Review of downsizing and its impact on employees

Review of downsizing and its impact on employees This chapter provides a review of downsizing and its impacts on employees. The main objective of this chapter is to provide readers with a picture of the theories applied in such studies. Furthermore, empirical studies specifically associated with the downsizing context and theories applied in this study will be examined too. Finally, the aim of this literature review is to find the research gaps in previous studies and how this study will close these gaps. There are eight main sections depicted in this chapter. First, a general review pertaining to downsizing will be discussed. This section mainly deals with the issues of organizational downsizing strategies, the expected and actual economic impacts of downsizing and the empirical studies which have explored the impacts of organizational downsizing on surviving employees (managers and non-managers). The second section deals with one of the main theories applied in this research which is the stress and coping model by Lazarus and Folkman (1984). Third, six models of turnover and retention will be explored in this chapter. Two models of employee turnover and retention which are Lee and Mitchells (1994) the unfolding model of turnover and Mitchell et al.s (2001) job embeddedness model are two of the main theories applied in this research. Subsequently, empirical studies which employed these two models will be discussed. Then, few empirical studies associated with turnover intention and voluntary turnover specifically in downsizing context will be discussed. The seventh section of this chapter deals with two work-related stressors, namely job insecurity and role overload experienced by survivors following an organizational downsizing and their influences on turnover intention. Finally, the conclusion of this chapter deals with the research gaps identified from the literature review and how this research will close these gaps. 2.1 DOWNSIZINg A large amount of the research on organizational downsizing that has emerged over the past 25 years has entered on two main research questions as identified by Datta et al. (2010). They were (1) What precipitates employee downsizing? and (2) What are the effects of downsizing from the standpoint of individual attitudes/behavior and organizational performance? (Datta et al., 2010). The main focus of this section is the effects of downsizing on individual employees attitudes and behaviors. First of all, the downsizing strategies employed by organizations will be examined. The second section will briefly summarize the anticipated and actual economic impacts on downsized organizations. Finally, empirical studies pertaining to the impacts of organizational downsizing on surviving employees (managers and non-managers) will be discussed. 2.1.1 Downsizing Strategies Three forms of downsizing implementation strategies have been identified: workforce reduction, organization redesign, and systemic strategy (Gandolfi, 2008). The workforce reduction strategy focused on headcount reduction and employed tactics such as layoffs, retrenchments, early retirements, natural attrition, hiring freeze, buy-out packages, transfers, and out-placement. Second, work redesign strategy concentrated on reducing work itself instead of cutting the number of employees. It included tactics such as phasing out functions, hierarchical levels, departments or divisions, redesigning tasks and consolidating units. Third, the systemic strategy emphasized on the organizational culture and the attitudes and values of its employees. Previous studies have shown that most organizations practiced workforce reduction strategies to downsized company (Gandolfi, 2005), while layoffs were the most common way to downsize (Mishra Mishra, 1994). 2.1.2 The Expected and Actual Economic Consequences of Downsizing Organizations adopted downsizing for a number of reasons, the most common reason was to improve efficiency, effectiveness and the productivity in the organizations (Cascio, 1993; Kets de Vries Balazs, 1997; Mone, 1994; Savery Luks, 2000). While efficiency concerned an organizations ability to do things better, effectiveness entailed an organizations ability to do the right things in order to survive (Budros, 1999). Beneficial consequences in terms of cost savings considerations were among the expected outcomes of organizations downsized (Cascio, Young, Morris, 1997). De Meuse, Venderheiden and Bergmann (1994) mentioned that organizations reduced employment costs by cutting employees who were not performing well. According to Cascio (1993) and Kets de Vries and Balazs (1997), expected economic benefits included lower expense ratios, increased return of investment, higher profits and stock prices. Another economic benefit resulted from organizations was being able to increase value for their shareholders (Cascio, 1993; Cascio et al., 1997; De Meuse et al., 1994). Additionally, other benefits as a result from downsizing included lower overhead, smoother communication, increased entrepreneurship, and heightened productivity (Cascio, 1993; Kets de Vries Balazs, 1997). In addition, Mone (1994) suggested that benefits may also be realized in the forms of lower average salaries for the less senior surviving work force, fewer management layer and flatter organizational structures. Finally, downsizing helped organizations to remain competitive in the increasingly global marketplace (Ugboro, 2006). As per Cascio et al. (1997) downsized organizations should be able to lower their labor cost, and as a result in increased earnings or to control product prices to improve competitiveness. As such, organizations have been urged to become lean and mean through downsizing activities, by took into account costs and other competitive consideration on national and international level (Appelbaum, Simpson, Shapiro, 1987, p. 68). Irrespective of the intended benefits as mentioned above, the general consequences of the economic impact of downsizing were negative (Budros, 1999; De Meuse et al., 1994; Gandolfi, 2008). Although a few organizations have reported increased financial performance; however, majority of the downsized organizations have reported decreased levels of efficiency, effectiveness, productivity and profitability (Gandolfi, 2008). Even though downsizing is used as a cost reduction strategy by organizations, there was evidence that downsizing does not decreased costs as desired. On the contrary, costs may actually increase in some cases (McKinley, Sanchez, Schick, 1995). A number of hard-to-quantify costs were listed, including costs of quality as a result of increased rework, scrap, inspection and overtime costs for surviving employees whose workload increased and forgone new business opportunities as they did not have the resources to take on the new work (Mabert Schemenner, 1997). Mirvis (1 997) cited that over one third of the downsizing organizations that were surveyed reported that unexpected increased in number of temporary workers and consultants and the need for surviving employees to work overtime and to be retrained. Moreover, Bruton, Keels, and Shook (1996) reported that the stock price for downsized organizations decreased after two years of downsizing. In a recent study by Yu and Park (2006) which analyzed financial data of 258 listed Korean firms between 1997 and 2002, downsizing organizations suffered more financial difficulties than organizations that did not downsized. Downsizing resulted in an increase in the organizations profits and efficiency but no effects on employee productivity. Furthermore, there was some evidence to suggest that those organizations which had downsized reported lower measures of profitability than those did not (Carswell, 2005; Mentzer, 1996). Empirical studies also found that downsizing had a negative impact on corporate reputation (Love Kraatz, 2009; Zyglidopoulos, 2005). Gandolfi (2008) contend the following statements in review of available studies: Most firms adopted downsizing strategies did not reap economic and organizational benefits; Non-downsized firms financially outperformed downsized forms in the short-, medium- and long-run (Macky, 2004; Morris, Cascio, Young., 1999); While some firms had shown positive financial outcomes, there was no empirical evidence to suggest a correlation between downsizing and improved financial performance (Macky, 2004; Morris et al., 1999); Some firms have reported positive financial indicators in the short term, yet the long-term financial consequences of downsizing have been shown to be consistently negative. 2.1.3 Impacts of Downsizing on Surviving Employees This section will examine the impacts of organizational downsizing on two categories of employees, namely managers and non-managers. 2.1.3.1 Impacts on Surviving managers A number of studies were conducted to identify the impacts of downsizing on managers (e.g. Dopson, Risk, Stewart, 1992; Thomas Dunkerley, 1999; Thomas Linstead, 2002). The literature below will review empirical studies concerning impacts on surviving managers as consequences of organizational downsizing. Foremost, three main aspects were identified which are longer working hour and intensified work regimes, wider roles and responsibilities, and managerial career. Subsequently, surviving managers attitudes toward organizational downsizing will be explored too. Longer Working Hours and Intensified Work Regimes Thomas and Dunkerley (1999) conducted a study to examine the UK middle managers experiences of downsizing and to discover how these experiences influenced their roles and nature of middle management. Data collection was divided into two phases. Phase one comprised of a 50 case-study organizations, involving interviews with key managers (senior line and HR) and middle managers. While phase two involved in-depth analysis of up to ten interviews with middle managers in ten organizations drawn from the original cohort. A wide range of organizations were involved in the study, included oil, brewing, insurance, local authorities, health service, military, civil service agencies, manufacturing, engineering, music industry, retail and distribution from both private and public sectors. Managers interviewed reported longer working hours and intensified work regimes. They experienced a significant increased in the number of hours worked, including at work and at home during evenings and on the weekends. However, majority of the managers pointed that this long hour worked was through their choice and necessity to get the job done rather than through presenteeism or fear of job loss (Thomas Dunkerly, 1999, p. 162). Similar findings were presented by Thomas and Linstead (2002) based on a wider study in the UK of approximately 150 middle managers in 50 organizations that had undergone major organizational restructuring. A wide range of private and public sector organizations included oil, brewing, insurance, manufacturing, local authorities, health, armed forces, engineering, logistics, mineral extraction and privatized utilities were involved in the study. A qualitative, inductive and multi-methods approach had been adopted and specifically involved case studies that focused on an individual middle managers subjective experiences. Likewise, problems of worked longer hours and unpaid overtime were reported by McCann et al. (2004) in a comparison study between Japanese and Anglo-American management systems based on interviews with senior or HR managers and middle managers in 30 large organizations. Both private and public sectors organizations comprised the sample and included steel manufacturing, heavy mechanical engineering, brewing, automotive, electronics, financial services, retail, healthcare, local government and central government. Zemke (1990) also reported that middle managers worked more hours than before downsizing took place. A variety of reasons were being identified which contributed to the intensification of work faced by middle managers. They included wider roles and responsibilities, flatter structures, reduced in number of middle managers, presenteeism through fear and job insecurity, pressure from peer to perform, performance cultures with increased individual accountability and the necessity to keep pace with constant change. (McCann et al., 2004; Thomas Dunkerley, 1999; Thomas Linstead, 2002). Wider Roles and Responsibilities Dopson et al. (1992) conducted a small-scale study to look into the changes affected middle managers and their reactions to these changes in both public and private sectors. Two phrases of data collection were conducted. In the first phase, eight general case studies were conducted by interviewing a senior manager (training manager) and on average six middle managers in each case. The second phase of the research comprised of interviews with twenty middle managers in each of four case studies (a computer company, a car manufacturing company, a new public agency, and an autospares company), two to three senior managers, the personnel and training manager(s), and in the public-sector case the trade union representatives. The interviews results indicated that middle management jobs became more general, with greater responsibilities and a wider range of tasks. These findings were supported by the studies of McCann et al. (2004), Thomas and Dunkerley (1999), and Thomas and Linstead (2002) . The removal of layers of middle management had resulted in an increasing span of control was a common feature of most middle management jobs in studies conducted (e.g., Dopson et al., 1992; Thomas Dunkerley, 1999; Zemke, 1990). Generally, middle managers were responsible for a wider mix and a greater number of subordinates than before (Dopson et al., 1992). On top of that, middle managers experienced significant increased of workload (Dopson et al., 1992; McCann et al., 2004; Thomas Dunkerley, 1999; Thomas Linstead, 2002). Middle managers had a greater responsibility for a wider range of duties for which they were now clearly more accountable (Dopson et al., 1992). Their roles ranged from technical and professional trends to more generic management, with tasks such managing, financing, budgeting and forecasting (Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). They needed to be more flexible (McCann et al., 2004), and obtained more generalist skills such as financial knowledge, ability to manage staff o f different backgrounds and a greater marketing and strategic orientation (Dopson et al., 1992). While McCann et al. (2004) found that middle managers were doing less managing of staff and more short-term, task focused co-operative group work. They were more likely to be managing subordinates in groups and tasks in a flattened hierarchy. Their job titles often bore little resemblance to their actual work tasks. Besides that, middle managers faced pressure from below due to the increased spans of control, constraint of resources and increased customer accountability. Furthermore, pressures were faced from above to perform a range of targets and performance indicators (Dopson et al., 1992; McCann et al., 2004; Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). Newell and Dopson (1996) in their attempt to investigate the impact of restructuring on middle management job and careers discovered that middle managers had to meet more stringent budgetary and quality targets as a result from interviews with 20 middle managers in telecommunication industry. The shift from physical commodities to information implied a shift from hierarchies of specialization to flexible networks of creativity and information sharing (McCann et al., 2004). Middle managers had less opportunity to fall back that their judgments was hampered by a lack of information due to the advancement of information and communication technology (Dopson et al., 1992). A number of middle managers commented on their needs to work in a variety of relationships, with manager and staff in organizations overseas, as well as spending time on oversea visits (Dopson et al., 1992). As consequences discussed above, stress-related problems and illnesses, role overload, tensions with home-life and impoverished life-styles were reported as a result from the long hours worked and increased roles and responsibilities (Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). Managerial Careers after Organizational Downsizing In terms of managerial career, both negative and positive views will be depicted as below. Individual middle manager retained responsibility for his/her own career (Newell Dopson, 1996). The trend towards individual accountability and individual contracts was noticed. Career advancement opportunities were declined due to the wide gaps between levels in the hierarchy and wider spans of control (Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). There were concerns about future career paths as the management hierarchy has been reduced (Dopson et al., 1992). Likewise, career opportunities were thought to have significantly decreased and there were no clear paths for middle managers (Newell Dopson, 1996). Some potential career paths were identified, such as the notion of filling dead mens shoes or promotion by the back door, that was being promoted because your face fitted, or you were good mates with the senior manager (Newell Dopson, 1996, p. 15). Majority of the managers commented on a lack of information provided by the organization about their role and future in the organization and about their feelings of lack of control after changes took place (Newell Dopson, 1996; Thomas Linstead, 2002). Some managers felt more insecure feelings on further changes and complained that the refocusing of tasks made them to lose certain enjoyable aspects of job (Dopson et al., 1992). They faced problems adapting to changes, especially when the changes were unexpected and the employees were not fully consulted about those changes (Dopson et al., 1992). Some middle managers felt that they are stuck in a situation which was continually demanding in terms; however, without the support of proper training and development (Newell and Dopson, 1996, p. 18). Likewise, middle managers felt that they were losing the plot in their organization with increased feelings of insecurity and uncertainty (Thomas Linstead, 2002, p. 88). Middle managers had a great sense of vulnerability that middle managers are an easy target (Thomas Linstead, 2002, p. 85). In contradiction, some middle managers reported positive experiences from downsizing (Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). A number of the middle managers felt a reduction in the frustration of their job (Dopson et al., 1992). Some reasons were identified to address such claim. First, the shorter hierarchy in the organizations meant that the middle managers were closer to top management and the strategic and policy arena (Dopson et al., 1992). They claimed to have greater control over their working lives and resources that they need, greater power of decision making, problem-solving, more innovative and strategic input (Dopson et al., 1992; Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). Thus, middle managers had more entrepreneurial roles. Many middle managers commented on feelings of job fulfillment and enrichment. Some surviving middle managers perceived increased career opportunities as some beneficial retirement packages had freed up the senior end of middle management. As a consequence, the profile of middle m anagement was getting younger (Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). Furthermore, the reduction in promotion opportunities were may be offset in part by the introduction of more performance-related pay (Dopson et al., 1992). Ebadan and Winstanley (1997) conducted a study which focused on getting the managers views of changes occurred and their perceptions of how the new career paths could be and should be forged. As a result, 42 respondents identified worse career prospects. However, despite the overall perception of worsening career prospects, the managers generally felt that their career prospects were better in the reorganized organizations than elsewhere. Work Attitudes of Surviving Managers Levitt et al., (2008) carried out a study to investigate the effects of downsizing on the survivors of layoffs in a large insurance organization. In-depth interviews with four middle managers were conducted to determine surviving middle managers attitudes pertaining to downsizing. Middle managers reported negative feelings of apathy, fear, distrust and anger toward the organization. Middle managers reported no loyalty or commitment to organization anymore. They no longer felt obligated to perform above and beyond the call of duty and no longer do so. These characteristics were consistent with the term as survivor syndrome (Devine et al., 2003, p.110). Similarly, in an attempt to know more about how middle managers responded to the demands of downsizing, ONeill and Lenn (1995, p. 25) found that surviving middle managers were anger, anxiety, cynicism, resentment, resignation, desire for retribution and hope. Middle managers reported high level of stress after downsizing. The type of stress was no longer isolated to the workloads; though, the increasingly feelings of job insecurity. They also indicated they felt stress relative to the constant organizational changes (Levitt et al., 2008). The study conducted by Luthans and Sommer (1999) found that managers reported lower level of organizational commitment, lower job satisfaction and workgroup trust following an organizational downsizing. Middle managers had lower morale and long-term commitment to organization due to the lack of resources and rewards and the constant pressure to reduce costs (Thomas Dunkerley, 1999). Correspondingly, majority of the respondents in the study by Ebadan and Winstanley (1997) indicated that they would have lower morale and motivation due to a possible decreased in promotion opportunities. The lower levels of commitment and trust of middle managers were resulted from the aspect of freedom to make decision. Fr eedom for middle managers to make strategic decisions had not always increased along with the growing of variety and creativity of middle management tasks (McCann et al., 2004). On the other hand, in the study by Thomas and Dunkerley (1999), middle managers reported higher job satisfaction level from increased empowerment over their work roles. Ugboro (2006) carried out a study to determine the relationship between job redesign, employee empowerment and intent to quit measured by affective organizational commitment among survivors of organizational restructuring and downsizing. The respondents of this study comprised of both middle managers and employees in supervisory positions. A total of 438 useable questionnaires have been used for data analysis purpose. The results showed significant positive relationships between job redesign, empowerment and affective commitment. The study showed that both job redesign and employee empowerment that enhanced survivors sense of impact and job meaningfulness could facilitate survivors affective commitment and reduced their turnover intention. In spite of the middle managers attitudes as mentioned above, Allen et al., (2001) revealed that the middle mangers attitudes changed over time after downsizing. The data was collected through surveyed 106 managers experienced a downsizing regarding organizational commitment, turnover intentions, job involvement, role clarity, role overload, satisfaction with top management and satisfaction with job security. The results generally indicated that downsizing had a significant impact on work attitudes, the impact varied over time and that the initial impact was generally negative. The findings indicated that the most negative impact on attitudes occurred during the immediate post-downsizing period (Allen et al., 2001). A later study by Levitt et al. (2008) opposed to the previous findings by Allen et al. (2001). Middle managers reported transitional changes in their feelings over time; however, these changes or transitions were predominantly from positive to negative. They reported posi tive feelings initially that changed to negative feelings and these negative feelings continued to grow overtime (Levitt et al., 2008). 2.1.3.2 Impacts on Surviving Non-managers In 1994, Mone conducted a study to examine how individual-level factors (self-efficacy, self-esteem, personal goals, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment) affected workers decision concerning turnover intention to leave the downsizing organization. A total of 145 employees at a U.S. manufacturing firm that experienced downsizing in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s were the respondents of the study. The findings suggested that self-efficacy was positively related to turnover intention. Furthermore, task self-esteem, but not role and global self-esteem had a negative impact on turnover intention. A 3-year longitudinal panel study was conducted by Armstrong-Stassen (2002) to compare the impacts on employees who had been declared redundant (N=49) in the initial downsizing stage, but who remained in the organization, and employees who had not been designated redundant (N=118). Data was collected in time T1 (early 1996), T2 (6 months later), T3 (1997), and T4 (1999). Employees designated redundant reported significantly higher level of job satisfaction at T4 compared with other three periods. While at T1, they reported lower job satisfaction than those declared nonredundant, but by T4 they reported higher level of job satisfaction than employees designated nonredundant. Additionally, both group of employees reported significant increase in job security between T1/T2 and T3 and also between T3 and T4. Devine et al. (2003) conducted a study to compare the outcomes experienced by both victims and survivors involved in a major downsizing program. The final sample consisted of 608 responses (435 continuing employees, and 173 displaced, re-employed employees). The findings suggested that employees who continued to work in the downsized environment reported higher stress level than those individuals who had been displaced. Additionally, the displaced employees reported they had more job control, or autonomy than continuing employees. Furthermore, the moderating effect of perceived job control on the relationship between the environmental stressors (downsizing) and perceived employee stress was found, indicating that high perceptions of control lowered feeling of stress, and vice versa. Finally, displaced employees reported significantly higher level of job satisfaction, overall physical health and quality of life perceptions, and lower level of absenteeism and licit drug use than contin uing employees. Summary In a nutshell from the review of downsizing research, it revealed that most of the studies pertaining to surviving managers especially middle managers have been in the form of qualitative method in which they explore the work-related stressors experienced by surviving managers and their attitudes. Furthermore, the direct relationship between work-related stressors (role overload and job insecurity) and turnover intention has been underresearched in the context of downsizing.

Impact Of Climate Change On Mauritius Environmental Sciences Essay

Impact Of Climate Change On Mauritius Environmental Sciences Essay Mauritius is a small island in the Indian Ocean, which forms part of the Mascarene Islands. It is very famous as a beautiful tourist destination. The local climate is tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; there is a warm, dry winter from the month of May to November and a hot, wet, and humid summer from November to May. There are Anti-cyclones which affect the country during May to September and Cyclones affect the country during November to April. Today, the tourism industry is the first pillar of the Mauritian economy. In brief, Mauritius had about 18,000 visitors in 1970. Between 1985 and 2000 the size of its tourism sector, measured by the increase in tourist arrivals, grew by approximately 340%. Tourist arrivals in 2004 were almost 720,000. Tourist arrivals kept increasing every year, in years 2009 and 2010 we noticed a decrease in tourists arrivals due to the World financial crisis, H1N1, price and other factors. The Tourism industry is developing very rapidly and the go vernment is expecting 2 million tourists in year 2015. The tourism created 30,000 full time job equivalents in 2000 and is creating more direct and indirect jobs with new hotels, luxury villas and tourist attractions. According to forecasts Mauritius is expecting 920, 000 tourists in 2010 which represents an increase of 5.6 percent over the figure of 871, 356 in 2009. Tourist arrivals are forecast to be around 950,000, representing an increase of 3.3 percent over 2010 (Central Statistic Office). According to the Bank of Mauritius, tourism receipts for 2011 should be about 41 billion, representing an increase of 5.1 percent over 2010. Climate Change Climate change refers to a change in the state of the climate that can be identified by changes in the mean and/or the variability of its properties and that persists for an extended period, typically decades or longer. It refers to any change in climate over time, whether due to natural variability or as a result of human activity (IPCC, 2007). Climate change is mainly caused by the accumulation of greenhouse gases in the lower atmosphere, fossil fuels, deforestation, methane, pollution, waste of energies and by other factors. Climate change has several negative impacts such as a rise in temperature, rise in sea level, beach erosion, floods, storm surge, droughts, sun burn, melting of glaciers, extinction of species, and among others. Climate scientists are very certain that the Earths climate will change at an unprecedented rate over the 21st century (Houghton et al., 2001). Researches which were made on climate change mention that Global GHG emissions due to human activities have grown since pre-industrial times, with an increase of 70% between year 1970 and 2004. The Global mean sea level is likely to rise by 15 to 95 centimetres by 2100. Global mean temperature has increased by about 0.6 1 °C over the last 100 years. The years at the end of the nineties were the warmest over the last centuries; hence global temperatu re will increase in the future. All the above mentioned impacts represent a threat to the tourism industry and other sub industries. Mauritius and Climate Change The impacts of climate variability and extreme weather events are becoming a concern to the Republic of Mauritius. Though the GHG emission of Mauritius is insignificant, warming of the climate and its effects on the natural and ecological system are inevitable and already obvious. Analyses of temperature recorded at Mauritius and its outer islands show a distinct warming trend. Average temperature at all stations is increasing at the rate of 0.15 ËÅ ¡C per decade and has risen by 0.74 1.2 ËÅ ¡C when compared to the 1961-90 long term mean. At some urban stations the temperature has risen by even greater amounts. Sea levels in the southwest Indian Ocean based on reconstructed tide gauge data and Topex/Poseiden altimeter for the period 1950-2001 shows a rise of around 1.5 mm/yr at Port Louis which is the capital city of Mauritius (Church, et al., 2006). Analysis of Port Louis data for the period 1987-2007 gives a mean rise of 2.1 mm/yr for the last 10 years. Warming of the at mosphere has also impacted the hydrologic cycle over the southwest Indian Ocean. Long-term time series of rainfall amount over the past century (1905 to 2007) show a falling trend in annual rainfall over Mauritius. In fact the average rate of decrease per decade is around 57 mm. The overall decrease during the last ten years is about 8% when compared to the 1950s. There are other impacts which have been observed concerning climate in Mauritius, there is a lengthening of the intermediate dry season, the period of winter and summer has changed compared to previous years. There is a shift in the start of the summer rains which cause a problem to the increasing demand of water by sectors such as agriculture, tourism, industrial and domestic. Hence the number of consecutive dry days is increasing and the number of rainy days is decreasing. Even though there is a decrease in the number of rainy days, heavy rain falls leading to floods is being observed during the summer months of February and March. The concept of sustainable island is clearly defined by the Maurice Ile Durable programme which was presented in the parliament in June 2008. Since then, both public and private sector organisations are putting effort to develop in a sustainable way. As the tourism industry in vulnerable to climate change, hotels and other tourism businesses are trying to implement new strategies in order to mitigate climate change. Mauritius is known for its 3 s, that is the Sun, Sea and Sand. It is a great concern for the stakeholders of the tourism industry in order to preserve the 3 s. Why this research? The world is facing a major challenge. Climate change has increased the frequency, intensity and severity of disasters such as floods, droughts, landslides, famine, windstorms, and epidemics (Oxfam, 2008, AU, 2005). We cannot keep on using fossil fuels the way we do today. Scientists have laid out the risks we face and it has become clearer than ever that now is the time to take serious action on climate change. If we do not act today, the opportunity will not only slip out of our hands but it will also become much more costly to carry out the necessary low-carbon transition in the future. It is important for Mauritius to start acting now for the future generations, as Mauritius is dependent on the Tourism industry it is clear that both private and public organizations must cater for the landscape, environment, cultures, traditions, heritages and attractions to encourage tourists to keep choosing Mauritius as their holiday destination. What impact will climate change have on tourism? This can be through two means: directly through the changed climate and indirectly through the environmental changes brought about by climate change. In both cases, these impacts will occur at the origin country or region and at the destination country. This study is going to see the perception of tourism professionals on climate change, their knowledge on climate change, and their mitigation and adaptation measures. Moreover this study is going to conclude about how can climate change affects the tourism industry of Mauritius, and finally draw recommendations on how to reduce a change in climate and reduce impacts on the environment. As a result we will be able to develop in a more sustainable way without harming the nature of our island. Aims and Objectives of the study This study is designed to see the level of knowledge of tourism professionals concerning climate change and to what extent those managers think that their business is vulnerable to climate change. Moreover the questionnaire is going to collect data such as the perception of managers about the adaptation measures and about the threats that climate change represent to Mauritius. Purpose of this study The purpose of this project is to establish sufficient knowledge of climate change related changes in the research area to motivate the stakeholders to act now for the sustainability of the tourism industry of Mauritius. Thus it builds a bridge from scientific research activity to practical action. A fundamental assumption motivating this research is that with a joint, planned and coordinated commitment from the industry, the adverse social, environment and economic effects of these changes could be mitigated and rather turned positive. Methodology To our knowledge, this study is going to see the knowledge and actions of managers in the tourism industry concerning Climate Change. A sample of Tourism Managers was used for this study. The total survey sample consists of 30 managers, which were selected at random, in hotels, travel agencies, airlines, tourist attractions sites, diving centres and among others. A pre-test of the survey instrument was conducted and slight modifications were made to improve the clarity of some questions. The survey was conducted in English. Literature review There are a variety of potential impacts of climate change. A number of reviews have investigated these effects, including the IPCC Third Assessment Report (TAR), 2001; Bigio, 2003; McEvoy, 2007; Wilby, 2007, IPCC Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) 2007b; and Huq et al, 2007, and generally identify the most important effects of climate change as: Effects of sea level rise on coastal regions (including the effects of storm surges); Effects on health (heat and cold related mortality, food and water borne disease, vector borne disease) arising from higher average temperatures and/or extreme events; Infrastructure damage from extremes (wind storms and including storm surges, floods from heavy precipitation events, heat extremes, droughts); Effects on tourism, and cultural heritage; Effects on urban biodiversity; Effects on energy use (heating and cooling, energy for water); Effects on water availability and resources; Ancillary effects on air pollution. The IPCC TAR (2001) provided a comprehensive review of the physical climate impacts on cities, using the evidence available at that time. It concluded that: Climate change is more likely to have important impacts on the development of settlements in resource-dependent regions or coastal or riverine locationsU. Most of the concerns were of possible negative impacts on development (e.g., on the comparative advantage of a settlement for economic growth compared with other locations), although impacts on some areas were considered likely to be positive. The recently published IPCC 4th Assessment WG II Report (Parry et al [IPCC], 2007d and Chapter 7 on industry, settlements and society Wilbanks, et al 2007) provides an update, based on more recent evidence, but reinforces the earlier findings. Additionally, it addresses vulnerability more explicitly, places climate change directly in the context of socio-economic change and recognises the potential for adaptation. The WG2 summary for policy makers (IPCC, 2007b) concludes that Costs and benefits of climate change for industry, settlement, and society will vary widely by location and scale. In the aggregate, however, net effects will tend to be more negative the larger the change in climate. And Where extreme weather events become more intense and/or more frequent, the economic and social costs of those events will increase, and these increases will be substantial in the areas most directly affected. Climate change impacts spread from directly impacted areas and sectors to other areas and sectors through extensive and complex linkages Although numerous studies have focused on public or tourists attitudes towards climate change (see Henry, 2000; Becken, 2004 and 2007; Norgaard, 2006; Gà ¶ssling et al., 2006; Gà ¶ssling and Peeters, 2007), tourism managers perceptions and their strategies have been under-researched thus far. Becken (2004) found that, overall, tourism experts mostly academics were better informed about the effects of climate change than tourists. A previous study on tourism professionals attitudes towards climate change at the ITB Fair in Berlin (Lund-Durlacher et al., 2007) revealed that there was a high awareness of climate change among tourism professionals and strong impacts on tourism were expected. On the other hand, tourisms contribution to that problem was seen as only moderate. When asked about the specific causes and suitable mitigation strategies, it turned out that many of those surveyed had only limited and sometimes inaccurate knowledge. The study showed that the tourism sector is a ware of the challenge posed by climate change. Around 90 % of the interviewees believe that tourism will be affected by climate change. Yet there are few constructive ideas as to what could be done about it. When asked about responses to climate change, 34 % have no answer, and 56 % did not respond when asked if they had already developed adaptive strategies in their own area of business (Lund-Durlacher et al., 2007). Perhaps the tourism industry is ambivalent about adaptation to climate change, because the question of adapting tourism to climate change is ambivalent in itself. On the other hand, it is also evident that the tourism industry does not make any indispensable contribution to humanitys survival. Hence, in the light of the man-made problem of climate change the tourist industry comes under increased pressure to account for its ecological consequences. Several studies have pointed out that tourism is a source of negative ecological impact (Buttler, 1991, Gà ¶ssling, 1999, 2000, Gà ¶ssling et al., 2003, 2005, Neto, 2003, Shah et al., 2002, Welford et al., 1999). Tourism accounts for approximately 5 per cent of the total CO2 emissions (Davos Declaration, 2007). Especially air travel is detrimental to the global climate, since planes emit mostly in strata of the atmosphere most vulnerable to pollution (Gà ¶ssling, 2000). Previous investigation on perceptions of climate change had indicated that public consciousness of the issue is high (Defra, 2006) with the great majority in 2005 believing that the worlds climate is altering and that action should be taken against it (Poortinga et al, 2006). A research was made from January to march 2010 on Public Perceptions of Climate Change and Energy Futures in Britain (Alexa Spence, Dan Venables, Nick Pidgeon, Wouter Pourtinga and Christina Demski, 2010) The main aim of that research was to investigate how public views in relation to climate change have changed since the major survey conducted by the research team in 2005, (Poortinga, Pidgeon and Lorenzoni, 2006). The results showed that although the majority of respondents believe that climate change is happening, levels of concern have fallen since 2005, and less than one-third of the population currently consider it to be a purely man-made phenomenon. However most people consider that it is their responsibility to take action against climate change, and that they personally can help to make a difference. In addition, most people say they would be willing to pay more for renewable energy and for projects designed to tackle climate change. Another research was carried out in Europe looking at Europeans Attitude towards Climate Change (EUROBAROMETER, 2008). The respondents were invited to give their opinion on a number of statements linked to the problem of climate change. Their attitudes can be summarised as follows: the issue of climate change is serious but the process is not unstoppable. Nearly two-thirds of Europeans (65%) do not think that the seriousness of climate change has been exaggerated, but they are nevertheless predominantly optimistic and widely disagree (60%) with the statement that the process of climate change is unstoppable. However, just under a third of Europeans (31%) are rather pessimistic and believe that climate change is an unstoppable process. Around a quarter (26%) think that the seriousness of climate change has been exaggerated. According to a wide majority of Europeans (70%), alternative fuels should be used to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. 56% believe that fighting climate change can have a positive effect on the European economy. As far as the causes of climate change are concerned, a majority of citizens (55%) disagree with the statement that CO2 emissions have only a marginal impact on climate change. It is however noteworthy that a relatively high proportion of respondents have no opinion on these last two matters (20% and 15% respectively). Turning to citizens personal contribution to the fight against climate change, we see that a clear majority (61%) confirm that they have taken some kind of action in this cause. Scientists rarely cooperate directly with tourism managers. Studies that use transdisciplinary approaches to tourism are based solely on climate models (see for the case of Switzerland Mà ¼ller, 2007). There is a lack of different disciplines working on the successful implementation of adaptation strategies. The anticipatory adaptation to extreme weather events and expected climate change is an important aspect of sustainable development in the tourism sector, as it can change the patterns of traveller flow and create a new demand for products of the either regular or new tourists. A strategically oriented tourism policy and business is therefore challenged to integrate climate change into their decision-making processes, in order to minimize socio-economic risks and take advantage of new opportunities. Individual activities made by single players are not sufficient enough to develop adjusted infrastructure and facilities for tourism. Besides the competition between tourism players and an innovation of products for a sustainable development in destinations, there is a need for learning cooperation processes. Current tourism-based analyses stress the importance of collective learning for the future of tourism destinations (Saretzi et al., 2002). Social and scientific complexity of adaptation strategies (diversity of partners, correlations of impacts, uncertainty of future trends) are to be considered for cooperation processes in tourism. To achieve this collaboration, a link between tourism as well as climatic knowledge and operating experience, concerns and perspectives is needed. In order to stimulate social learning to allow proactive action under uncertainty, scientists and players have to be involved into a transdisciplinary research, design and development process. Both the tourism industry and researchers have identified a threat to tourism resulting from climate change, especially in alpine areas, small island states, and developing countries (World Tourism Organisation, 2003). Climate change is also likely to affect global tourist flows as a result of the changing attractiveness of both destinations and countries of origin (Hamilton et al., 2005). The factor of seasonality is also a component of the tourism industry. Seasonality can be influenced by climatic changes in the future. To support this fact, a research was made in Canada, the study examined the relationship between climate and visitation in order to understand the potential impact of climate change on the volume of visits and seasonal pattern of tourism in Canadas national parks. Results indicated that Canadas national parks could experience an increase in visitors under climate change due to a lengthened and improved warm-weather tourism season. In the 2020s, overall visitation levels were projected to increase 6% to 8%, with a number of parks projected to experience larger increases (+12% to 30%). The largest increase in visitation occurs during the spring and fall months. Visitation is projected to increase between 9% and 29% system-wide in the 2050s and between 10% and 41% in the 2080s. As a result this shows a positive impact on certain attractions which will r eceive an increasing number of visitors in the future. This may apply to Mauritius, noting that there can be an increase in tourist arrivals due to climate change, but this will bring mass tourism, which will definitely cause other negative environmental impacts while injecting more revenue in the Mauritian economy. Climate can have physical, physiological and psychological effects for visitors to a destination. For example, the air temperature can make the potential activities of visitors to the Caribbean less enjoyable due to the share discomfort of going outdoors. Indeed, Lise and Tol (2002) in an examination of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) group of countries reported that visitors tend to prefer temperatures of around 21 °C at their choice of holiday destination and they suggested that global warming could therefore lead to a shift away from some destinations that either become too hot or too cold. Many tourism activities are dependent on the weather conditions, and as most tourists have a high flexibility to adjust their holiday destinations then it is expected that climate change would be important to the tourism sector. Several studies have shown that climate significantly influences the tourist behaviour and it is one of the keys for tourists when selecting their travel location and activities (Murphy et al., 2000; de Freitas, 2003; Matzarakis et al., 2004; Tzu-Ping Lin and Andreas Matzarakis). Although developing countries are not the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, they will be most adversely affected by the changing climate (Pavoola and Adger 2006) and most in need of adequate adaptation strategies (Fà ¼ssel 2007). Developing countries often have, however, other priorities such as poverty eradication and economic growth than climate change (Mimura et al. 2007). The region to suffer most is predicted to be Africa (Brown et al. 2007) as African countries are dependent on climate-sensitive sectors (agriculture, fisheries, tourism), which are forecasted to face considerable changes in the future (Climate change2008; Brown et al. 2007; Osman-Elasha 2007). Some predictions depict sea-level rise of 18-59 cm by the year 2100 in Africa (IPCC 2007), which would imply threats to coastal infrastructure, communities and ecosystems. Small islands states and low-lying coastal areas are especially vulnerable for climate change induced impacts and their adaptive capacity for adaptation measures is relatively low as they are limited by their size and geographical setting (Pelling Uitto 2001; Nicholls and Lowe 2004; Mimura et al. 2007). The most significant effects of sea-level rise are the long term recession of the shorelines, increasing inundation and flooding, and salt water intrusion. This would result in the direct loss of economically, ecologically and culturally valuable land (Dubi 2000). Although the impacts of climate change itself may not be the largest threat, they become serious threat when coupled with anthropogenic impacts. Non-sustainable resource use and development therefore reduce the adaptive capacity of the natural systems (Dubi 2000). Furthermore, sea-level rise has specific significance for small islands as coastal zones are often densely populated; furthermore, coastal erosion and natural hazards are predicted to increase in magnitude and number in the future. Moreover, as Ragoonaden (2006) notes, sea-level rise is the far greatest challenge for the small island developing states in the near future. Multiple actors cause pressures on the coastal and marine environment in island settings when diverse actors utilise the same resources (Vaitoti 2008) and these actions have also significance in relation to climate change impacts. For example, the destruction of coral reefs will reduce coastal protection against storm surges and erosion (Lewsey et al 2004; Middleton 1999); in addition there is a strong correlation between coral reef destruction and climate change due to rising temperatures. An increase in sea water temperature and sea-level coupled with destructive fishing methods adversely affect the growth potential of coral, which will in turn reduce the protective ability (Dubi 2000). In addition, coral reefs cannot keep up with sudden sea-level rise due to their fixed growth pace and rising water temperature can advance coral bleaching (Reading et al. 1995). Moreover, coral reefs acts as a buffer against waves and reduce coastal erosion (Cesar et al. 2000; Ragoonaden 2006) and t herefore their role in protecting the shoreline cannot be underestimated. While the wider climate change debate has until recently mainly focused on mitigation (Burton et al., 2002; Wilbanks, 2003; Nicholls and Lowe, 2004), the sparse research specifically dealing with tourism and climate change has largely concentrated on tourisms vulnerability and adaptation to climate change (e.g., Elsasser and Buerki, 2002; Scott, 2003; Scott et al., 2003). Both the tourism industry and researchers have identified a threat to tourism resulting from climate change, especially in alpine areas, small island states, and developing countries (World Tourism Organisation, 2003). Climate change is also likely to affect global tourist flows as a result of the changing attractiveness of both destinations and countries of origin (Hamilton et al., 2005). Despite an inherent interest in protecting the tourism industry, there is increasing awareness that tourism is an important contributor to climate change through its consumption of fossil fuels and resulting greenhouse gas emissio ns (Becken, 2002; Go ¨ ssling, 2002). The wider literature on climate change now emphasises that neither adaptation nor mitigation should be implemented independently, but that an integrated framework for sustainable development should be envisaged (IPCC, 2001; Nicholls and Lowe, 2004). In the same way, research on climate change and tourism will benefit from taking into account the multiple interactions between climate, tourism, and the wider environment (Dubois, 2003; Viner and Amelung, 2003).

BinOptics Corporation :: essays research papers

The Company BinOptics Corporation is a privately held high tech start up company located in Cornell’s Business and Technology Park in Ithaca, NY. BinOptics, the company, was based on key technological inventions made at Cornell University. CEO and co-founder, Alex Behfar, worked on the proprietary technology under Professor Valentine during his student tenure at Cornell, while earning his PhD in Electrical Engineering. In November 2000 CEO, Alex Behfar and President, Darius Forghani founded BinOptics. BinOptics received its first round of venture capital funding in January 2001 for an undisclosed amount. Currently, BinOptics houses over twenty employees and they hope to grow to forty by the end of the fiscal year. BinOptics is now in its fourth year of operation and will amassed $2 million in annual revenue. So what does BinOptics produce? BinOptics designs, develops, and manufactures monolithically integrated optoelectronic components based on the proprietary technology developed at Cornell University. It also produces integrated photonic components, which include its lasers. These components can be integrated into indium phosphide and other semiconductor materials, which give BinOptics a competitive advantage. This unique platform allows the company to meet commercial requirements with higher reproducibility, more elasticity for product innovation, considerably lower costs, and higher performance than alternative processes. BinOptics’ products address high growth datacom applications, parallel optical interconnects, PON and CWDM (Coarse Wave Division Multiplexing), as well as advanced non-telecom applications. Its products are sold to technology companies in the tele-communications and data-communications industry. BinOptics does not disclose its customer list but two of its customers are Agilent Technologies and Cisco Systems. What does this mean? In the simplest way, BinOptics produces lasers. These tiny lasers, some the size of a grain of salt, transfer enormous amounts of information to another source immediately. The integrated laser chips are the key part of optical transceivers and transponders. BinOptics’ edge-emitting laser consists of a two-inch wafer that has 20,000 lasers on it. Strategic Investors BinOptics success can be measured by the strength of its strategic investors. These investors facilitate BinOptics path to success and its ability to raise equity. After receiving its initial first round of funding in January 2001 BinOptics was able to receive additional venture capital funding in May 2002, March 2003, and February 2005. The strategic investors include: Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Cayuga Venture Fund II, FA Technology Ventures, and ArrowPath Venture Capital and Stanford University. Draper Fisher Jurvetson is a leading venture capital firm out of Silicon Valley, CA. BinOptics Corporation :: essays research papers The Company BinOptics Corporation is a privately held high tech start up company located in Cornell’s Business and Technology Park in Ithaca, NY. BinOptics, the company, was based on key technological inventions made at Cornell University. CEO and co-founder, Alex Behfar, worked on the proprietary technology under Professor Valentine during his student tenure at Cornell, while earning his PhD in Electrical Engineering. In November 2000 CEO, Alex Behfar and President, Darius Forghani founded BinOptics. BinOptics received its first round of venture capital funding in January 2001 for an undisclosed amount. Currently, BinOptics houses over twenty employees and they hope to grow to forty by the end of the fiscal year. BinOptics is now in its fourth year of operation and will amassed $2 million in annual revenue. So what does BinOptics produce? BinOptics designs, develops, and manufactures monolithically integrated optoelectronic components based on the proprietary technology developed at Cornell University. It also produces integrated photonic components, which include its lasers. These components can be integrated into indium phosphide and other semiconductor materials, which give BinOptics a competitive advantage. This unique platform allows the company to meet commercial requirements with higher reproducibility, more elasticity for product innovation, considerably lower costs, and higher performance than alternative processes. BinOptics’ products address high growth datacom applications, parallel optical interconnects, PON and CWDM (Coarse Wave Division Multiplexing), as well as advanced non-telecom applications. Its products are sold to technology companies in the tele-communications and data-communications industry. BinOptics does not disclose its customer list but two of its customers are Agilent Technologies and Cisco Systems. What does this mean? In the simplest way, BinOptics produces lasers. These tiny lasers, some the size of a grain of salt, transfer enormous amounts of information to another source immediately. The integrated laser chips are the key part of optical transceivers and transponders. BinOptics’ edge-emitting laser consists of a two-inch wafer that has 20,000 lasers on it. Strategic Investors BinOptics success can be measured by the strength of its strategic investors. These investors facilitate BinOptics path to success and its ability to raise equity. After receiving its initial first round of funding in January 2001 BinOptics was able to receive additional venture capital funding in May 2002, March 2003, and February 2005. The strategic investors include: Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Cayuga Venture Fund II, FA Technology Ventures, and ArrowPath Venture Capital and Stanford University. Draper Fisher Jurvetson is a leading venture capital firm out of Silicon Valley, CA.

Random Student Drug Testing (RSDT) Essay -- School Drug Testing Progra

What is drug testing? Drug testing is an examination of biologic material such as urine, hair, saliva, or sweat to detect the presence of specific drugs and determine prior drug use. Student random drug testing programs, RSDT, is increasingly common (Edwards). RSDT can help identify the students who are already abusing illicit drugs. Yet most schools only drug test the students, when they should also be drug testing the teachers and staff. Illicit drug use interferes with the ability to learn, affects other students learning and disrupts the teaching environment (Random). Although drug testing at first glance seems like a good idea, it may not be the best decision for every circumstance. Drug testing in high schools will not do very much good. It will cause use in other drugs and create more problems with alternative uses and more sneaky behavior. Drug testing does not prevent drug abuse or stop them from doing it. It usually just pushes them into harsher drugs or into unfamiliar situations. There have been many changes in today’s school systems to help prevent drug use in their students other than drug testing alone. They have introduced a zero tolerance policy. In schools, common zero-tolerance policies concern possession or use of drugs or weapons. Students, and sometimes staff, parents, and other visitors, who possess a banned item for any reason, are always to be punished. They have also introduced metal detectors, sniff dogs, and camera systems. The zero tolerance policy has proven to reduce the presence of these things on school property but doesn’t prevent them outside the walls of the schools. So how do we keep student’s drug free outside of the schools. There are moral aspects of drug testing the student body... ...ext. Web. 25 Nov. 2013. Yamaguchi, Ryoko.†Relationship Between Student and Illicit Drug Use and School†. Student Drug Testing.org. 2003. PDF File. Yamaguchi, Ryoko. â€Å"Drug Testing in Schools: Policies, Practices, and Association With Student Drug Use†. Drug Policy.org. 2003. PDF File.

Gillian Armstrong :: essays research papers

The first reason I chose Gillian Armstrong for my research paper is because I admire her dedication and ambition to become a director even though it was a male-dominated job at the time. She is an extremely ambitious and independent woman that didn’t let anything get in her way of pursuing her goal to become a director. The second reason I picked Gillian Armstrong is because she is the director of Little Women, which has been an all-time favorite film of mine since I was little.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Armstrong has explored several genres, including gangster, musical, and most frequently, period drama. The three films I am going to explore are My Brilliant Career, Mrs. Soffel and Little Women. These are all period drama films that evolve female characteristics and feature women in lead roles. These films demonstrate the stylistic pattern of story telling, (Carter, 2002).   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Gillian Armstrong produced My Brilliant Career in 1979. This film was the highlight of the period drama, which was popular in Australia at that time. Armstrong became the first woman to direct a feature length drama in Australia in 46 years, (Carter, 2002). The film is about Sybylla Melvyn, a sensitive, passionate young woman with high hopes for a writing career. When offered the opportunity to escape her outback station home to stay with relatives in New South Wales, she accepts willingly. In New South Wales, her cultural openness and writing career is encouraged. She eventually meets Harry Beecham who is wealthy and handsome. Sybylla struggles with the tough decisions between ambition and independence, and between love and marriage. She eventually sacrifices romance with Harry and takes a job as a governess in the McScwatt household while still pursuing her goal as becoming a writer. Sybylla eventually finds success as a writer and also as an independent woman.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Mrs. Soffel was produced by Armstrong in 1984. This film was directed in Pittsburgh, and was her first American film, (Carter, 2002). This film is about a woman named Kate Soffel who is the wife of the warden of the Allegheny County jail. Her job is to distribute Bibles and read the scriptures to the prisoners. Kate is unhappy and unsatisfied with her lifestyle. She is tired of her husband constantly controlling what she can and cannot do. Kate eventually falls in love with Ed Biddle, who is a prisoner being wrongly sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of a grocer during a robbery.

Earths environment Essay

Ecological niche refers to the position that an organism occupies in a habitat. It comprises the physical space where an organism is found and its role in that habitat in terms of the feeding relationships and other interactions with other species. Ecology niche describes the role or the contribution of an organism in an ecosystem. It also pertain to the sum of all activities and association a species has while obtaining and using resources required to survive and reproduce. The ecological niche fit into ecosystem, reward the competitive exclusion principle to state. Two species cannot pertain in an ecosystem if the niche is identical, however exist only if one or more differences in niche (Lester & Hal, 1994). Biodiversity and its important Biodiversity refers to the variety of species, their biological make-up, and the natural communities in which they occur. It comprise of all the native plants and animals in Pennsylvania and the processes, which sustain life. An ecological services offered by the biodiversity are important to everyday life. Biodiversity enhances ecosystem productivity in which all the species have a significant role to play. It is this case which enables the ecosystem to process the ability to prevent and recover from different disasters. This is crucial for human since greater plant species implies variety of crops. Moreover, most species of animals ensures that the ecosystem is naturally sustained (Hunter, 1996). What happens if the need for biodiversity in an ecosystem is not met? When ecosystems erode and biodiversity decrease, the cost of replacing its natural services such as protection of water resources, sources of food and recreational tourism become expensive. To prevent the genetic defects caused by in propagation, a variety of genes are required by the species for successful survival. The rate of extinction will increase if this is not put in place. The destructions, reduction and segregation of the habitat, reduce likelihood for interaction from species with a hefty gene pool. Impact of the exploitation of mineral and energy resources on environment: Mineral and energy resources have been perceived as vital ingredients in stimulating and supporting economic growth and improving the living standards. Its exploitations however, accounts to various environmental impacts such as, loss of biodiversity and pollution. During mining process, toxic gases may be emitted from the mines resulting to air pollution. When it rains, rainwater washes these toxic into the river or lakes causing water pollution. Similarly, extensive areas of vegetation may be cleared to pave way for the exploitation of mineral or energy; this leads to loss of biodiversity. With the destructions of the plant life, the habitats of various animals are destroyed. Environmental impact of Meat production Livestock production contributes to more climate change gasses in the world. In total, it contributes to about 18% of the greenhouse gas emissions. It causes land and water degradation. This percentage is due to land use changes or the emission caused by the energy used to produce fertilizers and pesticides for feed crops, run the slaughterhouse and pumping of water. In general, livestock production account to many environmental problems affecting the world. This includes rainforest degradation, deserts spread, decrease of fresh water, air and water pollution, acid rain and surface run-off. Environmental impact of Aquaculture Although aquaculture is understood as a clean industry, it causes adverse environmental effects to ecosystem. In deed, tilapia or catfish may change poisonous organic wastes into non-poisonous fish meat. But, salmon or shrimp farming has been revealed to cause negative effect to the environment. For instance, if fish waste, or antibiotic are unconfined from the crowded cages the nutrients will increase, which consequently result to rapid growth of phytoplankton and algae. The destructions of algae eventually result to reduce levels of oxygen in water that endangered fish and other organisms. Accordingly, wild fish will encounter poor water quality, destruction of bottom habitat and the disease outbreak. Another impact is the biological pollution caused by the alteration of the ecosystems and the reduction of the biodiversity. For example, an introduction of non-native species in particular ecosystem may result to food shortage, native habitat, or spawning areas for native species. In severe cases, a large blue tilapia has caused degradation of native fish species and vegetation. Sustainability refers to reasoning in terms of whole systems, with their correlations, consequences, and the response loop. This way of reasoning prevents artificial and frequently deceptive grouping like humanity against nature, and instead put more emphasis on responding to problems reasonably through learning and innovation. This is achieved by removing artificial obstacles and enhancing partnerships, which may leads to a low waste society (Lele & Norgaard, 1996). Conclusion Finally we have learnt that Sustainable environment improves the quality of life while living within the normal capacity of an ecosystem. One should sustain the level of physical resource used and moreover be able to convert those physical resources into an enhanced good and services for satisfying their need, without degrading the supporting ecosystems. Reference: Lester, B. & Hal, K. (1994). The full house: Re-evaluating the population of the Earth’s Carrying Capacity, New York: Norton, 76-77. Hunter, M. L. (1996). A fundamental of conservation biology. Blackwell science. Cambridge, Massachusetts, 482. Lele, S. & Norgaard, R. B. (1996). Sustainability & scientist’s burden. Conservation biology (10) 165-354.

Macbeth Quotes

Violence Quotes lady Macbeth go on, you booze That tend on psyche jetghts, get me here, And fill me from the cap to the toenail top-full Of direst severity make thick my race develop up the access and public life to remorse, That no compunctious visitings of temperament Shake my trim down purpose, nor pull through peace between The resultant and it Come to my womans breasts, And take my milk for gall, you stumbleing ministers, (1. 5. 46-54) Macduff I shall do so, But I essential in addition feel it as a man. I arseholenot but remember such things were That were more or less precious to me. 4. 3. 261-264) Macbeth From this moment The genuinely firstlings of my emotional republic shall be The firstlings of my go along. And even now, To crown my super acidghts with acts, be it thought and d unity The palace of Macduff I provide surprise, Seize upon Fife, concede to the progress o the sword His wife, his babes, and all pitiable souls That attract him in h is line. (4. 1. 168-176) Ambition Quotes Macbeth My thought, whose murder save is but fantastical, Shakes so my integrity state of man that function Is smotherd in surmise, and goose egg is But what is not. (1. 3. 60-163) doll Macbeth Glamis thou art, and Cawdor and shalt be What thou art promised until now do I fear thy nature It is to a fault full o the milk of humankind humanity To catch the nearest path thou wouldst be dandy cheat not without ambition, but without The illness should front it (1. 5. 15-20) Banquo My courtly partner You greet with get free grace and great prediction Of courtly having and of over-embellished hope, That he seems rapt withal. To me you babble not. If you can look into the seeds of time, And say which caryopsis will grow and which will not,Speak wherefore to me, who neither beg nor fear Your favors nor your hate. (1. 3. 61-68) guiltiness Quotes Lady Macbeth Naughts had, alls spent, Where our desire is got without content. Tis safe r to be that which we pulverize Than by destruction dwell in provisionary joy. (3. 2. 6-9) Macbeth Will all great Neptunes marine wash this blood sassy from my hand? No. This my hand will quite The multitudinous seas incarnadine, Making the colour one red. (2. 2. 81-84) Wake Duncan with thy knocking I would thou couldst (2. 2. 96)Macbeth QuotesViolence Quotes Lady Macbeth Come, you spirits That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here, And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full Of direst cruelty make thick my blood Stop up the access and passage to remorse, That no compunctious visitings of nature Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between The effect and it Come to my womans breasts, And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers, (1. 5. 46-54) Macduff I shall do so, But I must also feel it as a man. I cannot but remember such things were That were most precious to me. 4. 3. 261-264) Macbeth From this moment The very firstlings of my heart shall be The firstlings of m y hand. And even now, To crown my thoughts with acts, be it thought and done The castle of Macduff I will surprise, Seize upon Fife, give to the edge o the sword His wife, his babes, and all unfortunate souls That trace him in his line. (4. 1. 168-176) Ambition Quotes Macbeth My thought, whose murder yet is but fantastical, Shakes so my single state of man that function Is smotherd in surmise, and nothing is But what is not. (1. 3. 60-163) Lady Macbeth Glamis thou art, and Cawdor and shalt be What thou art promised yet do I fear thy nature It is too full o the milk of human kindness To catch the nearest way thou wouldst be great Art not without ambition, but without The illness should attend it (1. 5. 15-20) Banquo My noble partner You greet with present grace and great prediction Of noble having and of royal hope, That he seems rapt withal. To me you speak not. If you can look into the seeds of time, And say which grain will grow and which will not,Speak then to me, who neither beg nor fear Your favors nor your hate. (1. 3. 61-68) Guilt Quotes Lady Macbeth Naughts had, alls spent, Where our desire is got without content. Tis safer to be that which we destroy Than by destruction dwell in doubtful joy. (3. 2. 6-9) Macbeth Will all great Neptunes ocean wash this blood Clean from my hand? No. This my hand will rather The multitudinous seas incarnadine, Making the green one red. (2. 2. 81-84) Wake Duncan with thy knocking I would thou couldst (2. 2. 96)