International Organizations and World Order Essay Example for Free

International Organizations and World Order Essay After First World War, there was call for formation of international organization to bring order in the world. The notion led to the formation of the League of Nations due to the conviction of the then president of the United States of America, President Woodrow Wilson who was certain that the move would prevent future conflict if only nations would come together to defend the principles of self-determination and independence. The progress of the League of Nations was thwarted when the United States refused to join it. It was also thwarted by the extremist political ideologies and power rivalry that existed at that time in history, which was 1930s. Due to the outbreak of Second World War that ended in 1945, there was more concern that led to the formation of another international organization in the name of United Nations. The Bretton woods conference, which is the reason for the existence International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank as well as the Dumbarton Oaks Conference came to existence in 1944. The foundation do the United Nation was laid by the allies of the organization (Owen, 1996). According to Owen (1996, p. 9) most of the international organizations were formed with an intention of reconstructing Europe, which was seriously devastated after the war against Nazi Germany. Most of the International organizations that were formed after World War II became more active in the 1960 where their activities were expanded to meet the new challenges because of European colonization, which included independent but politically immature and poor nations in Latin America, African and Asia. Most of the international organizations were started in the 19the century. Owen (1996, p. 10) states that â€Å"More recently, with the uncertainties and instabilities which have followed the ending of the Cold War, international organizations have stepped in to cope with the effects of the resulting conflicts and tensions, many of them within states rather than between states n the process, many UN bodies have been found wanting. The office f the United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator (UNDRO), for example was founded in 1971. † Some of the international organizations include regional Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), which was formed in 1989 with an objective of establishing common military, cultural and economic policies to ensure free movement of goods, services and people between member states. The Member nations of Arab Maghreb Union include Morocco, Libya, Algeria, Tunisia and Mauritania (Schafer, Verbist, Imhoos, 2005). Another International Organization is Asia Pacific Economic co-operation Forum (APEC) was formed in 1989 to promote linearization of economy in the Pacific region. Association of South East Asian nations (ASEAN) was formed in 1967 to replace ASA (Association of South East Asia). The member nations of ASEA include Australia, United States of America, Japan and New Zealand. The main objective of the organization is to promote common economic, political and trading policies. There is also another international organization in the name of Caribbean Community (CARICOM), which was formed in 1965 to ensure economic cooperation in Caribbean common market, to put in place common policies in education, health, culture, industrial relation and communication and to coordinate foreign policy among the member nations. The affiliations of the CARICOM according to Owen include â€Å"Caribbean Development Bank; Caribbean Examinations Council; Caribbean Meteorological Organization; Council of Legal Education; University of Guyana; University of the West Indies; West Indies Shipping Corporation†. The Common wealth is another important international organization that is in forefront trying to address contemporary global issues. Commonwealth was formed in 1884 and it grew out of the British Empire. The objectives of the Commonwealth are to enable nations from different parts of the world to exchange opinions in an informal, friendly and intimate atmosphere. Commonwealth has member nations, which according to Owen (1996, p. 11) include â€Å"Australia, Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Botswana, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Cyprus, and Dominica. Others are: Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Namibia, Nauru, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, St Kitts-Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, Tanzania, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Uganda, the United Kingdom, Vanuatu, Western Samoa, Zambia, Zimbabwe. † There are several other International organizations such as Commonwealth of Independent States, Council of Europe, European free trade association (EFTA), European union (EU), gulf co-operation council (GCC), Mercosur (Mercado Commun del Sur-southern common market), African union (AU), Organization of American States (OAS), Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), South Pacific Forum, Southern African Development Community (SADC) among others. According to Mendlovitz (1966, p5) â€Å"Law has too often been conceived in static terms as a system of order designed to uphold the status quo. In any legal system, whether national, regional, or global in scope, law also has a dynamic aspect which allows it to make a contribution to projects for social change. † Saul Mendlovitz further states that â€Å"international law to the postulated goal of a warless world with an excerpt from an article that considers how law might help us move from where we are to where we would like to be; it is this gap that creates what we have called the transition problem. In this new age, there has emerged a vas and ancient worldwide conspiracy called the New World Order, which aims to unite the entire world under one government. The New World Order concept was introduced into the dictionary of the international politics after the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe (Slaughter, 2004). The former president of the United States of America George Bush was the first who strongly invoke the idea in response to the Gulf crisis. Therefore, the concept traced to 1991, when Iraq invaded Kuwait and when the cold war ended. According to Ismael (1994), he states that â€Å"Thus, the end of the cold war and Iraqs invasion of Kuwait in August 1991 constitute the historical reference points for the concept. This suggests at least two dimensions in its meaning: the end of an international order determined by the struggle for hegemony between the United States and the Soviet Union; and the initiation of a U. S. foreign policy doctrine based on U. S. hegemony in the international order. † When president George Bush was waging a war of words with the then the president of Iraq Saddam Hussein in 1990 he demonized him and referred to his effort as an attempt to establish a new world order (Wells, 2008). Many were excited by the effort of Bush at first because they thought the president of the United States was promoting democracy in the region as he had done in the Eastern Europe. Unfortunately that was not to be realized as Ishmael (1994) says, Bush was determined in establishing hegemony. The region after the gulf war in Iraq and Kuwait has remained unstable politically. According to Lloyd (2002, p. 1) New world Order was a fragile creation that emerged after September 11 attack. Lloyd states, â€Å"Before 11 September, the new (left) world order was a tentative, even fragile, creation. It emerged from new Labor in 1997 as an ethical dimension in foreign policy, announced by the then foreign secretary, Robin Cook, as a natural extension of the globes interdependence. The world had become a moral forum through the media and the work of non-governmental organizations (NGOs). † The world was at peace before the attack on the United States to the extent that most world leaders praised the state in which the world was. Some of the people who were at the forefront of the new idea of new world order are Robert cooper and Anthony Giddens, a senior diplomat and a director of the London school of Economics respectively. Giddens was for the idea that globalization could then take place because there was a state of peace that was a recipe to one global governance. The globalization, he argued would transfer power from the nations into the global space leading to the call for the need of regulation to guide the governance. Copper on the other hand argued that new world order will lead to a shift in value where there will be a victory of values of individual of those of state and those of market over the military ones and foreign policy will no longer to be about war (Lloyd, 2002, p. 1). International court creation came in to being after two attempts to organize an international court had failed (Mower, 1931, p. 616). Before there was, a court called The Hague Permanent Court of International Arbitration, which could not provide the much-needed justice in the international level as the current International Criminal Court. Other international courts deal with different legal issues. For instance, there are courts that deal with human rights at the international level, which include African Court of Justice (ACJ), African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), European Court of Human Rights and International-American Court of Human rights. Others include International Court of Justice (ICJ), International Criminal Court (ICC), and Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), Resource materials on International Courts and Special International Criminal Courts and Tribunals. According to Class Action Publisher (2008), there are seven special international criminal courts and tribunal, which include Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), International Criminal tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). Others are â€Å"Regulation 64† Panels in the Courts of Kosovo, special Courts for Sierra Leone, Special panels of the District Court of Dili (East Timor) and War Crimes Chambers (WCC) in Sarajevo- within the state court. All these international courts have well designed objective and operation guidelines. International criminal Court established in 1998 by Rome statute and it is the first permanent court to hear international criminal claim. The court has a role to hear cases that are regarded as most serious such as crime against humanity, war crimes and genocide (Janis, 1992). It does not deal with cases that occurred prior it its institution but only to those crimes that have been committed after July 1, 2002. ICC does not deal with cases that have been committed by legal entities but natural persons. It can act on cases when the cases have been referred to it by the United Nations’ Security Council or with consent of the affected state. The International Criminal Court takes up a case or jurisdiction only as the last resort when all the national avenues have been completely exhausted (Buhler Webster, 2005). The nations have been endowed with the responsibility of international crimes but when a state is unwilling to pursue justice, delays in pursuing justice or it shows impartiality of dealing with international crimes then the ICC takes up the matter. This may also result from unavailability of proper judicial system or if the state is unable to carry out the proceeding. Over one hundred nations worldwide subscribe to the Rome statute that established the ICC exclusive of the United States of America. United States revoked the signature of the former president Bill Clinton that was due to lack of checks and balance of the ICC. The ICC gives considerable rights to victims which include attending the proceeding of the court have having their concerns considered; being represented by counsel and interrogating witnesses; seeking monetary compensation after conviction and seeking preservation of defendant assets pending trial. The ICC has four major organs namely judicial divisions, the presidency, office of the prosecutor and the registry, which have different roles that help the court to achieve its objectives (Schafer, Verbist Imhoos, 2005). The international courts have been able to provide effective enforcement of international legal instruments in different countries. Many countries have suffered from the art of war, which have seen many people suffer thereby depriving them of their human rights. Individuals for their own personal and selfish reasons started some of the wars that have caused suffering to citizens of the affected nations. Being well connected to the political order of the day most perpetrators of the crimes that lead to the abuse of human right cannot be properly persecuted in their respective countries. Other reasons that have made it possible for the perpetrators of the crime of high magnitude is the fact that most countries where such crimes are committed lack proper judicial system that is independent, impartial and ineffective. This has led to transfer of many cases to the international courts or to the ICC (Barker, 2004. ) International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda is an existing testimony to the effectiveness of the International Courts. In Rwanda where the conflict started between the Tutsi and the Hutu tribes in 1994, many people belonging to the Tutsi tribe were killed in the Genocide. The total number of the Tutsi that were killed is estimated to be over five hundred thousand people. In response to the crime, the United Nation Security Council created the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in November of 1994 to prosecute crimes genocide and violation of the Geneva Convention. The ICTR is a subsidiary organ under chapter VII of the United Nations Charter of the Security Council under article 29 (Barker, 2004). International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda has completed over fifty trials so far and of the accused persons, 29 have been convicted of crime (Klip Sluiter, 200). About eleven people are on trial, others waiting trial, some are to be transferred to the national jurisdiction trial while others are still unconfined. The first person was tried three years after the formation of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda in 1997 and he was Jean-Paul Akayesu. Jean Kambanda also pleaded guilty after wards. The tribunal has also issued arrest warrant to some suspects that are thought to have played a role or orchestrated the genocide like Kabuga Felicien. International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda issued an international arrest warrant for Felicien in 1999 where he was charged with complicity in genocide, genocide and conspiracy to commit genocide. The action of the international court in Rwandan genocide has achieved a lot in the nation and it has sent a clear message to the whole world. With arrest, trial and judgment of the suspects of the unfortunate occurrence, peace and order has been restored in Kigali because the Tutsi who were the main victim of all sorts of crime committed feel that justice has finally prevailed and cannot think of revenge and other notions that might lead to civil war again. The action has also sent a right signal to anybody in Ruanda and all over the world that any perpetrators of such crime will not escape the long arm of justice. Therefore, in reality International Court has succeeded in pursuing justice and is in the right path of ensuring that there is a peaceful planet where the innocent are vindicated while the guilty are condemned (Klip Sluiter, 200).

Effect of Social Media on Social Movements

Effect of Social Media on Social Movements The new media platforms, such as social networking sites, have benefited from the internet that has made globalization real. Apart from giving the minority group an opportunity to achieve larger public acknowledgment, it also offers them a chance for self-expression. To begin with, media acts as a mode through which information is transferred to a large group of people. In the process, it constructs and outlines the public opinion on different societal matters. Minority groups, such as women, LGBT, disabled people, and immigrants, have had hardly solved challenges since their voices are unheard due to stereotypes in the society. (Castells) States that one important characteristic of the new platforms of media is that it is digital, and this avails it all parts of the world. New media has given the minority groups equal access to global affairs. The history of womens rights started in the 1960s where women fought for suffrage rights, inclusion in state positions, and other equality rights. Nonetheless, women rights have been violated across the world. Evidently, women hardly get the same platforms to express themselves as men do. Gender inequalities occur because of societal norms and stereotypes placed on a particular group of people due to their gender orientation; women in this case (Reifovà ¡ and Tereza). Fortunately, through new media platforms, women from different cultures have been able to fight for their rights. In this regard, online media has proved to be an essential tool in raising awareness on several women issues in different societies. Women have used this platform to advance their fight for their rights up to international levels. Mainly, social media has been used by several groups of women to push for accountability on activities related to women rights violation. Currently, social media platforms like Fa cebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and others have helped women to raise gender consciousness, organize equality campaigns, share ideas, and participate in policy development on gender-related issues (Chetkow-Yanoov). These women networks have brought changes to countries like India, Kenya, Brazil, Egypt and Saudi Arabia among others. Several online campaigns have proved useful in the fight for human rights in countries that violence against women is rampant. For instance, Egyptian women have had to go through sexual harassment for a long time, but this has changed ever since campaigns like #MeToo were launched through Twitter as a new media platform (Reifovà ¡ and Tereza). This campaign was meant to let women share their experiences and tell the world about their plight. The campaigns paid off since the government introduced a law against sexual harassment and women could take legal action against their oppressors. Another example of such movements in Egypt was a Facebook campaign called â€Å"Mat3brhash†. This campaign was started by Egyptian women to resist violence and harassment that they experience in the country. The campaign has drawn the attention of various organizations throughout the world and can be considered as an attempt to confront women harassment in Egypt. Similarly, Saudi Arabia has been battling gender inequality due to the conservatism nature form their culture and religion. In their case, the impact of social media on the right of women to drive in Saudi Arabia cannot be underestimated. For instance, Saudi Arabian women activists have managed to battle equality challenges by using media to highlight their experience. For instance, in 2011, on the wave of the Arab Spring, which led to political reforms, the Women2drive movement was formed. Activist Manal al-Sharif played a prominent role in it: she conducted propaganda in Facebook, laying out videos in which she showed her skills in machine control. Al-Sharif was later arrested. In another instance, in 2014, a human rights activist, Loujain al-Hathloul, drove a car to a territory of Saudi Arabia in protest against the law banning women from driving vehicles in Saudi Arabia. She was arrested and detained in police custody for close to three months. Women from the Saudi Arabia conducted several campaigns on social networks demanding the right to drive cars. Previously, only men could get a drivers license. In case a woman was seen driving in a public place, police officers could arrest her. Following a public outcry, such bans have been lifted. After the government allowed women to drive, to obtain the rights of women in Saudi Arabia does not even require the permission of male relatives, which is still necessary when getting a passport, crossing the border, and marrying. Equally, the #BringBackOurGirls was created in Nigeria to campaign for the release of schoolgirls who Boko Haram, a militia group in the country, abducted. This Nigeria’s abduction of students made the world come together to facilitate the release of the girls. Fortunately, some of the girls were rescued. LGBT groups of people have been depicted differently in media throughout history. Before the 20th century, the LGBT community has had negative representation by the media (Castells). It was portrayed as a perversion or even crime. However, this has changed significantly through new media and recently many countries like the US legalizing it. Mainly using social media, the LGBT community has made it their responsibility to make them known and define their culture. The positive representation has served to make the community acceptable within the society, and several people are giving them the necessary support (Alston and Knuckey). Recent years have seen the increase of LGBT community in TV shows, dramas, and others. This representation whether positive or mirroring the stereotypes in the society has helped impart knowledge about this minority group to the people (Castells). However, the transgender people have not had proper representation as compared to the gays, lesbians, and bisex uals. Notably, the transgender group has not been in public light as long as the others, and they have to face their challenges in order to triumph. Currently, the important thing is that media coverage of events and issues related to the rights and self-esteem of homosexuals has improved the publicity of the LGBT groups. For instance, homosexuals and lesbians are treated differently than ethnic, religious, or other social minorities. A notable example of an LGBT is Caitlyn Jenner, who formerly identified herself as a male. Caitlyn Jenner, once called Bruce Jenner, was an American television character and a former Olympic gold medal frontrunner in decathlete. Jenner has been using social media to fight for the rights of the transgender people. In 2015, she came out as a trans-woman having battled gender dysphoria from her youth. Due to her moves to fight for the rights of the transgender people in the society, Caitlyn, as a media celebrity, has made people become more accepting of the LGBT group lately. Another minority group that is worth analyzing is people with various disabilities, both physical and mental. Those with disabilities have not had it easy in history. They have been an easy target by people who seek to take advantage of them. Due to their disability, they are not able to carry out certain tasks and thus are vulnerable to accept help from not so trustworthy individuals. The phrase â€Å"disability is not inability† has been going around for some time now and the phrase is meant to let the public realize that the disabled can also live a normal life and participate in activities that were thought to be impossible for them. Through media, the stereotyping is slowly dying as the disabled community are proving themselves capable to the world. The same way other people try to make life easier by innovation, the handicapped life can also be made easier through assistance using technology. At some point in history, the deaf were considered passive members of the socie ty (Reifovà ¡ and Tereza). However, this has significantly changed through media. The deaf can participate in discussions through social media without requiring interpreters and such assistance. An example of a disability person who fights for the rights of this group is Judy Heumann, who is an American activist for the disability community. She has been a civil rights campaigner for handicapped people who use social media to foster her course. Another example is Wade Blank, an American disability activist. Using new media platforms, he has been leading campaigns on national rights for the disabled people. Blank heads â€Å"American Disabled Attendant Programs Today â€Å"ADAPT† and has been lobbying make public places easily reached by the disabled people. Digital communication provided by new media platforms has been helpful in making life easier for migrants. The social media has given the migrants the opportunities they did not have before. Migrants currently can participate in political as well as social life in both country of origin and the country they reside in (Castells). In fact, the migrants are able to get a clearer perspective of the happenings in their home countries. The migrants can exchange information through social media with their friends and families that still are in their home countries. The exchange of information makes it possible to bring social and political change in those countries. Websites like Kginfo.ru and Tajmigrant.com are used in Russia by new migrants to communicate to their original governments in order to provide them with strategies of being incorporated in their new country. Overall, in the recent times, mass communication/the media has become one of the most important instruments of influence on society, especially on matters of immigration. Media portrayal of challenges that immigrants face in their lives affects their status and social rights. Overall, a vivid representative of the ideological influence in the mass media, that disseminates various behavior patterns imposes standards and dictates life patterns. Which, with prolonged perception, have a significant impact on the modern society, especially on the minority groups, such as the women, LGBT, immigrants, and the disabled people. The new media platforms alone cannot solve the minority groups’ problems. However, the power it has, with regard to fueling reforms, is great. Through social media, laws have been amended, and so many more movements have been created to fight for the rights of the minority groups in various quarters. Different minority groups have different challenges and there use of new media can sometimes lead to uncommon results. The majority people create the notion of a minority group, and so the change can be affected when their perspectives change. Together with authoritative bodies, media can be employed to impart knowledge and shape the perspective the majority have of minority groups in order to bring social change. Works Cited Alston, Philip, and Sarah Knuckey. The Transformation of Human Rights Fact-Finding. Oxford University Press, 2016 Castells, Manuel. Networks of outrage and hope: Social movements in the Internet age. Polity Press, 2012. Chetkow-Yanoov, B Harold. Social Work Approaches to Conflict Resolution: Making Fighting Obsolete. Routledge, 2013. Reifovà ¡, Irena, and Tereza Pavlà ­ckovà ¡. Media, Power and Empowerment: Central and Eastern European Communication and Media Conference Ceecom Prague 2012.

The Process Model in Policy Changes

The Process Model in Policy Changes This paper advances the theoretical framework of the stagist heuristic framework or sometimes known as the process model in attempting to explain and analyze the policy activities which led to the enactment of Quebecs Tobacco Act  [1]  of 1998. The main premise of this paper is to evaluate the usefulness of the process model in understanding the policy making process through a comparative study between this model and the Advocacy Coalition framework (ACF). I employ, and borrow, the case study of Bretton et al., (2008) that offers an alternative outlook to the developments of the Tobacco Act using the Advocacy Coalition Framework. This paper concludes with a discussion of the models which satisfactorily reflect the reality of how policies are formulated and enforced. 1. Introduction This paper is organized into 4 parts. Part one sketches the theoretical perspectives of the stagist heuristic model and examines the factors and processes leading to the adoption of the Tobacco Act. Crucially, this part will highlight the critical role of policy actors in affecting policy processes and outcomes. Part Two provides a critical analysis to the effectiveness of the model by elaborating the advantages of the model. Part Three will go on to provide criticisms of the model by comparing it with the advocacy coalition framework used in analyzing the Tobacco Act of 1998. This part will present the many criticisms of the stagist model, using mainly contributions offered by Lindblom Woodhouse (1993) and Sabatier (1999). Finally, Part Four concludes with a brief overall assessment of the framework, considering in particular, its status as an analytical tool for understanding policy making in the real world. In the context of this paper, policy analysis is defined as a set of interrelated decisions taken by a group of political actor or group of actors concerning the selection of goals and the means of achieving them within a specified situation where those decisions should, in principle, be within the power of those actors to achieve (Jenkins, 1978: 35). From Jenkinss (1978) definition above, which acknowledges public policy as a set of interrelated decisions taken by numerous individuals and organizations in government, I will form the basis of this paper. I will focus solely in understanding the processes or what Jenkins (1978) referred to as interrelated decisions leading to the adoption of the Tobacco Act. His definition also correlates to Lasswells conceptualization of knowledge of rather than knowledge in policy making, in which the latter (i.e. knowledge in), is more substantive and prescriptive (Dunn, 1981; Hogwood Gunn, 1984, Hill, 1993). The policy domain is inherently complex, and so analysts have made use of various models of simplification to comprehend the overwhelming situation and to understand it more thoroughly. Through the lens of the stagist heuristic model, policy analysts have been able to synthesize the complexity of such process into a series of functional phases, which frame this overtly political process as a continuous process of policy making. 1.1. The Stagist Heuristic Framework As pioneered by Lasswell (1956), and modified by Jones (1970), Mack (1971), Rose (1973), Anderson (1975), Jenkins (1978), Brewer De Leon (1983) and Hogwood Gunn (1984), this ideal-type framework adopts a technocratic approach to public policymaking, embracing linear and logical progression from agenda setting and concluding with policy evaluation and termination. The chronological orders of the policy life cycle are commonly categorized as problem definition, agenda-setting, policy formulation, implementation and finally evaluation (Dunn, 1981; Hogwood Gunn, 1984; Sabatier, 1999; Dye, 2002; Colebatch, 2002). 1.1.2. Problem recognition and definition. Hitherto, the greatest impetus to the developments of policy science crystallizes on a response to a myriad of social problems within, what Lasswell terms as policy orientation (cited in Dunn, 1981; Hogwood Gunn, 1984; Howlett Ramesh, 2003). Similarly, the process model presupposes the recognition of problem triggered by a felt existence of problems or opportunities (Dunn, 1981). A problem is defined as an unrealized value, need, or opportunity which, however identified, may be attained through public attention (Dunn, 1981: 44) which needs to do something about as pointed out by Wildavsky (1979) a difficulty is a problem only if something can be done about it (Wildavsky, 1979:26). However, problem recognition and definition are not straight forward activities. According to Birkland (2007) because a problem is a process of social construction, as mirrored by Dunn (1981) who states how the problem is in the eye of the beholder (Dunn, 1981: 27), it depends on subjectivity of interpretations held by various stakeholders. And so, the majority ruling may be ill-defined and, at times, may even be misframed  [2]  (Baker, 1977). In addition, as Steiss Deneke (1980) suggests, problems are seldom mutually exclusive because they often exist in a hierarchical relationship to one another, and the solution of one may depend on the solution of another, either higher or lower in the hierarchy (Hogwood Gunn, 1984: 124); therefore may often lead to a further redefinition and modification of the problematical situations (Wohlestetter, 1976; Wildavsky, 1979; McRae Wilde, 1985), which, in turn, lead to the creation and realization of more problems (Wildavsky, 1979), which I go on to address in the following paragraph. Quebecs Tobacco Act was primarily enacted as a response to the growing concerns of the public towards the issue of passive smokers or secondary smokers. As reported by Breton et al. (2008), the Tobacco Act was enacted to protect the fundamental right of non smokers to enjoy a smoke free environment than by the harms to health (Breton, et al., 2008: 1682). However, the definition of the issue leads to the discovery of more social problems. On one hand, problems such as addictiveness of smoking, prevalence of youth smokers (which have significantly lead to raising educational awareness of the hazards of smoking), how the majority of the population are non smokers and, finally, the financial burden to the public health care system are brought to attention. On the other hand, protesters of the bill have contested the lethality to passive smokers, arguing that such intervention might impede the competitiveness of the tobacco industry (through the implementation of tax) and, thus, affect t he economy of the province. In liberal democracies, such as Quebec, problem identification and definition are conceptualized as highly pluralistic, involving diverse policy stakeholders such as the public (population, retailers), individuals (Minister of Health), organizations (e.g. Quebec Division of Cancer society, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Health, Hospital industry), interest groups (e.g. Tobacco manufacturers, Non Smokers Right Association, Tobacco workers union, Events Rallying for the Freedom of Sponsorship group), the media, policy communities (Regional Public Health Directorates [RPHD], columnists and journalists, Quebec Coalition for Tobacco Control [CQCT] and also mentioned U.S administration) (Dunn, 1981; Sabatier, 1991; Kingdon, 1995; Dye, 2002; Howlett Ramesh, 2003); the actual agenda setting is characterized by different patterns in terms of actor composition and the role of public. There are outside initiation as well as inside initiation  [3]  (May, 1991 cited in Fisher, Miller Sidney, 2007); mobilization and consolidation  [4]  (Howlett Ramesh, 2003). In this case, the tobacco control adheres to Howlett Ramesh (2003) concept of consolidation; whereby due to the impending agitation of the issue amongst the public and subsequent contraband crisis of cigarettes smuggling in the US, policy elites (prominently the new Minister of Health and the National Assembly [NMA]) have seized the opportunity for government legitimacy in tobacco control by, effectively, propagandizing the issue to the public via regularly intervening in the media on different aspects of tobacco control and visiting MNAs cabinets (Breton et al., 2008: 1685). 1.1.3. Agenda setting Next, I explore the agenda setting phase which Birkland (2007) defined as the process by which problems and alternative solutions gain or lose public and elite attention (cited in Fisher, Miller Sidney, 2007: 63). The elevation from systemic agenda into institutional agenda  [5]  is usually dominated by power struggles between groups competing to elevate or block issues from reaching the institutional agenda (Cobb Ross, 1997); acting singly or, more often, by building strategic coalition with others (Sabatier, 1991; Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993). From the case study, this process is signaled by the agenda of the new Minister of Health and the tabling of the bill by the Council of Ministers at the legislative meeting. As part of his strategy in building a winning coalition, the Minister successfully gathers allies and supporters for the bill by establishing the CQCT; embracing Sabatiers ACF model. In addition, Breton et al. (2008) mentioned that the Minister of Health has also announced plans to include in the bill provisions that prohibit active involvement of tobacco companies in sponsoring arts and sports events. Spearheaded by the centralized coordination of the CQCT, the winning coalitions which compose of Non Smokers Association and various municipalities through representatives from the RPHD, effectively debated the bill and gathered political support from the Council of Ministers at the parliamentary commission meetings, which resulted in the official adoption of the bill on February, 1998. 1.1.4. Policy formulation and decision-making. In the traditional stage model of the public policy process, policy formulation is part of the pre-decision phase of policy making in which the political interchange described by Lindblom (1993) as competition of ideas emanates. It involves identifying and/or crafting a set of policy alternatives to address a problem, and narrowing that set of solutions in preparation for the final policy decision. This approach to policy formulation, embedded in a stages model of the policy process, assumes that participants in the policy process recognize and define a policy problem, consequently moving it onto the policy agenda. During this stage of the policy cycle, expressed problems, proposals and demands are transformed into government programs. At the same time, studies of policy formulation have been strongly dominated by the effort to improve practices within governments by introducing the techniques and tools of rational decision making. In all political systems people gather facts, interpret them and debate issues. This stage is when the Minister establishes centralized command through CQCT to formulate the policy to tackle the issue of public smoking. In addition, the continuous dialogue and consultation involved in an agreement of the bill with NGOs, municipalities, health institution, local and regional organizations as well as oppositions falls into this stage. Crucially, the bill was also amended to streamline the phasing out of tobacco industry sponsorship but offered no alternative solution to youth smoking and did not contest the actual harms on health of tobacco use (Breton, et al., 2008: 1 686). Brewer DeLeon (1983) usefully define decision making as the choice among policy alternatives that have been generated and their likely effects on the problem estimatedà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦it is the most overtly political stage in so far as the many potential solutions are winnowed down and but one or a select few picked and readied for use. (Howlett Ramesh, 2003:162). The models on decision making are classified as rationalism which asserts utility maximization to complex policy problems in which policy relevant information was gathered and then focused in a scientific fashion on the assessment of policy options (Howlett Ramesh, 2003:166); and incrementalism which describes policy making as a political activity of maintaining the status quo through gradual and continuation of past policies. 1.1.5. Implementation. Dye (2002) defined implementation as the implementation of policies through organized bureaucracies, public expenditures, and the activities of executive agencies (Dye, 2002: 15). Intra- and inter- organizational coordinating problem and interaction of field of agencies with the target group ranked as the most prominent variables accounting for implementation failures (MacRae Wilde, 1985; Howlett Ramesh, 2003). Another explanation focuses on the policy itself, acknowledging that unsuccessful policy implementation can be, though by no means the only, result of bad implementation, but also bad policy design, based on wrong assumptions about the cause-effect relationship (Hogwood Gunn, 1984; Fisher et al., 2007: 52). The study of implementation is dominated by the concept of top-down centralized implementation and bottom-up implementation. The top-down school or the vertical dimension represented, for instance, by scholars like Van Meter Van Horn (1975), Hood (1976), Gunn (1978), Nakamura Smallwood (1980) and Mazmanian Sabatier (1983), conceive of implementation as the hierarchical execution of centrally defined policy intentions (Fisher et al., 2007:89). Proponents of the bottom-up or horizontal approach include Lipsky (1971, 1980), Ingram (1977), Elmore (1980), and Hjern Hull (1983) who have emphasized the fact that implementation consists of everyday problem strategies of street-level bureaucrats (Pressman Wildavsky, 1973; Colebatch, 2002; Fisher et al., 2007). In this case, the policy implementation correlates closely with the top-down approach because the implementation is based on the commitments and directives from the top echelon of the government i.e. Minister of Health and Ministry of Health. 1.1.5. Evaluation. Finally, evaluation is the post hoc analysis of policies and programmes carried out by government agencies themselves, outside consultants, the press, and the public (Dye, 2002:15) through collecting, testing, and interpreting information about the implementation and effectiveness of existing policies and public programmes (Majone, 1989: 167). The plausible normative rationale is that policy making should be appraised against intended objectives and impacts form the starting point of policy evaluation, which forms the basis for justifying government actions for continuation or termination of public programmes and enables accountability of government offices especially in democratic setting (Majone, 1989). However, from the case study, it is unclear whether any form of evaluation was carried out or not. 2. Advantages. Despite depicting the developments of the Tobacco Act in a series of stages, as mentioned by Hogwood Gunn (1984) in the dividing lines between the various activities are artificial and policy makers are unlikely to perform them consciously or in the implied logical order (Hogwood Gunn, 58), Lasswell, as Hudson Lowe (2004) note, did not conceptualized these stages as real, in the sense that they encompass clear beginnings and ends. Rather, their function being merely analytic-to help us explore different dimensions of the policy process. He [Lasswell] is more concerned with the value systems, institutions and wider social processes that shaped policy in the real world (Hudson Lowe, 2004: 5). Therefore the process model does provide valuable descriptive analysis of the policy process. As explained above, the process model helps to disaggregate an otherwise seamless web of public policy transactions, as each segment and transition are distinguished by differentiated actions and purposes. Furthermore, the cumulative analyses of the various stages, arguably, contribute to the disentangling of the intricate political and social interdependencies, manifested in the policy arena, to bring about an ordered and manageable system  [6]  (DeLeon, 1983). Furthermore, this process framework has significant strategic implications. Firstly, by analyzing the policy actors and processes in discrete stages, it assists in identifying how stakeholders may support or resist health policies (ODI, 2007); and therefore develop strategies in building winning coalitions as mentioned by Easton (1979) which states how the process model lend themselves to the identification and study of interactions, not only among the various stages in the process but also among various participating organizations and between organizations and the lager social and economic environment (cited in Hogwood Gunn, 1989: 25). Although this might be more applicable to the ACF, such advantage also applies to the process model especially during the agenda setting phase. As described above, in the agenda setting phase, the process model highlighted and identified various policy stakeholders and analyzed the relationship of policy advocacies which resisted (Tobacco Manufacture rs and Tobacco Workers Union) against those whom supported the bill (Minister of Health and Non Smokers Association); thereby enabling the assessment of the cumulative effects of various actors  [7]  , forces, and institutions that interacts in the policy process and therefore shape its outcome(s) (Jann Wegrich [2007] cited in Fisher, Miller, Sidney, 2007: 44). Secondly, it also helps in identifying and addressing various obstacles that undermine successful implementation of policies (ODI, 2007). The process model follows the assumption of how public policy making is a goal oriented process aimed to reach a goal or realize an objective or a purpose (Anderson, 1984 cited in Colebatch, 2002:85), henceforth policy makers are able to identify constraints, which in this case, a negotiation with oppositions and gathering public support for the bill ensured the successful adoption of the bill. Finally as pointed out by Hogwood Gunn (1984), the process framework is rather flexible in the sense that it enables us to systematize existing knowledge without precluding the integrating of future insights (about stages, influences, interactions, etc) to the framework (Hogwood Gunn, 1984: 25). In other words, it improves the prospects of technical evidence considered during policy formulation leading to evidence based policy making. The most common method in the British government in gathering technical information for systematic analysis of policies is through trial and error achieved by carrying out a pilot test before actual implementation of policies. 3. Criticisms: A better understanding in policy making. On the contrary, Parkinson (2008) in his lecture, quite rightly so, argue that the process model resembles a mechanistic tool that describes checklists of parts present in the policy making arena; parallel to Nakamuras (1987) notion of a textbook approach (Sabatier, 1999). Henceforth, the top down legalistic framework is an artificial portrayal of the policy process (Dunn, 1981; Sabatier, 1999) as stated by Lindblom (1993) that deliberate, orderly steps are therefore not an accurate portrayal of how the policy process actually works. Policy making is, instead, a complexly inter-active process without beginning or end (Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993: 11). In other words, these processes do not evolve in a pattern of clear cut sequences; instead the stages are constantly meshed and entangled in an ongoing process which is more accurately resembles a primeval soup (Kingdon, 1995; Howlett Ramesh; 1995). Therefore, the process model leads to the imposition of hypothetical explanation of future events which may be inappropriate or misleading with actions occurring fitfully as problems become matched with policy ideas considered to be in the political interests of a working majority of the partisans with influence over the policy domain (Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993 : 10). 3.1. Rationalization of processes. Hogwood Gunn (1984) question the coherence and rationality of the process model as a blueprint for action by giving rational explanation or justification of past acts, even when the acts in question do not lend themselves to such treatment (Hogwood Gunn, 1984: 26). Furthermore, Lindblom (1993) also argue that the stages are not hierarchical which proceeds from agenda setting and concluding with evaluation; rather they often overlap loop with each other as analysis proceeds. This is further elaborated below. Firstly, Lindblom (1993) argue that there may not even be a stage when problem definition occurs, since participants often vary widely in their ideas about the problem (Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993:10). He explains that this is because policy sometimes is formed from a compromise among political participants, moreover, none of whom had in mind quite the problem to which the agreed policy responds (Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993:10). Secondly, Lindblom Woodhouse (1993) also point out the inaccuracy to suggest that the decision-making phase exist. As suggested by Heclo (1972) a policy can consist of what is not being done (Hogwood Gunn, 1984: 21) and, thus, equally important, are the decisions to keep issues, that would be inconvenient, firmly off the agenda for political success in winning the disputes that arise. In other words, policy may emerge without any explicit decision, by failure to act as or the power of nondecision making (Bachrach Baratz, 1962; Heclo, 1972). Bachrach Baratz (1962) which exhibits the existence of institutional bias so that key groups are excluded in what is termed as the three dimensional view of power, in which power is used to exercise to control over the agenda of politics and of the ways in which potential issues are kept out of the political process (Lukes, 2005: 25). Furthermore, stating decisions are taken exclusively in the decision-making phase is rather inaccurate, becaus e in reality, decisions are constantly being made regardless of the stages you are in. For example, during the policy formulation, policy makers makes decisions on which alternatives to adopt for consideration and hence to implement; and during the implementation stages, policy makers make decisions on the choices of policy instruments to be utilized (Hill, 1993; Howlett Ramesh, 2003). Thirdly, Lindblom Woodhouse (1993) also argued that implementation and evaluation cannot be separated from the other steps. As mentioned by Lindblom Woodhouse (1993) an attempt to implement one policy almost always brings new problems onto the agenda, meaning the implementation and the step called agenda building collapse into each other (Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993: 10). An example from the case study is that during the implementation of the Quebec Tobacco Act, to include taxation on tobacco and a ban on tobacco sponsored arts and sports event, subsequently led to the discovery that such measure might impinge the competitiveness of tobacco industries and affect the economy of the province. Finally, policy evaluation often regarded as the end of the line, does not actually constitute a step in policy making unless it throws light on possible next moves in policy, in which case evaluation becomes intertwined with all other attempts to appraise and formulate options for reshaping government activity (Lindblom Woodhouse, 1993: 10). Moreover, I think that the evaluation phase overlaps with the agenda setting phase and the policy formulation phase. During the agenda setting and policy formulation phase, policies are also evaluated needed to persuade and influence people in adopting and supporting the bill. 3.2. Multiplicity of interactions. On the other hand, Sabatier (1999) note the framework oriented scholars towards looking at just one stage at a time, thus neglecting the entirety of the process by stating that they portrayed a disjointed, episodic process rather than a more ongoing, continuous one (Sabatier, 1999: 23). In addition, Sabatier Jenkins Smith (1999) set out 5 major deficiency of the heuristic approach; it provides little description of how policy moves from one stage to another; it cannot be tested empirically; it is essentially a top down which fails to take account of street-level and other actors; and it disregards multiple levels of governmental interactions. Finally, it does not provide an integrated view on the gathering of policy related information, apart from the evaluation phase (Parsons, 1995; Sabatier, 1999) as pointed out by (Majone, 1989) the effectiveness in solving social problems centres in bringing more information and systematic analysis into the policy making process. From the case study, it is clear that the process model is limited in its capacity to provide institutional analysis of government interactions because it is primarily conceived to provide systematic analysis of the overall policy making process, unlike institutionalism perspective which focuses on the role and relationship of government institutions which regards public policy as an institutional output of the mechanisms of the government where it is authoritatively determined, implemented and enforced by these institutions (Dye, 2002:12). Furthermore, the process model adheres to the view that policy making is a hierarchical top down process which initiates from agenda setting and finally ends with evaluation stage and therefore only takes account of authorized decision makers. Finally it is also rather limited in empirical research on each stage and only makes an attempt to describe systematic gathering of information in the evaluation phase only. However, on the other hand, I wou ld have to disagree with Sabatier (1999) in that the process model does not provide clear distinction between the stages and the progression from one phase to another. I think the primary distinction of the stagist model lies in the context of policy environment and policy stakeholders involved  [8]  . Henceforth taking the definitions which I presented above of each stage and the ones offered by Dye (2002: 14-15), the demarcations between the stages are summarized in the table below: Phase Policy Stakeholder (i.e. who are involved) Policy Environment (i.e. where does it take place) 1. Problem identification Individuals, public and private organizations, interest groups, think tanks, mass media and policy communities. Public debates, consultation with public, and sometimes top level government officials identify it themselves. 2. Agenda setting Public officials acting as gatekeepers as well as involvement of policy entrepreneurs. Mostly done by the Executive branch of the government and in government offices. 3. Policy formulation Primarily done by government officials in Executive agencies, but may also involve interest groups, congressional committees, and think tanks. Again done in Executive government offices but may also involve the Legislative branch of the government i.e. Parliament or Senate. 4. Implementation Primarily street-level bureaucrats and occasionally involving public participation. Carried out in formal government institutions. 5. Evaluation Done by government agencies but may also involve the public through medias, consultants and think tank organizations. Also very important is the use of citizen juries to evaluate public programmes. Evaluation is carried out in government offices, but also may be carried out in NGO organizations (such as EU, UN etc) and non-governmental institutions. In addition, Breton et al., (2008) successfully utilize the ACF to explain how the interactions of multiple policy advocacies have impacted policy change, which is another major deficiency of the stagist heuristic model. As mentioned by Majone (1989), both continuity and change are inherent in the conception of policy (Majone, 1989: 35) and therefore should be accounted for in the models in its capacity to comprehensively capture the policy making process. For example, the ACF manage to show how the changes in the external events directly impact the core beliefs of tobacco subsystems and hence resulted in the adoption of Tobacco Act (Refer to Fig.2 in Breton et al., 2002: 1683). However unlike the ACF, process model does not provide description on how policies are impacted by change. Moreover the process model assumes that every policies starts from scratch i.e. always starts by identification of problems. Conversely, policies may be enacted not from new problems or opportunities that emerge, rather continuation of past policies in which case, the problem identification phase may be invalid. 4. Conclusion In conclusion, the process model provides valuable insights in directing analysts attention to critical features in the policymaking process, and on elucidating the policy process paradigm. Furthermore, although the ACF model is conceived to account for the entire policy process, it is limited in its capacity to explain only the policy formation (i.e. agenda setting and decision making). In other words, both models differ in their level of analysis, which I hope have been successfully demonstrated above. On the other hand, the idea of breaking down the making of public policy into phases, may well impose stages on reality that is infinitely more complex, fluid and interactive; but to adopt a cyclical metaphor, it is not necessarily an unreasonable or unrealistic way of looking at what happens when public policy is made. Nonetheless, the process model does still provide some useful insights in public policy making. In my opinion, the most important thing is not to look at one best model to explain a particular policy rather a combination of models is needed as pointed out by Dye (2002: 12): These models are not competitive in the sense that any one of them could be judged best. Each one provides a separate focus on political life, and each can help us to understand different things about public policy. Although some policies appear at first glance to lend themselves to explanation by one particular model, most policies are a combination of rational planning, incrementalism, interest group activity, elite preferences, game playing, public choice, political processes, and institutional influences.

The secret of Wal-Marts success :: essays research papers

The world's largest retailer, Wal-Mart, is moving into Europe, and the UK is its second target after Germany. BBC News Online's Tim Weber looks at the secrets behind the company's success. The figures make the owners of corner shops and small retail chains shudder: Wal-Mart operates 3,601 stores, employs more than 910,000 people world-wide, sales amounted last year to $137.6bn (Â £85.7bn) - equivalent to a tenth of Britain's total economic output. Patrick O'Connell: The largest retailer in the world began life as a single store in Arkansas The company serves about 90 million customers every week and has stores in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, China, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, Argentina and South Korea. Where Wal-Mart treads, competitors tremble. UK supermarkets will face tough times, but consumers are bound to reap the benefits. Expansion Wal-Mart is the grand-daddy of all discount chains. Its huge US stores, twice the size of the largest European hypermarket, sell everything from food to clothing to sporting goods to hardware. Richard Quest delves into the secret of Wal-Mart's success Operating from cheap out-of-town warehouse sites, Wal-Mart's discount prices have trounced the competition. After the death of founder Sam Walton in 1992, the company briefly seemed to have lost its way. But under the guidance of new chief executive and chairman David Glass it soon re-invented itself. Wal-Mart offers a one-stop shopping experience, from groceries and clothing to hardware and work-out equipment Wal-Mart is now stronger than ever. Sales are rising again - up 17% last year. Strong consumer spending in the United States has helped the company's fortunes. But the main driving force of future revenues will be Wal-Mart's programme of relentless international expansion. In Europe the company has only entered the German market so far, buying 21 Wertkauf stores a year ago and adding 74 Interspar shops last autumn. Bob Martin, president of Wal-Mart's international operations, says he wants to serve "a good deal of Europe". And one of his vice-presidents, Carlos Criado-Perez, adds: "We are looking for any open door that could open in Europe." Wal-Mart wants to set up shop in cyberspace as well. Mr Martin believes the Internet is "at the threshold" of taking off and he wants his company to be "a dominant player". The secret of Sam's success Wal-Mart is a relatively young company, founded 37 years ago by Sam Walton. Sam Walton, self-made man and an American legend

Marlow’s Metamorphosis in Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness Essay

Marlow’s Metamorphosis in Heart of Darkness Conrad's novel, Heart of Darkness, relies on the historical period of imperialism to illuminate its protagonist, Charlie Marlow, and his struggle with two opposite value systems. Marlow undergoes a catharsis during his trip to the Congo and learns of the effects of imperialism. I will analyze Marlow's change, which is caused by his exposure to the imperialistic nature of the historical period in which he lived. Marlow goes to the Congo River to report on Mr. Kurtz, a valuable officer, to their employer. When he sets sail, he does not know what to expect. When his journey is complete, his experiences have changed him forever. Heart of Darkness is a story of one man's journey through the African Congo and the enlightenment of his soul. Marlow begins his voyage as an ordinary English sailor who is traveling to the African Congo to work. He is an Englishmen through and through. He has never been exposed to any culture similar to the one he will encounter in Africa, and he has no idea about the drastically different culture that exists there. Throughout the book, Conrad, via Marlow's observations, reveals to the reader the naive mentality of Europeans. Marlow also shares this naivetà © in the beginning of his voyage. However, after his first few moments in the Congo, he realizes the ignorance he and all his comrades possess. We first recognize the general naivetà © of the Europeans when Marlow's aunt sees him for the last time before he embarks on his journey. She assumes that the voyage is a mission of "weaning those ignorant millions from their horrid ways [. . .]" (line 16). In reality, however, the Euro peans are there in the name of imperialism and their sole objective is to earn... ... Johnson, Bruce. â€Å"Conrad’s Impressionism and Watt’s â€Å"Delayed Decoding.† Conrad Revisited: Essays for the Eighties: 51-70. By Ross C Murfin. University: The Univ. of Alabama, 1985. Rpt. in Heart of Darkness: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism. Ed. Kimbrough, Robert. 3rd ed. Norton Critical Edition, New York: Norton, 1988. McLauchlan, Juliet. â€Å"The Value and Significance of Heart of Darkness.† Conradia 15 (1983): 3-21. Rpt. in Heart of Darkness: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism. Ed. Kimbrough, Robert. 3rd ed. Norton Critical Edition, New York: Norton, 1988. Stewart, Garrett. â€Å"Lying as Dying in Heart of Darkness.† PMLA 95 (1980): 319-31. Rpt. in Heart of Darkness: An Authoritative Text, Backgrounds and Sources, Criticism. Ed. Kimbrough, Robert. 3rd ed. Norton Critical Edition, New York: Norton, 1988.

A Journey Through Music Essay

One warm summer evening just over a year ago, I picked out a book from my parents’ bookshelf and flipped to a random page while attempting to pass time. The book, known as the Tao-te-ching, is a famous work by the ancient Chinese Philosopher Lao-Tzu written more than 2500 years ago. Because of its age, the book is written in old Chinese, which makes it very difficult to read. Interested just in passing a few minutes, however, I flipped through the pages at random, looking for anything to catch my attention. And suddenly, right in front of my eyes, I see a quote which sets my brain in motion: â€Å"This journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. † In general, I do not think quotes can be long enough to be meaningful. However, looking at this quote, I feel a shiver run down my spine as I realize that these words written far back in time have a true meaning to me. For in my own lifetime, one small decision that my family made influenced my whole life, and has led me to journey many miles both physically and mentally. It was when I was four years old that I took the first step in a journey which would influence my life forever. My cousin was learning to play the piano and her parents suggested that I learn to play as well. I was enthusiastic about the idea of doing something new, although at the time I had no idea of the amount of impact this one decision would have on my life. From very early in my studies, I began to develop an emotional connection to music. While I was playing the piano, it seemed as if feelings and thoughts which had been living inside of me were suddenly being released into the outside world. I was struck by the power of music; while enjoying one of Prokofiev’s War Sonatas, I was transported to the dark, dangerous place that was Russia during World War II, whereas while performing a work by Mozart, I was transported to a gamboling, carefree, and joyful world filled with youthful innocence and vigor. And music has had the power to bring me to many new physical places as well. Thanks to the piano I have traveled across Asia and Europe to play with various orchestras and to compete in numerous competitions. I have met and played for luminaries such as US secretary of state Hilary Clinton. And finally, piano brought me to America where I continued my studies at the Juilliard School. Funnily enough, my travels as a result of the piano made me realize the diversity that exists in the world; they made me realize how many different ideas and people all exist simultaneously. And this brought me a desire to learn as much as I can, to expand my intellectual and physical horizons, and to understand as much of the world as I can. This is what led me to the decision not just to attend a Music Conservatory, but to enter an Academic University and venture into new territory. And while I eagerly await this unknown path I am about to take, I am certain of one thing: without the tentative first step of beginning the Piano that I took when I was four, the eye-opening journey I have taken over the past thirteen years would never have begun. And I know for sure that the Piano will always remain a part of my life.

Fevicol

Fevicol was launched in 1959 and has a long history as a brand used exclusively by carpenters. It later moved into the everyday use category. The campaign, developed by Ogilvy & Mather, was initially aired across the country in teaser poster ads and prints. The advertisements are created in the old traditional Indian cinema poster style, with ‘hand painted’ graphics and vivid colors. The ad takes on the form of a mini movie with a father dressing up his daughter as a male character for a skit. To complete the look, he glues on a moustache with a drop of Fevicol. Unfortunately for his daughter, it stays in place for good. The moustache is with her through good times and bad, until her very last breath. A baby with a moustache is born the moment she passes away as a nod to the concept of reincarnation. Piyush Pandey, executive chairman and CD for South Asia at Ogilvy & Mather was initially tasked to develop a campaign for another brand under the Pidilite umbrella, Fevitite. â€Å"Fevitite is too small a brand for a big idea like this. Take the money all over again and shoot it for Fevicol, and that was the beginning of everything. † Ogilvy & Mather has turned a brand that does not immediately lend itself to creativity into an advertising legend over the past five decades. Work for the brand has scooped 99 awards over the past twenty years. â€Å"To be honest, we didn’t have a clue about the brand aspect when we started out, back then. Piyush happened to us, and I would say 1988-1999 was when the big leap took place,† said Madhukar B Parekh, managing director of Pidilite Industries.