Tuesday, January 28, 2020

A Report On The Fiji Water | Environmental Analysis

A Report On The Fiji Water | Environmental Analysis The factors which contributed to the marketing success of Fiji Water were its unique product positioning, innovative packaging, premium-product pricing, effective distribution, and image-creating publicity. Due to its light mineralization, FIJI Water was characterized by a smooth taste and no aftertaste. The light mineralization also gave the water a clean, pure taste. In addition to superb taste, the water had a high level of silica, the ingredient that was believed to promote rejuvenation and anti-aging. Also, the water is very pure as the source of the water was a virgin, unpolluted ecosystem. Another important element was packaging. For many years, all bottles containing natural water were the same round, with paper labels. Natural Waters of Viti Ltd. was the first company in the industry to use a square bottle. Furthermore, since FIJI was the only brand that came from a tropical paradise, the packaging reflected that in an artful and compelling way: consumers could see that immediately when they looked at the unique square bottle bearing bright, three-dimensional graphics. Similarly to packaging, a premium-price policy reinforced the products high-quality image. Another important factor that had contributed to FIJI Waters success was its distribution. Having good distributors was important in that it enabled the brand to be well-placed in and readily available to the market. Building an image of the high quality, uniqueness and class of the product was another aspect of this successful marketing campaign. The brand achieved an explosive growth early on, mostly through word-of-mouth advertising, free product placement and targeted sampling. FIJI Water targeted locations and venues that resonated with the brands premium image. What does it mean for FIJI Water to go carbon negative?How does one measure and report carbon footprints of products?Is the carbon footprint of FIJIWater big compared to other products? Answer: In response to the environmentalists criticism, in 2008 FIJI Water launched a carbon negative PR campaign. As part of its carbon negative campaign, FIJI Water was planning to offset its total carbon footprint by 120 per cent, by removing from the earths atmosphere not only all the emissions its activities produced, but also an additional 20 per cent. In that sense, the companys impact on carbon emissions would be negative. While measuring its carbon footprint, FIJI Water calculated its carbon emissions across every stage in the product lifecycle: starting from producing raw materials for packaging, through transporting raw materials and equipment to the plant, manufacturing and filling bottles, shipping the product from Fiji to markets worldwide, distributing the product, refrigerating the product in stores, restaurants, and other outlets, to disposing/recycling the packaging waste. It estimated that about 75 per cent of its carbon emissions resulted from the operations of supply chain partners. Fiji is using staggering amounts of energy, water, and fossil fuels to take a naturally occurring product, put it in an inherently problematic container and then have that forever-container tossed into landfills or incinerators all over America. A few important figures for environmental impact included: 5,500 miles per trip from Fiji to Los Angeles for transportation 46 million gallons of fossil fuel 1.3 billion gallons of water 216,000,000 pounds of greenhouse gases produced What is greenwashing and how can it be identified?Do you think FIJI Water is engaged in greenwashing?What could the company do to gain environmental credibility? Greenwashing is defined as Disinformation disseminated by an organisation so as to present an environmentally responsible public image. As part of its carbon negative campaign, FIJI Water was planning to offset its total carbon footprint by120 per cent, thereby becoming carbon negative. FIJI Water claimed to have already implemented several measures to reduce its carbon emissions. By optimizing its logistics, the company had reduced trucking miles by 26 per cent on average. FIJI Waters 1.5-litre bottle had been redesigned to reduce the packaging by seven per cent. The company had also managed to reduce motor fuel consumption in Fiji by 50 per cent by using more fuel-efficient trucks in transporting its products from the plant to ports. Conservation groups however, argued that the new website launched by FIJI Water in 2008 (www.fijigreen.com) to sell its carbon negative message failed to provide a detailed description of the actual calculation of its carbon footprint and its reduction by the measures that were promised to be implemented in the future. At the same time, the groups pointed to the basic carbon footprint advantages of consuming local tap water. They argued that the new slogan every drop is green was straightforward greenwashing pushed to its limits. Green researchers found that the manufacture and transport of that one kilogram bottle of Fiji water consumed 26.88 kilograms of water (7.1 gallons), .849 kilograms of fossil fuel (one litre or .26 gallons) and emitted 562 grams of Greenhouse Gases (1.2 pounds). So, we can say that Fiji Water engaged in Greenwashing. In order to gain credibility, it will have to live up to its promise of becoming a carbon negative company. Any attempt to engage in greenwashing will be quickly identified and protested by environmental groups. Keeping true to its slogan every drop is green will require substantial new investment in a renewable energy plant and equipment and in tree-planting offset activities. Designing and implementing a sustainable growth strategy and a socially and environmentally responsible marketing plan will require dealing effectively with the promise to go carbon negative as well as meeting the demanding needs of customers, clients and other stakeholders.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

To Kill A Mockingbird Essay: Use of Symbols and Symbolism :: Kill Mockingbird essays

Use of Symbolism in To Kill a Mockingbird It is quite noticeable that some characters' names in To Kill a Mockingbird are implicitly symbolic. Scout, for example, like the familiar military scouts who were dispatched from the main body to gather information, is a seeker, scouting out new areas of experience. Additionally, Atticus's name is a reference to the district Attica of ancient Greece in which Athens was located. In some way Atticus's rational approach to life is similar to that of ancient philosophers, especially the Stoics: "The four cardinal virtues of the Stoic philosophy are wisdom, courage, justice and temperance. All people are manifestations of the one universal spirit and should, according to the Stoics, love and help another, regardless of rank and wealth" (Encarta Encyclopedia). Atticus is the main character who serves these four virtues, justice, wisdom, courage and temperance in the story, just like the ancient philosophers of Athens did. As a lawyer he is a faithful servant of justice for all people, bla ck or white. His wisdom lies not in his education but in the way he raises his children and his knowledge of people's attitude. For him courage is Mrs Dubose's effort to break from morphine. He says to Jem the day she died: "I wanted to show you what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what" (118). From his point of view, Atticus showed his courage when he accepted the Tom Robinson case even though he knew beforehand that it was a lost battle. And, finally, the reader knows he believes in temperance when he advises Scout and Jem not to get carried away by people's provocation, and sets the example when he does not react to Bob Ewell's threats. Therefore it becomes evident that Atticus could easily be considered a Stoic as he made their philosophy his way of living. He could be a citizen of ancient Attica as his name implies. Another symbol in the story is Jem's broken arm as well as Scout's ham costume. It has been mentioned that Atticus did not expect Jem to be so greatly affected by the events of the trial. Scout was more likely to be influenced because she was younger.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

Counter Trade

Counter Trade Counter Trade: Unquestionably, currency is the preferred payment medium for any export or import transaction—it is easy, fast, and straightforward to transact. Sometimes, though, compa ¬nies must adapt to the reality that buyers in many countries cannot do so, whether due to the fact that their home country's currency is nonconvertible, the country doesn't have enough cash, or it doesn't have sufficient lines of credit. Sometimes companies and coun ¬tries find it practically impossible to generate enough foreign exchange to pay for imports.In recourse, they devise creative ways to buy products. For example, Indonesia traded 40,000 tons of palm oil, worth about US$15 million, with Russia in exchange for Russian Sukhoi fighter aircraft. This trade, like others that fall under the umbrella term countertrade, illustrates that buyers and sellers often find creative ways of settling pay ¬ment for imports and exports. Countertrade refers to any one of several diff erent arrangements that parties negoti ¬ate so that they can trade goods and services with limited or no use of currency.Technically, countertrade can be divided into two basic types: barter, based on clearing arrangements used to avoid money-based exchange; and buybacks, offsets, and counter purchase, which are used to impose reciprocal commitments. Countertrade is an inefficient way of doing business. By default, companies prefer the straightforward efficiency of cash or credit. In the case of countertrade, rather than sim ¬ply consulting current foreign exchange rates, buyers and sellers must enter complex and time-consuming negotiations to reach a fair value on the exchange—how many gallons of palm oil for how many planes, for example.In some situations, the goods that are sent as payment may be poor quality, packaged unattractively, or difficult to sell and service. Also, there is a lot of room for price and financial distortion in countertrade deals, given that nonm arket forces set the prices of these goods. Ultimately, countertrade and its vari ¬ations threaten free market forces with protectionism and price fixing that can complicate trade relations with other countries. Still, the harsh reality of international trade means that countertrade is often unavoid ¬able for companies that want to do business in markets that have limited or no access to cash or credit.Complicating matters is the fact that as much as companies may dislike them, many emerging markets prefer forms of countertrade to preserve their limited monetary assets, generate foreign exchange, and improve the balance of trade. In addi-tion, these methods help emerging markets reduce their need to borrow working capital as well as let them access the technology and marketing expertise of MNEs. More signif ¬icantly, benefits beyond financing the immediate transaction do accrue to companies.Accepting the option to countertrade shows managers' good faith and flexibility in the face of onerous conditions. These sensitivities can position the firm to gain preferential access to emerging markets. Philosophically, the idea of countertrade fits with many countries' basic notions of business. For example, the idea of â€Å"barter and trade† is part of some African traditions that are reluctant to conform to â€Å"Euro-centric† methods of cash payment. It is difficult to gauge the size of the countertrade market. Estimates in the past have ranged from 10 to 40 percent of total global exports.This figure has proven tough to verify due to inconsistent reporting and disclosure. Countertrade generally increases in economies that are experiencing widespread economic problems. In Argentina, countertrade among common citizens has increased due to a severe shortage of cash. There are several types of countertrade. The three most common ares- (1) Barter Barter, the oldest form of countertrade, is a transaction in which goods or services are traded for goods or services of equal value without any exchange of cash or credit.Each term of the exchange is negotiated in terms of the immediate trade of goods or services. For instance, Thailand and Indonesia signed a $40 million deal in which Indonesia would supply Thailand with an agricultural aircraft, train carriages, and fertilizer in exchange for Thai rice—no monies were or would be exchanged. There are barter firms that act as an intermediary between the exporter and importer, often taking title to the goods received by the exporter for a price or selling the goods for a fee and a percentage of the sales value. (2) BuybacksBuybacks are products the exporter receives as payment that are related to or originate from the original export. Buyback arrangements are quite common in the sale of technology, licenses, and even complete â€Å"turnkey† factories. Payment is made in full or in part either by products manufactured in the new facility or by production from the new licens e or tech ¬nology. Buyback countertrade is especially popular for turnkey infrastructure projects. For example, the customer pays for the project, say a steel mill, with government-backed long-term credit.The exporting contractor first guarantees that the project will work when com ¬pleted and then agree to buy back products or services from the completed facility or to serve as a distributor for products exported from the host country. The host-country buyer uses these hard currency payments to liquidate the original long-term credit. Throughout the relationship, no cash changes hands and no credit arrangements are necessary. The buy-back contract merely states that the output from the newly constructed facility is to be applied to the original price of the exports.This sort of arrangement was worked out between PepsiCo and Russia. Pepsi provided syrup to state-owned bottling plants in Russia and received Stolichnaya vodka in return, which it then marketed in the West. (3) Offs et Trade An increasingly important form of countertrade is offset trade, a transaction that takes place when an exporter sells products for cash and then helps the importer find opportuni ¬ties to earn hard currency. Offsets are most often used for big-ticket items, such as military sales.The Czech government made offset the deciding factor, as opposed to technical and performance criteria and price, in its jet fighter procurement. Offset arrangements are usually one of two types. 1. Direct offsets include any business that relates directly to the export. Generally, the exporter seeks contractors in the importer's country to joint-venture or coproduce certain parts if applicable. For example, an aircraft exporter could partner with a company in the importer's country to manufacture components that would be used in the manufacture of the aircraft. . Indirect offsets include all business unrelated to the export. Generally, the exporter is asked by the importer's government to buy a country's goods or invest in an unre ¬lated business. Some of the most common direct offset practices in military sales include coproduction, licensed production, subcontractor production, overseas investment, and technology transfer. Examples of indirect offsets might include assisting in the export of unrelated products from the host country or generating tourist revenues for the host country.

Friday, January 3, 2020

Nora s. Newcombe A Canadian American Researcher

Nora S. Newcombe is a Canadian-American researcher who was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1951. In the year of 1972, Nora graduated with a B.A in Psychology at Antioch College. She would later study at Harvard University and acquire her Ph.D. in Psychology and Social Relations in 1976. Nora previously taught at Penn State University and is now a Laura H. Carnell professor of psychology at Temple University. She also is PI of the Spatial Intelligence and Learning Center. Newcombe has received numerous awards and honors in her line of work, among these awards are the Women in Cognitive Science mentor award and the Award for Distinguished Service to Psychological Science. She is also a renowned member of four divisions of the American Psychological Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy Of Arts and Sciences, and the Society Of Experimental Psychologists. Nora has written various books, articles and journals. She also works as an edito r for numerous publications and has appeared in reviews and panels. Nora’s primary focus is spatial development and cognition. As an investigator of the Spatial Intelligence and Learning Center, Nora asserts how spatial learning can impact a child’s learning in mathematics and science and how it carries an important role in early childhood education. There is evidence to suggest that high spatial abilities have a strong connection with a child’s future success in STEM careers and that