Corporate Social Responsibility Practices Essay

Corporate Social Responsibility Practices - Essay Example This essay stresses that intense competition plays a crucial role in creation of sustainable development practices and enhancement of the quality of products and services. Corporate responsibility is regarded as the degree to which an organisation complies with the legal guidelines and looks after the welfare of the society. The contemporary business practices show significant levels of understanding between the responsible and good corporate practices. Stakeholders and shareholders have understood the value of CSR and are focused on integrating business activities with huge societal concerns that can lead to good management practices. CSR is regarded as a technique which helps the organisation in evaluation of the business activities and its impact on the society and environment through ethical and transparent decision making. This paper declares that the World Business Council for Sustainable Development states that the CSR approach is a ‘business contribution to the sustainable economic development’. CSR includes activities such as health and safety, corporate governance and ethics, environmental stewardship, human rights and sustainable development. It focuses on aspects such as community and societal involvement, development and investment, corporate philanthropy, employee volunteering, customer satisfaction, anti-bribery, anti-corruption measures and adherence to the principles of fair competition. Business activities play a pivotal role in wealth and job creation, but the central management concern of CSR would be efficient utilisation of natural capital. (Halal, 2000). CSR activities help in efficient utilisation of human resources and capital and increasing the employee retention rate. The brand image of the company is enhanced because of the CSR activities performed by the organisatio n. Companies which recycle their products can effectively lower their expenditure. Customers are attracted towards companies which perform CSR activities efficiently. Whether or not a company implements CSR tools and techniques, the way it performs its business activities signifies clear intentions of the company. According to Hopkins (1999 cited in Sen and Bhattacharya, 2001), business organisations need to perform commercial and non-commercial responsibilities with an equal amount of importance. The non-commercial responsibilities undertaken by the company should include the well-being of the society, community, environment, government etc. The stakeholder’

A Family Medical Pedigree Health And Social Care Essay

A Family Medical Pedigree Health And Social Care Essay Individuals inherit many traits and characteristics from their parents. The color of your eyes, hair, and body type can all be traced back to the genes passed on to you by your family. Perhaps more important to your future well being than your outward appearance is the family medical tendencies you inherit. The United States office of the Attorney General states that obtaining an accurate health history and recording it can give you and your medical provider information you need for better health (http://www.hhs.gov/familyhistory/).The Family Medical Pedigree is also called a Family Tree or Genogram (Olsen, S., Dudley-Brown, S., McMullen, P. 2004). The Pedigree is a diagram showing connections to relatives going back at least three generations. At a minimum it includes date of birth or age, sex, and health problems (http://www.nsgc.org/).Once this information is gathered and recorded it can be shared with medical providers and other family members to provide information needed to ma ke sound health decisions (http://www.hhs.gov/famlyhistory/). Significant Health History Using the information contained in Jarvis (2008), the National Society of Genetic Counselors (http://www.nsgc.org), and Health and Human Services (https://familyhistory.hhs.gov/fhh-web/home.action), web sites I was able to construct by own Family Medical Pedigree. Seeing the information in print allowed me to easily determine the predominant disease traits in my family. Jarvis (2008), names specific diseases or conditions to pay particular attention to including: heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, blood disorders, cancer, sickle-cell anemia, arthritis, allergies, obesity, alcoholism, mental illness, seizure disorder, kidney disease and tuberculosis. In my Pedigree there is an obvious tendency towards cardiovascular disease. Specifically five of my relatives have had myocardial infarctions (MI), one MI resulted in death, seven had/have hypertension including myself, my paternal grandmother died from complications related to cerebral vascular accident that was caused by untreated hypertension, and my father died of kidney disease which was directly related to damage caused by hypertension. My mother has hypertension and although fairly well controlled she has had an MI and suffers from a retinal vein occlusion and macular degeneration which has resulted in severe vision impairment. Furthermore osteo and rhematoid arthritis is very prevalent in our family. In addition there is a strong maternal tendency towards hypothyroidism of which four females on the maternal side of the Pedigree have including me. Lifestyle Contributing Factors It is important to note that five of my relatives had lifestyles that contributed to hypertension and three of the five also suffered from an MI. My mother and father were heavy smokers for most of their adult lives, each quitting when the health implications became obvious. My paternal aunt was a heavy smoker until an MI which resulted in her death. Although obesity is a contributor to hypertension and heart disease, all of my relatives had/have relatively normal weights. My mother has sarcoidosis and was actively treated for a long time with prednisone which contributed to her vision problems. Important to note is that not only did my mother smoke but she also exposed herself to countless hazardous chemicals while working most of her life in kitchens. One would not think a commercial kitchen as a hazardous place to work until you realize the cleaning agents that are used on a regular basis. My mother was and continues to be a cleaning fanatic and considers the harsher the chemical the better. Torpy, J. (2006) claims that there are many theories about how sarcoidosis is acquired including environmental exposure, and genetic tendencies. In addition to sarcoidosis my mother has age related macular degeneration (ARMD), the American Medical Association (http:// ama-assn.org) states (as cited by Haines, J., Spencer K., Pericak-Vance, M., 2007) that ARMD has genetic and environmental links especially smoking. Risks and Risk Reduction From reviewing my Family Medical Pedigree it is easy to see that I have inherited the tendency towards and the conditions of hypertension, hypothyroidism, and arthritis. In addition I am at risk for ARMD and sarcoidosis which also has genetic tendencies. My physician is very proactive and has taken my family health history into consideration in providing my care. I have had an EKG and stress test, laboratory analysis for rheumatoid arthritis and annually I undergo tests to check for kidney function and cholesterol and routinely monitor my blood pressure. I see an ophthalmologist every year and hope that by reducing my risk factors for ARMD such as not smoking I do not succumb to it. Finally I am on medication for hypertension and hypothyroidism and I am happy to report both are well controlled. Considering lifestyle I have never smoked, and try to stay as active as possible with horseback riding and working and playing with my dogs. Another lifestyle change I should consider is diet; although I watch what I eat, I could do a much better job by eliminating saturated fats and losing 20 pounds. Conclusion There are user friendly, easily accessible tools available on the internet that can assist everyone to create and record their family health history using a Family Medical Pedigree. The information gained can assist individuals to make informed decisions about their lifestyle and medical care. Olsen, S., Dudley-Brown, S., McMullen, P. (2004) confirm à ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒâ€¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Appropriately used, a family history generated pedigree can be one of the health care providers most powerful clinical tools for health risk identification and preventionà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ã‚ (295). Even the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina M. Benjamin feels that accurate family medical history is important enough that she has created the Family Health History Initiative. This initiative has made recording health information accessible to everyone by providing a free online site to create your own Family Health Pedigree (www.surgeongeneral.gov). In summary by providing a Family Medical Pedigree and working collaboratively with your medical provider for proper screening, treatment, and lifestyle change you can decrease your risk for inherited diseases and preserve health.

Gothic Cathedrals :: Europe European Architecture Essays

Gothic Cathedrals For nearly four hundred years Gothic style dominated the architecture of Western Europe. It originated in northern France in the twelfth century, and spread rapidly across England and the Continent, invading the old Viking empire of Scandinavia. It confronted the Byzantine provinces of Central Europe and even made appearances in the near East and the Americas. Gothic architects designed town halls, royal palaces, courthouses, and hospitals. They fortified cities and castles to defend lands against invasion. But it was in the service of the church, the most prolific builder of the Middle Ages, that the Gothic style got its most meaningful expression, providing the widest scope for the development of architectural ideas. Although by 1400 Gothic had become the universal style of building in the Western world, its creative heartland was in northern France in an area stretching from the royal domain around Paris, including Saint-Denis and Chartres, to the region of the Champagne in the east and southward to Bourges. Within this restricted area, in the series of cathedrals built in the course of the 12th and 13th centuries, the major innovations of Gothic architecture took place. The supernatural character of medieval religious architecture was given a special form in the Gothic church. "Medieval man considered himself but an imperfect refraction of Divine Light of God, Whose Temple stood on earth, according to the text of the dedication ritual, stood for the Heavenly City of Jerusalem."3 The Gothic interpretation of this point of view was a cathedral so grand that seems to belittle the man who enters it, for space, light, structure and the plastic effects of the stonework are made to produce a visionary scale. The result of the Gothic style is distortion as there is no fixed set of proportions in the parts. Such architecture did not only express the physical and spiritual needs of the Church, but also the general attitude of the people of that time. Gothic was not dark, massive, and contained like the older Romanesque style, but light, open, and aerial, and its appearance in all parts of Europe had an enduring effect on the outlook of succeeding generations. Gothic architecture evolved at a time of profound social and economic change in Western Europe. In the late eleventh and twelfth centuries trade and industry were revived, particularly in northern Italy and Flanders, and a lively commerce brought about better communications, not only between neighboring towns but also between far-distant regions. Politically, the twelfth century was also the time of the expansion and consolidation of the State.

A Dream – creative writing

One by one we stepped of the bus after a comfortable nap on the red beds situated at the end of the bus. I was last to get off, I had a feeling of perpetual tiredness in my legs, I felt shaky and nervous. At first I couldn't think about what I was going to do on the pitch, all I thought about was after the match. As we walked down the tunnel, I saw framed pictures of legends such as Bobby Charlton, Denis Law and Eric Cantona. The sense of ‘I could be one of them' filled my empty head full of impossible thoughts. The tunnel was painted red and white, our home colours, the colours of victory. It was very long; all you could see in the darkness was the grass at the end of the tunnel like little green spikes they stuck out of the ground with light catching glimpse of their strong straight body. The smell of the hazy grass from down the tunnel went up my nose and soon reached my brain to intensify my nerves even more. It was quite a walk down to the home changing rooms. On the way I was greeted by many enthusiastic fans but instead of helping me, this made me even shakier and plunge further into my lethargy. I couldn't understand this as I had just had a two-hour nap. I silently entered the freezing cold changing rooms, which were supposedly painted white to give each player a calm feeling, checked my watch and looked around. I felt numb, the feeling of expectation had got to me, the blood in my body began to freeze and I couldn't hear anything. After a few moments the gaffer put his arms around me and I came out of my mood. All the players were lively, each one getting changed, concentrating on their own thoughts and weird pre-match rituals and superstitions. All focused on the one thing that really mattered; winning. When everyone was ready, the gaffer started talking. He said that we be should our best and all other things a managers says to make their players comfortable. To be honest with you I wasn't listening somehow the things he said just went into one ear and out of the other like an elephant talking to a cat. All I listened to was the roars and scream of the passionate fans waiting who started on their usual tones. I think the gaffer new I wasn't concentrating. He suddenly walked towards me and patted me on the back with his warm, big-palmed hands. As he did this I felt a big burden on my back. I felt as If I was carrying a big box full of millions of hopes and desires. As we walked out of the changing rooms we were joined by the away team, who all looked irregular. I was the captain for today so I was at the front of the team. The captain for the away team looked serious; he was tall with broad shoulders, had scruffy black hair, had a cold white face like a newly chilled corpse and stank of rubber. Funny I heard he had two left feet. Now adrenaline had kicked in and excitement had begun. We started slowly walking out to the stadium and soon we got faster and faster until we were jogging. The crowd was ecstatic. The stadium was jam-packed and all I could see was a sea of flashing bulbs from the photographers. The crowd started chanting my name and soon a feeling of nausea from the grass hit me hard. I walked slowly to the centre circle, with the ball at my feet. I looked at the other team, they all looked serious and some looked at me with spite. All of their players were bigger than us; almost Herculean in stature, most of them had short black hair and muscled legs like an army of action-man dolls. I took my feet off the ball and put my worn out boots into the soft, sturdy green grass. Everyone was in their positions and the whistle was blown, we were off†¦ The whistle went and it was half time, we were 2-0 down and everybody was disappointed. In the changing rooms, it was very quiet. Not really because of anyone but because of our performance, we were being stuffed. No-one was talking. The gaffer didn't lay into us. He didn't have to. We all knew we were playing rubbish. It was now going to be like a cat and mouse chase. The expression on each players face said it all really. I was just thinking of what I was going to do. Could I pull it off? Could I do the unimaginary? Could I†¦.. I couldn't understand why we were playing so badly but I had an epiphany, it must be because of their lazy useless captain not giving enough support†¦. me! I was going to pull it off I told myself. I was going to do the unimaginary. I was going to†¦ I gave a huge shout of encouragement to all the players like a commander rallying his weary troops. I slowly turned my head to face the other team. They all looked happy, as if this was a stroll in the park, as if they thought it was all wrapped up, as if they thought they had me all worked out, but had they? The whistle blew once more and we were off†¦ It was the 80th minute and we scored. It was better late than never. The ball rattled the net, and bounced on the floor a few times like a bouncy ball waiting to be caught. The crowd went mad. The player, who scored, picked up the ball after a little melee with the goalie who tried to stop him. He jogged back to the centre circle with the ball, with one hand in the air, appreciating the support the fans were giving him. The whistle was blown once more and we were off again†¦ The final whistle went it was 2-2. We scored in the last dying seconds of the match. All content with ourselves we trudged off to the gaffer and sat down on the pitch. I still couldn't get my head around the smell of the grass, warm and comforting like high summers. The gaffer sent all the coaches to massage the life back to our limbs. I could see that even the fans were tired, hoarse and emotional from their unswerving enthusiasm, as most of their voices had now gone from all the shouting, but I guessed it had helped as we were still in this match. Now the tables had turned, as I looked at the other team, they were all tired and didn't have a grin on their face any more. The whistle was blown louder than before this time and again we kicked-off†¦ Extra-time ended and scores were still 2-2 and everyone looked dead beat. We kept looking at the referee as we just wanted this to end. We were under pressure and running scared. Many times I thought it might be over but I still kept my head held high as I thought I had done a pretty good job, being the captain of a previously sinking ship, though with my skill, we had avoided the metaphorical iceberg. As we were walking back to the referee, the players had their heads down, as if they were out of this. I guess this was mostly because of what was to follow, penalties! The gaffer had a little notebook and pencil in his hand as he was going round asking each player if they wanted to take a penalty, it reminded me of what had happened last time I was here. Most of them just stood still and were too shocked and scared to say anything. Although he never came around to me, I was on the list. I guess I had to take one, or be blamed if we lost. They missed one and scored the rest, we had scored all our penalties up to now. Their fans had now got restless and started booing their own team; it showed how fickle 56,000 fans can be in times of need. Their manager looked disappointed, for all the training they had put in, wasn't going to help. One more player was left to take a penalty†¦ me, if it went in, we won, and if it didn't then more penalties would follow. I slowly started making my way to the ball. Half way, I stalled, I stood still but it seemed time had stood still. This time there was no-one near to put their arms around me to help me to come out of this mood again. My whole body froze and cold chills were sent to my brain. I looked forward and all I could see was the goalie looking nervous, billboards gaudily advertising a shirt brand and the thousands of faceless fans. Fans were screaming and shouting my name, I felt proud to be leading my team. My boots were frozen into the soft ground. No blood was felt at my toes and my knees were giving way as if my fit and tones body had been replaced by an arthritic and wizened shell. I couldn't stand any longer. There was no life left in my body. I was nervous; I was scared as I was remembering the last penalty shoot-outs. I had walked steadily to the ball and had concentrated on where I was going to kick it. The goalkeeper had gone the right way and my shot was stopped to the delight of the away supporters. They had won the cup. This was the same match, the same cup, the same away team, but would it be the same outcome. I returned to the present. My stomach was still frozen searching for any water left in my parched body, any lifeline left to give, any blood left to melt. My neck wouldn't twitch and my Adams apple felt frozen, I couldn't speak as my mouth was so dry that I felt my lips were being savaged off. My head was stiff; my face was pure cold white and my brain full of ghastly thoughts (I still couldn't get over what had happened the last time I was here). The fans started making their voices heard even more by intensifying the stadium with their passion, something not many people can give, something only a true fan possesses. Nerve receptors in my body didn't know which way to flow and no warm blood could be felt anywhere around my body except my ears. Even they wouldn't twitch, only the sound of screaming entered my ears, the sound I had heard many times throughout my lifetime. As a child I was abused by my violent father, who beat me every time I lost a match. That's why football is my life. It has always meant everything! I would scream in my bedroom but my mother was too scared to do anything about it, she too couldn't stand in my father's way. It took me until I was sixteen to stand up to him and kick him out of the house. I was bullied in school for not having a father, for not having many friends, for not having any football talent. I used to be called ‘footballer wannabe'; this infuriated me so much that all I concentrated on throughout my school years was football. And now what can those measly kids say to me, captain of a famous team, playing in a cup-final. Again my mind returned to the present. My body still stalled me, I didn't know what to do, either to let my knees give way, or stand there waiting for a lifeline to be found from the empty abyss†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Suddenly I heard the gaffer shout ‘come on ma lad, you can do it'. I woke of this terrible moment and blood started to flow again around my body. I coolly walked up to the ball, stepped back a few paces and ran as fast as I could towards the ball, hit it as hard as possible and stare. The ball rotated in mid-air and travelled towards the goal†¦..

Chocolate Chip Cookies

A chocolate chip cookie is a drop cookie that was originally from the United States and features chocolate chips as its main ingredient. The traditional recipe contains a dough composed of butter and both brown and white sugar with semi-sweet chocolate chips. Variations include recipes with other types of chocolate or additional ingredients, such as nuts or oatmeal. The chocolate chip cookie was accidentally developed by Ruth Graves Wakefield in 1930. She owned the Toll House Inn, in Whitman, Massachusetts, a very popular restaurant that featured home cooking in the 1930s.Her cookbook, Toll House Tried and True Recipes, was published in 1936 by M. Barrows & Company, New York. It included the recipe â€Å"Toll House Chocolate Crunch Cookie†, which rapidly became a favorite to be baked in American homes. Chocolate chip cookies are commonly made with high in calorie ingredients including sugar, flour, eggs, butter, chocolates, etc. Some recipes also include milk or nuts in the do ugh. It depends on the ratio of ingredients, mixing and cooking times, some recipes are optimized to produce a softer, chewy style cookie while others will produce a crunchy/crispy style.As you can see in the ingredients, on how the cookies is baked, and the style of cookies, it can easily catch an attention of a buyer. The ingredients given are also a bit expensive nowadays. As It is said, it is full of calories. So how about the costumers that will consume the high in calorie and expensive product? How about their health and weight? Their wallets and pockets? That's the reason why the researchers come up with this research. To make a solution to these problems about chocolate chip cookies.