Internship Report L T free essay sample

While doing the internship we got to enhance our knowledge as well as learned unction and activities of HER department. What LT is and basically what the Power department of LT is into is brought into lime light in this report. Table of Content This report is in accordance with the internship carried after Pith Semester as to gain experience about corporate life and about the work done in an organization. Lengthener was carried in Larsen Doubt Ltd under the branch of LT Power. The focus of the internship was on Human Resource Department of Power.The report contains various functions like Learning and Development, Recruitment, Performance Appraisal, Statutory Compliances, Employee Engagement, Employee Benefits, Compensation and Manpower Planning/ Budgeting and also includes the Employee Life Cycle . Certain practical work like Document Management and a glimpse of HER audit was given by the organization to experience and Theoretical knowledge about the HER practices taken in the organization. We will write a custom essay sample on Internship Report L T or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Larsen Doubt Limited Larsen Doubt is a technology, engineering, construction, manufacturing and service company with global operations. Strong customer-orientation, an innovative spirit and the constant quest for top-class quality have enabled LT to attain and sustain leadership in its major lines of business for over seven decades. LT has set several global benchmarks of scale, speed and complexity in the projects it executes and the wide range of products it manufactures. With offerings that impact infrastructure development, hydrocarbon, power, aerospace and defense, the company is seen in the role of Nation-Builder.Internationally, LT has a wide presence with a manufacturing footprint that straddles eight countries, offices around the globe and collaborations with multiple global majors. HISTORY The company was found in 1938 by two Danish engineers- Henning Holly- Larsen and Sorer Kristin Doubt from a fledgling partnership firm in Iambi, it has grown into a publicly held company, With the distinction of having a significant part of its equity held by its own employees Mr.. Holly Larsen and Mr. .S. K. Doubt Were Chemical and Civil Engineers respectively, who where working with a Danish company for there cement plant business. They visited India to explore cement business opportunities here. But during the world war, they found opportunity to start their own repair shop for military equipment, daily equipment, etc. The company soon started manufacturing daily equipment and started Engineering Construction Company nil 944. In the early 1 asss, L became public limited company.VISION L shall be a professionally-managed Indian Multinational, Committed to total customer satisfaction And enhancing shareholder value. L-ites shall be an innovative, Entrepreneurial and empowered team Constant .NET creating value And attaining global benchmarks. L shall foster a culture of caring, Trust and continuous learning While meeting expectations Of Employees, stakeholders and society. Chapter I: POWER L is uniquely positioned as the only private sector company in India with al-encompassing capabilities in the power sector.It delivers complete EPIC solutions for coal-based supercritical and gas-based thermal power plants. The capability spectrum extends across every facet -? engineering, manufacturing project management, construction and commissioning. In- house capabilities account for 85% of the total power generation value chain. Customized offerings include: *Complete EPIC *BAT Island *Boiler Island *Turbine Island * Complete Balance of Plant. It has Global alliances with the industry leaders like Sergeant Lund, MI, MELEE, Hoyden, Clyde Bergmann and CM ensure the benefits of state-of-the-art technology.L Power believes in growth in consonances with the aspirations of society and the nation. Its commitment to environment is exemplified through its distinctive super- critical technology, widely acknowledged as being more environment friendly than conventional modes of generating power. L Power has one of the worlds largest integrated manufacturing facilities for power at Hazier (Gujarat). A waterfront location offers logistical advantages for shipment and transport. The CEO and MD of LT is Mr.. K. Pentagrams and Executive Chairman is Mr.. A. M. Nazi.POWER L Power shall be Indians most preferred provider f equipment services and turnkey solutions for fossils fuel-based power plants and a leading contributor to the nations power generation capacity. MISSION L Power shall provide Products based on efficient and environment-friendly technology, consistently surpassing customers expectations of quality on-time delivery. L Power shall follow fair, transparent and ethical practices in its interactions with all stake holders and achieve performance excellence by innovation and continuous improvement in people, product and services.L Power shall foster a cuter of care, trust, challenges and empowerment among its employees Organizational Structure Employee Grade Structure: Chapter II: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT The Human Resource Team at L Power is segregated into 3 main parts, they are: Talent Acquisition People Management Process Learning and Development Talent Acquisition: Talent Acquisition can be termed as the first phase or segregation of HER Department. This basically does the work of Recruiting and Selecting. This phase is carried on through a complete planned procedure. The procedure is as follows; 1 . Sourcing: Sourcing is basically selecting the source through which the recruitment is actually to be carried out from. The source can be external or internal. External is wherein biblically notice is given or outsourcing. Internal sourcing is wherein the employees themselves suggest people for the organization through the scheme of Mantrap. Or when transfer or promotion is given. L Power the Internal sources like Re-employment of ex- employees, internal advertisement, Transfer, and Promotion were as external sources are Campus interviews, consultancy firm, Portals, Agency and walk-in- interviews are used. 2. Screening: The given applications are screened and the unnecessary or irrelevant applications are rejected. The most relevant axis for screening are experience, skills, education, behavior etc. 3. Interviews: After screening, the applicants who are selected are called for an interview wherein the skills and qualification is assessed.Here the candidates are either selected, rejected or kept in hold by the company. 4. Offer disclosure: If selected, an offer disclosure is given to the candidate, at this stage, where he is disclosed with the package and grade, and he can negotiate and accept or reject the job offer. If kept on hold, the company may call him in future. 5. Joining Formality: In this stage the employees joining formalities like preference check, examination, signing of bond and such procedures are done. 6.Appointment Letter: Here the employee is given Appointment letter and it is the first contractual document of an employee with the company. People Management Process: This process is where the company maintains and manages the employees. Employees are the biggest asset of an organization. In todays competitive world, an organization which aspires for sustainable growth must realize that they need to adopt right people strategies to ensure that employees feel motivated and valued in the organization. Researches have proven that an engaged and motivated employee contributes to the overall productivity of an organization.Hence, employee engagement is the differentiating factor and provides competitive edge to the organization. People Management Process is the backbone of an HER function and immensely contributes to employee engagement by ensuring that the basics are in place and by deploying systems to build a culture of high performance. Our key focus in last three years was to bring more transparency in HER policies, enhance our service standards by responding promptly and effectively to employee quests and creating a Pe rformance Management System which is fair and objective. The MS is operated through CRISP Portal. PM team has partnered with business by taking up following roles a) Staffing Attendance, Leave Management, Salary Administration etc. B) Managing employee life cycle in the organization -Joining, Confirmation, Promotion, Transfer Separation c) Retention of Talent -? Attrition Analysis, Benefits Claims, Performance Appraisals Feedback Employees are our customers and one of the key roles performed by PM team is to receive and resolve employee queries in an effective and timely manner.A proper query resolution mechanism reduces the stress an employee otherwise goes through, helps us building good relationships with employees strengthens employees bond with the organization. Following are the key functions performed by People Management Process: a) Attendance and Leave Management b) Compensation Benefit Administrations c) Transfers, Postings and Deputations of the employees d) Long service awards e) Rewards and Promotions f) Door Access car ds, SEE cards and ID card issuance g) Confirmation, Resignation and Separations h) Site HER and Administration i) Employee service Portals Learning and Development:The Learning and Development team keeps training programs, arranges seminars and such programs for the development of their employees. Following are the kinds Of training provided by Learning and Development tear: a) Technical b) Functional c) Behavioral/ Managerial Technical training is business specific train innings, given for working with boilers, pipes, turbines etc. Through institutions like IMP (Institute of Project Management). Functional training is training program which is not dependent with the main domain of operations.Egg. Training for excel, Tally, Training related to SAP portals etc. Managerial Training is a long term training aerogram, where soft skills required at every level of organization, while joining/probation period or during promotions, are developed. Chapter Ill: HER PRACTICES in POWER The Main strength Of the companys HER practices lies in rigorous and continuous training in general management, technical disciplines and business policy and this made LT as one of the top companies with most innovative human resource management practice. . Employee Service Portals: Employees generally route their queries and grievances regarding any of the above stated functions through following modes: a) Through e-mails b) Through Telephone / In Person ) Through Employee Service Portals Since the use of the Portals, Organization has constantly evolved in terms of its systems, policies and its ability to integrate employees joining from various organizations. It was felt that many of the queries and grievances arise due to lack of awareness among employees can be reduced if some of this information is made available to employees at their desk. Hence, certain proactive steps are taken to make the information assistance available to employees in a manner convenient to them.Following steps have been taken to address the root cause of queries and grievances: a) Clearly defined role ND responsibility structure for the team members to ensure timely resolution of queries b) A well-structured joining process to make new joins feel welcome c) Effective admit castration of Attendance Leave Rogue laryngitis d) Transparency in Compensation benefit related policies e) Focused HER Intervention for Project Sites Many of the employee queries emanate due to lack of adequate information on HER Policies and procedures at the time of joining.Hence, conscious efforts are made to understand the expectation of a new joins with regard to his basic comfort, j oining process, clarity on the policies related to benefits, lams etc. There are various Employee portals used in HER Department which are as follows: a) SC (Share Service Center): This portal is mainly for employees Salary and Benefits. B) CRISP: This portal is maintained for Time and Attendance of the employees. ) E-Campus: Its for the Travel Tickets, Guest House, Holiday Home, Employee Directory and other such benefits. D) TEEMS: Its mainly for Travel Expenses Settlement. Most of the HER Activities and Function carried through SAP System (System, Applications and Products in Data Processing). There are three environments in SAP which are: 1. Development, 2. Quality Assurance and . Production. It can be customized according to business requirement. L power is currently using SAP-RE which is a client server and has Multi-user System. In HER. Allowing SAP Modules have been used for business information management solutions: Personal Administration (PA) Organizational Management (MM) Time and Attendance (TA) Performance Management System(MS) Employee Document Management System(DEEMS) Salary Reward Management Training and Development Employee Service Portal is a useful tool to achieve the following: a) Transparency in HER Policies and Processes b) Reduction in the processing time for Employee Benefits ) Smooth and effective handling of queries and grievances d) Capturing employee feedback, ideas etc.Employee Portals broadly encompasses: Employee Service Request a) Service Request: Employees can raise queries/requests b) HER Benefits: Employee can apply for HER benefits through system c) My Requests: Employees can check status of their requests under four categories: Service Requests Employee Benefit Requests New L Requests Wish t o Join New L Assistance: To assist new L if any initial support is awaited Mantrap: Links to the employee referral scheme Mantrap Information Section ) Employee Hand Book: PDF copy of Employee Hand Book available for employee reference b) Holiday list: Holiday list of all locations are available c) Celebration Photographs: Photographs of celebrations d) L Anthem, L Values, Vision Mission: PDF copies of each is available e) Executive Health Checkup: List Contact details of hospitals tied up with L f) My Planner: Employee can maintain his own calendar of important meetings, activities, appointments etc. Employee Bonding a) Birthday Wishes: Birthday wishes can be send to colleagues via email b) Appreciate: Appreciation messages for colleagues can be put here c) Society:Car Pool, Accommodation sharing Buy Sell, Discount Offers Employee Voice a) Your Ideas b) Opinion Poll c) Survey Corner d) Feedback e) To recognize employee voice through suggestions, opinion polls and surveys Other F eatures a) Training Calendar b) Training Team details c) Training repository d) Induction Presentations e) Fun @ Work: Fun Quotient- Four teams for employees to join based on interests f) Weekend Splash: Interactive sessions with experts for building work life balance on topics like health, hobbies etc. Some of the Key Features of Employee Portals: News Updates: This feature is used by HER to make important announcement or communicate any update in policies, procedures, simple facts about application procedures of Leaves, Employee Benefits etc. New L Assistance: Often when employees newly join the organization, they are not aware of whos who and at times feel lost. The New LT-ites Assistance is a feature were which enables a new joins to easily access the policies and seek assistance by a simple click Of button.A form is available to employees which they can fill and submit to raise any type of query. Quick Processing of Employee Benefits: Employees can now get information about arioso HER policies on portal, easily access the forms and apply for these benefits. On receipt of the approval from concerned authority, the form flows back to the employee confirming the status for his/her request. This feature has made the application process extremely simple faster. HER policy Repository: This tab has been created to centrally maintain all policy documents related to HER. It includes four types of documents Restricted, Confidential, General Standard Formats.

Cmo Retirar la Peticin de Green Card a Familiar

Cmo Retirar la Peticin de Green Card a Familiar Los ciudadanos y los residentes permanentes pueden retirar la peticià ³n de una tarjeta de residencia, tambià ©n conocida por green card, que presentaron para un familiar. En este artà ­culo se explica quià ©nes pueden retirar dicha peticià ³n, cà ³mo se hace y las condiciones especiales que aplican a la green card por matrimonio y porquà © es importante cancelarla a tiempo en algunos casos y no seguir con la tramitacià ³n hasta el final. Quià ©n Puede Retirar la Peticià ³n de Permiso de Residencia para Familiar Puede solicitar la cancelacià ³n de la peticià ³n de permiso de residencia la persona que inicià ³ el proceso de pedir aun  familiar mediante la presentacià ³n del documento que se conoce I-130. Segà ºn las leyes migratorias de Estados Unidos sà ³lo pueden patrocinar una green card por parentesco: Los ciudadanos americanos, para: Esposos/as. Esto aplica tanto a los enlaces entre un hombre y una mujer como a los matrimonios entre personas del mismo sexo.Hijos/as. Establecià ©ndose tres categorà ­as segà ºn la edad y/o el estado civil de a persona pedida.Hermanos y padres, cuando el solicitante tenga al menos 21 aà ±os de edad. Los residentes permanentes legales para: El marido o la mujer.Hijos solteros, si bien hay dos categorà ­as dependiendo de la edad. Cà ³mo se Solicita la Cancelacià ³n de la Peticià ³n para la Tarjeta de Residencia Escribir una carta en inglà ©s al USCIS en la que se indique: El nombre del solicitante de los papeles para un familiar y su direccià ³n en Estados Unidos.El nombre completo de la persona beneficiada para la que se solicitaron los papeles, indicando tambià ©n su fecha y paà ­s de nacimiento.La fecha en la que la peticià ³n fue admitida a trmite por el USCIS (filed). Eso est en la carta en la que se recibe confirmacià ³n del recibo del papeleo.Una breve descripcià ³n de la razà ³n por la que se cancela la solicitud. La direccià ³n a la que hay que enviar la carta es la de la oficina de inmigracià ³n a la que se envià ³ la peticià ³n de los papeles para el familiar. Hasta Cundo se Puede Cancelar la Peticià ³n Como regla general, si el beneficiario de la peticià ³n est en Estados Unidos, se puede retirar la peticià ³n en cualquier momento antes de que se apruebe  el ajuste de estatus. Si el familiar que va a recibir el permiso de residencia est en otro paà ­s, se puede pedir la retirada hasta justo antes de que el beneficiario entre por primera vez en Estados Unidos como residente. Es decir, incluso despuà ©s de la entrevista en el consulado pero antes de que el oficial migratorio en una frontera de los Estados Unidos estampe el pasaporte del beneficiado, que se convierte asà ­ en residente permanente. En estos casos en los que el familiar est en otro paà ­s y el proceso de peticià ³n est avanzado y ya en và ­as de pasar a trmites consulares puede ser recomendable enviar al Centro Nacional de Visas, NVC por sus siglas en inglà ©s, o al  consulado americano competente una copia de la carta enviada al USCIS en la que se abandona la peticià ³n de permiso de residencia. El Caso Excepcional de los Matrimonios con Ciudadanos Americanos La forma ms rpida de conseguir la green card es por matrimonio con un ciudadano americano. Pero estas tarjetas de residencia pueden tener  una particularidad: son temporales por dos aà ±os antes de convertirse en permanentes cuando la residencia se recibe antes de cumplirse dos aà ±os de casados. En estos casos el ciudadano americano puede cancelar la peticià ³n del cà ³nyuge extranjero no sà ³lo hasta el momento en el que à ©ste gana la green card del modo seà ±alado anteriormente. Sino que tambià ©n puede impedir que el esposo inmigrante pueda cambiar su estatus de titular de green card temporal a permanente. Es suficiente si a  los dos aà ±os se niega a firmar conjuntamente la peticià ³n de remocià ³n o levantamiento de la condicionalidad. En estos casos el cà ³nyuge extranjero pierde la tarjeta de residencia y es muy posible que deba abandonar Estados Unidos. Los à ºnicos casos en los que se permite que el ciudadano americano no firme la remocià ³n de la condicionalidad y el marido o la mujer extranjero se conviertan en residentes permanentes son: Fallecimiento del solicitante ciudadano americano.Divorcio, en el que la parte extrajera pueda demostrar que su matrimonio fue de buena fe.Malos tratos sufridos por el cà ³nyuge extranjero en base al programa VAWA.Situacià ³n extrema, como violencia en el paà ­s de origen del cà ³nyuge extranjero o enfermedad del mismo. Una vez que el Familiar Extranjero se Convierte en Residente Permanente,  ¿Puede el Patrocinador Pedir una Cancelacià ³n de la Tarjeta de Residencia? En principio no, a menos que se pueda probar documentalmente o con otra clase de evidencia que ha habido fraude o situacià ³n similar. Es relativamente comà ºn en los casos de peticiones por matrimonio que cuando las cosas van mal haya acusaciones y reproches mutuos y que el patrocinador se pregunte si puede quitarle la green card al esposo o a la mujer con la que ahora se lleva mal. Pero hay que entender que el desamor y las peleas conyugales no son prueba de que el cà ³nyuge extranjero se hubiera casado sà ³lo por los papeles, con engaà ±o y calculadamente. Antes de hacer una acusacià ³n de que un matrimonio ha sido falso hay que ser honestos consigo mismo y pensar si uno tiene realmente pruebas o simplemente se est dolido o se tienen celos. A Tener en Cuenta por Sus Consecuencias Graves Si una persona cancela la peticià ³n de un familiar, si despuà ©s se arrepiente y desea volver a instaurarla debe darse cuenta de que debe empezar el proceso desde el comienzo, rellenar de nuevo todos los papeles y pagar los aranceles correspondientes. Adems, hay que tener en cuenta que si no son buenas las relaciones familiares entre la persona que pide los papeles y la beneficiada por la green card puede haber problemas de carcter econà ³mico que hay que tener en cuenta. Y es que a lo largo de la tramitacià ³n de un familiar uno de los papeles que se firma es lo que se conoce como affidavit of support o declaracià ³n de mantenimiento. Los deberes que se tienen al firmar este contrato duran 10 aà ±os, en la mayorà ­a de los casos. Y no importa que solicitante y beneficiado no se hablan o, en el caso de matrimonio, que se haya producido un divorcio. Por todo ello se recomienda tomar este test de respuestas mà ºltiples que sirve para aclarar importantes dudas sobre la green card. Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

View point Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

View point - Essay Example It is often seen that individual difference could lead to two people having totally opposing views to a similar topic. One such incidence is seen in the field of magazines. Some magazines analyse and present topics to their readers only showing or highlighting the external view points, in such a magazine the entire package is one which is a bird eye view of all its internal articles as well. On the other hand there can be another magazine which may address the exact same topics however provides its readers with a more holistic and in depth view of all addressed topics. One such example of the above stated phenomenon is Maxim and Cosmopolitan. Maxim is a total Male magazine. It is considered to be an essential part of what the Man of today would require and answers all Male questions doing so in a witty and yet extremely relevant manner which is appealing to the Male society. It provides information about the latest and greatest tools and gadgets to hit the market. It provides men's fashion tips, sex advice and music and movie reviews.

Health Systems Administration SLPs Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Health Systems Administration SLPs - Essay Example g White Americans, prejudicial attitudes toward minorities remain more common than not, as over half to three quarters believe that relative to whites, minorities – particularly Africa Americans are less intelligent, more prone to violence, and prefer to live off welfare (Bobo, 2001, as quoted by Smedley, 2003). This discrimination often translates to how health care professionals relate to their patients, with whites often giving preferential treatment to fellow whites and being less solicitous of Blacks and other ethnic minorities. Socioeconomic factors are factors that pertain to the economic status of the patient and economic factors that affect availability and accessibility of health services. This factor is sometimes seen in the thousands of patients without health insurance and those who cannot afford to pay for their medical bills. Socioeconomic factors eventually affect the delivery of health care services as seen in hospitals unable to afford the hiring of more medi cal personnel or unable to purchase medical equipment. The last factor affecting the delivery of health care is personnel shortage. At present, the United States is experiencing nursing and other medical personnel shortage. For nurses alone, National Surveys revealed that in the year 2006, 2.6 million full-time practicing RNs were needed nationally. Personnel shortage affects health care delivery in the sense that fewer personnel available to care for patients inadvertently increases work load for available medical personnel. Possible work overload affects the quality of health services. It also affects the number of patients that the hospital can accommodate. Hospitals cannot be compelled to admit more patients if they know they cannot care for them. As a manager, I would deal with racial/ethnic factors in the workplace by setting a good example. As manager, at times, I am asked to deal with hiring manpower or personnel. In these instances, I will consciously monitor

When I Whistle by Shusaku Endo - Commentary Essay

When I Whistle by Shusaku Endo - Commentary - Essay Example He represents the competitive, fast paced and ambitious generation of young people in the modern world. Eiichi wants to get to the top. The drive to succeed is so important in his life that he is disgusted by the fact that his father takes things lightly. He considers his father a failure and does not want to end like him. For him his father is like a no good mediocre â€Å"fish in the pond†. It is through the character of Eiich that Edno successfully introduces the theme of change in his novel. Eiichi believes that the people should go for the best and get to the top positions. Ozu is happy the way he is. Eiichi appears as a contrast to his father. Ozu belongs to the time when relationships were given importance. It is evident from his relationships with Flatfish and Aiko. With Eiichi, it is different. He forgets about Tahara until he meets him again. Tahara appears a contrast to Eiichi. He is more concerned about his patients as he saysâ€Å" Im not interested in anything but his illness". But for Eiichi what is important is not the health of the patient but the knowledge that he derives from each different. He has no respect for his patients. He tries the new drug on Aiko that has a negative effect on her. He is disgusted to see the element of honor in Tahara who is eventually kicked out of the dispensary for not obeying the orders. Eiichi is more ambitious and admires Dr. Li. He respects him more than his own father. He believes that Dr Li has something that makes him different from others and has made him a leader rather than his own father to whom he refers to as a â€Å"pusho ver†. This symbolizes the attitude of the modern generation towards their parents. Eiichi along with Dr. Uchida, Kurihara and Dr. Li represent the materialistic people of the modern world. Tahara is kicked out of the group because his morality has no place in the modern world. The lack of ethical and moral values of the modern

Tourism Sectors: Effects On The Dominican Republic

Tourism Sectors: Effects On The Dominican Republic I am trying to answer the following question of the extent to which tourism has had a positive effect on the development of Dominican Republics economy, environment, and cultural change. I decided to research tourism in the Dominican Republic because I traveled there last year in March with my graduating class. I stayed in Punta Cana at a beautiful all-inclusive resort. I had a wonderful time there and experienced the magnificent beaches as well as amazing hospitality. In this paper I will argue that tourism does not benefit the majority of people and in fact third world tourism can be measured up to colonialism. The tourism industry in the Dominican Republic has had a positive effect on economic development however in effect the environment and cultural changes are suffering. I will argue this by first looking at tourism as a developmental strategy and the increase of foreign tourism, which presents clear economic benefits. Secondly, I will demonstrate the environmental issues and threats to the ecosystem that have started to arise because of the great number of tourists. Thirdly, I will look at the cultural changes that have evolved such as the increase of prostitution and sex tourism. Background Information The Dominican Republic (DR), due to its spectacular beaches and landscape has developed along different parts of its territory that are mainly devoted to tourism. The Ministry of Tourism is responsible for ensuring the endorsement of tourism in the Dominican Republic and the agreement with the provisions of the Organic Law of Tourism.  [1]   According to the Central Bank of the Dominican Republic, there have been dramatic increases in foreign tourism. In 2010 alone there have been 4,135,480 tourists that arrived by air. 3,189,306 of which have been foreigners, most of which were from North America. Tourism revenue increased rapidly in the 1990s, more than doubling from 1992 to 1997, when it reached $2.1 billion. The Dominican Republic was one of six Caribbean countries that in 1992 earned more from tourism as a share of their exports than from any other sector.  [2]  Tourism in the Dominican Republic, as in other developing countries has an interplay of inequality with visitors from rich countries dropping in on the poor. The Caribbean is more tourism centered than any other part of the world. In some smaller islands, tourism threatens to become a new monocrop economy leaving countries dependent on tourists. Definition of Terms Tourism has been described as the new colonialism. As said by author Srisang,Tourism, especially Third World tourism, as it is practiced today, does not benefit the majority of people. Instead it exploits them, pollutes the environment, destroys the ecosystem, bastardizes the culture, and robs people of their traditional valuesIn other words, tourism epitomizes the present unjust world economic order where the few who control wealth and power dictate the terms. As such, tourism is little different from colonialism  [3]  The DR is seen as a prototype for enclave tourism, which means that they maximize economic benefits and limit social and environment impacts by concentrating investments and visitors to a small geographical area.  [4]  These all-inclusive resorts provide everything so there is no need to leave the resort complex. Connections to the Course This topic connects to the course in many ways. Firstly, the Dominican Republic has been getting help from the IMF and World Bank for years now. The World Bank created a commitment to tourism as a development strategy for developing economies. Secondly, we can look at Wallersteins world system theory, which is arranged according to influence: core (most dominant), to semi-periphery, to periphery (least dominant). The DR is a semi-periphery because it is industrialized third world nation but it lacks the power and economic dominance of the core nations. Thirdly, Andre Gunder Frank argued that rich colonial (metropolitan) powers acquired wealth through exploiting weaker (satellite) countries such as the DR. Finally, enclave tourism at the national level is frequently seen by the native population as a form of neo-colonialism.  [5]  Enclave guests are basically segregated from the local culture and from the local informal sector, which includes vendors, drug dealers and prostitutes. This inevitability creates a wall between the guests and the locals and the bigger issue is that it prevents economic benefits from these resorts to actually going back into the community.  [6]  A case study was done in Luperon, Dominican Republic, a small community with no prior experience with the tourism industry. The study found that the natural flaw of enclave tourism as a form of development in this area was that the management of the enclave resort wanted to reduce economic exchanges between tourists and local businesses in order to increase resort revenues.  [7]  There is an issue with the distribution of profits from these resorts because the local communities are not seeing any improvements. Tourism as a Developmental Strategy Although there are numerous tribulations with tourism in the DR, there have also been a lot of positive effects. In 2010, the Dominican economy showed a strong recovery by growing 7.5% during the first half of the year.  [8]  This is partly because of their trade exports such as cocoa, coffee, and tobacco but mostly because of tourism profits, which reached nearly US$3.2 billion in 2004.  [9]  Over the last four decades, the World Bank has had a strong commitment to tourism as a development strategy for many developing economies. In return, the Dominican economy has had a very dynamic growth largely dependent on tourism. Hotels drive most tourism and the all-inclusive appeal of everything being free along with attractions and activities as well as nightly entertainment. This increases the targeted audience to couples, families, teenagers and elders because there is something for everyone to do. The DR also has natural assets such as the climate, that is always warm and it rar ely rains which entices tourists. Also, the Dominicans tourism tax policy is important because it has one of the lowest taxes in the Caribbean, which allows them to get extra revenue from tourists.  [10]  We can see that the economy has increased and grown in many ways, however one cannot just focus on the economy. We must look at the environment and social impacts and analyze how they have been affected by tourism. Environmental Impacts The environment and sustainability can often be under looked when judging the success of tourism because the economic benefits are usually the first to be looked at. Despite the economic success the DR has had, it faces a series of problems related to its rapid growth. For example, insufficient supplies of clean water and electricity, combined with slow construction caused by shortages of materials that has forced some vacationers to leave early because of unsuitable living conditions. The Dominican Republic has environmental issues in the areas of deforestation, water supply, and soil erosion and as the eroding soil goes into the sea, it in effect damages the nations coral reefs. Negative impacts from tourism occur when the level of visitors is greater than the environments ability to cope with this use, also known as carrying capacity. The UN sources report that as of 1993, the nation was losing 20,000 hectares per year of its forestlands largely because of business interests.  [11]  The destruction of trees was forbidden in 1967 to try and fix the harsh effects of the forest destruction. However, many farmers continue to cut trees secretly to make more land available for development. Water pollution is also an issue and it results from the effects of mining along with industrial and agricultural sources.  [12]   In addition there are endangered species in DR, some include the tundra falcon and three species of sea turtles. As a result of the rapid urbanization, the environment started to be greatly affected. Water resource management issues associated with tourism include, dumping of untreated wastewater and solid waste along the coast, overexploitation of groundwater, destruction of forest cover, and over fishing of coral reef and marine species. Sustainable development is what the country needs, which is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Social and Cultural Impacts There have also been impacts of tourism on the rural livelihoods of the Dominican locals. The impact has generally been good, with an increase of household income along with increased job satisfaction. The rapid and rigorous development of tourism also results in different and usually less favorable consequences than small-scale development. Cultural clashes may arise through economic inequality or job level frictions. The clear relative wealth of the tourists often leads to unfair exploitation on the hosts side. One might add to these concerns the danger that tourism may lead to the commercialization of human relations.  [13]  Tourism often fails in promoting mutual understanding among different nations and stereotypes prevail. The tourist-host relationship is often restricted by space and time constraints. Tourists often fail to respect local customs and moral values, either out of ignorance or carelessness. Also, the profitable sexual exploitation of children and young women h as matched up to the growth of tourism in many parts of the world. While tourism is not the cause of sexual exploitation, it provides easy access. Tourism also brings consumerism to many parts of the world, which before had no access to luxury services. The allure of this easy money has caused many young people, to trade their bodies in exchange for numerous different bits and pieces. Responsible Tourism We hear this term of being a responsible tourists quite a bit. What is meant by it is that we as tourists should respect the people who are working at the resort, be culturally aware and having a low-impact. The street vendors in the market are normally the last to see the financial rewards of the all-inclusive, mass in the DR so paying the tourists price is not so much a bad thing. We as tourists have the privileged attitude of being able to give something back directly to the people because we are in constant contact with them. In addition, it hardly needs saying that tourists should pick up litter, refrain from uprooting plants and coral, and use energy resources such as water and electricity efficiently, which are scarce in the DR. Conclusion After looking a great deal of articles and websites, I would have to say that tourism in the Dominican Republic has done more harm than good. In my opinion, the detrimental environmental and social impacts of third world tourism are more of a concern than economic benefits. There will always be a demand for tourism in the Dominican however if the supply of beautiful and clean beaches, water and local hospitality is not available then tourists will change their vacation plans. The implications of my findings are that, tourism and tourists impinge on the local environment and traditional customs of Dominican workers. This is important to realize because from knowing and understanding this we can move forward by changing our ways. Acting as a tourists should by not putting a strain on the environment and being more culturally tolerant. Just because we are on vacation does not mean our values should fly out the window. There are always implications to our behavior and it is time that we become responsible tourists. Britton, S.G. (1982) The political economy of tourism in the Third World Annals of Tourism Research 9: 331-38. Debbage, K.G. (1990) Oligopoly and the resort cycle in the Bahamas Annals of Tourism Research 17: 513-27. Dominican Republic Environment, Encyclopedia of the Nations [Online] [Accessed Febuary 15th 2011] Available: Freitag, T.G. 1994. Enclave tourism development: for whom the benefits roll? Annals of Tourism Research 21: 538-54 Kiskeye Alternativa. 1999. Tourism Development in the Dominican Republic: Growth, Costs, Benefits and Choices New Jersey, USA: Rutgers University. (http://kiskeya-alternative.org/publica/afuller/rd-tourism.html) [Meritas Lawyers]. 2010. Doing Business in Latin America and the Caribbean. Minneapolis, US: Meritas Meyer-Arendt, KJ., Sambrook, R.A. and Ker-math, B.M. (1992) Seaside resorts in the Dominican Republic: a typology Journal of Geography 91: 219-25 Srisang, K. 1991. Third World Tourism- The New Colonialism In Focus (Tourism Convern) 4:2-6

Ecosystems and Environmental Discourse :: Essays Papers

Ecosystems and Environmental Discourse What is an ecosystem? At first glance, this seems to be a straightforward question, one to be answered by environmental scientists. However, the concept of an ecosystem, or more specifically, the action that posits the existence of an ecosystem, raises a series of questions that challenge some basic assumptions about the environment. For instance, is an ecosystem a concrete object in the same way that a stone or a tree is? Or instead, is an ecosystem a set of interactions between such objects? While ecosystems do indeed exist, it is not without dramatic changes in our epistemology that we can speak of such objects without contradiction. Most importantly, we must acknowledge that the existence of ecosystems is contingent on human society. Environmental scientists certainly play an important role in describing ecosystems and in prescribing correct management of these systems, but we miss an important aspect of humanity’s role in the environment if we see ecosystems as discrete objects that exist independent of human society. Then what is an ecosystem? An ecosystem is a concept constructed by human society that aids us in perceiving an amazingly complex structure of interactions. This construction is rooted fundamentally in our language and the discourse that surrounds environmental issues. As such, the concept of discourse and the practice of discourse analysis are vital to understanding what an ecosystem might be. While there are advantages to seeing ecosystem as concrete objects, it is my intention in this section to describe an alternative view of ecosystems that is rooted in postpositivistic, postmodern analysis of reality. Hopefully, such analysis will also be useful in analyzing other concepts pertinent to environmental issues. To approach this alternative view, I will outline the concept of discourse as formulated by Michel Foucault, summarize the views and extension of post-Foucauldian discourse analytic theorists, and finally, apply these concepts to the question of ecosystems. Throughout, I will address the epistemological changes implicit in discourse analysis. A discourse is an institutionalized way of speaking that determines not only what we say and how we say it, but also what we do not say. Originating in the field of linguistics, the term discourse initially referred to whole units of speech (conversations) and the speech community in which these units were communicated. William Labov (1972) and other sociolinguists have used discourse analysis primarily as a descriptive tool, leaving epistemological and postmodern considerations aside.