Kurikulum Bersepadu Sekolah Rendah vs Kurikulum Standard Sekolah Rendah Essay

As time goes by, Malaysia’s education system undergoes big changes. In 1983, Kurikulum Baru Sekolah Rendah (KBSR) was introduced and made some changes to the education system. 10 years later, its name was changed to Kurikulum Bersepadu Sekolah Rendah (KBSR). Now, a new curriculum was introduced a year ago, 2011 to replace KBSR: Kurikulum Standard Sekolah Rendah (KSSR). KSSR was introduced to reorganize and upgrade the current curriculum. Changes can be clearly seen in the aspect of key areas, curriculum documentation, curriculum design, curriculum organization, curriculum content, elements and focus. In the aspect of key areas, KBSR focused on three key areas: communication, man and his environment and self-development whereas KSSR focused on six key areas: communication, spiritual, attitude and values, humanitarian, physical and aesthetical development, science and technology and lastly, physical and personal development. KBSR focused only on individuals whereas KSSR focused not only on individuals but also their surroundings. KSSR’s aim was to produce holistic individuals. KSSR focused on values for character building through the curriculum and co-curriculum. In curriculum documentation, KBSR follows the syllabus for teaching materials whereas KSSR formulated based on Standard Document which consists of Content Standards which covers on students’ skills, knowledge and thinking and Learning Standards which are a set of achievements which can be measured for each content standard. The curriculum design for KBSR is linear which only involves listening, speaking, reading and writing whereas for KSSR is modular which involves not only listening, speaking, reading and writing but also covers language arts and grammar. In KBSR, level 1 has Core, Compulsory and additional subjects whereas in KSSR, level 1 has Basic Core Modules, Thematic Core Modules and Elective Modules. In level 2, KBSR implemented Core, Compulsory and additional subjects similar to level 1 whereas KSSR only implemented Core and Elective subjects. As it can clearly be seen, in level 1, a new subject is introduced: Thematic Core Modules. This new subject was introduced to reduce the number of subjects taken in level 1. This module consist themes of the World of Art and World of Science and Technology. In the World of Arts, two subjects are introduced: Visual Arts and Music. In the World of Science and Technology, basic ICT skills are taught. The curriculum content in KBSR only focuses on listening, reading, writing, speaking, sound system and grammar in context. KSSR focuses on the same content but replaced sound system with phonics. Phonics is a more detailed version of sound system which teaches students the sounds of English specifically. Three new contents are also added: basic literacy which teaches students the ability to read and write adequately, penmanship which teaches students the right way to hold and use a pen or a pencil and lastly, language arts which exposes students to poems and songs enabling students to appreciate and enjoy them thus, building creative minds in students. Lastly, the focus of KBSR is the 3M (membaca, menulis dan mengira) which is reading, writing and counting whereas KSSR’s focus is the 4M (membaca, menulis, mengira dan menaakul). KSSR added a new focus which is thinking. This newly added focus helps students to understand more about what was taught and at the same time improve their thinking skills. To sum up, KSSR is a curriculum which is student centered. This new curriculum diminishes Ujian Penilaian Sekolah Rendah (UPSR) which means it is less-exam oriented and more to project and activity based. This new curriculum also focuses on ICT and independent learning. KSSR also aims to strengthen the command of Bahasa Malaysia and English among students. Mathematics and Science subjects are all in Bahasa Malaysia and English periods have been increased.

Environmental Hero: Von Hernandez Essay

What do you do for the Earth? An environmental hero is someone who aims to take good care of his environment and makes a great impression for the benefit of its generation and the generations to come. Heroism comes from someone who is ordinary, but actually does something more than someone who is capable. It is a deed that is selfless that seeks to involve themselves with others’ problems. Anyone could actually be an environmental hero as long as they have the desire to learn how to align their goals in order to help protect and prevent further damages to the environment caused by mankind, despite the circumstances. Moreover, an environmental hero is someone who goes out of his or her way to fight for what is right, no matter what the odds are. They are the ones who continue to empower others by advocating the issues faced, helping people around them to be aware of their concerns. Von Hernandez, current director of Greenpeace Southeast Asia and recipient of the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize in 2003, was recognized for his achievements in combating the environmental problems of the Philippines. He has been active in fighting for environmental rights since 1995 when he started working with Greenpeace International as coordinator for the environmental group’s toxics campaign in Asia. In the same year, Hernandez launched a campaign which revealed plans to set up waste incinerators to deal with the garbage problem coming from the rapidly growing cities in Metro Manila. In this campaign, the economic loopholes aside from the environmental and health hazards from the process of incineration were exposed. As a result of this fight against the burning of waste, in 1999, Hernandez helped make history as the Philippines became the first country in the world to ban waste incineration nationwide. He is responsible for the Philippines Clean Air Act of 1999 which is banning waste incinerators that causes air pollution and human health problems. Furthermore, he is also responsible for Waste Management Act which requires the implementation of segregating garbage properly nationwide. Waste disposal is a burgeoning problem in the Philippines especially in Metro Manila. EcoWaste cited from the National Solid Waste Management Commission that out of the 35,000 tons of waste the Philippines produces each day; 8,400 tons come from Metro Manila, accounting for one-fourth of the country’s daily output of solid waste. Currently, only nine have a solid waste management plan out of the 17 cities in Metro Manila and only about a third of the biodegradable wastes from the nine cities are being recycled into compost due to space constraints. The continuing and growing problem regarding waste in Metro Manila led to the government’s attempt to adopt the incineration process in 1995, but fortunately, Hernandez along with his allies in the environmental movement made efforts to stop the plan. Hernandez and company disseminated to the local communities the hazardous effects that waste incinerators will bring, which include the largest source of hormone-disrupting dioxins, one of the most toxic chemicals known to science. Additionally, the burning of waste also brings ash contained with heavy metals, such as lead, arsenic and cadmium that could pollute groundwater for generations. Studies also show that these chemicals are linked to human health problems such as birth defects, cancer, respiratory ailments and reproductive dysfunction among people who live near incineration plants. In support to this, a recent report reveals that dioxins in the breast milk of Filipino women who resides near and work in the Payatas dumpsite to be extremely high as compared to the normal limit set by the World Health Organization (WHO). In his fight against incineration, Hernandez helped the issue to be brought into the national electoral issue in 1998. He helped in organizing mass protests, testified in hearings, arranged numerous lectures and a national public education campaign in the media to increase awareness of the public regarding the devastating health impacts of waste incineration and to bring to light other proven alternatives to burning waste. Hernandez gained widespread support for the campaign, including the support of the Catholic Church. Due to his ceaseless activism, he was continually attacked in the press by incineration industry lobbyists and government officials who supported incineration in order to protect their interests. However, despite the attacks and the immense support of international financial institutions like the Asian Development bank, the World Bank and the Japanese Bank for International Cooperation to continue to promote incineration projects in the Philippines, Hernandez remains standing still because of his love for the environment. Aside from his fight to ban incineration, he also leads in promoting clean and green alternatives to waste incineration such as composting and recycling. Hernandez is also involved in various environmental initiatives and coalitions both at the national and international levels including the Global Anti-Incineration Alliance (GAIA), Waste Not Asia, Lakbay Kalikasan, the Ecowaste Coalition, the Sagip Pasig Movement, and the People’s Task Force for Bases Clean-up. Von Hernandez is, indeed, a hero that people should look up to. He changed the perspective of society in order to live in greener atmosphere. Because of him, laws were implemented that aims to promote a healthier place for people. By speaking his mind, he saved thousands of lives from the exposure of harmful chemicals. Even though he has received threats from the opposing parties, he continues to do what he thinks is right. He is concerned for issues usually unnoticed by the public. Truly, his strong character deserves to be applauded and recognized as a model for the green revolutionary era. References: EcoWaste statement on garbage along Roxas Blvd. in wake of Typhoon Gener | Community Bulletin Board | GMA News Online | The Go-To Site for Filipinos Everywhere. (2012, August 2). GMANetwork.com – Online home of the Kapuso Network. Retrieved September 25, 2012, from http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/267953/cbb/ecowaste-statement-on-garbage-along-roxas-blvd-in-wake-of-typhoon-gener Goldman Prize. (n.d.). Goldman Prize For Excellence in Protecting the Environment. Retrieved November 26, 2012, from http://www.goldmanprize.org/2003/asia Mariano, Dan.(2007, Oct 26).Filipino Environment Hero. The Manila Times, A4. http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2518&dat=20071026&id=0pQ1AAAAIBAJ&sjid=9ScMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2468,18851050

Call vs Put Options Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Call vs Put Options - Essay Example Again, they are guaranteed of no losses. Financial options are perhaps a better way to attract investors in stock companies and encourage them to invest. However, I think because they are not ready to take risks with their shares they could be at a disadvantage if their stocks are bought or sold at higher values other than the agreed upon values. In my opinion, financial options can be good or bad. The buying contracts reduce risks in the event of a negative outcome. The buyer is somewhat protected while the trader increases gains and reduces losses. This is especially important given the volatile nature of the stock market as affected by issues such as fluctuating interest rates, exchange rates, and other market forces. Perhaps a major disadvantage of the two options is losing part of, or the whole contract price. Again, there is the risk of broker insolvency or non-fulfillment of contractual

Article on Demand and Supply Model Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Article on Demand and Supply Model - Essay Example Nevertheless, one of the major reasons behind these frequent price hikes is increase in global cotton demand by textile firms (after improvement in global economic outlook), which is not matched due to shortfalls in supply after reduction in global cotton production. The cotton (and yarn) prices at New York cotton market have been increasing due to this demand / supply imbalance that subsequently lead to increase in prices of finished products (readymade garments, unstitched cloth, towels etc.). It is worth mentioning that there are three major cotton growing nations / producers in the world namely Pakistan, India and China. The flooding in Pakistan followed by bad weather in China and India led to depletion of cotton crops. Consequently, the cumulative global production figures came down, while the demand side recorded strong recovery since this is considered as the beginning to the end-of-recession. The high demand then pushes prices upward in New York market, where prices of cotto n futures have already touched record peaks. Indeed, the upward trend in prices started from July 2010 and over 80% increment was recorded till November 2010.

Sigma Motion Inc. Application #4 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Sigma Motion Inc. Application #4 - Essay Example The founder of the company, Ron Burton, is an experienced businessman in the linear motion products environment and he inherited the skills running family business from his father. The impression from the case is that, the Burton family incorporated nonfamily management in its desire for the company’s success. Alderson (95) points out that engagement of nonfamily management in family business is an important practice in ensuring continuity of business activities in case the successor is not fully prepared to assume the top leadership position. In reality, for a family business to be successful, there must be proper coordination between the family and the external workforce. According to the case, Sigma Motion Inc had several competitive advantages that gave room for its continued success. These competitive advantages included its small size, competent engineering team, high quality of products, customization of services, a wide product line and a proficient management team. Essentially, the small size of the company facilitated apt reaction to customer requests and market changes. In addition, with a well established and competent engineering team, the company was able to diligently handle technical issues and give prompt advice to customers. In essence proper handling of customers has the impact of developing customer loyalty and consequently providing a wider market. Provision of high quality products and a five year warrant plan by the company contributed to its better performance than its competitors. The establishment of a deep production line facilitated rapid business growth and sustainable product development. Consequently, establishment of a p roficient management team composed of internal family members and external mangers was a significant step to ensuring long stay of the company in the linear motion

Scholarship essay for wsu personal stmt Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Scholarship for wsu personal stmt - Essay Example iven the opportunity for holistic development of physical and mental skills; as well as a balanced honing of spiritual, emotional, ethical and moral values. Through these abilities and skills, I have manifested belief in ethics of reciprocity that assisted in conflict resolution, negotiation and problem-solving over time. As a validated and proven leader, I was recognized through various academic and civic awards. Knowledge or creativity in a field: Describe any of your special interests and how you have developed knowledge in these areas. Give examples of your creativity: the ability to see alternatives; take diverse perspectives; come up with many, varied, or original ideas; or willingness to try new things. Being physically active is a very important commitment in my life. The various sports that I actively participated in over the years are football, basketball, soccer, track and baseball. From among the special activities I do for fun in the summer are hiking, wakeboarding and water skiing; as well as snowboarding and skiing in the winter. I enjoy playing the piano and drums and I play the trumpet in band and quad toms in the parades. Further, I work in our family apple orchard, especially at harvest time in the fall maintaining and driving equipment. Among these, a family trip Stehekin in our boat is a cherished thing to do. Dealing with adversity: Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to address this challenge. Include whether you turned to anyone in facing that challenge, the role that person played, and what you learned about yourself. The challenging experience of having to go through a series of surgeries due to spinal curvature was the most memorable. I had to go through two major surgeries, a brain and spine surgery to address the chronic dilemma. My greatest fear then, aside from recovering from all the pain is the thought that I could no longer participate in any strenuous physical activities because

Tax Cuts and Layoffs in the Economic Times and their Impact in Research Paper

Tax Cuts and Layoffs in the Economic Times and their Impact in Communities - Research Paper Example It is expected that this plan could actually boost the GDP by some 1.25% and the employment levels by 1.3 million in the next year (Kaplan, 2011). However the proposed plan is not without major difficulties perhaps the largest of which is the provision of some 447 billion dollars in order to make this plan work. For one thing, Obama’s proposal could not be tabled while Democrats controlled the Congress so tabling this proposal in a Republican controlled Congress is even more difficult. Furthermore the proposal is considering reducing the net incomes of a large amount of workers who will not agree to such proposals that curtail their employment benefits. The current economic situation is being compounded by efforts on the part of state governments to cut down on employee benefits. Already unionized workers in New York are not ready to agree to such concessions in benefits even if they have to lose their jobs as a sign of protest. Already the government in New York is deposing t housands of workers because they are not ready to accept new contracts that include tax tradeoffs as well as removal of entitlements that reduce their pays by a sizable amount (Economist, 2011). Although the largest union has agreed to reduced pay structures but the second largest union is adamant to accepting these new contracts. Friction is rising as working people are removed from jobs because they demand their right. This indicates that the federal government’s proposed tax breaks are more than just required in order to avert further layoffs which would in turn lead to little else than more recession. When the proposal’s finances are looked at in greater detail, it becomes apparent that the largest contributor to funding is from limiting deductions for upper income earners at some 405 billion dollars. The other components of financing represents smaller figures including treating carried interests as ordinary income (18 billion dollars), limiting oil and gas compan y tax benefits (40 billion dollars) and removing corporate jet tax breaks (3 billion dollars). It is highly clear that the federal government could still increase the chief component of funding if it did not limit the amount of deductions for upper income earners. That would put the federal government in a position to possess greater finances that could be used to stimulate the economy. While it is clear that the federal government has shown interest in creating more jobs by providing incentives and by expanding infrastructure based projects, but this proposal is highly unlikely to get tabled. Even if the proposal was to get approved in Congress somehow, the next problem would be the credibility of the federal government when it comes to creating jobs. The government has always had a poor history of creating new jobs (except the FDR years). At this point in time, tax breaks are required for low income workers so that they can deal with their pervasive state of near insolvency. Howev er it hardly makes any sense to curtail taxes for high income earners who are already finding enough money to spend. Economists argue that the tax cuts provided to the average Joe worker are being saved up and this may even be true but given a few continuous years of savings, these workers will reinvest in the economy in terms of their savings dollars. The need of the hour is to redistribute the money in the economy

Analyzing Pro Forma Statements Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Analyzing Pro Forma Statements - Assignment Example The essay "Analyzing Pro-forma Statement" talks about the financial forecasting methods that can be applicable for ABC Ltd to significantly reduce wastage of financial resources. The new initiative would be to market another product of the company. This would lead to an increase in the company’s sales over the forecasted period. Due to increased number of sales, the net fixed assets by the acquisition of new machinery to increase production will also increase. For current assets, an increase in sales will be as a result of increased stock of raw materials, work in progress and finished goods. An increase in credit sales will also increase debtors while more cash will be required to buy more inventories in cash. The retained earnings will also increase with sales if the firm is operating at a profit. The current liabilities will increase because the increased sales will lead to the purchase of more inventories. Long term capital items such as common stock and additional paid-in capital will not change or increase because they are not directly impacted by an increase in sales as they are always used to finance long-term projects. For ABC Ltd, the assumption of marketing of a new product will result in an increase in sales by 20%. The other items affected will also increase by the same percentage. The property, plant and equipment will increase due to the increased capacity and hence will use up capital. The sources of capital will the increase in accounts receivables and other liabilities and the cash.

Review of Accounting Ethics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Review of Accounting Ethics - Essay Example Accounting ethics, which are set by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), and the Securities and Exchange Commission (Audi, 2009). The ethics are contained in the accounting principles that dictate the way businesses should account for their sales, profits, and costs. The principles are known as the International Financial Reporting standards, and these govern mainly public organizations, which are required to publish their annual statements. In the last decade, there has risen cases of bleach of accounting ethics, and this raised questions among investors concerning the effectiveness of the business environment (Kushniroff, 2011). The cases involved organizations such as Enron, Tyco, WorldCom, and Yahoo among others. The rise of these cases triggered the implementation of several regulations in the accounting sector, which include the requirement for accountability and the involvement of the community in dealing with cases that concern bleach of ethics. The accounting environment requires state corporations to reveal their annual statements to the public through the media. The accounting boards require companies also to employ internal and external auditors to verify the annual statements. Business stakeholders such as investors and shareholders are now more aware of business ethics than they were in the last decade. This indicates that the business environment and regulations are conducive for ethical behavior (Kushniroff, 2011). Those who break the rules are individuals who are mainly interested in making personal gains rather than companies. 2. Based on your research, describe the organization, the accounting ethical breach and the impact to the organization related to ethical breach. Tyco is a company that offers fire fighting and prevention equipments to industries such as banking, transportation, health care, and marine in over fifty countries in the globe. Kozlowski, the chief Executive of the Company in 2002, bleached the accounting prin ciples of the firm by assigning himself illegal bonuses worth six hundred million dollars. The executive also used the company’s finances personally by purchasing expensive jewels and organizing private parties (SEC, 2002). The company suffered the loss of finances that were used by the executive to satisfy his personal needs. Tyco also wasted finances when following up the case against the executive; this money would have been used more efficiently had the case not arisen. The organization also lay off numerous workers. These consequences led to the decline in the company’s sales and profits that consequently reduced price of the firm’s stock (Kushniroff, 2011). 3. Determine how the organizational ethical issue was detected and how management failed to create an ethical environment. The case against the CEO of Tyco company was brought to light by Robert Morgenthau, a Manhattan District Attorney in 2002 (SEC, 2002). The attorney discovered the fraud while he was investigating cases of tax evasion against Kozolowski. The investigation of tax evasion had been ordered by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which had discovered that Tyco was settling personal taxes for Kozolowski. Robert disclosed the fraudulent statements that he discovered in the company’s books to the SEC, which then launched further investigations. The management of the company had failed to cover personal expenses with their salaries. The investigation

Perception of an Object Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

Perception of an Object - Essay Example Hence, whatever we do, it is based on reasoning or motivating forces that influence our thinking process and the way we think. Â  Although we react as per the perception of the event, it is equally true that our reactions are also influenced by the manipulations of the information that are retained in the memory of the brain. Some of the forces that might determine our form of ‘thinking’ may include gender, ethnicity, scientific background, official compulsions or socio-economic parameters. Hence our judgment of events is largely dependent on the memory that stores information about that event. As a student, we are often faced with situations that are often interpreted in different ways by different people including my friends, teachers, relatives etc. Â  In one of the school trips, Danny, despite being the brightest students in our class, refused to go. Everyone was pretty annoyed and little upset also because Danny was not only the brightest in the class, he was also a great fun. Since the examinations were also around the corner, everyone concluded that he did not want to waste time but would rather use the time to study. As I later found out, everybody was wrong! Danny very much wanted to go but he was not able to go because his parents were getting a divorce and he was heartbroken. I was only able to find out because when I accused him of being selfish, the whole thing came out. He had confided only because I was his good friend so I had to keep silent while my friend’s absence was made a subject of ridicule. It was a lesson in perception. What is perceived to be an easy explanation of events often has a deeper meaning which can only be understood by rationalizing the actions of other people? Indeed, we need to rationa lize other people’s action and try to look at the events from their perspectives. Why the person acted the way he did.

Nursing Career and its Advantages in doing Higher Education Essay Example for Free

Nursing Career and its Advantages in doing Higher Education Essay Abstract Nursing image is changing every day from ancient gown and cap to colored scrubs. People choose nursing for different reasons. I chose this profession because; I like to be a role model for the new nurses. After I graduated as a Registered Nurse (RN) in 1999 my first patient said, â€Å"If an Angel has dropped from heaven that is you nurse†. R.Mariam (personal communication, June, 1999). This sentence inspired me a lot and gave hope in my career. Job satisfaction is an essential part in any profession especially in this field since, we deal with life and death and it helps to raise patient’s safety, performance, quality of care, patient’s satisfaction and productivity of the organization. Like in any other field, this field also has some frustrations, but facing the problem and coping with frustrations is what helps us to reach the goal. This paper also explains the advantages of doing continuing education since, nursing profession is widely spreading and changing every day and it needs highly qualified knowledgeable and competent employees to serve. Keywords: Nursing profession, Career, Job satisfaction, patient’s safety, quality of care, performance, productivity, frustrations, and continuing education. Nursing Career and its Advantages in doing Higher Education Nursing is an art, science and profession by which we render care for the patients irrespective of all ages, religion, caste or gender who are acutely ill and in critical condition. Nurses around the world make the largest group of health professionals. They are the back bone of the healthcare system. Nurses are not only providing care for the patients, but they are also responsible for the emotional welfare of patients and their families too. Career as a Critical Care Nurse: When I was a kid, I always wanted to pursue a career in nursing or medical field. I have a sister who is a nurse. At the age of 19 years in India, I  decided to go for nursing degree and I graduated as a Registered Nurse in 1999. Nursing profession touched me a lot and it made my career interesting. I started my career as an Operating Room scrub nurse and circulating nurse. It was interesting everyday by not only taking care of the patients, but also managing the operating room activities, ensuring that the equipment’s are safe and sterilized, equipment’s are properly audited and consent forms were filled and signed by concerned members of the family. It is very crucial to be an operating room nurse, as the entire procedure depends on the efficiency and job knowledge. It is the responsibility of the nurse to be the mediator between the patients, families and the physicians. Being an operating room nurse I did not have much interaction with my patients. Almost all patients in operating room gets general anesthesia. As an OR nurse, I felt I am not interacting with the patients well and I am not fulfilling my job as a nurse completely. After few years, I decided to become an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) nurse. Transition from OR to ICU nurse was little hard for me initially, but I enjoy working with the patients and spending enough time with them and their families. At times, I have to be an advocate between the patients, families and doctors because we deal with critically ill patients. Reason for Motivation to continue in Nursing: According to Locke and Lantham (2002), Personal goals play an important part in direction and maintenance of behaviors which is needed to achieve rewards. People who are confident, believe in their ability to achieve goal and believe that the attainment of goal will lead to successful career are the ones able to complete their task effectively to reach their goals (Lent, Brown, Hackett, 1994). Nursing profession is one of the widely expanding fields that call for passion according to (Raye, L. 2006). It is a good choice for people who find themselves more comfortable and satisfied in helping people who are in need to maintain and achieve normal health. Nursing offers wide variety of opportunities according to each individuals interests such as critical care unit, labor and delivery, pediatrics, geriatrics, telemetry, med-surg, oncology, infectious diseases, pain clinic, outpatient clinic etc. And also  it offers continuing education and competencies to keep the knowledge and skills up-to-date (Raye, L.2006). It offers flexible working hours such as three twelve hour shifts or four ten hour shifts (Blanche, J.2010). And due to the availability and shortage for nurses it offers incentive and bonuses for extra hours. It is a lifetime career which is flexible and rewarding. If we lose jobs in one position there are lots of available jobs in the market for talented individual s. It is also well-paying job with good benefits such as tuition reimbursement for higher education, medical benefits, life insurance and child care. Overall it is flexible. The reason why I have chosen nursing career was, a nurse who inspired me in my life and my interest towards, caring for human beings. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (1998, 2008) and the National League for Nursing (2007) identified caring as the foundation for nursing. At the age of 15 years old, my dad had a massive heart attack and he was in Intensive care unit. He was intubated, on the ventilator, with so many drips infusing, with monitor alarming all the time. My whole family was very upset and hopeless. The nurse who took care of my dad was very dedicated , honest and very knowledgeable , she went above and beyond in helping us in that situation, keeping track of vital signs, maintaining his breathing, keeping him hemodinamically stable, giving back care, mouth care, sponge bath and giving emot ional support to the family and explaining what’s is going on with him. Few days later my dad died in the hospital but the nurse who took care of my dad stayed in my mind. Since then I always wanted to be a nurse who is caring, attentive to the emotional wellbeing of the patients and their families, providing emotional support because family place trust and self-respect in our hands. They want us to keep their loved ones comfortable, pain free and monitored all the time and not left alone. My passion for nursing grew when a patient or family member smiles at me and say â€Å"Thank you†, it enlightens me and lights up my day with more energy and spirit. Frustrations in Nursing Profession: The most important thing that frustrates me is the charting. Now most of the hospitals are computerized, but some hospitals still do paper charting and add more and more paper work every day. This means I have to spend more time doing paper charting than taking care of the patients. Sometimes we are short staffed and we have to do not only the registered nurse jobs, but we also have to be a house keeper doing accidental cleaning, secretary entering orders, patient care tech, Phlebotomist doing lab draws and also calling doctors with the patient’s lab and radiology results if we don’t see them on rounds. These are the thing which frustrates me, because it reduces the time which we spend for the patient care. Overall, Frustrations are common and it can happen in any other field but the nature of frustration may differ. Advantages due to addition Education in my Career: 1. Now most hospitals in New Jersey prefer Bachelor’s degree in nursing and there is a â€Å"global shortage for nurses, it gives us job security† (Blanche, J.2010). 2. It offers potential high income for well qualified employees. 3. More choice availability to go back to school to continue in higher education for nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetist and nurse educator. 4. It also helps us to interact with the other hospital nurses and health care professionals in classes which help me to improve patient care and make my job more enjoyable. 5. It gives knowledge and skills in critical thinking in assessment and problem solving in everyday practice. 6. It offers opportunity to be a mentor for the new nurses and to be a resource nurse. 7. By doing Bachelor’s degree in nursing, I am sure by the end of the course I will be well trained in areas such as effective communication, leadership and critical thinking which is very important in today’s nursing practi ce as well as it is necessary for administrative position, research and teaching. References American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (1998). The essentials of baccalaureate education for professional nursing practice. Washington, DC: Author. American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2008). The essentials of baccalaureate education for professional nursing practice. Washington, DC: Author. Blanche, J. (2010). 10 reasons a nursing degree is a good best in education today. Retrieved from http://www.nurses-forum.com/blog/246/10-reasons-a-nursing-degree-is-a-good-bet-in-education-today/ Locke, E. A., Latham, G. P. (2002).

Metronidazole Retention Enema Experiment and Study

Metronidazole Retention Enema Experiment and Study 1. Introduction 1.1. Rectal dosage forms   The most common and usually most convenient route for administering conventional pharmaceutical dosage forms is orally, where the drug dissolves in the gastric and/or intestinal fluids and is absorbed to reach the site of action. Dissolution and absorption of the drug from the gastro-intestinal environment depends upon many factors e.g. the physico-chemical properties of the drug, enzymes, metabolism, pH of the fluids etc. and these are considered as major drawback when localized drug delivery in the colon is required. Colonic drug delivery system offers advantages over oral dosage forms in improving the efficacy and achieving high concentrations with minimal side-effects1. 1.1.1. Advantages and limitations of rectal dosage forms Advantages: Safe and painless form of administration. Drugs liable to degradation in the gastrointestinal tract can be administration. First pass elimination (drugs liable to degrade before reaching the site of action) of high clearance drugs is partially owing to bypassing the liver. Even larger doses can be administered. Drugs can be administered rectally in the long term care of geriatric and terminally ill patients. Administration of rectal suppositories or capsules is a simple procedure that can be under taken even by unskilled healthcare personnel and patients. Limitations: Patients acceptability and compliance is poor, especially for long term therapy. Suppositories can leak. Drug absorption from suppositories is slow in comparison to oral or intravenous administration. 1.2. Different rectal drug formulations Many formulations are developed for rectal use and these include suppositories (in the form of solid dose suspensions and emulsions), irrigations, gelatine capsules (used for non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, encapsulated in a soft gelatine capsules as a reverse micellar solution for rectal application) 2, and enemas. Enemas are aqueous solutions are suspensions intended for instillation into the rectal region for evacuation of bowel and to treat microbial infections. Enemas are of two types macro enemas (100ml or more) and micro enemas ( 1.3. Anatomy of Rectum and lower colon The terminal 15- 19cm portion of the large intestine is rectum; it has a circumference of 15-35cm. The rectal pH is around 7-8. The absorptive area of rectum is less when compared to that of small bowel because the rectal surface area is 200-400cm2 compared to that 200m2 of small bowel, due to very much shorter surface area per unit length 4. Generally medications for rectal delivery are better absorbed as weakly alkaline solutions. For rapid absorption of the medication aqueous solutions are preferable rather than suppositories or suspensions. Rectal absorption takes place by active absorption and for maximum retention without any rectal urgency to vacate bowels small volume of the fluid is recommended5.The diagram with a section of colon is shown below in fig-1. 1.3.1. Physiological considerations of colon 1.3.1a. Intestinal colonic micro flora The human colonic atmosphere supports over 400 distinct species of bacterium with a population of 1011 to 1012 CFU/ml with mostly Eubacterium, Bacteriodes etc6. The enzymes produced by these bacterium has wide spectrum of action, that being hydrolytic and reductive in nature, these enzymes are actively involved in many processes, such as steroidal transformation, protein and carbohydrate fermentation, and destruction of mutagenic metabolism. Nitroreductase, azoreductases, and N-oxide and sulfoxide reductases are the most extensive reductive enzymes produced by the intestinal flora7. 1.3.1b. Colonic motility Under the normal physiological conditions the colonic motility is described as irregular alternation of inactive, non-propagative, segmental contractions and infrequent propagative contractions that can be further classified into high amplitude contractions (> 100 mmHg) and low amplitude contractions ( 1.3.1c. Ascending colonic volume The ascending colonic volume was found to be 170 ±40 ml as per the studies conducted on healthy subjects using single photon emission computed tomography11. Metronidazole Metronidazole is a nitro-imidazole bactericidal agent primarily used against obligate anaerobic bacteria including Bacteroides, Clostridium spp., and certain protozoal parasites like Trichomonas vaginalis, Entamoeba histolytica, Giardia lamblia, Blastocysistis hominis, Balantidium coli and also some of the facultative anaerobes Gardnerella vaginalis and Helicobacter pylori16. Gram negative anaerobes like bacteroides and fusobacterium species and the gram positive anaerobes like Peptosteptococci and clostridium species typically test sensitive to metronidazole. It is particularly used against Helicobacter pylori associated to duodenal ulcers and gastritis. Metronidazole is also used against anaerobic bowel flora for the prophylaxis and for the treatment of Crohns disease where patients might develop complications of infections in bowel12. Metronidazole supports the overgrowth of aerobic microbial flora of the large intestine by reducing the number of anaerobic micro-organisms with acceptable profile of adverse effects13. 1.4.1. Anti microbial action of Metronidazole Metronidazole as anti microbial agent was first introduced in 1959 for the treatment of Trichomonas vaginalis infections, and used subsequently for invasive giardiasis and amebiasis. Metronidazole is highly effective and show rapid onset of action against anaerobic infections. Antimicrobial action of Metronidazole is mainly due to the toxic intermediates which are produced during the reduction of the compound14. Interaction of these intermediates with deoxyribonucleic acid in protozoan inhibits nucleic acid synthesis and there by exerts antimicrobial effects15. Mechanism of action of Metronidazole is shown in the fig-2. 1.4.2. Physico-chemical properties Chemically metronidazole is 2-methyl-5-nitroimidazole-1-ethanol or 1-(2-hydroxyethyl)-2-methyl-5-nitroimidazole. Its formula is C4H9N3O and its chemical formula is in the fig-3. Metronidazole is white to pale yellow coloured, odourless, crystalline powder. It is sparingly soluble in water, alcohol and slightly soluble in ether16.It is generally stable in aqueous solutions of pH 2.0-7.017. 1.4.3. Metabolism of Metronidazole Metronidazole is metabolised in the liver into two metabolites. These metabolites include 2-hydroxy-methyl-5-nitroimdazole-1-acetic acid (HM) and 2-methyl-1-2-nitroimidazole-1-acetic acid (MAA). Hydroxy metronidazole is pharmacologically active with antimicrobial action and its potency is 30% to that of metronidazole and the acetic acid metabolite of metronidazole is pharmacologically inactive but its activity is noticed in patients with renal dysfunction, small amount of metronidazole is oxidised to acetamide18. The metabolization pathway and chemical formulas can be seen in the figure 419. Study objective Metronidazole is commercially available in the form Tablets, Suppositories, Gels, and suspensions20. But metronidazole in the form of enema is not available commercially. Olumide F et al. 1976, described metronidazole in the form of enema (2gm. of metronidazole in 200ml of normal saline) for management of severe intestinal amoebiasis21. No extensive pharmaceutical data about the formulation and stability of the metronidazole enema is available at this moment. Hence, the development of a metronidazole enema was undertaken. The present objective of the study is to formulate Metronidazole retention enema in a suitable aqueous media using carbopol and tragacanth as suspending and viscosifying agents. Chemical stability of the formulated enema is analysed with an analytical method: high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and viscosity of the formulation is checked by Brook field viscometer. Aim To formulate a metronidazole retention enema and analyze physico-chemically. 2.0. Materials and Method 2.1. Chemicals Metronidazole (98.9% pure) used is a gift sample from Thrope Laboratories (India) Ltd, Mumbai. 2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole is used as a standard impurity. Cardopol (35% w/v), tragacanth, methyl paraben, propyl paraben, tris buffer were purchased from Aldrich. The methanol and acetonitrile used were of high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) grade along with distilled water; other materials namely potassium hydrogen phthalate (KHP), sodium hydroxide (NaOH), sodium chloride (NaCl), potassium di-hydrogen phosphate (KH2PO4), acetic acid (CH3C OOH), sodium acetate (CH3COONa), sodium citrate (Na3C6H5O7) and 0.1M hydrochloric acid (HCl) were of analytical quality. 2.2. Instrumentation High Performance Liquid Chromatography apparatus and conditions The liquid chromatography used was a Varian Prostar HPLC system (Model 410), equipped with an auto sampler serial mode system with a 20 µl loop. Detection is accomplished with a UV-Visible detector. Integration and the system parameters were controlled by Galaxy software running on a PC. Viscometer The viscometer used was Brook field viscometer (Model LVDV II + PRO); displays temperature (C or F), viscosity, % scales, shear rate, shear stress, speed, % torque, and spindle. Technical specifications include 0.01 to 200/rpm, viscosity range of 1 6Million cP, with 4 supplied spindles. 2.3. Preparation of buffer solutions22, 23 2.3.1. Preparation of Phthalate buffer Phthalate buffer was prepared by dissolving 20.42g of potassium hydrogen phthalate in 1000ml of water (0.1M). The pH was adjusted with 0.1M hydrochloric acid, 0.1M sodium hydroxide. Preparation of different pH ranges of phthalate buffer is shown in the table-1: 2.3.4. Preparation of tris buffer Tris buffer was prepared by dissolving 12.11g of tris (hydroxymethyl aminomethane) in 1000ml of water (0.1M). The pH of the buffer was adjusted with 0.1M hydrochloric acid. Preparation of different ph ranges of tris buffer is shown in the table-4. 2.4. Pre-formulation studies 2.4.1. Pre-formulation solubility studies The main problem associated with developing any of the solution formulation of a compound is its aqueous solubility. Metronidazole is poorly aqueous soluble drug24. For enhancing the poorly aqueous solubility of drug there are several alternatives and these include pH manipulation, co-solvency, surfactants, chelating agents and emulsion formation25. In the present experiment the solubility of metronidazole, 2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole in water, buffered solutions of phosphate, acetate and tris in various pH ranges were determined by adding a weighed amount of drug to the solvent by stirring with a glass rod at 20 ±2oC. Excess amount of solvent was added until the drug completely dissolved in that solvent. 2.5. Stability Indicating HPLC studies The stability studies are particularly demonstrated to analyse the quality, concentration and purity of the pharmaceutical dosage form. For demonstrating stability of pharmaceutical dosage forms HPLC is prominently used. Szepesi et al.26 described some special stability-indicating requirements for HPLC and these include: 2.5.1. Stability- indicating assay The peaks of the drug substance and its decomposition product should not elute at same time; any decrease in the active drug concentration should be detected by the method. Stability-indicating purity: The resolutions between the active component peak and the adjacent peak should be higher to identify any decomposition of the active component similar in its structure formed during different storage conditions. 2.5.3. The main impurity peak(s) should be separated from degraded product peak(s) of different chemical structure, so that evaluation of purity and assay are carried out together. 2.5.4. The peaks of the degraded products or secondary degraded products formed by the decomposition of by-product can also be separated from other peaks. 2.6. Stability-indicating purity: Pre-formulation stability studies were conducted to determine the stability of metronidazole in water and various buffered pH ranges using reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). All the solutions were stored at room temperature 20 ±2oC for approximately 20 days in glass beakers and then analysed for stability. Results and Discussion Solubility study of Metronidazole The aqueous solubility and pH solubility profiles for Metronidazole and 2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole are shown in Table-7, 8, 9. Overall solubility of Metronidazole and 2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole is determined at all pH values. Both Metronidazole and 2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole exhibited high solubility at a pH range à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥4. For example, at room temperature the aqueous solubility of Metronidazole was 100mg/50ml, respectively. Metronidazole, being a weak base, appears to dissolve maximally at a pH à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥ 4.0. High performance liquid chromatography method development The new method developed in this present study was very closely related to that of British Pharmacopoeia. British pharmacopoeia specifies reverse phase chromatography carried out using stainless steel column (20cmÃÆ'-4.6 mm) packed with octadecylsilyl silica gel of particle size 10 µm (spherisorb ODS), using a mixture of 30 volumes of methanol and 70 volumes of 0.01M potassium di-hydrogen orthophosphate as the mobile phase with a flow rate of 1ml per minute and a detection wavelength of 315nm. To establish a new stability indicating chromatographic nature of the HPLC method, we have changed the column to 5 µm C18 (150 ÃÆ'- 4.60 mm i.d., Phenomenex) stainless steel column, packed with Sphereclone octadecylsilane (ODS) and an (eluent) mobile phase to carry out the stability analysis in the solution at ambient room temperature with a flow rate of 1.0ml/min and at a detection wave length of 325nm. Each chromatographic run required about 10 minutes and the elution time obtained for metronidazole and the standard impurity were different for different mobile phases. For methanol: KH2PO4 in the volume of 30:70v/v retention times of drug and the impurity was1.89min and 2.00min, for methanol: KH2PO4 in the volume of 80:20v/v retention times were very narrow, like wise all the mobile phase in different proportion showed a little retention time gap between drug and impurity. When acetonitrile and sodium citrate was used in the volumes of 10:90 v/v retention time gap of 2min was achieved. Elution of Metronidazole and 2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole was achieved with a retention time of 3.19Min and 4.99Min respectively. Stability indicating solubility studies Metronidazole was observed to be relatively stable in water and buffer pH conditions. The results obtained in our stability indicating solubility study showed an agreement with solubility and studies conducted by Yunqi et al., 200527. Test for clarity and sedimentation Sedimentation was observed when the water (400C) solubilized metronidazole is stored for 20 days, this might be due to the super saturation of the solution during solubilization of the drug at high temperature. Rest of the solutions were free from particles and sedimentation when observed against a black and white back ground. Solubility studies of metronidazole and its standard impurity (2-methyl-5-nitro-imidazole), indicates solubility of metronidazole was more in aqueous solvents including various buffered pH systems. These solubility profiles help to understand the chemical nature (polarity) of drug and the impurity. Solubility of metronidazole was observed to be high in acetate buffer (100mg/30ml) than any other buffer solutions. Taking the solubility profiles and colonic pH (5.5-7) into consideration, acetate buffer of pH 6 was used to formulate enema 4. Formulation of enema Our aim to formulate retention enemas is based on the studies conducted by Nyman-Pantelidis et al., 1994. There study proved low viscous enemas superiority over high viscous enemas in retention and colonic spread28. 4.1. Preparation of metronidazole- tragacanth enema Metronidazole-tragacanth enema was prepared by simple titration technique using motor and pestle. Metronidazole retention enema prepared was an aqueous formulation with a viscosity of 6.00 cPas, containing metronidazole in a buffered pH. The formulation includes tragacanth as suspending and viscocifying agent. Methyl paraben as a preservative and NaOH (0.1M) was used to maintain the pH of the formulation. Metrinidazole was dissolved in buffered solution and then added to tragacanth gum, while triturating methyl paraben was added and pH of the final formulation is maintained at pH-6 using NaOH. The composition of the enema prepared in the study contains 1g of Metronidazole as shown in table 9. Preparation of metronidazole- carbopol enema For the treatment of anaerobic infection of colon we have formulated Metronidazole as enema using carbopol, a high molecular weight polymer of acrylic acid cross linked to allyl sucrose. Carbopol increases the viscosity of the enema and so help in retaining in the colon for maximum efficacy of metronidazole29. Metronidazole was dissolved in buffered solution 1.0g/300ml. This solution was added under constant stirring to carbopol. Methyl paraben was dissolved in water and under  constant stirring this mixture was added to the suspension. The pH of the final formulation is maintained at 6 by the addition of NaOH. The composition of the enema formulated is shown below in the table-10. Storage of enemas for stability and viscosity studies The formulated enemas were filled in 100 ml glass beakers and stored for 2 days at refrigerated conditions 40C, room temperature 200C and at accelerated conditions 400C and analysed for stability and viscosity. Stability studies of the formulated enemas Both the enemas were found to be stable for 3 days at various temperatures (2-100C, 25 ±20C, 40 ±20C). The chromatograms show no peak of degraded metronidazole. Chromatograms of both the enemas is shown in the fig-9, fig-10. Viscosities of the formulated enemas The viscosity measurements for both rectal enemas were performed by Brooks field viscometer, using spindle 62 revolving at 22 rpm. Both the rectal enemas were prepared with a viscosity of 6.0 cP using tragacanth and carbopol. The viscosities of both rectal enemas were then analysed after storage for 2 days at 2-100C, 20 ±20C, and 40 ±20C respectively and there results are shown in table-10. There was a little variation of viscosities in the formulated enemas after their storage at various temperatures, and this variation is seen especially in enemas stored at accelerated temperature (40 ±20C) for 3 day. Because viscosity is inversely related to temperature, as temperature increases viscosity decreases. Test for clarity and sedimentation Both the formulated enemas were clear without any particles when observed against a black and white background. When the enemas are further analysed, phase separation was observed in the enema formulated using tragacanth and stored at 2-100C, 20 ±20C, and 40 ±20C. Conclusion The solubility studies results indicate that metronidazole showed a good solubility at various pH levels (à ¢Ã¢â‚¬ °Ã‚ ¥4.0). Maximum solubility of metronidazole was shown in acetate buffer of pH 6 (100mg/30ml). The stability studies indicate that metronidazole was stable at all the pH ranges without any degradation. The Metronidazole enema formulated using tragacanth and carbopol was chemically stable with no degradation when stored for a period of 3 days at 2 ±100C, 20 ±20C, 40 ±20C respectively. And there is no remarkable effect on the viscosities and pH of the enemas when stored at these temperatures. Future work In the present study stability studies were conducted for only 3 days, the results would be more appropriate if the stability studies of the formulated enema were carried for some more days. The new methodology developed for demonstrating High Performance Liquid Chromatography indicating stability studies using acetinitrile and sodium citrate in the volumes of 10:90v/v should be validated.

Corporate Social Responsibility A Strategy For Inclusive Development Business Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility A Strategy For Inclusive Development Business Essay Events around the world over the last few decades have emphasized the need for corporate entities, their stakeholders, governments and international organizations to take the issue of Corporate Social Responsibility seriously. Incidents such as the explosion at the Union Carbide Bhopal, India in 1984, the oil spillage at Prince William Sound, Alaska USA in 1989, a few corporate scandals; for example the Mirror Group UK 1991, the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) 1991, UK, Polly Peck 1992, UK, Enron USA 2001, World Com USA 2002, Parmal at Italy 2003 remain fresh and indelible in our minds. Issues such as rampant poverty, climate change and global warming, human rights abuses, terrorism and the globalization of the world economy also affect how corporate entities conduct their operational practices. These operational practices consequently impinge on how corporate entities perceive their responsibilities to societies; and in turn societies expectations from corporate ent ities have increased. Societies give license to businesses to operate and consequently businesses have to serve society not only by creating wealth, but also by contributing to social needs and social expectations towards society. The current state of world affairs, calls for development that is inclusive. This paper delves upon issues such as the need for inclusiveness in development, the role of business in the contemporary society and its association with inclusive development, the Governments contribution towards CSR facilitation and the promotion of CSR by the corporate sector as a strategy for Inclusive Development. Inclusive Development Many people end up being excluded from the mainstream society; the reasons may be varied like gender, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation disability or the deprivation of basic human rights. This exclusion has resulted in making poverty and inequality a global challenge today, affecting nearly all countries of the world. The World Bank estimates for the year 2008 indicate that approximately 3 billion people or 45% of the global population is living below the international poverty line ($1-2 a day). If inflation is taken into account global poverty is on the rise. Poverty is a vicious cycle and the poor or unfortunate are in a way trapped in this cycle.   They lack access to good nutrition, health care and decent living conditions face barriers to education, employment and public services and are thus denied a dignified human existence.    Economic growth is an important factor in reducing poverty and generating the resources necessary for human development and environmental protection. The past fifty years have seen unprecedented global economic growth. This growth evidently has failed to bring about an overall development to societies across the world. The challenges discussed so far underscore the need for Inclusive development, an  emerging concept that recognizes diversity as fundamental to sustainable socio-economic and human development, based upon the notion that every human being can and should contribute to the development process where isolated policies be replaced by integrated strategy benefiting individuals and societies as a whole.   It is only right then that economic growth and development today is revisited by all actors in the society instrumental in generating this development. In order to structure such a strategy, all projects related to  education, health promotion, environmental and social protection need to consider those trapped in the vicious cycle of poverty. Development that is Inclusive reduces poverty where all groups of people contribute to creating opportunities, share the benefits of development and participate in decision-making. United Nations Development Programs human development approach complements Inclusive development as it integrates the standards and principles of human rights: participation, non-discrimination and accountability for all social and environmental concerns. Sustainability and Inclusive Development Sustainable practices encourage conserving, mitigating waste and enhancing our resource bases by gradually changing the ways in which we use natural resources available to us for industrial and personal consumption and the technologies we choose and the way we apply them. Nations strive to meet the basic requirements of their people for employment, food, energy, water and sanitation. To achieve this sustainably, there is need to balance economic, environmental and social goals so that prosperity is ensured not only for the current but future generations as well. Poverty eradication is an integral part of the goal of an environmental strategy for the world. The concepts of a shared planet, global citizenship, spaceship earth cannot be restricted to environmental issues alone. They apply equally to the shared and inter-linked responsibilities of environmental protection and human development. Restoring natural systems and improving natural resource management practices at the grassroots level are central to a strategy to eliminate poverty. It can be inferred that sustainable development is a precondition to achieving inclusive development. Role Of Business Corporate Houses have become powerful institutions on the planet in the last 50 years. Businesses have emerged stronger and more powerful when compared with Nation states. Willis Harman notes that the dominant institution in any society needs to take responsibility for the whole as the church did in the days of the Holy Roman Empire. The expectations from Business are indicating reflections of a demand for change. Business has been asked to be Inclusive and not just merit based; maximal and not just legal; to be ahead of law and not just run with it; to be consultative rather than just procedural; to meet global standards and not just local ones. In short, a large part of social responsibility is expected to be taken by corporate houses and therefore the concept Corporate Social Responsibility has emerged over time. Inclusive Development is to be shaped by various factors, such as; the functional definition of inclusive development, interventions that enhance governance and promote effective institutions, sound economic policies, and cultural and socio-economic considerations in policymaking and implementation. Inclusive development is an effective tool for overcoming social exclusion, combating poverty and ensuring social and economic sustainability, i.e. all sections of the society benefit out of such initiatives. Governance, trade, technology and financing practices determine social justice and protection of the rights of the underprivileged. It involves all actors in the society the government, businesses, public and private sector institutions, civil society or communities themselves. CSR as a strategic tool by companies with collaborative support of the above mentioned actors can and has become one of the important drivers to promote overall human development ensuring environmental protection. Such development is sustainable and leads to Inclusive Growth. CSR Models Today we have innumerable examples of Companies where Inclusive Development has been the guiding principle for Business in the long run. A few International names include Coca Cola, Starbucks, Johnson Johnson and Microsoft. In the Indian scenario we can begin with the legendry Tatas followed by Infosys, ITC, Bharti, Mahindra Mahindra, Wipro and many others. Initiatives of a few companies are covered underneath. The Tata Group Pioneers in the area of CSR in India, the TATA group has always played an active role in nation building and socio-economic development. Over the years, the Tata philosophy to Give back what you get has been followed by all their enterprises across India. Be it relief measures, rural development, health care, education, art and culture, they have been very forthcoming. As a result every year, the Tata Groups contribution to society has been phenomenal. Tatas spent Rupees 1 billion on 8 community development and social services projects during the fiscal 2001-02-the highest by any corporate house in India. ITC ITC partnered the Indian farmer for almost a century. They are now engaged in elevating this partnership to a new paradigm by leveraging information technology through its trail blazing e-Choupal initiative. Figure 1 : An ITC E- Chaupal In June 2000, ITCs Agri-Business Division conceived E-Choupal ( Figure 1) as a more efficient supply chain aimed at delivering value to its customers around the world on a sustainable basis. The model has been specifically designed to tackle the challenges posed by the unique features of Indian agriculture, characterized by fragmented farms, weak infrastructure and the involvement of numerous intermediaries, among others. E-Choupal also unshackles the potential of Indian farmer who has been trapped in a vicious cycle of low risk taking ability > low investment > low productivity > weak market orientation > low value addition > low margin > low risk taking ability. It makes the farmer and the Indian agri-business sector globally uncompetitive, despite rich abundant natural resources. Such a market-led business model can enhance the competitiveness of Indian agriculture and trigger a virtuous cycle of higher productivity, higher incomes, enlarged capacity for farmer risk management, larger investments and higher quality and productivity. Infosys Infosys, Mr. Narayan Murthy has been at the forefront to champion the role of good corporation He said we should look for public good and private good will automatically come. In March 1996 the Infosys Foundation was created in the state of Karnataka operating in the areas of health care, social rehabilitation and rural uplift, education, arts and culture. Since then, this foundation has spread to the Indian states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Kerela, Orrisa and Punjab. The foundation receives 1.5 % of the company after tax profits. In line with its stakeholder driven approach the allocation of funds is based on a participatory process. Since 2004, Infosys has embarked on a series of initiatives to consolidate and formalize its academic relationships worldwide under the umbrella of a program called the AcE ie Academic Entente. Through case study writing, participation in academic conferences and university events, research collaborations, hosting study trips to Infosys development centres and running the instep Global Internship program, the company communicates with important stakeholders in the academia promoting meaningful development. Starbucks Starbucks, a leading example of Environmental Sustainability has outlined a bold global environmental strategy that will help achieve a meaningful reduction in the companys environmental footprint. Starbucks has identified climate change as a key priority for the company and is in the third year of implementing its climate change strategy. The company has committed to significant renewable energy purchases for its stores and has also focused on ways to improve energy efficiency through store design. Starbucks also believes it has a role to play in consumer education and awareness, and is beginning to engage its supply chain partners on climate related issues such as renewable energy. In 2005, The Starbucks Emerging Issues Council, (a group 18 senior Starbucks executives) prioritized climate change as a key issue for the company in response to the environmental threats facing coffee growing communities. The council is also involved in determining what further measures are needed for the company to proactively and responsibly address the issue of climate change in a leadership capacity. The Starbucks three year climate change mitigation strategy includes the following steps to reduce the companys emissions: Purchasing renewable energy Focusing on energy conservation measures Educating and advocating the need for collaborative action Figure 2: A Starbucks Plantation The Starbucks three year climate change mitigation strategy includes the following steps to reduce the companys emissions: Purchasing renewable energy Focusing on energy conservation measures Educating and advocating the need for collaborative action As a responsible company, Starbucks is open and honest about the successes and challenges they face. Their Global Responsibility Reports give a clear picture of the progress theyve made in the areas of ethical sourcing, environmental stewardship and community involvement. Coca Cola Established in 1886, The CocaCola Company operates in more than 200 countries and markets nearly 500 brands. They are a global business that operates on a local scale in every community where they do business. The CocaCola system operates in the context of a broader value cycle: They work with others to source ingredients, create packaging, sell products, recover and reuse packaging materials and replenish the water used. Managing sustainability through a complex business cycle can be challenging, however collaborating closely with our business partners, communities and consumers, they seek to ensure environmental and social responsibility and are working to encourage consumers to recycle the packaging materials associated with their products. Global Sustainability select goals and targets for Coca Cola include: Active Healthy living, Energy management, Climate protection, Community, Sustainable packaging and Water stewardship. It is evident that a new paradigm for innovation is emerging: a partnership between private enterprise and public interest that produces profitable and sustainable change. Companies are moving beyond corporate social responsibility to corporate social innovation. Traditionally companies viewed the social sector as a dumping ground for spare cash, obsolete equipment and tired executives. This mindset could not create lasting change. Community needs are now viewed as opportunities to develop ideas and business technologies leading to both business and community payoffs. Government as a CSR facilitator Inclusive development requires that planning and interventions are state-led, with indispensable but ancillary engagement by the private sector and other stakeholders. CSR has not evolved separately from the public policy. Many governments have actively participated in encouraging corporations to voluntarily assume greater responsibility of the social/environmental aspects of their business policies by way of seeking to harness various market mechanisms to promote CSR. They have been promoted by various National governments, the European Union and several Inter-Governmental Organizations most notably the United Nations and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). It is interesting to note the shift in the motivations of governments for encouraging CSR. For almost three decades now it has been associated with addressing corporate governance deficits but more recently improving corporate policies with respect to issues like social cohesion, national competitiveness and environmental stability have been emphasized. The interest of the Governments is not only to encourage CSR initiatives but also to build CSR capacity. Shift is also being witnessed from endorsing and facilitating CSR by corporate to including partnering and mandating CSR through soft legislation. In advanced capitalist countries governments are playing extensive roles in a variety of initiatives to encourage CSR. The last decade has seen developments of newer roles and relationships between Governments and corporations. The UK Government has created a ministerial portfolio of CSR; corporations have created forms of self reporting and self regulation for instance The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) ; NGOs such as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Amnesty International, to name but just two have entered partnerships with corporations to help them improve environmental and social practices. There is evidence of substantial growth in the number of ethical or social mutual funds as well. In India, The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has issued CSR Voluntary Guidelines in 2009 for the Private Sector, to help encourage business entities formulate a CSR policy, guide its strategic planning and provide a roadmap for its CSR initiatives which are an integral part of the overall business policy and aligned with its business goals. The policy is expected to be framed with the participation of various level executives and approved by the Board. The Ministry of Corporate affairs has urged all companies to create a separate fund for their CSR activities in the interest of greater transparency. The recommendation is a part of Voluntary guidelines for companies especially those listed on the stock market. Core Elements of the Policy Guidelines include: Care for all Stakeholders: The companies should respect the interests of, and be responsive towards all stakeholders, shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers, project affected people, society at large etc. and create value for all of them. Ethical functioning: Their governance systems should be underpinned by Ethics, Transparency and Accountability. They should not engage in business practices that are abusive, unfair, corrupt or anti-competitive. Respect for Workers Rights and Welfare: Companies should provide a workplace environment that is safe, hygienic and humane and which upholds the dignity of employees. They should provide all employees with access to training and development of necessary skills for career advancement, on an equal and non-discriminatory basis. Respect for Human Rights: Companies should respect human rights for all and avoid complicity with human rights abuses by them or by third party. Respect for Environment: Companies should take measures to check and prevent pollution; recycle, manage and reduce waste, should manage natural resources in a sustainable manner. Activities for Social and Inclusive Development: Depending upon their core competency and business interest, companies are expected to undertake activities for economic and social development of communities and geographical areas, particularly in the vicinity of their operations for disadvantaged population. The CSR policy of the business entity is also expected to provide for an Implementation strategy that includes identification of projects/activities, setting measurable physical targets with timeframe, organizational mechanism and responsibilities, time schedules and monitoring. The Implementation Guidelines: *Companies may partner with local authorities, business associations and civil society/non-government organizations. *Companies should allocate specific amount in their budgets for CSR activities. *To share experiences and network with other organizations the company should engage with well established and recognized program/platforms which encourage responsible business practices and CSR activities. *The companies should disseminate information on CSR policy, activities and progress in a structured manner to all their stakeholders and the public at large through their website, annual reports, and other communication media. In addition to the Voluntary Guidelines another Government initiative if materialized, would lead to a situation where Corporate Social Responsibility for a state-owned firm may no more be just a photo opportunity for its chairman but would involve people-centric projects to be funded by 2-5 per cent of the companys net profits. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) is in the final stage of preparing guidelines for the Central Public Sector enterprises (CPSE s) to take up important CSR projects. The proposal, cleared by the Committee of Secretaries is awaiting approval by Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Ministry. It proposes a contribution of 3-5 % for enterprises with net profits of up to Rs 100 crore. Those earning net profit of more than Rs 100 crore may be asked to contribute up to two per cent of the amount. The Government has taken a very firm step and its regularization may see tangible impact on CSR initiatives undertaken by the companies. The CSR would inherit dimensions apart from traditional welfare related CSR practices like organizing blood donation camps charity events and the like. The CPSEs would be obliged to take up specific projects to help people affected directly or indirectly by their businesses. It would be the Companys primary obligation, to recycle part of their profits in order to help the society. While several CPSEs provide funds for CSR projects, it is not obligatory in nature so far. The guidelines would provide for measurement of the CSR. These obligations would be set in the Memorandum of Understanding, which sets targets for an individual CPSE. The performance evaluation of the companies would also have CSR performance as one of the parameters of overall performance of the company. The CSR Credits system that was proposed recently by the Corporate Affairs Minister Shri Salman Khurshid is a way forward where soft legislation will gradually facilitate CSR integration into the very core of corporate strategy. Mr. Khurshid believes that charity is rewarded in tax exemptions and other benefits however CSR remains unrewarded. Reiterating the idea of making CSR quantifiable he has urged corporate to debate the possibility of establishing a CSR exchange to deal in CSR Credits. Through the CSR exchange mechanism, companies would be able to trade in CSR credits, akin to trading in carbon credits. This is to be done through certification for their CSR activities by a government body. The credits could then be traded in a CSR credit exchange. The system translates into a situation where a company yet to engage in CSR may be able to compensate it through purchasing CSR credits from company that has already earned them. This would be quite similar to carbon credits where a polluting entity has to buy carbon credits from companies that have earned them through environment-friendly activities. In addition to this another issue under consideration is the conflict of interest where a company produces consumer products that are deemed harmful to consumption and health. Shri Khurshid said If there is a business that is inherently destructive and unwholesome, a way has to be found to offset the negativity of that business. The Governments are using CSR to complement Government policies in order to promote Inclusive Development. This system reflects new forms of Governance in which Governments employ a much richer and subtler array of mechanisms to affect business behavior rather than employing enforcement. The use of policies that endorse, facilitate and partner with firms is further characteristic of a new governance paradigm which emphasizes norms, networks, incentives and volunteerism. Government participation in promoting CSR may be an anathema to the business world as it may conjure up visions of control and constraints to operate competitively in a global world but positive though incipient signs of change are visible as we trace the evolution. CSR-Business Society Interface The phrase Corporate Social Responsibility originates with H. Bowen, who wrote Social Responsibility of Businessmen in 1953. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is used to describe businesses integration of social and environmental issues into decisions, goals, and operations. Other terms used in the CSR context are: Corporate Responsibility, Sustainability, Corporate Citizenship, Ethical Business Practices, Social/Environmental Responsibility, Triple Bottom Line and Environmental and Social Stewardship. The basic questions at the heart of CSR are as old as business itself, such as what is business for? What contribution does it make to society? Its rise to prominence however has not been a smooth one, as the concept has been frequently discredited, written off, marginalized or simply overlooked in favor of new or supposedly better ways of conceptualizing the business and society interface. Archie Carroll has provided an interesting overview of some of the prominent CSR Definitions. Milton Friedman (1970) contends that social responsibility of the firm is to increase its profit, Keith Davis (1973) supported the view that CSR requires consideration of issues beyond the narrow economic, technical, and legal requirements of the firm. Definition concepts in the Oxford Handbook range from CSR as an obligation to respond to the externalities created by market action to CSR as a discretionary spending in furtherance of an explicit measurable social objective consistent with relevant social norms and laws and CSR as an additional political responsibility to contribute to the development and proper working of global governance. Defining CSR is therefore not just a technical exercise but also a normative one in setting out what corporates should be responsible in society or an ideological one describing how the political economy of society should be organized to restrain corporate power. CSR is still a developing field of research as also Lockett et al concluded from a decade long study of CSR literature that CSR knowledge could best be described as in a continuing state of emergence. To sum up Corporate social responsibility (CSR) can most comprehensibly be called an approach through which companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis. The relative ambiguities regarding the definition and clear identity of CSR as an area of academic enquiry is also reflected in the institutional infrastructure of CSR, most notably in the Journals where CSR research is published, the societies and conferences which facilitate scholarly debate, and institutionalization of CSR as a field of academic teaching. The table below lists the Journals in the field of CSR. It can be noted that none of the CSR Journals have CSR as a title. Table 1: CSR Journals Journal Name Formation Date Editor Base Business Society (Sage) 1960 USA Business Society Review(Blackwell) 1972 USA Journal of Business Ethics ( Springer) 1982 Canada Business Ethics Quarterly(Society of Business Ethics) 1991 USA Business Ethics: A European Review ( Blackwell) 1991 UK Corporate Governance:International Journal of Business in Society(Emerald 2001 UK Journal of Corporate Citizenship (Greenleaf) 2001 UK Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management 2002 China CSR Evolution: The concept of CSR has long and wide ranging history, it is mostly the product of the 20th century especially since the 1950s. It was referred more as social responsibility (SR) than CSR for many years. Patrick Murphy in the University of Michigan Business Review, 1978 states that the period before 1950s was the philanthropic era in which companies donated to charities. Between 1953 and 67 was the awareness era during which there was more recognition of the overall responsibility of business and its involvement in community affairs. The period between 1968 -73 was termed the issue era in which companies began to focus on specific issues such as urban decay, racial discrimination and pollution problems. Finally the responsiveness era 1974-2008 and continuing beyond, companies began taking serious management and organizational actions to address CSR related issues. CSR Theories: Various CSR Theories have taken shape over time the most comprehensive are compiled by Garriga and Mele (2004) mentioning precisely four theories about the responsibilities of Business in Society: Corporate Social Performance Theory, Shareholder Value Theory, Stakeholder Theory, Corporate Citizenship Theory. Corporate Social Performance Theory has its roots in Sociology. It has evolved from several previous notions and approaches. It is a configuration in the business organization of principles of social responsibility, processes of response to social requirements and policies, programs and tangible results that reflect the companys relations with society, (Wood 1991). Archie Carroll (1979) was the first to introduce the concept of Corporate Social Performance. He made a synthesis of the basic principle of social responsibility. Carroll suggested that the entire range of obligations that business has to society must embody economic, legal, ethical and discretionary (philanthropic) categories. In 1991, Carroll first included them in a Pyramid of Corporate Social Responsibility, as shown in Figure3. Figure 3: CSR Pyramid The four classes reflect that the history of business suggests an early emphasis on the economic and then legal aspects and a later concern for the ethical and discretionary aspects. It was suggested that, although the components are not mutually exclusive, it helps the manager to see that the different types of obligations are in a constant tension with one another. More recently, Schwartz Carroll have proposed an alternative approach on three core domains (economic, legal and ethical) and a Venn model frame work. The Venn framework yields seven categories resulting from the overlap of three core domains. Wartick Cochran extended the Carroll approach suggesting that corporate social involvement rests on principles of social responsibility, process of social responsiveness, and the policy of issues management. In recent times more and more corporations are being proactive in publishing reports on economic social and environmental performance. The Global reporting initiative has become more and more popular as have certifications or reports, such as the UN Global Compact, AA1000, SA 80000 and others . All of this introduces more complexity into the corporate social performance models but in essence, the conceptual foundations remain unalterable. Shareholder Value Theory is based on Economic Theory. It is also referred as Fiduciary Capitalism and holds that the only social responsibility of business is making profits and as a supreme goal, increasing the economic value of the company for its stakeholders. In the 1960s and 70s there was a debate between Friedman and others who defended the business enterprise as being responsible only for making as much profit as possible, in contrast scholars including David and others argued that corporations had power and power entails responsibility, therefore corporations had responsibilities beyond economic and legal. Friedmans position was clearly against that of the concept of social responsibility. Theodor Levitt, (once the editor of HBR) wrote about the dangers of corporate social responsibility. In his words Corporate welfare makes good sense if it makes good economic sense, and not infrequently it does. But if something does not make economic sense, sentiment or idealism ought not to let it in the door Since then some economists have argued that the market, instead of managers, should have control over allocation of resources

Impact of Globalization on Mexican Culture and Identity Essay -- Mexic

The ethnic- Mexican experience has changed over the years as American has progressed through certain period of times, e.g., the modernity and transformation of the southwest in the late 19th and early 20th century, the labor demands and shifting of U.S. immigration policy in the 20th century, and the Chicano Civil Rights Movement. Through these events Mexican Americans have established and shaped their culture, in order, to negotiate these precarious social and historical circumstances. Throughout the ethnic Mexicans cultural history in the United States, conflict and contradiction has played a key role in shaping their modalities of life. Beginning in the late 20th century and early 21st century ethnic Mexicans have come under distress from the force of globalization. Globalization has followed the trends of conflict and contradiction forcing ethnic Mexicans to adjust their culture and combat this force. While Mexican Americans are in the struggle against globalization and the impac t it has had on their lives, e.g., unemployment more common, wages below the poverty line, globalization has had a larger impact on their motherland having devastating affects unlike anything in history. Globalization has taken over the role of shaping the ethnic-Mexican culture. Globalization is the force that is establishing the divides of conflict and contradiction. Of course to pursue further this understanding of globalization’s effects we must first understand what exactly globalization is. According to Merriam-Webster, globalization is the act or process of globalizing, the state of being globalized, especially, the development of an increasingly integrated global economy marked especially by free trade, free flow of capital, and the tapping ... ...l unlike the Americans in the war. Globalization is affecting the whole globe and doing the same things throughout the world, as it tries to create uniform culture. Ultimately, Globalization is a powerful force which will try to deprive lesser nations of their culture and identities. However, culture is a powerful force which allows for the contradictions and conflict faced between the globalizing world to be solved and answered. With culture ethnic-Mexicans are able to remain who they are, a rich, diverse culture with a long history. The one positive of globalization has been the ability of cultures to share their greatness with others and spread about the world. However, this comes with caution, as cultures sometimes battle for dominance in an area. Globalization is good for some, terrible for others, but through culture people are able to maintain their identi

Driving In India :: essays research papers

Driving in India Traveling in India is an almost hallucinatory mixture of sound and sight. It is frequently heart-rending, sometimes hilarious, mostly exhilarating, always unforgettable - and, when you are on the roads, extremely dangerous. Most Indian road users observe a version of the Highway Code based on some ancient text or on the position of the moon. In general the 12 rules of the Indian road code are: ARTICLE I The assumption of immortality is required of all road users. ARTICLE II The following Order of Precedence must be accorded at all times. In descending order give way to: cows, elephants, heavy trucks, buses, official cars, camels, light trucks, buffalo, jeeps, ox-carts, private cars, motorcycles, scooters, auto-rickshaws, pigs, pedal rickshaws, goats, bicycles carrying goods, handcarts, bicycles carrying passenger(s), dogs, pedestrians. ARTICLE III All wheeled vehicles shall be driven in accordance with the maxim: to slow is to falter, to brake is to fail, to stop is defeat. This is the Indian drivers' mantra. ARTICLE IV Use of horn: Cars (IV, 1, a-c): Short blasts indicate supremacy, i.e. in clearing dogs, rickshaws and pedestrians from path. Long blasts denote supplication, i.e. to oncoming truck, "I am going too fast to stop, so unless you slow down we shall both die". In extreme cases this may be accompanied by flashing of headlights. Single casual blast means "I have seen someone out of India's 870 million people whom I recognize", "There is a bird in the road (which at this speed could go through my windscreen)", or "I have not blown my horn for several minutes." Trucks and buses (IV, 2, a): All horn signals have the same meaning, "I have a gross weight of 12.5 tons and have no intention of stopping, even if I could." This signal may be emphasized by the use of headlights. Article IV remains subject to the provision of Order of Precedence in Article II above. ARTICLE V All manoeuvres, use of horn and evasive action shall be left until the last possible moment. ARTICLE VI In the absence of seat belts (which there is), car occupants shall wear garlands of marigolds. These should be kept fastened at all times. ARTICLE VII Rights of Way: Traffic entering a road from the left has priority. So has traffic from the right, and also traffic in the middle. Lane discipline (VII, 1): All Indian traffic at all times and irrespective of direction of travel shall occupy the centre of the road. ARTICLE VIII Roundabouts: India has no roundabouts. Apparent traffic islands in the middle of crossroads have no traffic management function. Any other impression should be ignored. ARTICLE IX Overtaking is mandatory. Every moving vehicle is required to overtake

Ozone Season Just Ahead :: essays research papers

With ozone season just around the corner, big cities everywhere are getting worried about low visibility and magnified allergies. The season begins Monday, May 1st and extends through September 30th. Jilayne Jordan, Spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Transportation says that, Elderly people, kids with asthma or allergies and people who exercise outdoors that when there’s a smog alert day, it’s extremely hard on the lungs. Mark Ressler, Senior Meteorologist at The Weather Channel, says weather can worsen the problem. The stagnant conditions of summer can make it worse. You get into the same pattern where the air mass isn’t changing. You build up air matter day to day. You get those steely-gray skies and visibility goes down,† he said. That means large cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, and Atlanta are prime targets. Atlanta, in particular, is facing a backlash not just from the environment but from the government as well. According to Jo rdan, the Federal government has frozen transportation funds because the southern city is not in compliance with current air quality standards, set by the Environmental Protection Agency. We didn’t address it when we first realized and now we’re paying the price,† said Jordan. The reason, big cities are so vulnerable to ozone season is a simple matter of numbers. Jordan says that It’s becoming a problem where there are a lot of people and a lot of cars. Industries are a problem to. With so many residents suffering from allergies, the conditions can be very uncomfortable. Strategies designed to improve the atmosphere by reducing emissions include carpooling, traveling at non-peak hours, combining trips, biking or walking, and topping off gas tanks after dark. One of the biggest contributors to poor air quality is the building of roads and the use of cars. So if an area cannot comply with the health-based air quality regulations, the government isn’t going to provide funds to continue to build roads that will just worsen the problem,† said Beth Osborne, Policy Analyst for the Southern Governors’ Association.

Night World : The Chosen Chapter 4

Quinn was cold. Not physically, of course. That was impossible. The icy March air had no effect on him; his body was impervious to little things like weather. No, this cold was inside him. He stood looking at the bay and the thriving city across it.Boston by starlight. It had taken him a long time to come back toBoston after†¦ the change. He'd lived there once, when he'd been human. But in those daysBoston was nothing but three hills, one beacon, and a handful of houses with thatched roofs. The place where he was standing now had been clean beach surrounded by salt meadows and dense forest. The year had been 1639. Bostonhad grown since then, but Quinn hadn't. He was still eighteen, still the young man who'd loved the sunny pastures and the clear blue water of the wilderness. Who had lived simply, feeling grateful when there was enough food for supper on his mother's table, and who had dreamed of someday having his own fishing schooner and marrying pretty Dove Redfern. That was how it had all started, with Dove. Pretty Dove and her soft brown hair†¦ sweet Dove, who had a secret a simple boy like Quinn could never have imagined. Well. Quinn felt his lip curl. That was all in the past. Dove had been dead for centuries, and if her screams still haunted him every night, no one knew but himself. Because he might not be any older than he had been in the days of the colonies, but he had learned a few tricks. Like how to wrap ice around his heart so that nothing in the world could hurt him. And how to put ice in his gaze, so that whoever looked into his black eyes saw only an endless glacial dark. He'd gotten very good at that. Some people actually went pale and backed away when he turned his eyes on them. The tricks had worked for years, allowing him not just to survive as a vampire, but to be brilliantly successful at it. He was Quinn, pitiless as a snake, whose blood ran like ice water, whose soft voice pronounced doom on anybody who got in his way. Quinn, the essence of darkness, who struck fear into the hearts of humans and Night People alike. And just at the moment, he was tired. Tired and cold. There was a kind of bleakness inside him, like a whiter that would never change into spring. He had no idea what to do about it-although it had occurred to him that if he were to jump into the bay and let those dark waters close over his head, and then stay down there for a few days without feeding†¦ well, all his problems would be solved, wouldn't they? But that was ridiculous. He was Quinn. Nothing could touch him. The bleak feeling would go away eventually. He pulled himself out of his reverie, turning away from the shimmering blackness of the bay. Maybe he should go to the warehouse in Mission Hill, check on its inhabitants. He needed something to do, to keep him from thinking. Quinn smiled, knowing it was a smile to frighten children. He set off forBoston . Rashel sat by the window, but not the way ordinary people sit. She was kneeling in a sort of crouch, weight resting on her left leg, right leg bent and pointing forward. It was a position that allowed for swift and unrestricted movement in any direction. Her bokken was beside her; she could spring and draw at a second's notice. The abandoned building was quiet. Steve and Vicky were outside, scouting the street. Nyala seemed lost in her own thoughts. Suddenly Nyala reached out and touched the bokken's sheath. â€Å"What's this?† â€Å"Hm? Oh, it's a kind of Japanese sword. They use wooden swords for fencing practice because steel would be too dangerous. But it can actually be lethal even to humans. It's weighted and balanced just like a steel sword.† She pulled the sword out of the sheath and turned the flashlight on it so Nyala could see the satiny green-black wood. Nyala drew in her breath and touched the graceful curve lightly. â€Å"It's beautiful.† â€Å"It's made of lignum vitae: the Wood of Life. That's the hardest and heaviest wood there is-it's as dense as iron. I had it carved specially, just for me.† â€Å"And you use it to kill vampires.† â€Å"Yes.† â€Å"And you've killed a lot.† â€Å"Yes.† Rashel slid the sword back into its sheath. â€Å"Good,† Nyala said with a throb in her voice. She turned to stare at the street. She had a small queenly head, with hair piled on the back like Nef-ertiti's crown. When she turned back to Rashel, her voice was quiet. â€Å"How did you get into all this in the first place? I mean, you seem to know so much. How did you learn it all?† Rashel laughed. â€Å"Bit by bit,† she said briefly. She didn't like to talk about it. â€Å"But I started like you. I saw one of them kill my mom when I was five. After that, I tried to learn everything I could about vampires, so I could fight them. And I told the story at every foster home I lived in, and finally I found some people who believed me. They were vampire hunters. They taught me a lot.† Nyala looked ashamed and disgusted. â€Å"I'm so stupid-I haven't done anything like that. I wouldn't even have known about the Lancers if Elliot hadn't called me. He saw the article in the paper about my sister and guessed it might have been a vampire killing. But I'd never have found them on my own.† â€Å"You just didn't have enough time.† â€Å"No. I think it takes a special kind of person. But now that I know how to fight them, I'm going to do it.† Her voice was tight and shaky, and Rashel glanced at her quickly. There was something unstable just under the surface of this girl. â€Å"Nobody knows which of them killed my sister, so I just figure I'll get as many of them as I can. I want to-â€Å" â€Å"Quiet!† Rashel hissed the word and put a hand over Nyala's mouth at the same instant. Nyala froze. Rashel sat tensely, listening, then got up like a spring uncoiling and put her head out the window. She listened for another moment, then caught up her scarf and veiled her face with practiced movements. â€Å"Grab your ski mask and come on.† â€Å"What is it?† â€Å"You're going to get your wish-right now. There's a fight down there. Stay behind me†¦ and don't forget your mask.† Nyala didn't need to ask about that, she noticed. It was the first thing any vampire hunter learned. If you were recognized and the vampire got away†¦ well, it was all over. The Night People would search until they found you, then strike when you least expected it. With Nyala behind her, Rashel ran lightly down the stairs and around to the street. The sounds were coming from a pool of darkness beside one of the warehouses, far from the nearest streetlight. As Rashel reached the place, she could make out the forms of Steve and Vicky, their faces masked, their clubs in their hands. They were struggling with another form. Oh, for God's sake, Rashel thought, stopping dead. One other form. The two of them, armed with wood and lying in ambush, couldn't handle one little vampire by themselves? From the racket, she'd thought they must have been surprised by a whole army. But this vampire seemed to be putting up quite a fight-in fact, he was clearly winning. Throwing his attackers around with supernatural strength, just as if they were ordinary humans and not fearless vampire slayers. He seemed to be enjoying it. â€Å"We've got to help them!† Nyala hissed in Rashers ear. â€Å"Yeah,† Rashel said joylessly. She sighed. â€Å"Wait here; I'm going to bonk him on the head.† It wasn't quite that easy. Rashel got behind the vampire without trouble; he was preoccupied with the other two and arrogant enough to be careless. But then she had a problem. Her bokken, the honorable sword of a warrior, had one purpose: to deliver a clean blow capable of killing instantly. She couldn't bring herself to whack somebody unconscious with it. It wasn't that she didn't have other weapons. She had plenty-back at home in Marblehead. All the tools of a ninja, and some the ninja had never heard of. And she knew some extremely dirty methods of fighting. She could break bones and crush tendons; she could peel an enemy's trachea out of his neck with her bare hands or drive his ribs into his lungs with her feet. But those were desperate measures, to be used as a last resort when her own life was at stake and the opposition was overwhelming. She simply couldn't do that to a single enemy when she had the jump on him. Just then the single enemy threw Steve into a wall, where he landed with a muffled â€Å"oof.† Rashel felt sorry for him, but it solved her dilemma. She grabbed the oak club Steve had been holding as it rolled across the concrete. Then she circled nimbly as the vampire turned, trying to face her. At that instant Nyala threw herself into the fight, creating a distraction, and Rashel did what she'd said she would. She bonked the vampire on the head, driving the club like a home runner's swing with the force of her hips. The vampire cried out and fell down motionless. Rashel raised the club again, watching him. Then she lowered it, looking at Steve and Vicky. â€Å"You guys okay?† Vicky nodded stiffly. She was trying to get her breath. â€Å"He surprised us,† she said. Rashel didn't answer. She was very unhappy, and her feeling of being in top form tonight had completely evaporated. This had been the most undignified fight she'd seen in a long while, and†¦ †¦ and it bothered her, the way the vampire had cried out as he fell. She couldn't explain why, but it had. Steve picked himself up. â€Å"He shouldn't have been able to surprise us,† he said. â€Å"That was our fault.† Rashel glanced at him. It was true. In this business, you were either ready all the time, expecting the unexpected at any moment, or you were dead. â€Å"He was just good,† Vicky said shortly. â€Å"Come on, let's get him out of here before somebody sees us. There's a cellar in the other building.† Rashel took hold of the vampire's feet while Steve grabbed his shoulders. He wasn't very big, about Rashel's height and compact. He looked young, about Rashel's age. Which meant nothing, she reminded herself. A parasite could be a thousand and still look young. They gained eternal life from other people's blood. She and Steve carried their burden down the stairs into a large dank room that smelled of damp rot and mildew. They dropped him on the cold concrete floor and Rashel straightened to ease her back. â€Å"Okay. Now let's see what he looks like,† Vicky said, and turned her flashlight on him. The vampire was pale, and his black hair looked even blacker against his white skin. His eyelashes were dark on his cheek. A little blood matted his hair in the back. â€Å"I don't think he's the same one Elliot and I saw last night. That one looked bigger,† Vicky said. Nyala pressed forward, staring at her very first captive vampire. â€Å"What difference does it make? He's one of them, right? Nobody human could have thrown Steve like that. He might even be the one who killed my sister. And he's ours now.† She smiled down, looking almost like someone in love. â€Å"You're ours,† she said to the unconscious boy on the floor. â€Å"Just you wait.† Steve rubbed his shoulder where it had hit the wall. All he said was â€Å"Yeah,† but his smile wasn't nice. â€Å"I only hope he doesn't die soon,† Vicky said, examining the pale face critically. â€Å"You hit him pretty hard.† â€Å"He's not going to die,† Rashel said. â€Å"In fact, he'll probably wake up in a few minutes. And we'd better hope he's not one of the really powerful telepaths.† Nyala looked up sharply. â€Å"What?† â€Å"Oh-all vampires are telepathic,† Rashel said absently. â€Å"But there's a big range as to how powerful they are. Most of them can only communicate over a short distance-like within the same house, say. But a few are a lot stronger.† â€Å"Even if he is strong, it won't matter unless there are other vampires around,† Vicky said. â€Å"Which there may be, if you and Elliot saw another one last night.† â€Å"Well†¦Ã¢â‚¬  Vicky hesitated, then said, â€Å"We can check outside, make sure he doesn't have any friends hiding around that warehouse.† Steve was nodding, and Nyala was listening intently. Rashel started to say that from what she'd seen, they couldn't find a vampire in hiding to save their lives-but then she changed her mind. â€Å"Good idea,† she said. â€Å"You take Nyala and do that. It's better to have three people than two. I'll tie him up before he comes around. I've got bast cord.† Vicky glanced over quickly, but her hostility seemed to have faded since Rashel had knocked the vampire over the head. â€Å"Okay, but let's use the handcuffs. Nyala, run up and get them.† Nyala did, and she and Vicky fixed the wooden stocks on the vampire's wrists. Then they left with Steve. Rashel sat on the floor. She didn't know what she was doing, or why she'd sent Nyala away. All she knew was that she wanted to be alone, and that she felt†¦ rotten. It wasn't that she didn't have anger. There were times when she got so angry at the universe that it was actually like a little voice inside her whispering, Kill, kill, kill. Times when she wanted to strike out blindly, without caring who she hurt. But just now the little voice was silent, and Rashel felt sick. To keep herself busy, she tied his feet with bast, a cord made from the inner bark of trees. It was as good for holding a vampire as Vicky's ridiculous handcuffs. When it was done, she turned the flashlight on him again. He was good-looking. Clean features that were strongly chiseled but almost delicate. A mouth that at the moment looked rather innocent, but which might be sensuous if he were awake. A body that was lithe and flat-muscled, if not very tall. All of which had no effect on Rashel. She'd seen attractive vampires before-in fact, an inordinate number of them seemed to be really beautiful. It didn't mean anything. It only stood as a contrast to what they were like inside. The tall man who'd killed her mother had been handsome. She could still see his face, his golden eyes. Filthy parasites. Night World scum. They weren't really people. They were monsters. But they could still feel pain, just like any human. She'd hurt this one when she hit him. Rashel jumped up and started to pace the cellar. All right. This vampire deserved to die. They all did. But that didn't mean she had to wait for Vicky to come back and poke him with pointy sticks. Rashel knew now why she'd sent Nyala away. So she could give the vampire a clean death. Maybe he didn't deserve it, but she couldn't stand around and watch Vicky kill him slowly. She couldn't. She stopped pacing and went to the unconscious boy. The flashlight on the floor was still pointing at him, so she could see him clearly. He was wearing a lightweight black shirt-no sweater or coat. Vampires didn't need protection from the cold. Rashel unbuttoned the shirt, exposing his chest. Although the angled tip of her bokken could pierce clothing, it was easier to drive it straight into vampire flesh without any barrier in between. Standing with one foot on either side of the vampire's waist, she drew the heavy wooden sword. She held it with both hands, one near the guard, the other near the knob on the end of the hilt. She positioned the end exactly over the vampire's heart. â€Å"This kitten has claws,† she whispered, hardly aware she was saying it. Then she took a deep breath, eyes shut. She needed to work to focus, because she'd never done anything like this before. The vampires she'd killed had usually been caught in the middle of some despicable act-and they'd all been fighting at the end. She'd never staked one that was lying still. Concentrate, she thought. You need zanshin, continuing mind, awareness of everything without fixing on anything. She felt her feet becoming part of the cold concrete beneath them, her muscles and bones becoming extensions of the ground. The strike would carry the energy of the earth itself. Her hands brought the sword up. She was ready for the kill. She opened her eyes to perfect her aim. And then she saw that the vampire was awake. His eyes were open and he was looking at her.