Porters Five Forces: Non-Conventional Energy

Porters Five Forces: Non-Conventional Energy The Suzlon story being in 1995 with just 20 people; and in a little over a decade has become an epic. A company of over 13000 people, operations across the America, Asia, Australia and Europe, fully integrated manufacturing unit on three continents, sophisticated RD capabilities and market leadership in Asia, ranked 5th in terms of global market share. The seeds of the idea that became Suzlon were sown by Mr. Tanti venture into the textile industry just as began in its booming years. Faced with soaring power costs, and with infrequent availabilities of power hitting his business hard Mr. Tanti looked to wind energy as an alter native. His first brush with wind energy was as a customer, having secured two small- capacity wind turbine generators to power his textile business. The company registered revenues of INR 12 Crore in the first year, and has since achieved consistent growth, registering revenue of USD 1,405 in FY2008- just a decade after inception. The company went public with a highly successful IPO in September 2005. The issue was oversubscribed over 46 times, and led Suzlon to rank amongst the Top- 25 Indian corporations in terms of market- capital. Today Suzlon is being ranked the 5 leading wind power equipment the manufacturer with a global market share of 7.7%. The company seized market leadership in India over 2,000 MW of wind turbine capacity in country. The company adopted innovation at the very core of its thinking and ethos. Suzlon combined this with another visionary step full backward integration of the supply chain. Suzlon by this approach has developed comprehensive manufacturing capabilities for all critical components in our wind turbines bringing into play economies of scale, quality control, and assurance of supplies in an increasingly supply restricted market. Taking this focus forward, Suzlon acquired Hansen Transmission of Belgium in 2006. The acquisition if the world second leading gearbox marker gives Suzlon manufacturing. Suzlon RD strategy brings emphasizes the need to lower the cost per- kilowatt- hour, in order to create ever more competitive technology and products. This step has success in the rapid global expansion of Suzlon business with orders from Australia, Brazil, China, Italy, Portugal, Turkey and the U.S.A We have set forth to fulfill the vision of company as global as the wind. Starting as unknown player in a nascent industry in India, Suzlon grew to become the leading player on India wind power stage, and from there has grown to rank among the Top- 5 wind turbine manufacturers in the world. Mission of Suzlon Moved to towards the state where being a socially and environmentally responsible citizen is integrated within all our day to day to day business processes. Establish a truly Indian company producing Windmills with Technology suitable for India and to manufacture and market in our own brand name. Mission Minimum 20% Net Margin Minimum 50% Asian market share Minimum 60% Indian market share Minimum 25% Global market share Minimum 40% Growth Vision of Suzlon Suzlon is today a major force in the global wind industry, from human beginnings in 1995, to ranking 5 worldwide, with 7.7% of the global market share in just over a the decade. Already among the top five, Suzlon vision is to be a technology leader, to be among top 3 wind energy companies in the world by leveraging technological leadership and commercial acumen to exceed customer expectation and most respectable brand which grows fast is the most profitable company employing the best team in the sector. Vision Statement:- To be the technology leader in the wind energy industry. To be among the top 3 wind energy companies in the world. To be the most respected brand and preferred company for all stakeholders To be the best team and best workplace. To be the fast growing and most profitable company in the sector. COMPANY PROFILE SUZLON ENERGY LIMITED- OVERVIEW Suzlon Energy Limited traces its roots back to 1995, when the company took its first step on renewable energy stage with its incorporation. Suzlon began journey to the forefront of the wild energy industry with a small but significant project to supply wind turbine generators for a 3.34 MW wind farm project in Gujarat, India. In little over a decade, Suzlon has grown to rank as the world 5 leading and India the and Asia leading manufacturer of wild turbine, with over 2000 MW of wind turbine capacity supplied in India and across the world of USD 675 million, CFS FY 2006, with current order book exceeding USD 1.7 billion. Technology- Suzlon today develops and manufactures technologically advanced, high-performance and cost- efficient wild turbine, to meet the diverse need customers all around the world. In India, Suzlon offers customer end-to-end wind energy solutions, including wind resource mapping site identification, site development and installation, and finally operation mainten ance services. This allows Suzlon to offer Indian customer economies of scale, and eliminates the need for customer involvement in the complex process of wind far m development. Wind farms- Suzlon has developed and impletion several large-scale wind farms throughout India the integrated solution approach. The principal advantage of this approach is the economy of scale: the larger the wind farm and more the number of WTGs- the lower the infrastructure cost per-wind turbine. Similarly, larger project have lower operation and maintenance costs per kWh due to the efficiency obtained in managing a larger wind far m. Among Suzlon many large project are: The Kutch Wind Farm, Gujarat: Asia largest wind farm developed and operated by Suzlon, it has more than 750MW of wind power Capacity, already installed, furthers capacity addition is in progress. This wind farm comprises of Suzlon time tested wind turbines of 600kW, 1250kW, and 1500kWCapacity. The Dhule Wind Far m, Maharashtra: The Dhule wind farm is Asia second largest wind farm with an installed capacity in excess of 675 MW. This wind farm comprises of Suzlon time tested wind turbines of 600kW, 1250kW and 1500kW capacity. New Products- Suzlon aims to drive global market share growth through expanding its product line with models customized to meet customer need as well as specific wild regimes, as seen in the new S52 600 kW and S82 1.5 MW wind turbine models. In addition to this, Suzlon aims to improve the cost efficiency of generating power from wind through technology enhancements, and optimizing locations and sitting, to the end result of maximizing power generation while driving down the cost of power generated from the wind. Technology integration- Suzlon as an developer of WT Gs has developed design, development and manufacturing capability for all major components, development and manufacture of rotor blades, turbine, and tubular towers, control equipment and Nacelles covers. The company has implemented a far reaching backward-integration strategy that has brought the manufacture of all critical components in-house. Today the company, in association with subsidiaries, manufactures rotor blades, tower, nacelle covers, generators, gearboxes and all other critical components in its value chain. The QA department at Suzlon not only takes measures about the quality control i.e. the product is good or bad, accepted or rejected, but it gives assurance to the customer for the quality electricity production backed by revenue generation. Regular audits are also conducted by QA inspectors at various sites for the scrutiny of tools, equipments and processes. Suzlon backward integration strategy is driven from the point of view of increasing in-house manufacturing and allied capabilities leading to lowered WT G costs, greater quality assurance, and a secure Supply Chain. While Suzlon looks to vertically integrate, the company is also pursuing a distributed manufacturing strategy with dedicated manufacturing facilities set up at key locations across the world to supply and service international high growth markets. Today, Suzlon has facilities in Belgium, China, India, and the United States manufacturing everything from components that go into turbine, to complete wind turbine generators, and supply markets around the world. Suzlon integrated wind turbine manufacturing facility in Tianjin, China; and rotor blade manufacturing facility in the Pipestone, United States are geared to support these high growth regions with dedicated delivery capability, enabling a flexible to the local markets, and lowered logistics costs. Suzlon today develops and manufactures technologically advanced, high- performance and cost- efficient wind turbines. These services are developed to specifically meet the diverse need of customers all around the world. Suzlon offers customers end to end wind energy solution, including wind resource mapping, site development and installation, and finally operations maintenance services in India. This allows Suzlon to offer Indian customers economies of scale, and eliminates the need for customer innovation in the complex process of wind far m Development. Suzlon order book position is a reflection of its strong market position and consistency in delivering to their customers. The order book stands at around USD 4,335 million. Suzlon domestic order book position is for a capacity of 441 MW and international orders For 3,726 MW. Suzlon primary customer s in India include companies that have manufacturing facilities with high power consumption. These companies have high profitability and seek investment opportunities with stable returns. In India, Suzlon casters to leading corporate houses like the MSPL Limited, Bajaj Auto Limited, Tata Group and Reliance, to name a few. Suzlon has driven a focused effort to make wind turbine more reliable, consistently delivering availability rates to customers, beating global standard higher than 95% on an average. Suzlon has set new standards with record breaking contracts that have been signed with top wind companies around the world. Majority of the orders have been signed with top wind energy compa nies in the state. Suzlon Wind Energy Corporation has signed agreements with Edison Mission Group (EMG) of Irvine, California and after repeat orders EMG holds more than 630 MW of Suzlon wind turbine capacity in the United States. Similarly Suzlon relationship with John Deere Wind Energy (JIDW) started with its investment in several Minnesota wind power projects, but quickly expanded to Texas and recently Missouri. Suzlon has successfully entered the Chinese Market, which is one of the world fastest growing economies, with five important contracts with a total of 233.75 MW, of which 12 MW ar e installation and 221 MW are planned installations in 2007. A contract with Australian Gas Light marked Suzlon entrance into the Australian Market. Another key high-growth wind energy market Suzlon has entered into is Brazil though a contract signed with SIIF Energies do Brazil Ltd. The project is poised to double Brazil current installed capacity of 200 MW. Suzlon has adopted an innovative ap proach to its value chain, enabling the company to deliver customized solution to a variety of needs across the world. Suzlon has developed a fully integrated value chain with control over all critical components- gearbox and generator technology, to tower, rotor blades and in the end complete wind turbine. India, the world 5th largest market of wind energy is Suzlon largest Asian market and a critical hub for manufacturing. The Suzlon group head quarters is situated at Pune, in Maharashtra. State-of-the-art research and development centers, manufacturing facilities, wind farm projects, training campuses and a network of offices are spread across India. Suzlon has been the market leader in India with more than 4400MW of installed wind energy projects in 8 states. In India wind energy sector, Suzlon has maintained its No. 1 position with the highest year-on-year market share since 10 consecutive years. In FY 2008-09, Suzlon had a market share of more than 50% in the Indian market. Suzlon has grown its cumulative installed base by 400% in the last 5 years since FY 2004-05. Key Customers Suzlon revolutionized the wind energy segment in India with its unique end-to-end solutions. This hassle-free business model has enabled over 1300 customers from a variety of industry sectors and regions within India to invest in the wind energy sector with ease and confidence. Suzlon customers in India include small, medium, large scale businesses, private and public sector companies, power utilities, independent power producers (IPPs) and even high net worth individuals (HNI). Many of these customers do not have prior exposure or expertise of the power sector. But they clearly saw a big opportunity in the power generation business in a fast-growing, energy-starved market like India. Suzlon supported them with its proven technology, expertise and the comfort of end-to-end solutions to help them harness this opportunity. Following is a list of some key customers who have relied on Suzlon experience and expertise for their wind energy projects. Porters Five forces model Bargaining Power Of Supplier Is It difficult or costly for Suzlon to switch to another supplier? Towers are very costly as it accounts for 26.3% of the total cost and its partial demand is met by in house production but in that it is going for expansion by year 2009, but upto that time it has depend upon other supplier, the cost of rotor blades account for 22.2% and for the rotor blades its complete demand is met by in house production located in India, China and U.S so for that it does not have to depend on any supplier. Gear box manufacturing costs 12.9 % and also it is manufacture by only two companies and from that one is acquired by suzlon itself but for the partial demand it has depend on only one supplier so in this case bargaining power of supplier is high. In the case of generators there are many manufactures and also many companies are specialized in it. Moreover it account for only 3.44% of the total cost and in yr 2009 it is going for expansion so in this case bargaining power of supplier is moderate to low. Thus overall we could say that the switching cost is modera te to low. Demand Supply Gap:- According to Tulsi the major challenge face by the wind power industry is not the market but the short supply of the products. Also GEs order book is full for the year 2008, 09 and also half year of 2010. Thus clearly there are certain inputs are in short supply. Gear box :- Acc. To CEO with gearbox its not as easy to increase capacity as it is with other components. You need a lot of equipment, from gear cutting machines to heat treatment facilities that may it is a very capital intensive business. So increasing capacity involve a huge investment compared with, say, blade manufacturer and that take time. Thus there is clear pressure in the Gear box manufacturing facility. But the company has acquired Hanson ltd so partial demand is met by suzlon itself and also it is going for expansion so for only partial demand it has depend on other supplier so there is a less problem of short supply of gear box for suzlon as compare to other producers. Rotor blades :- A crucial component requiring sophisticated production techniques, global supply is dominated by independent blade maker LM Glasfiber, which has about 27% of the market. All the major turbine manufacturer apart from GE energy and RE power produce most of their own blades. But suzlon is going for capacity expansion by 2009 so for that it does not have to much rely on other supplier. Hence the bargaining power of the supplier could be considered moderate to low. Generators:- Supplied to the wind industry by a number of large companies such as ABB and Siemens, and dedicated supplier like Gamesa and suzlon . No signs of a shortage of supply. And also suzlon going for capacity expansion by 2009 so most of the demand is met by itself. Thus the bargaining power of the supplier is low. Tower:- There are many manufacturers of the towers in India and also across the world as it does not need high precise engineering as in the case of gear box. And in tower also it is going for capacity expansion so for that also it do not have to rely on other suppliers. Thus we can say that the bargaining power of the supplier is Low. Controllers:- The controllers are made by many industries so it is not the key issue for the company. In this case the bargaining power seems low. Thus the overall we could see that the bargaining power is moderate to low. Whether it makes good economic sense for the industry to integrate backward? The cost of the switching is low to the products it can be proved from the above graph. So the buyers can easily move from one company to another company. The number of buyer is small volume is high In the case of big wind turbine manufactures they do not take order of less than 750kw which is considered to be a big amount by most of the suppliers. Thus the client buying the turbine are important to the wind turbine manufactures. Thus the bargaining power of the buyer is generally high in case of particular customer. Also there is strong demand from the buyer which could be seen from the strong growth rate of the company. Thus we should take advantage of both and we would obtain average of it i.e moderate. Buyer demand is weak or seller are scrambling to secure the market: The cumulative growth rate of the industry is around 25%. Thus it could be considered it is an high growth rate industry. Thus the buyers demand is high. In case of seller it is found that the challengers and its few challengers are only increasing their market share where as small or mid size companies are scrambling to secure the market. Thus in this condition the buyers bargaining power could be considered moderate. Buyer are well informed regarding the prices, costs and products The customer are well informed regarding the products of suzlon; they can directly go to the companys website and get the required information of the product. In case of prices they are not shown at the website at the same time while contacting to the company person also they give round about prices of the wind turbine. In case of total costs of wind turbine it largely dependent on the land acquisition cost, set up cost, logistics cost etc and hence it is very hard to get exact cost. In this case the buyers bargaining power could be considered moderate. Buyer cannot easily go for backward integration There is a low threat in integrating backward for the company which have not been up till now in this particular industry because of following factors High Entry barriers: only to set up a gear- box manufacturing plant it takes more than 100 million dollars. To set up a rotor blades plant of 350 sets it take an investment of 35 crores. So like this all the other parts like tower, generator, panel etc also required huge investment. So there is not easy for any buyer to go backward. Unavailability of skilled labor: The skilled labor in this industry is not adequately available as per the Vestas CEO. Thus in this case it seems that the buyers bargaining power because of skilled labours and high entry barriers is low. Thus overall the bargaining power of buyer could be considered to be between low to moderate Threat of new Entrants into the Industry Brand Preference : There is a clear brand preference in the wind energy industry it could be understood by the market share of the company. The market share of Suzlon is 48%, Enercon is 27.6% and NEG- Micon it is 11.9 %. Thus overeall there are 3 companies which shares 87.51 % of the industry, Even in the remaining 12.5 % 5.54% is of Vestas. Thus the clearly the customer have brand preference of this four companies compare to other brand . Thus for new competitors the threat to enter the industry is high. Exit barriers : Exit barriers in this Industry are very much high because it required a huge investment to start the business and the payback period is also long about 8 years. So for every player its not easy to exit from this highly capital intensive Industry. So due to that the threat from new entrance is low. Capital Requirement: The capital requirement in the wind turbine industry is very high. To set up manufacturing facilities of rotor blades set of 350 set is 65 crores. Similarly to set up a gear box unit it requires 100 million dollars. Thus the potential entry of the new company is low. Access to distribution channels: all the companies are using direct distribution channel, hence it is not possible for a new entrants to access the distribution channel of other company. In this case also the potential entrant is low. Regulatory Policies Government Regulation of Energy Markets: clean energy companies are highly dependent on government subsidies and support to bring in revenue, given that oil, coal and nuclear are cheaper, well established energy sources and hold oligopolistic control over the world- wide energy market. Given this dependence on the government, many environment and social movement are focusing on pressuring the government to pave the way for a transition to renewable. Furthermore, many government endorse local renewable as an alternative to foreign fossil fuels, in an attempt to create energy independence. Government support of renewable is taking place on local, national and global scales. In this case the entry of the potential entrants is high. Tariffs and international trade restrictions: The international trade and tariffs are supportive thus the companies are benefited from it. The government through out the world are giving high incentives to this industry. Thus in this case because of supportive nature to encourage this industry the threat from the new entrants is moderate. Thus overall the threat from new entrants is from low to moderate. Rivalry in the same industry Oligopoly market: suzlon is market leader in wind energy having 48% stake followed by enercon having 27.6% and than NEG-Micon with 11.9% stake. So if one company change its strategy than it is immediately followed by other companies. So from that we can say that rivalry among competitors is strong. Differentiation: suzlon has differentiated itself and got the benefit of vertical integration through backward integration in terms of in house production that is done by its own subsidiaries and in the form of services having end to end solution that is from selection of sites to setting a wind farm according to the requirement of the customer. So from this we can say that the rivalry among competitors is moderate to low. In this case the threat from substitute product is between medium to high.But the operating cost is higher in the substitute product compare to the wind power. Also the procurement of the raw material is an important factor for the company like Bagasse co-generation, Biomass gasifier and wate-to-energy. Where as in case of small hydro power and solar photo voltaic the cost is higher than the wind turbine. Thus the overall we could say that the wind turbine is a unique product and the substitution from the substitute product is low. Thus overall threat from substitute product is b/w Medium to high.

Relationship is an exploratory journey Essay

Janie grew up to find herself through each of her relationships. Her subdued lifestyle with her grandmother, her subdued and rather painful existence with her first husband Logan, her disillusionment after her initial enchantment with her second husband Jody, and her unfortunate killing of the husband she so loved, Tea Cake, all help her to recognize her for who she is and by the end of the novel, she is at peace with herself. This inner peace comes about by several twists and turns. She recognizes the various aspects of her own personality through her interactions in each of her relationships. She begins to understand that she might be more than a young girl whose responsibility has to be transferred from the matronly care of her grandmother to matrimonial bond to a unsympathetic husband during her first marriage. She realizes that she is more than an enchanted woman who wants be more than a socially acceptable companion to an ambitious and ruthless man during her second marriage. In her last marital relationship she begins to understand and appreciate her own need to be vivacious, lively and have good times with good company without the need to be apologetic or the need to be unaware of her partner’s shortcomings. In the death of her last husband Tea Cake at her own hand, she realizes that Life does not offer any linear solutions to the problems of relationships. Besides, she also understands that as a person she values her own individual survival is basic for her pursuit of happiness. Her confidence at having endured life’s trials and tests and having coming out not unscathed but with her individuality intact is mistaken for aloofness by her townsfolk. Finally, her revelations to her old friend Pheoby about her life finally give her a sense of fulfillment. Janie grows up in life through her relationships and that is why she has the confidence to tell her friend that â€Å"Ah been a delegate to de big’ssociation of life. Yessuh! De Grand Lodge, de big convention of livin’ is just where Ah been†(10) Janie started off in her childhood with a blind confidence that she was entitled to everything like everyone else. She did not realize she was colored till she saw herself in a photograph and could not recognize herself. When, the rest of the children and the people of the house pointed her out in the photograph, she exclaimed â€Å"Aw, aw! Ah’m colored! †(p. 13) She was taught by her nanny before she was married to Logan Killicks that â€Å"De nigger woman is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see. †(p. 20) Her completely subjugated relationship with Logan who was far older than her made her realize that perhaps she wanted more out of life. She wanted to feel a wanting in her heart and her body for a man, a true companion. That is what drove her into the arms of Jody, an ambitious, would-be politician. He was enchanting and had a manner that befitted his yet-to-acquire status. What she did not realize was Jody wanted her to be performing a particular role in his life. There was no fun in Jody because he always looked at life as a mission to be accomplished. She had to tell Jody that he was no fun to be with â€Å"Everybody can’t be lak you, Jody. Somebody is bound tuh want tuh laugh and play†(p. 76) She was so offended by Jodie’s denying her right to be herself, which she began to realize slowly with growing years and experience, she did not even care to be polite to a dying man. In fact Jodie’s death filled her with a sense of relief. Her realization that any relationship can come to the end of its utility and can fill a person with an unmentionable need for it to end came with Jodie’s death. After this growing distancing from Jody and his loftiness, which prevented Janie from living the life as a tribute to all possibility of happiness, Tea Cake entered. â€Å"Janie looked down on him and felt a self-crushing love. So her soul crawled out from its hiding place† (p. 122) Though Tea Cake gave her a brief scare by running away from her with her money, he returned to confess and begin their new life. His vivaciousness and his love for life was something that Janie had always wanted. For her the sweet pain and the all encompassing love she experienced under a pear tree were realized in her years with Tea Cake. But as all good things it also had to come to an end. The fearsome hurricane that they fled, the rabid dog that bit Tea Cake and its ill-effects on his personality and character were all revelations of the uncertainties of life. Janie had to kill Tea Cake in self defense and was acquitted in a trial consisting of all-male, all-white jury – yet another affirmation that Life had its strange ways of indicating its endless possibilities. Now, women forget all those things they don’t want to remember, and remember everything they don’t want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly. †(3) The final place she comes back to is her hometown Eatonville. There, the act of sharing her life’s story with her friend fills her with a sense of completeness. Her relationship with her friend when she interacts very minimally with the townsfolk, allowing them to imagine all kinds of negative things about her, is a final revelation. The narration of the story was a necessity to herself as it was for Pheoby to know the facts. Her growth as a woman and a human being through her four major relationships in life is given a chance to be framed in perspective by her relationship with her friend –somebody with whom she shares no burden of expectation Works cited Hurston, Zora Neale and Jerry Pinkney Their eyes were watching God. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1991

Youth Involvement in Disaster Management

Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 1 The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) Youth Involvement in Disaster Management Presentation Paper for the Youth Session at The 5th Annual Caribbean Conference on Comprehensive Disaster Management At the Rose Hall Resort and Spa in Montego Bay, Jamaica By Stephen O. Akeyo, MA, MSA, Ph. D. Student Indiana University, Indiana- USA December 9, 2010. Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Outline I. II. III.IV. V. Abstract Introduction Current Issues Analysis How I look at the Necessity of Youth Involvement Justification for Involving Youth People a. Fostering a sense of local ownership b. Promoting Individual’s right c. Hand-on Experiences VI. Lesson Learned a. Previous Account of Youth Involvement b. What is being done to address Youth Involvement VII. Recommendations for Good Practices 1. Education and Information sharing 2. Tabletop and Drills Exercises 3. Supporting Youth Programs 4.Youth Direct Research Involvement a. Service-Learning Experience i. Being Disaster Ready ii. Community Service 5. Ongoing Research Study VIII. IX. Conclusion References Akeyo, S. 2 Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster I. Abstract Akeyo, S. 3 Can young people perform well when they are involved in disaster preparedness and planning roles? Social norms have often failed to incorporate youth in leadership roles and decision making process even during emergency situations.Sadly, when a disaster strikes in any given community, youth and children are found to represent more than a third of disaster victims, yet their response role in a disaster is generally restricted to that of passive victims. The tremendous contributions that young people can make to disaster management are largely untapped. Involving young people in disaster management can help them learn topics that affect their lives while at the same time gaining hands-on experience designed to equip them become tomorrow better leaders.A ny comprehensive disaster management that is designed to incorporate youth in its programs, not only benefits creativity and energy of young people but also in the process strengthens partnerships for resilience. This paper will address current issues affecting disaster management, the role of youth in disaster management, experience and lessons learned from organizations â€Å"such as; the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies; the 2004 Tsunami disaster that impacted the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia; the 2006 Katrina disaster in New Orleans – U. S.A; and Plan International case study in El-Salvador. This paper will recommend youth involvement in their own community disaster management activities such as table-top exercise tailored into identifying risks; designing community emergency plans as well as their own; exercising a plan; setting up early warning systems; and implementing response; mitigation; and risk reduction plans. Conference participant will be challenged to adopt best practices and be encouraged to conduct further research study and platforms designed to foster youth-adult partnerships for resilience.Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster II. Introduction Akeyo, S. 4 Disasters and emergencies such as fires; severe weather; tornadoes; earthquakes; floods; pandemic event; life threatening situation; equipment failure; a cyber-attack or a terrorist attack can strike anywhere at any time with little or no warning. Such disasters and emergencies come with no respect of geographical or national boarders and never occur at convenient times. All emergencies are â€Å"local† phenomenon of which young people and children are a part of.Young people and children must therefore be prepared and trained in all matters pertaining to disaster response. They can use this knowledge to save their own lives and even defend their communities’ livelihood. The world population statistic projection given on World Youth Report in 2002 indicated that youth alone without including children and adult at that time comprised nearly 30 percent of the world's population as it shows in the diagram bellow (UN-New York, 2003): In any disaster, young people and children represents more than a third of disaster victims.Most humanitarian sector restricts these minors involvement to more of being in a Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 5 â€Å"passive victim† role. Providing youth and children the opportunity to be directly involved in disaster preparedness activities enables them to develop skills that prepared them for any threat that may come. There is evidences of spontaneous rescue efforts done by youth and children which were direct result of prior involvement in rescue missions conducted by youth clubs and organizations such as the Boy’s and Girl’s scouts; Pathfinders Club; and many others alike.Involving young people and children in emergency preparedness activities valid ates their capacity to be responsible members of their community who thus are entitled to more respect than what is typically extended to them in these types of situations. Youth involvement in planning, decision making and in the implementation of emergency preparedness programs is critical to the long? term success of sustainable disaster management initiatives and community resilience (UN- DSD, 2009).In the past there have been a number of barriers that hinder youth involvement in disaster management; which includes attitudes concerning the abilities of youth compared to experienced adults, and the up-down mode of societal norms. This paper will suggest that involving young people in emergency preparedness activities will promote an increase in the net community resources in confronting emergencies and enhancing community resilience.Furthermore, involving youth in disaster management process would enable disaster responders, managers, community leader, government agencies as well as humanitarian entities to draw on the full range of community resources when disaster strikes. Therefore, there must be a forum that will allow such collaboration to take place. III. Current Issue Analysis We live in communities that are increasingly becoming vulnerable to natural as well as manmade disasters that cause substantial loss of life, economic damage.Disaster = Natural or Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 6 manmade hazard + vulnerability. Risk = (hazard x vulnerability)/capacity. Unfortunately, our communities are not well prepared to deal with such disasters when they come as a result of inadequate knowledge or an ability to mitigate and respond to the disaster in due time. As a result, many people lose their lives and properties or find themselves trapped in disaster high spots which they cannot escape without external intervention.Frequently when a disaster strikes, it forces vulnerable communities to temporarily or permanently evacuate the comfo rt of their homes, neighborhoods, workplace and institutions or confine themselves to their home, leaving them without basic services such as water, gas, electricity, telephones or emergency help. Community vulnerability to disaster can be elaborated better with the bellow (Khan, 2008): Figure – 2. What is Disaster? Vulnerability Disaster Hazard Underlying Causes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.Limited access to resources Illness and disability Age/Sex Poverty Other Dynamic Pressure Lack of: 1. Institutional training 2. Education/Skills 3. Population growth 4. Urbanization 5. Uncontrolled development 6. Environmental Degradation Unsafe Conditions 1. 2. 3. 4. Dangerous location Dangerous building Low income level Dangerous jobs (police, mines etc. ) Trigger Events 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Earthquake Tsunamis Floods Cyclones Volcanic -eruptions Drought Landslide War/ Terrorism Technological Accident (Car/Plane etc. Environmental Pollution Disasters accounts for 98 percent of the cu mulative number of people affected by natural disasters and 77 percent of total reported economic damage (WMO, 2007). In the least developing countries (LDC) in particular, climate-related disasters accounted for 89 percent of Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 7 the total economic damages (WMO, 2007). Most people in developing countries have limited capacity to assess climate risks and lack available weather information required to plan adaptive responses.These people are more likely to be severely affected by climate-related diseases, such as influenza, diarrhea, cholera, meningitis, dengue, and malaria. Weak infrastructure, poor communication networks, shortage in electricity supply, low public awareness, and insufficient resources in many communities and neighborhoods hinders the provision of timely climate and early warning advice, which can delays response efforts causing an impact to become of significant amount (EM-DAT, 2009). IV.How I look at The Necessit y of Youth Involvement Though disasters are local phenomenon, in these modern days their devastating impact can be felt beyond borders of impacted nations in terms of human, material losses or the flow of refugees. It is therefore important that the disaster reduction efforts be addressed in a multilateral and comprehensive way. These unforeseen disasters require immediate, coordinated and effective response by multiple government agencies, volunteers, relief agencies and private sector in order to meet human needs and speed recovery efforts.Comprehensive disaster management and emergency preparedness should be based on the concept of active young people’s participation in all phases of the disaster cycle. Rather than seeing disaster-affected youth as victims or passive recipients of outside assistance, good disaster management must recognize the value of including them in the planning process. There is no better resource in a community than young people. It may be easier to obtain funding for projects and related disaster preparedness programs, but without sufficient community resources in place, disaster preparedness and risk reduction are not possible.Resource building enhances Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 8 community capability and provides positive response to various emergencies; reduce disaster risks, and helps foster confidence, dignity, and resilience. It is a fact that when a disaster strikes, local people are the first to respond, before any other outside agencies arrives to and assist in recovery efforts. Many of these first responders who struggle to save lives with limited resources at their disposal before more help arrives to take assist are energetic young people.Sometimes local elders may know which members of their community are hardest hit, and what kind assistance is appropriate for them, but they will ask young people to give them help. Young people must therefore be included, trained and empowered to carry out disaster prevention, preparation, and planning and response efforts. V. Justification for Involving Young People a. Fostering a Sense of Local Ownership Traditionally disaster management has been dominated by top-down relief efforts that assume children and youth are passive victims with no role in disaster preparedness.Involving youth in disaster preparedness process not only benefits them, their families, and communities, but also contributes to grassroots empowerment which boosts levels of ownership within their overall disaster preparedness plan. Research has indicated that when young people receive preparedness training they are more likely to act wisely and protect themselves against abuse; exploitation and illegal drug trafficking (UNICEF, 2007). b.Fostering Youth’s Ability to Act In life it is very hard to maintain a positive mindset when people have no faith in you. Youth are an enormous pool of energy, talent, and enthusiasm eager to contribute to society. The t ime has come whereby young people’s ability as agents of change must be recognized. There some unique abilities and skills that young people alone can bring to the table, such as Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 9 intercultural communication and innovative use of technology (ICRC, 2010).Many have made a difference in their neighborhoods, schools and even at the national level by address safety issues and seek solution for the existing problems (NCPC, 2001). Youth possess unique strengths, which are enhanced by community support and collaboration. Given opportunity to as participants and not observers will to introduce them and get to be part disaster management agencies within their local communities, across their borders and around the world. Compared to adult, many youth are trained in public speaking, ournalism, intercultural music and dance, communication, cultural harmony. Young people already have power; of being united through social networks such as MySpace, twitters, Facebook and they will use it interact in a very short time. Youth can influence easily their peers to be disaster ready. Adult mentors should work closely with youth in an effort to incorporate their ability and talent in disaster management process. c. Promoting Individual’s Rights Although our social norms have such often portrayed young people as dependent and helpless victims in emergencies.In practice, however, the reverse often applies and youth commonly have far more options open to them than do adults. The notion that excluding young people from direct involvement in calamities helps protects their well-being and trauma that adult face is undermining their resilience and coping in the context of adversity. Around the globe young people have proven to be faster in responding and volunteering in relief efforts when disaster strikes (Perren-Klingler, 1996). Young people want to be part of the big picture in making contribution that makes a differen ce and changing lives.It is the right of young people and children to be recognized and be interacted with as dignified humans rather than treating them just as vulnerable and helpless disaster victims who are only objects of charity. They Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 10 should be encouraged to use their potential to become agents of change globally. Their ideas and energies can be put into good use. The idea of involving youth and encouraging their participation in risk reduction measures is in line with international commitments which legally bind the signatory states to observe the rights of children and youth (Silbernagl, 2010).Like adults, young people also have a right to participate in decisions and efforts to address disaster management and risk reduction within their communities. Their rights include being trained and supported in understanding and making positive contributions to matter that affect their livelihood. This is in line with articles 6, 12 and 13 of the international legal framework set under the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child, which upholds children’s rights to (Plan, 2005). d. Hands-on Experience Involving young people in disaster planning provides opportunities to reach beyond our traditional â€Å"top-down relief efforts. This becomes a link that equips young people to take on new roles and become active agents of change. Most jobs nowadays require applicants to have some experiences which are technically not taught theoretically in college class rooms. There must an employer who will be willing to offer an opportunity to on the job training. The inexperienced young people likewise need mentors in disaster preparedness process who are willing to work closely with them by involving them in active roles that gives them hands-on experience to eventually fill-in the shoes of their adult mentors when they are no longer available for duty.Adult and youth can learn from each other. Blending experien ces of adult to young people new ideas and innovations works better as playing flat (white) and sharp (black) keys on the piano. There will be always unquestionable wisdom, experience and knowledge which can Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 11 only be found from the adult (Old School). However, young people may also have skills such as foreign languages, technology that adults do not have, or are challenged in mastering.Adult mentors must therefore pass-on the touch of qualities in their young mentee. If they can let go of their tight control, be patient, and trust the process, mentoring will become more effortless and enjoyable, and will be responding to recommendations from the research on resilience and on nurturing success stories. It is important that mentors must realize they are making a difference in the lives of young people by creating inside-out social change. This is preparing future leaders, who are disaster resilient, compassionate, and job ready a nd good citizens.Thus, the united effort of young and old will result in strength, while diversity may only hinder the effort of the desired community resilience when disaster strikes. VI. Lesson Learned a. Previous Account of Youth Involvement The contributions young people have made in emergency response within their own communities are easily traced to such incidents as the Indonesia Tsunami of December 26, 2004. Consider the incredible story of Tilly Smith, an 11 year-old from England, vacationing with family when tsunami occurred. This proves how prior lesson she learned about tsunamis in geography class was used to save lives of many.When she noticed strange behavior of the sea on the morning of the tsunami, she convinced over 100 people to leave the beach before the struck minutes later (Randall, 2005). Another example involves a number of young people who actively participated in saving the lives of others, often times putting their own lives in jeopardy, until the internati onal relief workers and emergency responders could arrive. â€Å"These young people all over the affected region took action, helping to distribute aid, assisting with clean-up and rebuilding efforts, looking after those younger than them, and using their creativity to letRunning Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 12 others know about the devastation (ISDR, 2005). During this stressful disaster, a call went out in the Maldives – â€Å"Whoever can help, please come. † Each volunteer was given an age-appropriate task. Many adults stayed away but the young people came forward. When a psychosocial counselor was sent to concentrate on possible problems with young people, she couldn’t find anyone. â€Å"They were all working,† she said (UNICEF, 2007). Another example of youth involvement in a disaster comes from hurricane Katrina.Hurricane Katrina which made landfall on August 29, 2005 and resulted in death of over 1,000 citizens and caused approxim ately 80 percent of flooding to the city of New Orleans within 18 hours (U. S. White House, 2006). Shortly after the disaster occurred, a group of young people for the Vietnamese American Association of Louisiana took an active role in assisting the Vietnamese community with evacuation, relief and recovery efforts (Leong, 2006). They were also able to translate information from formal English sources (i. e. FEMA and American Red Cross) to their non-English speaking family members in order to pass on important messages such as the location of evacuation safe places, relief supplies and food distribution centers, and registration for FEMA assistance. During the recovery period, these young people were instrumental in boosting morale among the younger children and bringing attention to other risks affecting their community. Plan International has mobilized children and youth in El Salvador, Central America, to play a significant role in environmental resources management and disaster r isk reduction.The children and youth have worked with their communities in developing risk maps, designing community emergency plans, setting up early warning systems, and implementing response, mitigation and risk reduction plans, among other activities. Plan International's experience in El Salvador has already been replicated in other Central American countries (UNISDR, 2007). Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster b. What has been done to Address Youth Involvement? Akeyo, S. 13 There some few steps done by various disaster management organizations that are significant initiatives in addressing youth involvement in disaster management.One agency that involves youth in local community disaster and emergency preparedness is the U. S. Federal Emergency Management agency (FEMA) which is tasked with planning. This agency provides an in-depth Guide to Citizen Preparedness course on its website (FEMA, 2009). Another major provider of disaster management worldwide is the Internation al Red Cross- Red Crescent Society. This agency is active in mobilizing youth to take active part in disaster situation to help their neighbors across their own streets, across the country, and across the world each year.In developing countries, evidence of youth platforms that address disaster management is taking place. On October 27-29, 2010 in the eastern African country of Kenya, youth held a national wide youth convention to campaign for disaster management initiatives. This conference held in the city of Nairobi was an example active platform that were held to mobilize and build capacity of youth and prepared them to respond to climate change and environmental degradation.Conference participants attest that it was a perfect opportunity that was used well by the organizers to include youth in disaster management and decision making process in the effort to address climate change at local, national, regional, and continental level (Tuwei, 2010). In country of Uganda, youths hav e appealed to decision makers to involve them, at all levels, in the effort to address the climate change under the theme, â€Å"Time for Action†. Director and Head of the Youth Affairs Division at the Commonwealth Secretariat, Dr.Fatiha Serour said, â€Å"International Youth Day gives the world an opportunity to recognize the potential of youth and celebrate their achievements† (Kigonya, 2010). In the Caribbean, the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 14 must be commended for introducing and involving 16 member countries for youth disaster management activities during their annual Comprehensive Disaster Management (CDM) Conference in 2009.This initiative of CDEMA will promote youth involvement in various communities they represent and the overall disaster management development in that region. Likewise, Pan International mobilized youth in El-Salvador to play a significant role in environmental r esources management and disaster risk reduction (DRR). This initiative is currently benefiting their community through a joint taskforce of youth-adult in developing risk maps, designing community emergency plans, setting up early warning systems, and implementing response, mitigation, and risk reduction plans, among other activities (Plan International, 2007).In 2010, Plan International facilitated 54 focus groups across Haiti, where young people had the opportunity to discuss the impact of the earthquake on their individual lives, and what they needed most in the recovery process; and to share their hopes and dreams for the future of their country. It is reported that the youth were enthusiastic to be involved in the rebuilding of their country, and wanted to take part in the work being set out towards a prosperous future for Haiti (PLAN, 2010).Lastly, the 2007 national meeting on â€Å"Policy Advocacy for Enhancing Community Resilience to Natural Disasters Focusing on Children a nd Youth† held in Jakarta, Indonesia was held to address the importance of involving young people in the disaster management process (UN-ESCAP, 2007). VII. Recommendation for Good Practices A study done by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) suggested that social capital was the predictor of more effective human functioning, stronger institutions and community resilience (Diaz, 2008).Furthermore, strengthening individual, community and private sectors in disaster preparedness has both and strategic value (Flynn, 2010). Therefore, Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 15 good practices that can help include young people in the emergency management process can be successfully achieved by following these recommendations: 1. Education and Information Sharing Generally, young people are not aware of what emergency response leaders and relief agencies may expect them to do or know when a disaster occurs. Such information is critical to successful emerg ency preparation and disaster response and recovery efforts.Information sharing is a principal component of an effective emergency management strategy to help a community improve its level of preparedness, response capabilities, and resilience. Youth forums, conferences and workshop are the best example of information sharing. Participants can pass relevant information to their peers, by sharing of knowledge or information and training obtained. Relevant information shared with young people on disaster risks will unify communities and promote a culture of disaster readiness and collaboration at all levels that include disaster experts, responders and other stakeholders (ISDR, 2005).However, all information collected must be analyzed for accuracy, authenticity and urgency before incriminated to the targeted individuals. Local communities should provide disaster and emergency preparation and response training programs to all citizens; especially youth designed community training progr ams promote citizens to take personal responsibility in preparing for and responding to a disaster. Sufficient staff should be trained in working with youth and children so that they may understand and recognize the importance of their participation in disaster response, relief and recovery efforts.Disaster training for children and youth should include age-appropriate lessons in preparing for emergencies, response behaviors, CPR and basic first aid, water safety, and basic child care. Educational leaders can develop school-based curriculums that address these topics. Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 16 Furthermore, NGOs and church-based organizations can also be used to help provide disaster preparedness training to young people as well. Training youth and children in disaster preparedness activities before an emergency occurs helps them to survive and provide assistance to others. . Tabletop and Drill Exercises Planning is the key! Necessity of planning can be illustrated by the famous a story of four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. â€Å"There was an important job to be done and Everybody was invited to do it. Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Infact, Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry about that, because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought Anybody could do it, but Nobody realized that. Everybody wouldn't do it.It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done† (Unknown Author). The tabletop exercise is essentially a group brainstorming session centered on a scenario narrative and problem statements or messages that are presented to key players in emergency response. Tabletop exercise can be utilized to increase youth awareness of risks that surround them, (Strength, weaknesses and Opportunity and Threats) and how they can better prepared to deal with them before disaster happens.This will help not only the young people bu t also the emergency coordinators in examining response capabilities, and evaluate coordination with other agencies e. g. Law enforcement, emergency responders, establish closer working relationships and within local and outside coordination. Tabletop exercise can also be used to acquaint the young people on the policies, procedures, roles, communication and responsibilities before, during, or after the simulated event. Youth mentors must work with the youth to decide whether do a full-scale exercise that involves local first responders and professional moderators or just aRunning Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 17 simple affair conducted by in-house disaster planners and youth in training. The scenario can also be discussed on how much gloom and doom you want your tabletop exercise should look like (i. e. Involving injured people, property destruction etc. ). This will help both the adult and their mentee to test how quickly they can pull together key players. This ex ercise process will provide a less stressful, more time effective method when the actual emergency happens. 3.Supporting Youth Programs Every community, emergency managers and responders should work with new as well as existing youth organizations to address the local issues, concerns and proposal for success. If community has several youth groups, it can be helpful to assign each on with specific roles and responsibilities which will make them expert in their trained response role. Emergency personnel must develop such caring relationships not only between adultyoung people but also between youth-youth, emergency responder-emergency responder, and emergency personnel-community.Teachers and mentor should reflect personally on their beliefs about resilience, and also, as a staff, exchange experiences-both personal and literary- about overcoming the odds (Resiliency In Action, Inc. , 2007). Such relationship and opportunities for active youth involvement: small group process, cooperat ive learning, peer helping, cross-age mentoring, and community service makes participants feel to belong to â€Å"a family,† â€Å"a home,† â€Å"a community. 4. Youth Direct Involvement a. Service-learning Experience i. Being Disaster ReadyIt is very important to know that, if one cannot take care of them self, it will be impossible to take care of others. Youth can be given individual training that will help them be Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 18 mentally and emotionally prepared to act promptly and to develop in them the ability to take care for themselves, and applying practical survival skills as needed. Individual training must include being informed of disasters that are most likely to occur in their community, be helped to develop and practice their response plan and get survival kits.In most situations, disasters impact is felt by the whole family. Youth can be trained on how to they can be involved in their own family’s emerg ency plan. Youth must know how to work as a team of their respective families in learning basic emergency skills and how to react when faced with fires, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, explosions, warning signals, fallout protection, terrorism attacks, and other emergency situations. ii. Community Service Youth can be trained according to their capabilities to take active role in the community response plan.Such activities as, volunteering to provide health care and first aid services in reception centers, homeless shelters, food bank, care for elderly in nursing homes, helping at respite centers or child care facilities, can be good experiences for the youth. They can also be involved in evacuation of casualty from the scene of the event, transportation of ill, injured, infirm to reception or medical facilities. Service-learning experiences engage young responders in the educational process, using what they learn in the classroom to solve real-disaster scenarios.Such a practice will promote confidence and experience in their over role performances and in adherence procedures and policy. By rendering disaster management services to the community, youth will eventually improve skills necessary for civic action: leadership, communication, decision-making, problem solving, teamwork, relationship building, planning and organizing, concern for others. They also increase their knowledge about their communities and gain confidence, interest andRunning Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 19 motivation and in working for their communities. Moreover, young people engaged in disaster management activities gain skills in leadership, problem solving. b. Ongoing Research Study Disaster management is an applied science that needs constant scientific research, theory testing and updates. Young research should be identified and be involved in meaningful research design and implementation of research roles especially in issues that affect their lives.They should be emp owered to collect data and report on information to raise awareness of a problem and/or advocate for change in the condition underlying the community need (for example, youth analyze a community’s emergency preparedness plan and offer suggestions for how to improve the plan). This learning opportunity will enable young researcher to provide their insights, talents and perspectives in their own environment, appropriate to their level of development and expertise. For better results, emergency managers must therefore partner ith these young researchers, students as well as other professionals worldwide across multiple disciplinary perspectives of emergency management to develop and promote solutions that bridge the theoretical and practical applications of comprehensive emergency management. A wellintegrated youth-adult research study will lead to innovative tools and applications that empower the local, national and international communities, create a context for partnerships, and generate research findings that can be used for future disaster management interventions and improvements in ongoing practices. VIII. ConclusionThis initiative to involve youth and to promote youth engagement is not an easy task. While youth have historically been recipients of basic personal safety education in emergency preparedness, they have not been included in community wide preparedness activities. However, that may be changing. Ever rising emergencies and disasters are a reality that all must face Running Head: Youth Involvement in Disaster Akeyo, S. 20 together. It is important to recognize that youth engagement initiatives, collaboration and partnerships in disaster management have multiple payoffs that save lives and promotes resilience in difficult times.Moreover, involving young people who are involved in disaster preparedness will bring a revolutionary change in society. The youth of today will become leaders and parents of tomorrow, which will ensure that they pa ss this knowledge to their children. Making disaster preparedness a societal practice can as a result be passed on from generation to generation. Youth involvement in disaster management will therefore succeed only if they are given. Adult mentor may run up against complex, messy, and difficult problems while molding the youth. Sometimes they may even be discouraged and give up the task.Likewise, the young may think the older mentors’ ideas or approaches are not proper and primitive which may result into conflicts. The truth is, every good outcome requires hard work, a sustained commitment to working as a team, and a willingness to listen and learn from each other. Developing trusting relationships between young people and adults does not happen overnight; but with sustained engagement and guidance, young and old can work shoulder by shoulder to prepare and respond to disaster when it happens (Pearson, 2010). R

Persuasive Essay On Foster Care - 921 Words

Have you ever been in foster care? Foster care is very hectic. It will eventually get better once you are adopted, but if you don’t like who you are getting adopted by then it’s not ok. When I was in foster care I was staying with this one family. They were nice but they had 3 other foster kids that they were taking care of also. I was in foster care for about a half a year. It wasn’t the best feeling not being around people I love and knew. I eventually got somewhat comfortable around my foster parents but it was still not the same as being around my family. When I was in foster care there was so many people involved. Judge, social worker, foster parents, grandma, and more. Most of the time I spent in my foster home. I would go†¦show more content†¦The family came to pick me up and they acted like they were nice and they loved kids but I was like hahaha†¦.no, they took me to there house and took me up to my room that I was staying in. 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