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Cloud computing refers to a model that enables on-demand network access to a shared pool of computing resources that can be released with minimal interaction with the service provider. Some of the characteristics of cloud computing is that it is service based and there is a broad network access. Within cloud computing, mobile applications have become pervasive and are also key differentiators of competitiveness. From the CIO barometer survey, 50 million devices will have access to the internet by 2020. For caravan exchange, this is relevant as there is a need to create a mobile application from which consumers can access the needed services.
What digital really means
Digital refers to the creation of value at new frontiers, the creation of value in core business, and building foundational capabilities. The three disruptors within the digital space include consumerization of IT, internet of things, and mobile and cloud computing. For caravan exchange, there is a need to capitalize on these aspects to yield competitive advantage. The digital space also implies realigning markets where there is a reduction in transaction costs, and a connection of the supply with demand. By having the business on a digital platform, there will be a capitalization on these aspects.
Exposing New Supply
A business is likely to be vulnerable when customers partially use the product, the production and price are inelastic, the step or fixed costs are high, and the utilization of supply is in an unpredictable or variable way. New supply can also be exposed where disruptors pool redundant capacity through the digitization of physical resources or labor. For caravan exchange, this implies this means that its business operations should be on an online platform.
New and Enhanced Value Propositions
In enhanced value propositions, a business can be vulnerable when information on social media is likely to enrich the product or service. The business is also vulnerable when the customer is the one that goes to get the product. The opportunities that lie are such as the layering of social media on top of services and products, creating new distribution and delivery models, and improving connectivity of physical devices. A business such as caravan exchange involves customers going to get the product. This means that the business should create a system that enables delivery of the product to the customer. Caravan exchange should have facilitations that enable delivering the caravans to the customers who request them.
Reimagined Business Systems
In reimagined business systems, the disruptors are such as redundant value chain activities, repetitive manual labor, and industry margins that are higher than those from other industries. The risks are such that high margins are opportunities for new entrants while redundant value chain activities mean the removal of intermediaries. Caravan exchange business has to ensure that it capitalizes on the opportunities in the digital platforms such as the high margins that are opportunities for new entrants.
Lecture 2
The PWC report
The report highlights the fact that 5.1 million or 44 per cent of Australian jobs are at risk of digital disruption in the next 20 years. 75 percent of the fastest growing jobs require STEM skills where changing only 1 percent of the workforce to fit in the STEM roles is likely to add 57.4 billion dollars to the GDP. While most jobs are transforming into STEM roles, some are not at risk of digital disruption and the top three include teachers, doctors, and nurses. The top three occupations at risk from digital disruption include cashiers, accountants, and administrative roles.
Business/Organizational Pressures
Different pressures are likely to affect a business after it falls within the digital disruption space. From the figure depicted below, the pressures emanate from all areas including the technological area where pressures are in the form of information overload and technological obsolescence and innovations. Some of the pressures within the business environment sector include strong competition and the global economy, powerful customers, and changing workforce. The pressures within the business environment are connected to the pressures in the economic sphere. Such pressures are likely to affect caravan exchange as it functions within a business and economic environment affected by different factors. Essentially this implies a need to anticipate and mitigate some of these pressures for the business to remain competitive.
Digital Future: Informatics
As regards informatics, company directors need to know that information technology has shifted from being a back-office facilitator to a front of the firm tool that is disruptive to the business models. Information technology has also created new forms of competitive advantage where information and communication have become the center piece of modern enterprises. Such has created a business environment where failure to capitalize on the digital transformation is likely to push the business into irrelevance. For caravan exchange, this is relevant on the basis that its business has to be within the digital platform if it is to remain competitive and relevant.
Strategic Management
As regards strategic management, it is essentially about giving direction to the enterprise. The contribution that IT makes in strategic management depends largely on the management’s literacy of IT. Studies have shown that companies with high IT literacy have the capability to perform better than others that do not. Management’s IT literacy is visible from aspects such as customers being connected and demanding, employees are connected, there are capabilities for big data and analytics, and the systems are focused outwards. From such aspects, this means that caravan exchange’s management has to have IT literacy that enables it to have functional systems that are effective in delivering value to the consumers. Such will imply that customers as well as employees are connected and that the system focuses outwards not just on the company.
Porter’s Model
Business investment in IT in the recent years has enabled them to survive in their industries. Therefore, the high demand for IT services as well as products is a positive measure that sustain firms as well as reduce threat of new entrants. Moreover, IT firms has ensured sustained supplies of innovative technology that help in solving major problem in communities.
Lecture 10
Big Data and What is Collecting the Data
Lecture 10 was an introduction to Big Data which is defined as any data whose management is expensive and there is also difficulty in extracting value from it (Kutchuni.edu, 2017). From all data that is currently in existence, 90 percent of the data was created in the last 2 years. The challenges that exist for big data include volume as big data requires large space for storage of the data, velocity, variety, and veracity. The big data is being collected by almost any technological device that people use such as phones, tablets, and computers. The data is also being collected by play stations, GPS systems, ISP, movie rental sites, banking systems, hospital systems, and almost any other entity that interacts with consumers. With all these systems being used for data collection, the relevance to caravan exchange is that it needs to have the capabilities that will be effective in the collection of data for use in improving customer experiences.
Why is the Data Being Collected?
The reason for the collection of the data is to know what the customer needs before he even knows he needs it. Big data matters to every business that interacts with customers and having the needed information can help improve customer service and the customer experience. It is important for target marketing that enables the ability to send catalogs to the customer for the merchandise that he or she typically purchases. Further, it also enables sending advertisements on TV channels in line with the customer’s needs. Caravan exchange needs to be involved in collection and use of big data to ensure that it delivers services and products aligned to the customers’ needs. As an example, the business can have the ability to identify what type of caravan the customer need and for how long he or she will need the caravan.
To Whom Does It Matter?
Big data matters to every enterprise that interacts with the customer, including insurance companies and government agencies that need to collect data on fraud. Customer experience is one of the areas that is largely affected by big data since gaining a perspective on the customer can help in improving the customer experience. With the right information, businesses have the ability to improve customer interactions. Big data also matters in healthcare where the information can be used to extract clinically relevant information that reduces costs and improves patient care. Big data is also relevant for caravan exchange that can use it to gain a perspective on the consumer needs as regards caravan needs as well as the best approach to ensure effective customer service that drives a positive customer experience. Such will help in ensuring competitiveness and business relevance.
References
Kutchuni.edu. (2016). Bid data issue and challenge. Retrieved from http://cs.kutchuni.edu.in/blog/?p=70
Snepenger, J. (2007). Marketing research for entrepreneurs and small business managers. Retrieved from http://msucommunitydevelopment.org/pubs/mt9013.pdf
Uhl, A., and Gollenia, A. (2016). Digital enterprise transformation. London: Routledge.
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A practice change intervention is a deliberate and systematic effort to implement a new or improved clinical practice within a healthcare setting. It involves identifying areas for improvement, designing a strategy for change, implementing the strategy, and evaluating its effectiveness. A successful practice change intervention requires careful planning, execution, and monitoring.
There are several steps involved in a practice change intervention:
Identify the need for change: This step involves identifying the areas of practice that require improvement, such as patient safety, quality of care, or efficiency. This can be done through various methods, such as surveys, audits, or benchmarking.
Define the problem: Once the need for change has been identified, the problem needs to be clearly defined. This involves specifying the gap between the current practice and the desired practice, identifying the root cause of the problem, and developing a clear and concise problem statement.
Develop a strategy for change: This step involves developing a plan for implementing the new or improved practice. The plan should include clear objectives, a timeline, and a required resource description.
Implement the strategy: This step involves executing the change plan, which may include training staff, changing policies and procedures, or introducing new technology.
Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the change: This step involves monitoring the implementation of the change and evaluating its effectiveness. This may involve collecting data on patient outcomes, staff satisfaction, or other relevant metrics. The evaluation results should be used to refine the intervention and make further improvements.
Effective practice change interventions require strong leadership, effective communication, and a culture of continuous improvement. It is important to involve all stakeholders, including patients, healthcare providers, and administrators, in the change process to ensure buy-in and support for the new practice. By following a structured approach, healthcare organizations can successfully implement practice change interventions and improve patient outcomes, quality of care, and efficiency.
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Monitoring and evaluation is a tool that is used to assess performance and achieve the set goals of a particular project. The assessment focuses on the present and future management of the outcomes of any project. Monitoring and evaluation, therefore, helps to a great extent to clearly demonstrate the status of a project and thus aid in maintaining the focus of such a project by informing on the general progress of the project. Monitoring and evaluation tools are important for they help improve project rollout as well as ensure better utilization of available fund.
Evaluation for the Campaign for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods is a report which was published by Oxfam, a non-profit firm which operates across several countries of the world (Oxfam, 2013). This report is quite appealing since it has shown the evaluation of its program on rural sustainable livelihoods where it is documented that it has influenced the climate change policy. Climate change is one of the leading factors which have influenced livelihoods in as far as food security and sustainability is concerned (Oxfam, 2013). This report is appealing since it touches on a very crucial topic which is the world’s concern. It, therefore, shows that the program that was rolled out clearly helps to sustain the impacts created by climate change.
Adam Smith International Policy, Planning and Monitoring & Evaluation report are quite appealing and informative. The report seeks to report on policy planning in the education sector (Adam Smith International, 2019). The report notes that the education sector does not put into consideration the monitoring and evaluation as this is the only way to ensure that the policy and programs which are being implemented are up to standard and are sustainable for a longer span of time. The monitoring and evaluation strategies which are proposed by this report include the inclusion of a rigorous monitoring framework, management information systems, building capacity among other monitoring strategies which are aimed at improving monitoring and evaluation of education policies and programs. This is intended to ensure that there is sustainability in the sector that will see the allocation of limited resources and realize the results and intended outcomes.
Besides the education sector policy monitoring and evaluation, the Australian Government Department of Foreign Affairs on 31st May 2016 reported on the review of Disability rights in Cambodia (Australian Government, 2016). The review is a joint UN program which brings UNDP, UNICEF and WHO together. The report is therefore appealing since it focuses on the assessment of the program that seeks to create more opportunities for the people with disability. The findings, therefore, are the outcome of the status of the program and thus help in refocusing of the remainder tenure. In its entirety, the initiative is aimed at ensuring that people living with disability are given equal access to opportunities and thus this bring fairness as they are outcompeted and neglected in other sectors where opportunities are very competitive.
Finally, the report on monitoring and evaluation on Global HIV/AIDS by CDC as published in its website in 2012 is impressive and informative since it gives the update on the commitment of the United States in combating HIV/AIDS (CDC, 2012). This is because the report documents the activities in which CDC and the United States at large have undertaken including the provision of technical assistance on planning and reporting, processing outcomes and implementation of planning and reporting systems.
Conclusively these reports are focused on the Monitoring and Evaluation as a tool and how it has been used as a tool to aid in the management of the projects, programs, and their outcomes. Depending on how the M& E has been used in various aspects, it is clear that M&E is very crucial and very useful in the management of any project as it provides reports on the status of such a project and thus helps in an amendment or refocusing to ensure that the goals are attained.
References
Adam Smith International. Policy, Planning and Monitoring & Evaluation. Retrieved from https://www.adamsmithinternational.com/our-services/education-development/policy-planning-and-monitoring-Evaluation
Australian Government. (2016). Disability Rights Initiative Cambodia: Mid-Term Review Report and Management Response. Retrieved from https://dfat.gov.au/about-us/publications/Pages/cambodia-disability-rights-initiative-mtr-2016.aspx
CDC. (2012). Global HIV/AIDS: Monitoring and Evaluation. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/globalaids/what-cdc-is-doing/monitoring-and-evaluation.html
Oxfam (2013). Evaluation for the Campaign for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods. Retrieved from https://resources.oxfam.org.au/pages/view.php?ref=1417&search=%21collection128&order_by=relevance&sort=DESC&offset=0&archive=0&k=&curpos=5
Education for Ethnic Minority Children in Cambodia. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.care.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Impact-Brief_Education-for-Ethnic-Minority-Children-in-Cambodia.pdf
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Forests do not only provide essential ecological services to humans, animals and plants but they also play a critical role in the economy of the world. The European forestry sector is one of the areas that contribute significantly to economic growth by forming 9% of the European manufacturing sector GDP.[1] Continuous demand for a reliable source and supply of raw materials by forest-based industries in Europe and use of wood for energy purposes comes with significant environmental, financial and institutional cost. Additionally, the need to converse biodiversity, mitigate climate change and sustain forests as important sources of water, medicines, ambient environment for leisure and recreation and space for carbon sink call for effective polices to balance maintenance of forests and use of forest resources for economic production.
This study aim aims to draw a comparison between the predictions provided in the European Forest Sector Outlook Study II (EFSOS II) with actual development of different indicators that define actual outlook of the sector in each of the states. This study will look into various scenarios presented in the EFSOS II and determine whether the predictions in the EFSOS II study are still valid for about a decade now since the report was published in 2011. The EFSOS II 2011 focused on the need to strike a balance between demand for wood and sustainable use of forest resources to mitigate climate change, promote diversity, sustainability and right levels renewable energy sources.[2] This current study will establish whether the projections indicated in the EFSOS II report have been meet and whether the same challenges identified in the report are impeding achievement of sustainability in actual states.
The European Forest Sector Outlook Study II (EFSOS II) 2011 is a report by the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (FOREST EUROPE), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) that maps out developments in the European Forestry sector by studying past trends in an attempt to promote evidence-based policy formulation and decision making for policy makers. The aim of the European Forest Sector Outlook Study II (EFSOS II) 2011 is to provide policy makers with insights intended to help them understand the likely consequences of certain policy choices in matters related to forest sustainability.[3] The study proposes choices based on their sustainability and encourages policy makers to reflect on the sustainability analysis when taking their future policy actions. The study focused on factors relating to forest resources such as area, increment, harvest and silviculture in relation to consumption of forest products between 2010 and 2030. The study established that policy makers in their attempt to implement policies that would support sustainable forest use are faced with a wide range of challenges including the challenge to mitigate climate change, reaching targets for renewable energy, adapting to climate changing, protecting biodiversity, achieving sustainability and appropriate policies for supporting sustainable forest use.[4]
Unlike other studies that evaluated forest resource projections using the traditional wood resource modeling tools, the EFSOS II uses modeling tools that provide indicators on sequestration, biodiversity and recreational value of forests. The models used indicated that consumption of forest products and wood energy is increasing rapidly and the supply of this resource will have to expand for it to meet the expanding demand. Additionally, the report indicated that for the European forestry sector to contribute towards climate change, policy makers should focus on forest management policies that emphasizes on carbon accumulation in the forest coupled with steady flow of wood for products and energy use.[5] Regular harvesting is perceived as the only potential for limiting carbon accumulation by storing the carbon in the harvested wood and prevents carbon emissions from the non-renewable materials. Similarly, the study established that for renewable energy to reach to reach the targeted levels, wood supply will need to increase by 50% in the next 20 years. Additionally, efficiency in wood use through installation of necessary fitters in the burning system to prevent emission is critical in reducing demand for wood.
The report identifies the need to maximize forest sector contribution towards climate change by implementing policies that promote optimum combination of carbon sequestration and storage with substitution to monitor trends and implement necessary adjustments. The report also identifies the need to strike a balance between wood energy and wood supply by using scientific knowledge to determine the right levels of forest extraction and sustainable forest use.[6] Additionally, the report recommends short rotation coppice, wood mobilization and protection of biodiversity by implementing strategies that combine promotion of diversity, wood supply and carbon sequestration.
In previous study, EFSOS II used scenarios comparing GDP growth rates, prices of main forestry products, production levels and net trade with actual development for the period 2000-2005. The report concluded that the scenarios in the European forestry sector were in line with the actual trends in prices, production and consumption hence making the report critical for use by the policy makers. Similarly, EFSOS II used reference scenario and four policy scenarios (maximizing biomass carbon, priority to diversity, promoting wood energy and fostering innovation and competitiveness) to explore forest resource and forest products in Europe in period between 2010 and 2030.[7] Several modeling tools were used to develop the scenarios and established that the European forest sector has become increasingly ecologically and socially sustainable.
Objective and Scope of the study
The main objective of this study is to analyze the actual developments in the European forestry sector between 2010 and 2019 and compare the results against the predictions provided in the EFSOS II report. Additionally, the study objective is to provide an up-to-date knowledge regarding the European forestry sector by focusing on demand and use of the forest resources against the need to mitigate climate change, produce sustainable renewable energy and protect biodiversity. The study scope is based on the variables developed in the EFSOS II report. While the EFSOS II scope was wide, this study opted for the variables that were most important to the scenarios present in the European forestry sector. The variables considered for comparison include
Consumption of forest resources
Growth of the forest resource based on (Area of forest, FAWS, FNAWS, growing stock, increment and fellings)
Maximizing biomass carbon.
Promoting biodiversity.
Fostering innovation and competiveness.
Sustainable renewable energy.
Methodology
This study adopted a social empirical method involving analysis of each of the European state as indicated by the EFSOS II 2011 grouping. The analysis of each country is intended to support the projections from of each of the country and compare the results based on the results from the EFSOS II report. Publically available data from each of the country was utilized and compared based on the variables indicated in the EFSOS II 2011 report. The data available was considered critical in enhancing the reliability of the results. Based on the EFSOS II report, countries were grouped into Eastern Europe, Western Europe and CIS sub-region and data available was summed by each region.[8]
Results
Structure of the EFSOS II report
The EFSOS II report is structured into five main sections. The first section provides an overview of the European forestry sector in the period around 2010. The first section identifies the main six policy issues that affect the policy makers in their attempt to make policies that support sustainable use of forest resources in Europe. The policy issues identified include mitigating climate change, right levels of renewable energy, adapting to the challenge of climate change, protecting biodiversity, achieving sustainability, developing competitive forest products and developing appropriate policies. The second section provides a reference scenario and the policy scenario and the assumptions on which the policy issues are based. The third section analysis each of the scenarios developed and assess the sustainability of each of the scenarios by providing estimation of sustainability based on particular projections. The fourth section provides an analysis of the main policy issues based on the scenarios results while the fifth section provides a conclusion and policy recommendations.[9]
Notably, EFSOS II is based on construction and interpretation of scenarios. The scenarios demonstrate what is known about the present and the past and offers insights on the series of possible futures. Therefore, it becomes possible to establish the consequences of certain define choices in the forestry sector. Relationships are drawn between external drivers of different situations in the as economic growth, population, climate and how they influence consumption of forest products and removal of products from forest. The section of a scenario is informed by its robustness and realism in relation to the trends and outlook of results from specific policy choices. The scenarios are developed based on a wide range of approaches and models. The strengths and weaknesses of each of the models are considered.
Methodological Approach
As aforementioned, the scenario analysis in EFSOS II are developed using a range of models that cover certain aspects in the forestry sector. The criteria for selection of the models revolve around robustness; transparency; ability to provide analysis at the country level within Europe; being based on validated data sets; and, the ability to address the stated policy challenges. Below is analysis of the models used to develop the scenario policy issues that were used in the EFSOS II study?
Econometric Projections of Production and Consumption of Forest Products
Projections based on econometric analysis are based on the relationships between economic development and activity in the forest sector. The results from the relationship between the two aspects help to provide a projection of future activity by painting a picture of how economic development and growth would impact use of forest resources and sustainability of the forest use.[10] This method was also applied in the previous EFSOS.[11] Through this method, projections relating to consumption, production and trade of forest products are developed. Products analyzed are sawn wood, wood-based panels, paper and paperboard. However, it is difficult to project wood energy using the econometric analysis since historical time series available were short. Projections based on econometric analysis are only valid in the event that the relationships observed will historically remain the same in the future. It also requires an exogenous assumption about developments for prices and costs.
Wood Resource Balance
The other model that was used in the EFSOS II study was Wood Resource Balance (WRB) that involves measuring the supply and use of all woody biomass streams for a given spatial unit (country or region).[12] On the left-hand side of the balance are sources of woody biomass; of both primary and secondary origin while on the right-hand side are the uses of woody biomass. Four main components including supply of wood from forestry sources, supply of other woody biomass, uses of wooden materials for products and use as a source of energy are used in WRB. Through the different WRB components, it is possible to establish real woody biomass balance for a given year or the discrepancies between potential future supply and expected future demand. However, WRB estimates are derived from outside the balance and it is therefore, difficult to establish discrepancy between potential supply and expected demand can be solved.
European Forest Information Scenario model
The European Forest Information Scenario model (EFISCEN) is based on large scale assessment of the forest resource. The EFISCEN model projects the future state of the forest based on the aspects of wood demand and management regime of wood resource. Aggregated forest inventory data from forestry agencies is used in the model.[13] Age-dependent increment functions are also derived from the same data. The model also uses the aspect of soil model YASSO to estimate soil carbon stocks and rate of carbon sequestration. Important variables such as distribution; felling, age class distribution; growing stock level; and, carbon sequestered in biomass and soil.
The Global Forest Sector Model
The Global Forest Sector Model (EFI-GTM) on the other hand focuses on forest products and makes projections of global consumption, production and trade of forest products, in response to assumed changes in external factors such as: economic growth; energy prices; trade regulations; transport costs; exchange rates; availability of forest resources; and, consumer preferences.
Competitiveness Analysis
The CMS model provides an overview of competitiveness in international markets, by comparing the exports of a specific country to the world exports. CMS is based on the assumption that a country’s export to the global market remains constant for a certain period of time. Changes in a country’s export growth are attributed to the level of competiveness. EFSOS II competitive analysis was based on four aspects that differentiate export growth including the world growth effect, the commodity-composition effect, the market-distribution effect and a residual effect. The CMS analysis requires bilateral trade data in monetary values and was gotten from the UN Commodity Trade Statistics Database.
The EFSOS II took advantage of the strengths of the various models to prevent the research from being undermined by their weaknesses. However, the core methodological approach used in the study is the wood balance model (WRB). However, the components of the WRB were projected separately without considering the possible interactions between them. The models were used to complement the WRB model for various aspects that were needed to give clear projections of the European forestry sector. For instance, the econometric analysis was used derive demand for material as driven by the scenario assumptions on future GDP development. Similarly, EFISCEN model was used to derive projections on potential wood supply from the forest based on the availability of the forest resource and the management regimes that are applied across Europe. The demand for forest resource for energy use was calculated by taking based on the existing trends and policies that set targets for renewable energy. The EFI-GTM model was used to establish how the resources are preferentially used and how the market can solve the discrepancy between the demand and supply. EFISCEN was also used to determine the real demand and harvest of residues and their consequences on forest resource. The competitiveness analysis was used to determine the trends in the competitiveness scenarios.
When using the EFI-GTM model, the EFSOS projected that the consumption for wood products would increase from 739 million m3 roundwood equivalent in 2010 to 853 million m3 in 2030.[14] Similarly, wood energy consumption in the same period will grow by more than 1.5% per year leading to an increase from 434 million m3 demanded in 2010 to 585 million m3 in 2030.
The report also indicates that the development of forest resource stood at 204.9 million in 2010 whereby, 166.7 million ha are utilized for wood supply[15]. The report projected that the total area under forest in EFSOS region will be 216.9 million ha by 2030 whereby, 171.1 million ha will be meant for wood supply.[16] That indicated that forest resource in Europe would increase a rate of 0.6 million ha per year. Similarly, forest not for wood supply is also projected to grow faster than forest for wood supply due to efforts made towards biodiversity conservation. Additionally, efforts to mitigate climate change would lead to 11% increase in forest cover by 2030.
When using EFISCEN model to establish how the demand for wood products and energy can be fulfilled, the EFSOS II report indicated that removals increase by 15% in 2030 would required as compared to 2010. The report project that 750 million m3 of stem wood would be required to removed annually to from the forests to ensure sustainable supply of wood. Therefore, this would require that countries in Europe implement harvest residue extraction, based on the current practice and guidelines of the most advanced countries. Demand for wood in 2030 is projected to be 20% higher than the situation in 2010. Each year the demand is projected to grow by 1.5%.[17] However, there will be a balance between supply and demand at less than 1% by 2030 which indicates that there would be no wood wastage. That means that sustainability levels in Europe are moving towards the right direction.
The EFSOS II report also indicates that for energy efficiency and renewable energy levels to be achieved, wood supply would have to increase by nearly 50% by 2030. However, mobilization of high volumes of wood would be needed thus creating a significant environmental, financial and institutional cost. Therefore, strong political goodwill is needed to modify framework for wood supply. Such high extraction of wood from forests would impact negatively soil carbon and water holding capacity and biodiversity in the forests. Additionally, forests would be less attractive for leisure and recreational activities. For wood supply to meet demand for wood for products and energy use, the supply of wood should be at 1.4 billion m3 in 2030 to meet similar demand. Assuming medium productivity, 5 million ha of forest would be needed every year to produce extra 100 million m3 of wood needed to strike a balance between demand for wood for energy use and supply of wood in effort to establish sustainable renewable energy.[18] The report also indicates that the shortfall of wood supply can be counter-balanced by establishing intensive cultivation of trees/grass to produce 4-12 tonnes of dry matter/ha/yr. Moreover, 16million ha new forests would be needed to replace 270 million m3 of harvest residues/stumps in a bid to achieve sustainable supply of wood for energy use.[19] That means that a six fold increase would be needed in wood supply as well as in non-forest wood sources to reach the reasonable energy potential. About 40% of renewable energy is projected by 2030. However, for the targets to be achieved two conditions have to be met. Efficiency in use of wood and increase in sources of renewable energy other than wood would be required to ensure wood energy sustainability.
The EFSOS II report also indicates that promoting biodiversity is a challenge for the European forestry sector. According to the report, if biodiversity was to be given a priority, wood supply from the European forests would have to reduce by 12% thus necessitating a reduction in consumption of wood products and energy use. The EFSOS report also projects that the average carbon sink in the forests in the period between 2010-2030 will be 0.67 tonnes C/ha/yr which indicates a 64% increase than the situation in2010. Additionally, the report indicates that lengthening rotations and increasing the share of thinning in harvest would promote an average biomass carbon per has of 5 tonnes/ha (6.7%) the situation in 2010.
Discussion
The comparison between the projected developments in EFSOS II report and the actual developments indicate significant similarities and differences in equal measures. To begin, the EFSOS report projected that the demand for wood products would increase from 739 million m3 round wood equivalent in 2010 to 853 million m3 in 2030.[20] Analysis of data from the Committee on Forests and Timber (2015) indicates that the level demand when compared to the EFSOS II estimates of demand indicates that the demand for rate for forest products is higher.[21] Data from the Forestry Commission indicates that demand for wood products will increase from around 800 Mm3 in 2010 to 1100 Mm3 in 2020 and 1370 Mm3 in 2030. Similarly, O’Brien and Bringezu contends that demand for wood products will grows by about 37% between 2010 and 2020 and by 71% between 2020 and 2030.[22] The difference between the two would be due to EFSOS scenarios being modified based on the country data while O’Brien and Bringezu depicts all the countries comprehensively. On the other hand, data from the EFSOS indicated that would consumption for energy use would increase from 434 million m3 demanded in 2010 to 585 million m3 in 2030.[23] Current data indicates that a 1% increase in demand for wood for energy use is recorded every year in Europe.[24]
Similarly, EFSOS II report had indicated that 50% increase in supply of wood would be needed to meet the demand for energy use by 2030. Warman indicates that between 2010 and 2014 demand for wood for energy use triggered an 11-16% increase in harvest of wood from forests. The EFSOS estimated that residual removal of 750 million m3 of stemwood would be required to create a 15% increase in the supply capacity of wood for product and energy use in Europe. However, current data indicate that the supply capacity can only increase by 10% in the same. Stricter environmental regulations are challenging removal of residue as removal is perceived to cause major nutrient losses.[25] Failure to remove have residues removed is likely to hamper efforts to have the level of wood needed to meet renewable energy targets in the EU. EFSOS proposed the need to promote energy efficiency, cascading use and integration of other sources of renewable sources of energy other than wood to achieve sustainable renewable energy. Subsequently, according to data from Forest Europe, there have been significant efforts to improve efficiency in wood use and to adopt renewable sources of energy such as solar energy. However, the EU wood consumption exceeds the global consumption levels in by a factor of 1.8 to 2.6 under comparable economic developments.[26] Therefore, it is possible that policies that would support a moderate demand and promote sustainable harvesting of wood for product and energy use have not been implemented. The risk of wood consumption surpassing the level of supply is higher than ever before in light of the need to protect diversity and mitigate climate change in Europe.
Figure 1. Data on wood removal
Source: Committee on Forests and Timber
Global production of wood products in 2016 totaled 467 million m3 of sawn wood, 415 million m3 of wood-based panels and 409 million tonnes of paper & paperboard.[27] Europe consumed around one quarter (24%) of all sawn wood, around two fifths (19%) of the world’s wood-based panels and around one quarter (23%) of all paper and paperboard in 2016.[28] In 2015, 578 million m3 of wood were removed from the European forest while another 595 was removed in 2016 for industrial round wood.[29] In the same period, wood fuel accounted for 157million removal of trees from the forest in 2015 and 2016 respectively.[30] In total, the amount of round wood removed from the European forests in 2015 and 2016 for industrial and energy use was 739 million m3 and 751 million m3 respectively.[31] According to the EFSOS II projections, the figure would increase from 739 million m3 in 2010 to around 800 million m3 in 2030. According to the 2015 and 2016 figures, the rate of increase is within the range projected by the EFSOS II report which indicates a about a 1% increase in consumption of wood for product and energy use in every year.
On the other hand, EFSOS II projected a 0.67 tonnes C/ha/yr carbon forest sink between 2010 and 2030. Current data indicates that the level of forest carbon stock increased from 4. 44 billion tones to 4.5billion tonnes which reflect a more than 1 % increase.[32] Increase in the total area under forest and increase in forest stock is attributed to the increased level of carbon stock. Considerable emphasis is put on carbon sequestration by forests and wood products and the adaptation of forests to climate change impacts. The vital role of forests in reducing GHG emissions and in mitigating and adapting to climate change has become critical in generation of policies that in the forestry sector.
Efforts to promote biodiversity have been established to affect the wood supply negatively as the need to protect certain species of trees affects the balance between supply and demand. According to EEA Report, the area of Europe’s forests designated for biodiversity and landscape protection has increased significantly over the years since 2010 by almost half a million ha from 9% to about 10%. About 87% of the forests in the European forests are classified as semi-natural while over 70% of the forests are regenerated naturally to promote diversity.[33] Most European forests are under a management plan or an equivalent (3.5), which typically includes management of the biodiversity of the forest in question.
Summary
The study has accumulated evidence that demand for wood for product and energy use has been on a high increase than previously thought. The increased demand for wood is significantly influencing policy instruments in the face of growing concerns to mitigate climate change, promote biodiversity and achieve sustainable levels of renewable energy.
Despite the increased demand for wood, the European forest sector is increasing significantly in an attempt to strike a balance between demand and supply of wood. The forest cover in the Europe has increased by close to half a million ha thus helping to contain the level of demand. Additionally, increased efforts involving increasing efficiency and adoption of more sources of non-forest renewable energy have been made across Europe to increase energy sustainability. The interplay between supplies, demand, needs to promote biodiversity, achieve renewable energy sustainability and the right level of forest carbon stock is significantly affecting policy maker’s decisions in Europe. However, the overall status of the Europe forestry sector is moving to the direction of sustainability.
Bibliography
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Baranzelli, Claudia, Chris Jacobs-Crisioni, F. Batista e Silva, C. Perpiña Castillo, Ana Barbosa, J. Arevalo Torres, and Carlo Lavalle. “The Reference scenario in the LUISA platform–Updated configuration 2014.” Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. doi 10, no. 2788 (2014): 85104.
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Edwards, David, Frank Søndergaard Jensen, Mariella Marzano, Bill Mason, Stefania Pizzirani, and Mart-Jan Schelhaas. “A theoretical framework to assess the impacts of forest management on the recreational value of European forests.” Ecological Indicators 11, no. 1 (2011): 81-89.
Forestry Commission. “Forestry statistics 2018: International Forestry.” National Statistics. 2018.
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Jonsson, Ragnar, Viorel NB Blujdea, Giulia Fiorese, Roberto Pilli, Francesca Rinaldi, Claudia Baranzelli, and Andrea Camia. “Outlook of the European forest-based sector: forest growth, harvest demand, wood-product markets, and forest carbon dynamics implications.” iForest-Biogeosciences and Forestry 11, no. 2 (2018): 315.
Mantau, Udo, U. Saal, K. Prins, F. Steierer, M. Lindner, H. Verkerk, J. Eggers et al. “Real potential for changes in growth and use of EU forests.” Hamburg: EUwood, Methodology report (2010).
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Rougieux, Paul. “Modelling European Forest Products Consumption and Trade in a Context of Structural Change.” PhD diss., Université de Lorraine, 2017.
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[1] Giacomo Grassi and Roberto Pilli, “Projecting the EU forest carbon net emissions in line with the “continuation of forest management”: the JRC method,” Tech Rep (2017)
[2] FAO UNECE, “The European Forest Sector. Outlook study II 2010-2030,” (Septiembre, Ginebra, 2011).
[4] Paul Rougieux, “Modelling European Forest Products Consumption and Trade in a Context of Structural Change,” PhD diss., (Université de Lorraine, 2017).
[5] Forest Europe, “State of Europe’s forests 2015,” In Ministerial conference on the protection of forests in Europe, p. 314.
[10] Arets, E. J. M. M., T. Palosuo, A. Moiseyev, G. J. Nabuurs, D. Slimani, C. Olsmat, J. Laurijssen, B. Mason, D. McGowan, and D. Vötter. Reference futures and scenarios for the European forestry wood chain. EFORWOOD, 2008
[12] Mantau, Udo, U. Saal, K. Prins, F. Steierer, M. Lindner, H. Verkerk, J. Eggers et al. “Real potential for changes in growth and use of EU forests.” Hamburg: EUwood, Methodology report (2010).
[13] Edwards, David, Frank Søndergaard Jensen, Mariella Marzano, Bill Mason, Stefania Pizzirani, and Mart-Jan Schelhaas. “A theoretical framework to assess the impacts of forest management on the recreational value of European forests.” Ecological Indicators 11, no. 1 (2011): 81-89
[22] O’Brien, Meghan, and Stefan Bringezu. “Assessing the sustainability of EU timber consumption trends: comparing consumption scenarios with a safe operating space scenario for global and EU timber supply.” Land 6, no. 4 (2017): 84
[24] Forest Europe, “State of Europe’s forests 2015.” In Ministerial conference on the protection of forests in Europe, p. 314. 2015.
[25] Grassi, Giacomo, and Roberto Pilli. “Projecting the EU forest carbon net emissions in line with the “continuation of forest management”: the JRC method.” Tech Rep (2017
[26] Jonsson, Ragnar, Viorel NB Blujdea, Giulia Fiorese, Roberto Pilli, Francesca Rinaldi, Claudia Baranzelli, and Andrea Camia. “Outlook of the European forest-based sector: forest growth, harvest demand, wood-product markets, and forest carbon dynamics implications.” iForest-Biogeosciences and Forestry 11, no. 2 (2018): 315.
[27] Paul Rougieux, “Modelling European Forest Products Consumption and Trade in a Context of Structural Change.” PhD diss., Université de Lorraine, 2017.
[28] Union européenne. Commission européenne, and EUROSTAT. Agriculture, forestry and fishery statistics. Publications office of the European Union, 2015.
[32] Union Innovation. Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions. Brussels, 2014.
[33] Forest Europe (Organization). Liaison Unit Oslo. “State of Europe’s Forests, 2011: Status & Trends in Sustainable Forest Management in Europe.” Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe, Forest Europe, Liaison Unit Oslo, 2011.
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Individuals initially regarded the earth as a space that contains infinite capacity for any kind of population. As the world progressed, human beings attained fears of overpopulation. Human overpopulation occurs when a given population exceeds the carrying capacity of the respective region. Some earlier intellectuals warned of overpopulation as a threat to food supply that can sustain human beings. In as much as the current world population is increasing at a high rate, the earth can only sustain 20 billion people.
The threat of inhabitable places means that the capacity for world population is limited. The earth contains certain places that have extreme conditions. For instance, certain regions are extremely cold while certain areas are exceedingly hot. These extreme temperatures cannot sustain life because human bodies cannot easily adapt to such conditions. Existence of natural disasters, such as hurricane, limits the possibility of increasing population in given areas. It is crucial to highlight that a major part of the earth contains water. Some regions exist in excluded zones that constrain the possibility of transport for sharing of resources. This provides a limitation to possibility of open spaces that additional individuals could occupy.
The earth contains dwindling resources that cannot allow for additional population. It is essential to highlight that the survival of the human population relies on the distribution of resources that prop human life. As individuals overexploit resources for wealth and sustenance, the amount and quality of such resources dwindle. It is notable that technology possesses its limits in harnessing and modifying resources for incessant use in the earth. This presents a worrying scenario as world resources reach the peak of their utilization. For instance, soil, as a means towards agriculture, possesses fertility that decline on continuous usage. As farmers turn to fertilizers, the soil reaches its capacity for handling excessive chemicals (Moore, 2009). Sources of energy, such as oil, share excess usage in the world thereby threatening their existence in the future.
Climate change is a threat to possibilities of additional population on the earth. Climate change is a phenomenon that affects elements for human survival in the world. It is crucial to highlight that climate change entails unpredictable weather patterns that will affect the production of food. As temperature surge, through global warming, there will be additional diseases and conditions (Swedin, 2005). These conditions will increase the mortality rate and limit conception in mothers. Global warming is a challenging phenomenon because the number of industries continues surging in the world. Climate change will also constrain the harnessing of resources such as oil and hydroelectric power. This is a scenario that limits the production of materials that support human existence.
It is evident that the earth can only sustain 10 billion people in spite of the idea that human population is increasing at a considerable rate. The existence of the earth’s inhabitable places suggests that there could be limited space for additional individuals in the world. Certain places share extreme conditions and disasters that limit the possibility for life. A major part of the earth’s space consists of water thereby professing a limited space for additional individuals. The earth contains dwindling resources that are only able to support fewer people. Climate change manifests as a significant challenge to human life since it affects the production of food and create inhabitable conditions in the earth. These factors suggest that the earth can only sustain 20 billion people.
References
Moore, P. (2009). Agricultural and urban areas. New York, NY: Infobase Publishing.
Swedin, E. (2005). Science in the contemporary world: an encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
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Pollution prevention is a concern to many companies and everybody right now, especially after a massive global warming alarm in the 20th century, many facilities and institutions are trying to implement on issues which will bring an end or halter on matters concerning pollution.
This has enabled many plants, facilities, companies and institution to try and implement the new changes in their organizations programs to enable minimization of pollution, minimization of waste production and the introduction of purchasing of recyclable materials.
Setting a pollution prevention goal for the company
Below is a list of my proposed goals which will help in tackling, halting and implementing new issues concerning pollution in the plant.
Positive procurement practices to ensure the purchase of recycled content materials as directed by environment protection agency.
Increase the volume of recycled materials.
Decrease the purchase of unnecessary toxic and hazardous chemicals.
Decrease the generation of solid wastes.
Decrease the consumption and free of pollutants as directed by the agency pollution prevention strategists.
Reduce the release and exploitation of the toxic chemicals to environmental justice areas where socioeconomic factors are of concern.
Decrease the implementation of extremely hazardous chemicals in the facility.
Reduction in the consumption of materials, water and power in the facility.
Establish a pollution prevention team
Select the pollution prevention team of which they should be selected from the current facility staff and try to Convince and gain support from the staff; the project of pollution prevention should be supported by maintenance engineers, supply staff, safety staff and occupational health professionals but also the help of some staff to help in the field work may be required. This will help in smoothing of work when it comes to implementing the new pollution prevention policies in the facility. The prevention team should be managed by a leader from the environmental prevention agency.
Gather and ask for ideas from the staff team, make them donate ideas on how they think the matter of pollution in the plant should be tackled. Provide some prevention skills to some staff making them to understand and have the idea on how to tackle and prevent pollution in the facility; this will be by offering some lessons concerning pollution management and prevention to the staffs.
Creating a management commitment
Try to create a bonding bridge between the upper management and the staff; this will help in the prevention plan to run more smoothly to facilitate the growth and prevention of pollution within the plant facility. Determine and know the responsibilities of who are supposed to purchase and handle raw materials in the plant.
Conduct a pollution prevention opportunity assessment
The staff team should come up with ideas on how to prevent pollution; they are also supposed to identify activities that will promote pollution prevention. Identify or come up with some potential prevention activities and opportunities that will help promote the pollution prevention. Implementation of immediate changes in the facility to help in pollution prevention, provide applications of current pollution prevention policies, techniques or technologies.
The staff will have to conduct analytical measurements on studies; it will have for them to assess pollution prevention opportunities before the completion of the analysis, during this act additional analysis will be required. Thorough pollution preventive assessments opportunities should be conducted by the facility staff, also the baseline may show the processes acquiescent to pollution prevention options. When the activities concerning the preventing pollution plan are completed or new ones are identified through pollution prevention opportunity assessments, the list of prevention activities will change, here is when the listing of all the pollution preventive activities and opportunities are identified.
Set plan on how to manage different issues in the plant such as cost reduction in the purchasing of non recyclable materials, minimizing the usage of toxic and hazardous chemicals or reduction of water usage in the plant. Exertion and implementation of issues concerning pollution prevention, this will help in impacting the process responsible for environmental issues.
Develop criteria and rank facility on wide pollution prevention activities.
The project should depend on the facility specific consideration and goals on which this is the order in which you choose to initiate pollution prevention activities. It will also initiate on improving the facility overall compliances status. Determine the environmental benefits, the time taken for the implementation of changes in the facility and the save on cost associated with project implementation changes. Figure out the impact on the project in the plant mission and the ability of the facility staff to accomplish their mission. Develop, identify and agree on a list of action items that you and the facility staff will undertake to amalgamate pollution prevention into the facility activities.
Criteria to consider
The availability of disposal capacity, community and surroundings concerns, environmental justice goals, workers safety and exposure, expectancy of future regulations and resource consumption. Rank and rate all pollution prevention activities that reflect how the activity matches the decisive factor.
Conduct a management review
Select, agree and elect a professional committee to review on pollution prevention plans. One the committee has selected a prevention team and it has developed a ranked list of pollution prevention activities, you have to gain support from the upper management and staff to help in the implementing of the new plan on pollution prevention.
This opportunity will enable the upper management to show support to the environment friendly project for preventing pollution. The preventive staff working on the project should present a pollution prevention plan ranked list and call attention to the potential benefits of the effort. Get full support from the upper management on the project by making them understand the relationship between the pollution prevention plan programs and their impacts on the plant mission and the current environmental programs.
References
(n.d) Pollution prevention. Steps for developing facility pollution prevention plan. Retrieved from http://www.labtrain.noaa.gov/ppguide/ffpp_14.htm
(n.d). U.S department of energy office of science. Pollution prevention. Community and environment. Retrieved from www.anl.gov/Community_and_Environment/pollutionprevention.html
(n.d). Pollution prevention. Pollution prevention. Retrieved from http://www.alcosan.org/Education/PollutionPrevention/tabid/72/Default.aspx
(n.d). Pollution prevention. Pollution prevention. Retrieved from http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/hwtr/p2/index.html
Tam, Hayley. (2011). Pollution prevention. Pollution incident response planning by machinery or electrical equipment businesses. Retrieved from http://www.netregs.gov.uk/netregs/businesses/62287.aspx
China, the world’s most populated nation states. It has an estimated population of one billion people. The nation also features among the most industrialized globally. Due to the integration of heavy population and industrialization, it follows that these industries and population are highly on the already scarce natural resources “commons.” The utility of these scarce resources leads to a wide array of pollution. China faces a wide array of pollution problems. This ranges from air pollution, water and land pollution among others. Conventionally, industrialization more often than not leads to rural- urban migration. The implication therefore is an increase in urban population densities and consequently over population and pollution. Air pollution in China results to health problems, reduced visibility as well as property damage. Air pollution leads to respiratory problems of bronchitis, asthma and emphysema. It is for these reasons therefore that Garrett Hardin in his article “Tragedy of the Commons” advocates for the application of non technical solutions to solve the problem of environmental degradation. This article therefore critically seeks to analyze Garrett Hardin’s “Tragedy of Commons” in relation to the problem of air pollution in China and how this problem can be rationally solved.
Garrett Hardin’s critical point of departure in his essay “Tragedy of the Commons” was that if resources were held in common for use by every individual in society, it would follow that ultimately the resource will be depleted or destroyed. This draws great comparison to what William Lloyd had earlier put forth: “The essence of dramatic tragedy is not unhappiness. It resides in the solemnity of the remorseless working of things.” Therefore, according to him, to keep away from this ultimate destruction and depletion of resources, human beings ought to change their attitudes, ideas and morality.
By “Held in Common” the author implies that resources are communally owned and therefore it is accessible to everyone. Garrett Hardin’s essay was written at a time when communism in China was at its peak. However, in the present day China, communism is quickly fading. The implication of this is an increase in private ownership of property, which is characterized by unhealthy competition of self interest. Self interest means promoting of activities that almost solely benefit a single individual, party, or group. Self interest in China has accelerated the growth and development of the industrial sector. This growth has resulted to uncontrolled depletion of natural resources, unhealthy competition between and among industries and ultimately a drastic increase in contamination of “The Commons”, in this case air pollution. Therefore, increased smog production in China as a result of air pollution shows that overlooking communism has resulted to the ignorance of the principle of collective interest. The principle of collective interest states that individuals should use the environmental resources cautiously so that it can sustain a community. It is therefore evident that pollution of environment can be cut down by emphasis on collective interest rather than individual interest.
By ultimately, Garrett Hardin in his article “Tragedy of the Commons” meant after a period of time. This period of time is intertwined to an increase in demographic figures of those who have exclusive access to the scarce resources. Mathematically, this implies that with an increase in the population of those dependent on the resources, the faster it is for the resources to face the threat of depletion. A “tragedy of the commons” is thus related to the population of a place. For instance, the population of the Peoples Republic of China in 1990 stood at an approximate figure of 1.1billion people. The population of the same is approximately over the 1.3billion mark today. This is a massive increase of approximately 200million people in a period of two decades. This difference has resulted in the tragedy of commons. The tragedy is that, the already straining natural resources ought to cater for an ever increasing population in China. The air composition remains constant, yet it should support the life of the increasing population resulting to air pollution. An increase in population is also a prerequisite for increased competition which more often than not is unhealthy resulting to industrialization.
According to Garrett Hardin’s “Tragedy of the Commons”, a resource for use “common” must be available and accessible for use by human beings. The People’s Republic of China ranks among one of the most polluted in terms of air in the world. It will therefore not be naïve to say that air in China is not able to accommodate and perform the traditional roles. To reinforce this assertion, is the fact that unhealthy industrialization practices have also had a significant impact in the depletion an pollution of the common air. The inadequacy of clean air leads to the development of smog. Smog has a number of effects to living organisms. Smog in China leads to a number of respiratory diseases such as: asthma, emphysema, chronic bronchitis among others. Smog also does not provide plants with conditions necessary for growth and development. It therefore hampers the growth of plants in China. Smog also acts as a precondition in the reduction of visibility. Therefore, it is a potential cause of hazards such as road and air accidents. It is evident therefore that the natural resource in the form of air in China, though available, is inadequate to sustainably support human life.
According to Garrett Hardin, a tragedy is not the result of human greed. Other factors lead to a tragedy. These include increase in population and industrialization practices. It will be of importance to note that air pollution and smog in China is not related to greed. This assumes the myth of competition in terms of industrialization and development. This argument is subject to psychology in the sense that, one may engage in activities sub consciously without knowing the expected outcomes. The Chinese are globally known for their hard working nature. This nature mirrors in their economic status globally. Therefore it would not be raw to say that the Chinese day to day activities of industrial growth and development, not forgetting their ever increasing population, is sub consciously “ignorant” of the dire environmental consequences. These factors have consequently integrated resulting to air pollution and smog which affect human lives.
”The population problem has no technical solution; it requires a fundamental extension of morality.”Garret Hardin begins his article by stating that there are some problems that lack technical solutions “There is no technical solution”. “A technical solution may be defined as one that requires a change only in the techniques of the natural sciences, demanding little or nothing in the way of change in human values or ideas of morality.” Hardin (1968). Garrett Hardin does acknowledge the fact that, yes technical solutions can address these issues but not on their own. Technical issues should therefore be supplemented by the non technical issues. Non technical solutions in his essay revolve around issues to do with human principles, ethics, equality, values, morality and justice. The problem of over population in China can be addressed if the Chinese people change their principles for the better. He implies that the problem is human centered and therefore it is the individual Chinese man who should realize or be made to realize through education that over population has had an impact on air pollution in China. In a nutshell therefore, ethics, principles, standard moral practice among other human centered approach will go a long way in addressing the population, industrialization and air pollution problem in China.
He proceeds to recommend that by changing our ways of life and cherishing our values, then as community tragedies are avoidable. One such recommendation is on the utility of mutual coercion. Mutual coercion is where as society as a whole by mutual agreement accept that a number of actions are intolerable. This follows that the violation of such actions will result to punishment of fines and even imprisonment.”If you don’t do as we ask, we will openly condemn you for not acting like a responsible citizen.” In China, this will go a long way when it comes to matters of achieving environmental sustainability. Garrett Hardin also recommends the use of restrictions and incentives as a method to curb air pollution in China, incentives to couples who observe the norm of having one child. The carbon credits awards for instance is an initiative of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) which rewards industrial sector that achieve the least air pollution practice. A number of these recommendations as put forth by Garrett Hardin would go away in reducing air pollution in China.
Conventionally, just like any other scholarly documents, Tragedy of the Commons has been subject to a number of criticisms. This essay for instance fails to account for change in population. It also does not distinguish between open access property and common property. Other scholars have found this tragedy not challenging to solve. These criticisms however have not rendered the essay non beneficial.
The “Tragedy of the Commons” and air pollution in China share a number of issues. In China, the fall of communal ownership of property has resulted to unhealthy self competition leading to air pollution. The depletion of natural the common of air in China will not happen in a few years but it will happen after a very long time. This will be the result of the ever increasing population as well as industrial growth and development. This utilizes the natural resources in a way that they face the threat of depletion. The resources to be depleted must be available. In China, though not adequate, air for depletion is available. These resources do not face depletion as a result of human greed but psychological factors that are associated with human beings affect the resources. However, there exist non technical solutions to supplement the already existing technical solutions. Non technical solutions exist in the forms of incentives, mutual coercion as well as restriction of access. Therefore, according to Garrett Hardin’s Tragedy of the Commons, solutions do exist for the air pollution problem in China.
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Works Cited
Diamond, Jared. Collapse:” How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed. “Viking. (2005).
Positivist claim that any knowledge that is not empirical is unscientific, and thus invalid. Most of the physical and natural sciences have adopted positivism as their method of acquiring knowledge. However this research philosophy has not been fully accepted in the field of social sciences. Social scientists argue that “positivistic method strips context from meanings in the process of developing quantified measures of phenomena” (Gephert 1999, p. 1). Social scientist claims that they would want an inclusive research method that does not exclude the qualitative meaning from the data collected. For instance, modern psychologist can not understand how positivism can ignore the unobservable issues like emotions and thoughts or the happenings in the inside of the human mind. Viewed from a social science perspective, positivism registers more weaknesses in the realm that it tends to generalise outcomes from samples taken from specific social groups. This is not to forget that it is not always that positivism methods yield consistent results. In such a situation a more advanced approach is needed to explain the inconsistency. In addition, the fact that positivism relies on testing existing theories rather than introducing new ones is a challenge to the field of discovery.
Beside the above shortcoming, the greatest challenge to positivism comes from the alternative research philosophies, mainly the constructivism/intepretist. This research philosophy is more common with the social science world, where the researchers believe that the subject matter in social science is different from that studied in natural science (Hatch and Cunliffe 2006). Constructionists believe that past experiences and memories influence the way people perceive their external world. According to this philosophy, researchers cannot rule out bias because both they and the researched subject make interpretations based on their prior experiences. In their research methods, constructivism prefers qualitative techniques such as observation, description and questioning (Eriksson and Kovalainen 2008). The main distinction between constructivist and positivist is that the former believe in multiple realities while the latter believe that there is only one stable reality. According to constructivist, knowledge is relative to the knower, and thus, various researchers can arrive at different conclusions. Due to the concept of relative knowledge, constructivism research philosophy holds that it is not possible to know the reality, although researchers should strive towards that goal (Greener 2008).
In social science, as well as in management and organisation research, constructivism has become common on the basis that it addresses timely social, political and economic issues which positivism had hitherto ignored. However, constructivism is challenged for its epistemological relativism. Its assertion that it is not possible to know the reality undermines the noble goal of research, that of pursuing the truth. Constructivism is not concerned with ontological reality but on constructed reality.
In the case of the research at hand – employee satisfaction- a constructionist research philosophy is the best to carry out the study. Since the primary aims of an employee satisfaction is to determine employee’s response to the various motivations and rewards measures existing in an organisation, a constructivist approach offer the best design. This kind of research is at best subjective, since it seeks to measure employees feeling and thoughts. As opposed to a positivist approach which would focus on testing existing theories through quantitative techniques, a constructionist approach will focus on building new knowledge by the use of qualitative techniques, mainly questionnaires and interviews. A study on employee satisfaction is deductive rather than inductive. This kind of approach will also enable the study unearth the different factors that affect the employee’s interpretation of the existing motivation and reward framework such salary, promotion and career advancement. The constructivism emphasises on language and communication will come in handy in understanding the employees feeling towards the organisation. Qualitative approaches are more preferred since they allow the employees to be free to discuss their feeling towards a company and what they would wish the organisation to do for them.
Constructivism research philosophy will find basis in most of the employee’s satisfaction theories. The Maslow Hierarchy of needs theory argues that employee satisfaction is a general attitude that is determined by such factors as self actualisation, esteem needs, belongingness and love needs, safety needs and the biological and physical needs (Maslow 1943, p.370; Weihrich and Koontz 1999, p. 468). Such attitudes can only be understood through a qualitative study other than quantitative approach. Satisfaction in this case is the contentment that employees feel after an organisation meets their need (Robbins 1998, p.170). Again, the constructivism approach fits well with Herzberg’s Theory of Motivation (Loiseau 2011). According to Herzberg’s theory, employee satisfaction can only be understood through looking at the “the two dimensions of employee satisfaction”: motivational and hygiene (Spector 1997). These two theories acknowledge that the factors that lead to employee satisfaction, or dissatisfaction thereof, are relative and not stable meaning that a qualitative approach is best suited to understand them.
References
Marshall MN (1996) Sampling for qualitative research. Family Practice Vol. 13 (6), p. 522-525
Maslow AH (1943) A theory of Human Motivation. Psychological Review Vol. 50. P.370-396
Patton MQ (1990) Qualitative Evaluation and Research Methods (2nd Edn). Newbury Park, CA: SAGE Publishers.
Resnik DB (2012) What is Ethics in Research & Why is it Important? Washington DC: The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Robbins SP (1998) Organisational Behaviour: Concepts, controversies and Applications. New York: Prentice-Hall.
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Crime: Johnny Smith was arrested for Assault and Battery on school grounds. Johnny punched a teacher after he was told to leave the classroom. The teacher was not injured but was upset about the event. The teacher stated that Johnny became upset when told he failed to read because he lost his book. Johnny argued that he had read the book but left it at home. After punching the teacher, Johnny ran away from the school. He was arrested a day later in a neighboring jurisdiction. Johnny admitted to the police that he did punch the teacher. Johnny was sent to local juvenile detention because of his record and because his uncle refused to take him home.
Background: Johnny is 13 years old. He lives with his uncle Ken in Fort Wayne. Johnny is originally from Columbia City. His father left when he was two years old. His mother is addicted to crack cocaine. She abandoned Johnny twice when he was younger. The last time he abandoned, his uncle Ken agreed to take work nights and has recently been through a divorce. His wife left him and took their two children away to Toledo. Ken has been drinking to excess recently and has not been watching Johnny. Johnny stays at the house sparingly and has been picked up by the police for violating curfew twice in the last six months. Johnny does not like his uncle Ken. He does have a relationship with the next-door neighbor Sallie Goldsmith. She lives alone and is 65 years old. She feeds Johnny occasionally, and he has stayed at her house. Sallie states that she has tried to care for Johnny, but she caught him stealing her money and told him he had to stay away from the house. Johnny was kicked out of Southside School for fighting in 2009. He was involved in a fight with a student who called him stupid. The student had a broken nose and a finger due to the fight. Johnny was also suspended for bringing a knife to school and arguing with a teacher. Despite his problems at school, Johnny is smart and tests high in math and English. Johnny was enrolled in Hobson Charter School after he was expelled from Southside. Hobson is a school that engages children and helps with problem students. When Johnny enrolled, he was tested and diagnosed with ADHD. He seemed to be doing well up to the incident. Johnny has a juvenile record beginning with his first arrest at nine for assault and battery. He has been charged with possessing a weapon at school, violating curfew (2), larceny, and truancy. He also escaped from the detention facility last year and was eventually arrested this past July when he was found in a crack house sleeping. Your job is to complete the risk assessment using the risk assessment from Washington State. If something is missing, you will have to ad-lib. Discuss:
Your score
Would you recommend restorative justice based on your score?
Did the form help in your determination?
Were there other factors not covered in the form to help you determine?
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1. If 4.168 kJ of heat is added to a calorimeter containing 75.40 g of water, the temperature of the water and the calorimeter increases from 24.58 ° C to 35.82 ° C. Calculate the heat capacity of the calorimeter (in J/ ° C). The specific heat of water is 4.184 J/g• ° C.
a.
622 J/ ° C
b.
55.34 J/ ° C
c.
315.5 J/ ° C
d.
25.31 J/ ° C
e.
17.36 J/ ° C
2. How much heat is absorbed in the complete reaction of 3.00 grams of SiO2 with excess carbon in the reaction below? D H 0 for the reaction is +624.6 kJ.
SiO2(g) + 3C(s) ® SiC(s) + 2CO(g)
a.
366 kJ
b.
1.13 ´ 105 kJ
c.
5.06 kJ
d.
1.33 ´ 104 kJ
e.
31.2 kJ
3. How much heat is released when 75 g of octane is burned completely if the enthalpy of combustion is -5,500 kJ/mol C8H18?
C8H18 + 25/2 O2 ® 8CO2 + 9H2O
a.
7200 kJ
b.
8360 kJ
c.
4.1 ´ 105 kJ
d.
3600 kJ
e.
5500 kJ
4. The burning of 80.3 g of SiH4 at constant pressure gives off 3790 kJ of heat. Calculate D H for this reaction.
SiH4(g) + 2O2(g) ® SiO2(s) + 2H2O(l)
a.
-1520 kJ/molrxn
b.
– 47.2 kJ/molrxn
c.
– 4340 kJ/molrxn
d.
-2430 kJ/molrxn
e.
+ 4340 kJ/molrxn
5. Which of the following statements is incorrect?
a.
The thermochemical standard state of a substance is its most stable state under one atmosphere pressure and at some specific temperature (298 K if not specified)
b.
A superscript zero, such as D H 0 , indicates a specified temperature of 0 ° C.
c.
The standard state for a pure substance in the liquid or solid phase is the pure liquid or solid.
d.
For a pure gas, the standard state is the gas at a pressure of one atmosphere.
e. For a substance in solution, the standard state refers to one-molar concentration.
6. For which of the following substances does = 0?
a.
CO2(g)
b.
H2O(g)
c.
Na(s)
d.
Br2(g)
e.
C(diamond)
7. Calculate the amount of heat released in the combustion of 8.17 grams of Al to form Al2O3(s) at 25 ° C and 1 atm. D H for Al2O3(s) = 1676 kJ/mol
4Al(s) + 3O2(g) ® 2Al2O3(s)
a.
254 kJ
b.
203 kJ
c.
127 kJ
d.
237 kJ
e. 101 kJ
8. Which of the following is not a formation reaction?
a.
1/2H2(g) + 1/2 Br2(l) ® HBr(g)
b.
H2(g) + 1/2O2(g) ® H2O(l)
c.
Ca(s) + 1/2O2(g) ® CaO(s)
d.
4Al(s) + 3/2O2(g) ® Al2O3(s)
e.
H2O(l) + SO3(l) ® H2SO4(l)
9. Given the standard heats of formation for the following compounds, calculate D H for the following reaction.
CH4(g)
+ H2O(g)
®
CH3OH(l)
+ H2(g)
D H (kJ/mol)
-75
-242
-238
0
a.
+79 kJ
b.
-79 kJ
c.
+594 kcal
d.
-594 kcal
e. – 405 kJ
10. Given the following at 25 ° C, calculate D H for HPO3(s) at 25 ° C.
P4O10(s) + 4HNO3(l) ® 4HPO3(s) + N2O5(s)
D H = -180.6 kJ
D H = -2984 kJ/mol for P4O10(s), -174.1 kJ/mol for HNO3(l), and – 43.1 kJ/mol for N2O5(s).
a.
-528.0 kJ/mol
b.
-1474 kJ/mol
c.
-948.5 kJ/mol
d.
+1474 kJ/mol
e. -954.5 kJ/mol
11. How much heat is released when 6.38 grams of Ag(s) reacts by the equation shown below at standard state conditions?
4Ag(s) + 2H2S(g) + O2(g) ® 2Ag2S(s) + 2H2O(l)
Substance
Ag(s)
0
H2S(g)
-20.6
O2(g)
0
Ag2S(s)
-32.6
H2O(l)
-285.8
a.
8.80 kJ
b.
69.9 kJ
c.
22.1 kJ
d.
90.8 kJ
e. 40.5 kJ
12. Which of the following techniques cannot be used to calculate D Hrxn?
a.
Calorimetry
b.
Using melting points of reactants and products
c.
Hess’s Law
d.
Using of Heats of Formation of reactants and products
e. Using bond energies of reactants and products
13. Evaluate D H 0 for the following reaction from the given bond energies.
2HBr(g) ® H2(g) + Br2(g)
D H H-H = 436 kJ/mol, D H Br-Br = 193 kJ/mol, D H H-Br = 366 kJ/mol
e. The entropy of the universe always increases in spontaneous processes.
16. What is the entropy change of the reaction below at 298 K and 1 atm pressure?
N2(g)
+ 3H2(g)
®
2NH3(g)
S (J/mol · K)
191.5
130.6
192.3
a.
-198.7 J/K
b.
76.32 J/K
c.
-129.7 J/K
d.
303.2 J/K
e. 384.7 J/K
17. The heat of vaporization of methanol, CH3OH, is 35.20 kJ/mol. Its boiling point is 64.6 ° C. What is the change in entropy for the vaporization of methanol?
a.
-17.0 J/mol•K
b.
3.25 J/mol•K
c.
17.0 J/mol•K
d.
104 J/mol•K
e. 543 J/mol•K
18. Which of the following statements regarding the third law of thermodynamics is incorrect ?
a.
The absolute S is zero at 0 Kelvin.
b.
The absolute S at 298 K can be positive or negative.
c.
Pure substances have positive absolute S at T > 0 Kelvin.
d.
Absolute zero gives a reference point for determining absolute S.
e. The absolute S is greater at 300 K than 100 K for a given substance.
19. Which of following would have the highest value of absolute entropy per mole?
a.
water at 50 ° C
b.
water at 10 ° C
c.
ice at -10 ° C
d.
1 MNaCl at 50 ° C
e. 1 MNaCl at 10 ° C
20. Based on the relationship of entropy to the degree of disorder in a system, which response includes all the following changes that represent an increase in entropy and no others?
I.
the freezing of water
II.
the condensation of steam
III.
sublimation (vaporization) of dry ice, solid CO2
IV.
the extraction of salts and pure water from seawater
a.
I and IV
b.
II and IV
c.
I, and II
d.
III
e. I and III
21. Which response includes all the following processes accompanied by an increase in entropy, and only those processes?
I.
boiling water
II.
freezing water
III.
N2(g) + 3H2(g) ® 2NH3(g)
IV.
Br2(l) ® Br2(g)
a.
I and II
b.
III and IV
c.
I and IV
d.
II, III, and IV
e. another one or another combination
22. Which of the following changes represent a decrease in entropy?
a.
Precipitation of CaCO3 to form a seashell
b.
Evaporation of gasoline
c.
Decomposition of a dead animal
d.
Melting snow
e. Diffusion of perfume throughout a room.
23. Consider the conversion of a substance from solid to liquid.
Solid Liquid
At one atmosphere pressure and at the melting point of the substance, __________.
a.
D H = 0 for the process
b.
D S = 0 for the process
c.
D E = 0 for the process
d.
D G = 0 for the process
e. both D H = 0 and D E = 0 for the process
24. Evaluate D G 0 for the reaction below at 25 ° C.
2C2H2(g)
+ 5O2(g)
®
4CO2(g)
+ 2H2O(l)
D G (kJ/mol)
209.2
0
-394.4
-237.2
a.
-1409 kJ
b.
-2599 kJ
c.
-1643 kJ
d.
-2470 kJ
e. -766 kJ
51. Calculate D G 0 at 298 K for the reaction below.
Fe2O3(s)
+ 13CO(g)
®
2Fe(CO)5(g)
+ 3CO2(g)
D H (kJ/mol)
-824.2
-110.5
-733.8
-393.5
S 0 (J/mol•K)
87.4
197.6
445.2
213.6
a.
+63.6 kJ
b.
+26.8 kJ
c.
-243.1 kJ
d.
-52.2 kJ
e. -193.3 kJ
52. The standard molar enthalpy of formation of NO2(g) is 33.2 kJ/mol at 25 ° C and that of N2O4(g) is 9.16 kJ/mol. At 25 ° C their absolute entropies are 240.0 and 304.2 J/mol•K, respectively. Use the above data to calculate the standard Gibbs free energy change for the following reaction at 25 ° C. Express your answer in the form D G 0 = __________ kJ.
N2O4(g) ® 2NO2(g)
a.
4.1 kJ
b.
21.3 kJ
c.
4.8 kJ
d.
41.5 kJ
e. 11.4 kJ
53. For which set of values of D H and D S will a reaction be spontaneous (product-favored) at all temperatures?