent of foreign exchange inflows from exports of goods and services. There are no statistics on the full contribution of tourism to employment in Malta published. As already mentioned, it is not easy to determine, as the contribution of tourism expenditure creates jobs in nearly all sectors of the economy. However, it is known that in 1999, the hotel industry, which agreed in Malta almost exclusively on the development of international tourism, about 9,000 jobs, which represents 6 percent of the total economically active population. This, of course, does not represent all the jobs generated by tourism. LldMB the total amount will be 21000, provided that the employment generated by tourism as the ratio of total employment in the important contribution of tourist expenditure (including transport) to GDP. 6. At present, tourism does not contribute as much as the production of the Maltese economy, in terms of income and employment..However, the economic contribution of tourism is growing while that of ¸ manufacturing is declining, and it is quite possible that within a decade the share of GDP originating from tourism will overtake that originati ng from manufacturing. Unfortunately, the Malta Tourism Authority to us sometimes resembles the planning office in the old Soviet bureauracy. Good in production statistics to better identify problems and what the future will bring, but something is not bleak, as the targets set by them. Holidays in Malta and tourism is an important source of employment in Malta, and perhaps, with an unemployment rate above 8 per cent drop in tourists no long-term threat to the economy of the island magic. With official figures showing worrying signs that the number of tourists visiting Malta in 2006 are similar, perhaps even down from 2005 may be an opportunity for island flights operating system from the United Kingdom seems to have dropped all the important summer season. Holidays in Malta and tourism is an important source of employment in Malta, and perhaps, with an unemployment rate above 8 per cent drop in tourists no long-term threat to the economy of the island magic. Malta development To take a closer look on Malta situation, the most suit model of destination development is Butler model. The aim of this model is look at destination how they develop and grow. Tourism industry is very dynamic as any other and can change rapidly. Therefore, the Butler Model is a way of studying tourist resorts to see how they change to current demands and trends to stay on the market. These changes can then be compared to the predictions as shown on the model. We can see the similarity of what was happening in Malta when the destination was becoming popular and had more visitors each year. Malta popularity was growing and as a tourism destination achieved success. The problem appears now when Malta has stagnation time, and has to take some actions in order to rejuvenate and stop decline process. Unfortunately what Butlers model is missing is being more specific and shows to low outside factors that can also have influence on a destination. But from the latest news that was stated on official Malta webpage what we can read is: Unfortunately the Malta Tourist Authority to us sometimes resembles a planning office in the old Soviet bureauracy. Good at producing statistics, excellent at identify problems and what the future needs, but failing miserably to deliver anything like the targets they set. Holidays in Malta and the related tourist sector are a major source of employment in Malta, and with unemployment running at over 8 per cent any fall in tourists could spell long term damage to the islands economy. With official figures showing worrying signs that the number of tourists for 2006 visiting Malta could be similar, or perhaps even down from 2005, the opportunity for the island to have low cost flights operating from the UK appears to have slipped by for the all important summer season. Holidays in Malta and the related tourist sector are a major source of employment in Malta, and with unemployment running at over 8 per cent any fall in tourists could spell long term damage to the islands economy. Destination development as a plan not only refreshes the tourism offer but has to convince that the whole product needs to be supported by any other operators. Specially this process connects and creates a bound with the stakeholders. Both local suppliers, as well as international distributors in the market will have benefits if they will stay behind the plan. This is being achieved in some way but this process is long and is not completed yet. The change also needs to convince local community to act as a Malta product and help in order to achieve together goals. The problem is that the local community is the host and the tourist is the guest and the communication and service between them needs to be open to spread the experience and genuine hospitality. The public authorities are being integrated in this process. It is good that actions has been taken to warn the local by Malta Tourism Authority since 2000 and regular meetings are organized with the public authorities, both local and central. This process has to be refreshed each time to ensure and remind how support from partners is important. The distribution element is very significant. The good point is that Malta tourism operators are much more aware of what they could offer and more responsive comparing to traditional tour operators. The government has the idea that they could not only serve usually offers to visitors but could focus on experience of Malta which can be shown in different manner and can be associated at the same time. Malta has developed a Web site that is very popular and easy to use for each of the guests. Currently www.visitmalta.com is visited by 4 000 persons per day, who on average download ten pages each. Also a corporate Web site has been I am sure that this is big process of innovation. Malta need to forget about old style tourism product and change the way of distribution, refresh the offer and change the position on the market. However, tourism is a service that people creates when they travel to get the service that they pay for. Social dimension is very important if Malta want to turn its product to unique experience. Not only are people involved as suppliers and as clients but the whole social aura actually provides the context within which the product can be designed and the delivery determined. The soft element of the infrastructure is therefore of absolute importance. The process was started in 1999 but it is still very much in progress. Malta is currently facing a problem of a misunderstanding between what government manages to promote and what they manage to deliver. Clearly this innovative process is not deep enough and the social dimension of new strategy has not yet been fully understood. Malta should tr y to obtain as much help among the various stakeholders in the tourism industry. The Government of Malta is providing leadership by developing the strategy. A main purpose is to find the way to engage in as much education and motivation as possible to have guaranteed that this innovative process and the management of change required does take root. The challenge is great but the change is necessary. Small islands states and tourism It is known that small islands states are much more depend on tourism more than larger countries do. The reason for this could be that when we compare two different states, small islands economy has much more tourism-related activities than others. Islands like Malta are trying to expand export markets in sells, but it is not successful as these countries wish to be. Looking from different perspective, the natural environment including unique climate and landscapes of Malta gives some advantages in tourism activities. Because of this reason, government set up tourism as priority, and tries to get as much as they can from Malta potential by taking care of the most for them industry. Go