Navajo Peacemaking

CAV Paper – Navajo Peacemaking Throughout Indian Country tribes have their own courts to address legal matters. However, the Navajo Nation has a court system that stands apart from other tribes. Howard L. Brown Esq. wrote, â€Å"The Navajo Nation’s Peacemaker Division: An Integrated Community-Based Dispute Resolution Forum† which was published in the American Indian Law Review 1999-2000 issue and was reprinted in the May/July 2002 issue of Dispute Resolution Journal. As a former judicial law clerk for the Supreme Court of the Navajo Nation, Brown gained firsthand experience with the Peacemaker Division within the Navajo Nation’s Judicial Branch.He details the history, development and ceremonies associated with this resolution forum. Two other authors also covered the same topic, agreeing with Brown’s opinion although from different perspectives. This paper will compare Brown’s viewpoint to Jon’a F. Meyers article, â€Å"It is a Gift F rom the Creator to Keep Us in Harmony: Original (vs. Alternative) Dispute Resolution on the Navajo Nation† published in the International Journal of Public Administration and Jeanmarie Pinto’s article â€Å"Peacemaking as Ceremony: the Mediation Model of the Navajo Nation. published in The International Journal of Conflict Management. Brown’s article opens with statistical information about the Navajo Nation’s reservation size and population, its status as a sovereign nation, and system of government. The article provides a brief history and evolution of the Navajo Nation’s judicial system, clearly explaining the difference between Navajo common law and contrasts it with the more adversarial federal or state law. The Navajo Nation Tribal Council established the Navajo courts, which make up one of the three branches of tribal government.In 1982, after searching for more traditional ways to solve disputes the Peacemaker Court began. It is know referr ed to as the Peacemaker Division within the judicial branch of government and uses Navajo Common law. [1] In â€Å"Peacemaking as Ceremony: The Mediation Model of the Navajo Nation,† Pinto agrees with Brown’s explanation of the Navajo court and government system, but explains the difference between Original Dispute Resolution (ODR) and Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). The Navajo legal term for peacemaking s Original Dispute Resolution, because it is the traditional Navajo method for solving disputes while ADR is a term for unique mediation methods within the federal, state, and local court systems. [2] Jon’a Meyer ‘s description of the history of Navajo peacemaking also agrees with the other two authors version of the history of the Navajo Nation’s judicial system, but the article â€Å"It is a Gift From the Creator to Keep Us in Harmony: Original (vs. Alternative) Dispute Resolution on the Navajo Nation† includes a history King Henry Ià ¢â‚¬â„¢s use of compensation for crimes which is a component of the Navajo peacemaking process. 3] According to Brown, Navajo common law is also known as traditional law which â€Å"reflects the customs, usages and traditions of the Navajo People, formed by Navajo values in action,† reinforcing the Nation’s sovereignty, preserving Navajo tradition, and preventing the state from interfering in Navajo judicial matters. [4] The article relates why the use of Navajo common law is important as it employs traditional cultural values to resolve disputes which is something familiar to the disputants, making them more inclined to go through the legal process to settle disputes.Pinto agrees with Brown, but points out that there are some younger Navajos who are not supportive of returning to the old ways of resolving disputes and prefer to use the more mainstream Navajo Court System. [5] Meyer’s article mentions the use of Navajo common law in the Navajo as did Brown and P into, but states â€Å"peacemaking never fully ceased to occur in the remote regions of the reservation. †[6] Unlike Pinto, Meyer did not mention the lack of support for Navajo peacekeeping within the younger generation.Peacemaking or hozhooji naat’aanii comes from Navajo common law and tradition and includes â€Å"a justice ceremony in which disputants and community members gather to talk things out with the assistance of a respected community leader or naat’aannii (peacemaker) to reach a consensual settlement. †[7] Brown describes how a peacemaker is chosen, how tradition is followed by opening the session with a prayer to create a harmonious atmosphere, and the protocol that if followed during the mediation leading to the final consensual solution.While talking things out family and community members will explain to the offender how they have violated tradition and failed to fulfill the expectation of their role as a family or community member and how it has impacted them. Brown’s description of the peacemaking process is similar to Pinto’s which is illustrated via a table comparing three model’s of dispute resolution. The table clearly shows the importance of Navajo tradition in peacemaking and how it is reflected in each step of the process via a healing ceremony and focusing on restoring harmony to the community. 8] Pinto also includes three pages detailing the seven steps and components of the peacemaking process. The outline format makes the process easy to understand and reinforces many points brought up by the other two authors. Meyer describes the peacemaking process in terms similar to Brown and Pintos, but compares the Navajo process to other tribal resolution methods. Using the Ojibwe example of cleansing the spirits of offenders and victims of a crime, Meyer points out that the Navajo peacemaking process works to eliminate â€Å"the causes of discord rather than focus on the dispute itself. [9] A fter the period of discussion the peacemaker will often use a story to illustrate the wrongdoing and to find a consensual solution that is in accordance with traditional Navajo beliefs. Brown relates how the story of the Horned Toad and Lightning resolved a dispute over land ownership. [10] Lightning felt that he owned all of the land and was upset when Horned Toad entered it and ordered him to leave. When Horned Toad refused to leave, Lightning threw a lightning bolt which landed very close to Horned Toad who left.The next day Horned Toad returned wearing armor and when Lightning hit him with a lightning bolt it was deflected by the armor. Horned Toad explained that the Creator was the same one that gave them the land and the armor and questioned why they were fighting over something that had been given to them. This story reminds disputants of the importance of talking things out and following traditional ways. While Pinto agrees with Brown’s account of how stories are used as a part of the peacemaking process, the article does not mention any specific stories.However, Pinto states, â€Å"through the telling of Sacred Navajo Narratives, and in relating wisdom gained through personal experience, the peacemakers teaches basic Navajo principles and guides the participants from a negative frame of mind to one that is positive enough to promote problem solving. †[11] Meyer also mentions the use of stories, but states that they are used to â€Å"illustrate issues in the dispute. †[12] All three authors agree that during the peacemaking solutions are achieved through discussion of the dispute and that the resolution reached is one that satisfies all parties.Meyer’s article is the only one that mentions the term â€Å"restorative justice† and it is in reference to the 1881 Brule Sioux Crow Dog case, in which the offender compensated the victim’s family. Crow Dog murdered Chief Spotted Tail and was ordered by the tribe to â⠂¬Å"make reparations to the victim’s family, a sanction that was commonly imposed in Sioux homicides. [13] Pinto’s outline of the peacemaking process includes the nalyeeh, â€Å"a process resulting in restitution, restoration, and making a person whole for an injury. [14] The person who caused the injury or is the responsible party for the dispute is required to make sure that restitution is given to the victim or victim’s family, which will help make the community whole again. Brown does not mention the term â€Å"restorative justice,† but does explain that the solution must be something agreed upon and satisfactory for all parties involved in the dispute. The agreement by consensus implies that community harmony is restored.The Navajo Nation’s Peacemaking Division has been successful and other tribes in the United States and Canada have similar successes. Meyer’s article uses an example taken from Hollow Water, Manitoba where tribal leade rs allowed sexual abusers to plead guilty and complete a 13 step two year program that helped them address the issues they struggle with due to their having been victimized during their childhood. After completion of the program â€Å"the former abuser foes through a cleansing ceremony to mark a new beginning for all involved.During the ceremony, the former abuser washed his victim’s feet, symbolically allowing her to re-enter womanhood, then throws a mask he has worn throughout the ceremony into the fire, symbolically destroying his identity as an abuser. †[15] The tribe has been incredibly successful with less than 5% of the abusers committing a sexual offense again, compared to much higher recidivism rates in mainstream courts. Pinto’s article agrees with Meyer that the Navajo peacekeeping system is successful and even goes as far to suggest it serving as a model or Western mediation â€Å"to improve the mediation methods currently being used. †[16] Br own’s article suggest that the Navajo Peacemaking system is successful and that success is reflected in the increased number of cases in the Peacekeeping Division. [17] Three authors wrote about Navajo peacekeeping from different perspectives, bringing up various points, but all agreed that it is successful. With the success of the Navajo Peacemaking Division of the Navajo Nation court system, it is clear that this long-standing tradition will continue to bring back restore harmony to communities torn apart by disputes.Works Cited Brown, Howard L. â€Å"Nation's Peacemaker Division: An Integrated, Community-Based Dispute Resolution Forum,† Dispute Resolution Journal 57 (May 2002) : 42- 48. Meyer, Jon’a. â€Å"It is a Gift From the Creator to Keep Us in Harmony: Original (vs. Alternative) Dispute Resolution on the Navajo Nation† International Journal of Public Administration 25 (2002) : 1379 – 1401. Pinto, Jeanmarie. â€Å"Peacemaking as Ceremony: The Mediation Model of the Navajo Nation,† The International Journal of Conflict Management 11 (2000) : 267-286. ———————– 1] Howard L. Brown, â€Å"Nation's Peacemaker Division: An Integrated, Community-Based Dispute Resolution Forum,† Dispute Resolution Journal 57 (May 2002), 44. [2] Jeanmarie Pinto, â€Å"Peacemaking as Ceremony: The Mediation Model of the Navajo Nation,† The International Journal of Conflict Management 11 (2000), 269. [3] Meyer, Jon’a â€Å"It is a Gift From the Creator to Keep Us in Harmony: Original (vs. Alternative) Dispute Resolution on the Navajo Nation† International Journal of Public Administration 25 (2002) : 1380. [4] Brown, Nation's Peacemaker Division, 45. 5] Pinto, Peacemaking as Ceremony, 270. [6] Meyer, It is a Gift From the Creator, 1387. [7] Brown, Nation's Peacemaker Division, 45. [8] Pinto, Peacemaking as Ceremony, 275. [9] Meyer, It is a Gift From the Crea tor, 1388. [10] Brown, Nation's Peacemaker Division, 47. [11] Pinto, Peacemaking as Ceremony, 278. [12] Meyer, It is a Gift From the Creator, 1388. [13] Ibid, 1384. [14] Pinto, Peacemaking as Ceremony, 282. [15] Meyer, It is a Gift From the Creator, 1383. [16] Pinto, Peacemaking as Ceremony, 283. [17] Brown, Nation's Peacemaker Division, 47.

Philosophy of Plato Essay

?By studying Plato’s views on the soul, virtues, and forms, one can understand his outlooks on the individual and natural purpose, or telos. Plato had a teleological worldview, so he believed everything in nature had an end, or purpose. In his famous Allegory of the Cave, along with the Sun and Line analogies, Plato outlines the spiritual and intellectual journey of a human from ignorance into goodness and knowledge, which symbolizes a human reaching his or her purpose. This essay will evaluate Plato’s teleological view regarding humans by analyzing his Allegory of the Cave with relation to his views of the tripartite soul, virtues, and forms; in addition, I will determine if Plato’s views of virtue and happiness are feasible or not. Plato had an interesting view on the soul and its relation to the body. He believed that the soul had three parts: the appetitive, spirited, and rational. In his famous work the Republic, Plato argued that the soul must be tripartite because â€Å"the same thing cannot at the same time with the same part of itself act in contrary ways about the same† (Republic, IV, 1). This argument makes sense, for if the soul was just one part, it would contradict itself when it desires a thing at one time but does not desire it at another time. Plato related the soul to virtue by comparing the tripartite soul to the ideal city-state. He emphasized that, in order for one’s soul to remain good and orderly, its parts must not â€Å"interfere with one another [and not] do the work of others† (Republic IV, 5). This is what Plato calls justice, and it relates to an individual in one class not doing the business of another in another class. Accordingly, wisdom is the virtue of the rational part of the soul, relating to teachers, and courage is the virtue of the spirited part, correlating with soldiers. Finally, moderation occurs when the parts of the soul work together cooperatively, making the soul unified and complete, similar to a unified and flourishing city-state. Plato claimed that the natural purpose of humans is to reason well, and in order to fulfill this, humans must have these virtues of their soul. Plato, like many other ancient philosophers, thought of virtue as excellence. In the Republic, Plato regarded the virtues of justice, moderation, courage, and wisdom as the most important virtues, which is clear since he included them in his account of the soul. For our souls to reach their purpose, which is ultimately happiness, we must understand and live out these virtues in our lives. For example, according to Plato, one can master the virtue of justice by performing one’s work, or function, well, without interfering with someone else’s business. Also, in book IV of the Republic, Socrates attempts to convince Glaucon and Adeimantus that living the virtuous life is the best, happiest life. Plato, through Socrates, argued, â€Å"virtue is the health and beauty and well-being of the soul† (Republic IV, 6). Therefore, for humans to reach our end and find happiness, we must live a virtuous life. Plato had a very unique view on forms. He believed forms, as metaphysical entities, exist in a separate universe from the material world and that this universe of forms is absolutely perfect. Things in the material world that relate to forms are independent of the forms themselves. For example, a knife is sharp, but Plato believed it was separate from the form of sharpness. Plato believed virtues were forms, and notably that the â€Å"form of the good is the most important thing to learn about† (Republic, VI, 1). Like the virtues, the most important forms include justice, moderation, and courage, but the highest form of all is the form of the good. Plato believed that understanding these forms, especially the form of the good, is crucial to one’s purpose and happiness. Plato said, â€Å"Every soul pursues the good and does whatever it does for its sake† (Republic, VI, 2). Plato’s teleological view is shown here; the soul’s ultimate purpose is to find the good (and happiness), and if it does this, it will understand everything else. This idea is further explained in the Allegory of the Cave, which I will discuss in the next paragraph. The Allegory of the Cave describes a person on an intellectual journey from ignorance to reason. Most humans are like the prisoners in the cave; they are ignorant and fail to learn new things because they are comfortable with what they already know, despite the lack of reason. Plato said that humans must free themselves from their previous thoughts and see that these thoughts lacked reason, just like the prisoner who saw that the shadows were actually produced from objects and were not â€Å"real† themselves. Once outside the cave, humans can learn about virtues and forms, similar to the prisoner who sees natural objects and not human-made copies of them. Ultimately, at the end of their intellectual journey, humans will see that every form is derived from the form of the good, which is denoted by the sun in the story. Plato’s sun analogy is essentially within the Allegory of the Cave. The sun provides light, allowing us to see things for what they truly are; similarly, the form of the good allows us to understand other forms and therefore gives us knowledge. His line analogy is important in linking the visible and intelligible realms as well as metaphysics and epistemology. The lowest part of the visible realm includes images and pictures and is linked with imagination. The next part includes the material objects themselves and compares to belief. Entering the intelligible realm, there are numbers and shapes, associated with thought. Finally, the highest area involves forms and is linked, accordingly, with knowledge and understanding. In the throne of the highest area sits the form of the good, which is key to understanding everything else. Plato believed that virtuous people would do virtuous things. Initially, this seems to make perfect sense; a just person will do just things and an unjust person will do unjust things. Plato believed people are motivated by desire when making decisions, whether we choose the morally right or wrong option. He does not take into account, however, that a virtuous person might have to perform some immoral acts in order to produce a virtuous end. If a good man kills a murderer because he is a murderer, this is clearly an immoral act, but his intention is good and it is virtuous that he saved future victims of the murderer. The action is important in developing virtue as seen by others, but it does not necessarily improve one’s virtue because only the individual knows if he or she is actually being virtuous or not. Therefore, I believe Plato’s account of virtue is ultimately inadequate. Regarding Plato’s view on forms and the Allegory of the Cave, is it every individual’s purpose to find the good? Certainly everyone would desire to understand the form of the good, but Plato seems to reserve this for philosopher-kings, the wisest people destined to rule over others. This is a major problem in Plato’s philosophy, as he said everyone desires the good, but since only a few seem to have the intellectual capability to reach it, only these few should pursue it in a just city-state. It is, therefore, the job of these philosopher-kings to teach about the good, but as shown in the Allegory of the Cave, people who are not enlightened have a very difficult time understanding it and may reject it altogether. Since Plato believed that understanding the form of the good leads to happiness, he must have believed that only those with the intellectual capability to understand it are truly able to be happy. I think this is a major hole in Plato’s view of happiness, because people can definitely be happy without this knowledge of the good. Plato’s philosophy outlines a very ordered society and soul. His strong belief that everything in nature has a purpose appears in all his philosophy. His account of the soul is relatively complex due to his tripartite view, and his view of forms is also complex and unlikely, as Aristotle and other philosophers later rejected it. As shown in the previous paragraphs, his accounts of virtue and happiness are also insufficient. Despite this, Plato was an incredibly influential and important philosopher, and he is still effective in describing the individual and natural purpose through his philosophic beliefs.

Primary caregiving for Toddlers in Early childhood education Essay

Essay: Primary caregiving for Toddlers in Early childhood education Within this assessment I aim to investigate primary caregiving for toddlers in early childhood education; considering the influence of historical and contemporary developments, theoretical perspectives, quality provision, specific pedagogical approaches and my personal professional philosophy of teaching and learning. Primary caregiving describes the relationship between toddlers and the most significant adult within their life, generally referring to their mother (Bernhardt, 2000); in early childhood education this concept refers to a kaiako taking on the primary role of their care within the learning environment. Primary caregiving in early childhood education has been recognised as the perfect opportunity to engage in sensitive and responsive encounters; such as nappy changing, feeding and observing the toddler within the environment, the observations are used to gather information for curriculum development and to communicate to parents (Rolfe, 2004). Clarence Edward Beeby and his wife Beatrice established the first play centre, in Wellington in 1941 (Stover, 2010). The emphasis of play centre was parent involvement, parents stay with their child/children throughout the session. Play centres are parent-led early childhood centres offering quality education for children in small mixed-age groups. The play centre association provide free parenting and early childhood education for parent members. In 1963, Sonia Davies established The New Zealand Childcare Association (NZCA) recognised as a courageous and charismatic leader, working to support private and community early childhood learning environments and those involved within the organisation. The notion of NZCA was to promote a quality in early childhood education (Stover, 2010, p. 12). In the 1980s, quality in early childhood education was investigated leading to the development of the Meade Report (1988); the government commissioned and identified recommendations regarding quality in early childhood education services in Aotearoa/New Zealand the Meade report includes but is not limited to group size, staff/child ratio, and providing a safe and healthy environment. Theoretical perspectives can be linked to Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory; identifying the layers of influence in a child’s life, focusing on the quality and context of the child’s environment. Bronfenbrenner explains how relationships within social and cultural worlds influence behaviours, development and learning, shaping us into who we become (Drewery & Bird, 2004). Lev Vygotsky believed who we are and what we do is due to the influence of our cultural surroundings, referring to socio-cultural philosophy of learning (Vialle, Lysaght, Verenikina, 2005). Vygotsky an influential contributor to the evolving acknowledgment of the significance of relationships in learning and development, believed children engage in and undertake tasks when they have a mentor guiding them; involving positive interactions between adults and children (Arthur, Bleecher, Dickett, Farmer & Death, 2005). The attachment theory developed by Bowlby and Ainsworth in 1969 was inspired by ethological research on imprinting behaviour (Lorenz, 1952); developed to provide information regarding the way children gain perception of relationships, identifying a set of observable behaviours relating to social and emotional attachment. Bowlby believed the quality of attachment relationships forms the foundation of emotional development; the attachment theory explains how young children from bonds with specific people, such as parents or other close adults such as kaiako. A secure attachment status supports the toddler to explore freely, seeking support when needed. Loughran (2010) identified in pedagogy as the relationship between teaching and learning, understanding this interplay between teaching and learning and learning and teaching is an important shift in focus from teaching alone because it really means the two exist together† Relationship pedagogy recognises toddlers individual learning techniques accompanied by the kaiako’s reflection where the kaiako identify and implement personal values and beliefs into the care and education within the learning environment. . Gallagher and Mayer (2008) recognised pedagogical involvements with toddlers as gentle, responsive and individualised timely adjustments, responding to children’s verbal and non-verbal cues, temperament, cultural background, interests and current ‘zone of proximal development’. The introduction of a three-year early childhood teacher-education qualification in 1987 provoked kaiako to reflect on their practice with infants and toddlers with the intent to see teaching and learning as a holistic endeavour going beyond physical care. The concept of quality in early childhood education has been under investigation for the last three decades, with significant research undertaken to examine the components of quality within the organisation (Dalli, White, Rockel & Duhn, 2011). Rolfe (2004) believes to foster relationship based pedagogy kaiako need to understand attachment theory, and the implications of pedagogical relationships. Dalli, (et al., 2011) identifies relationship pedagogy comprising of care, respect and security involving responsive relationships, by understanding the manner in which the kaiako approaches relationship pedagogy is influenced by individual perceptions of the child as learner. Through building relationships getting to know the children kaiako are able to observe the learning which takes place (Dalli, et al. , 2011). The Ministry of Education, [MoE] 1996 acknowledges the importance of responsive relationships in early childhood education: â€Å"In order to thrive and learn, a toddler must establish an intimate, responsive, and trusting relationship with at least one other person† (p. 22). I recognise relationships are an important characteristic of early childhood education, which impacts toddlers learning and development within the environment. As an early childhood educator I am committed to supporting young children and their whanau throughout the child’s early childhood education; in able to support children throughout their learning journey it is imperative I understand the unique qualities of each child within my care, through implementing a primary caregiving system I would be able to form quality relationships with a small group of toddlers and their parents/whanau. Primary Caregiving System refers to the allocation of specific kaiako to individual children, the kaiako are responsible for the toddler’s overall well-being within the environment. To ensure quality care the toddler needs to form a secure attachment with their primary caregiver. Quality relationships between kaiako and toddler’s, fosters learning and development; this supports the kaiako to adapt and support individualised learning opportunities. Many theorists, including those whose ideas underpin the principles and strands of Te Whariki, support the significance of nurturing responsive reciprocal relationships through primary caregiving. Relationships developed from implementing the primary caregiving system can be supported by Bronfenbrenner and Vygotsky’s theories, by the way in which relationships shape and influence a child’s development. Relationship pedagogy recognises individual pace of learning, which in turn provides a structure for discourse. The New Zealand Childcare Association (NZCA) was founded in 1963 to support learning environments to promote quality early childhood education (Stover, 2010, p. 12). Reference List Arthur, L. Bleecher, B. Dockett, S. & Death, E. (2005), Programming and planning in early childhood settings (3rd ed.) Southbank, Victoria, Australia: Thompson. Bernhardt, J. L. (2000). A primary caregiving system for infants and toddlers: Best for everyone involved. Young Children, 55(2), 74-80. Bretherton, I. (1985). Attachment theory: Retrospect and prospect. In I. Bretherton & E. Waters (Eds. ), Growing points of attachment theory and research. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 50(1-2, Serial No. 209), 3-35. Dalli, C. , White, E. J. , Rockel, J. , Duhn, I. , with Buchanan, E. , Davidson, S. , Ganly, S. , Kus, L. , & Wang, B. (2011). Quality early childhood education for under-two-year-olds: What should it look like? A literature review. Retrieved from http://www. educationcounts. govt. nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/89532/965_QualityECE_Web-22032011. pdf Drewery, W. Bird, L. (2004). Human development in Aotearoa: A journey through life. New Zealand: McGraw Hill New Zealand. Gallagher, K. C. , & Mayer, K. (2008). Enhancing development and learning through teacher-child relationships. Young Children, 63(6), 80–87. Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whariki: He whariki matauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa/early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media. Rolfe, S. (2000). Understanding relationships between professional carers and toddler. In child care: A case study, action research approach. The First Years Nga Tau Tuatahi. New Zealand Journal of infant and Toddler Education, 2(1), 9-12. Stover, S. (2010). A rapid history of early childhood education in Aotearoa New Zealand. In B. Clark & A. Grey (Eds. ), Perspectives on early childhood education: Ata kitea te pae – Scanning the horizon. North Shore, New Zealand: Pearson. Vialle, W. , Lysaght, P. , & Verenikina, I. (2005). Psychology for Educators.

Insurance and Cancer Survival Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Insurance and Cancer Survival - Essay Example When they issue the first policy, the first premiums are usually high since that is the period that the insurance company has the greatest risk. Most cancers have lower risks of coming back when more time goes. The cancer patient often has to talk over the case with their insurance company, which can explain how it will personally affect the cancer patient. When the cancer patient already had a life insurance policy before they were diagnosed with cancer, the insurance company ought to tribute it as normal if the patient were honest about the medical history when they took the policy. The cancer patient might find it quite challenging to increase the value of his policy for some time (Fesen, 2009).  It will be easier for the patient to do this than begin a new insurance policy after the cancer diagnosis. If the cancer patient may wish to increase his cover, he could ask his adviser o how to use the option of â€Å"special event†. Some insurers provide this, but not all of it. This means that the cancer patient can increase the cover without underwriting, considering some events that takes place in his life, for example, moving house, marriage or birth of a

Gun Control Legislation (Do stricter laws correlate to lower homicide Thesis

Gun Control Legislation (Do stricter laws correlate to lower homicide rates, fewer gun related crimes and less illegal weapons) - Thesis Example This book illustrates the author’s research on crime, prevention, and the authority to have concealed weapons. He severely condemns the notion that it is unjustified to allow citizens to carry guns, as it is harmful to the society, however, concealed weapons is only dangerous to the criminals and useful to the common man. The writer provides data of 3000 U.S. countries who imposed gun laws over 18 years (Lott, 2010) and as a result, the crime rate like murder, theft went down immediately. Moreover, according to Lott, the people who benefitted were mostly women, Blacks, and individuals living in the rural areas. However, in the book some statistics is rather dull and boring especially the data tables. This book is an excellent read especially for those who believe that gun laws should be implemented. Moreover, the book offers us a variety of debates that help us argue people who are in support of gun control. This source however, does not give much emphasis on the gun laws of A merica, instead, it provides data of gun control laws of other countries. The article gives information about Colorado’s mass killing that took lives of twelve people and fifty eight were injured. Living in America is extremely threatening because a person is more likely to be killed in the US than any other country like Britain, Japan and Germany. Moreover, the article gives credible information about why the crime rate is so high in America by telling, â€Å"two- thirds of the people in America carry guns, whereas in Britain only 10% of the people carry weapons† (Colorado’s dark night). The article shed lights on Obama’s failed strategy of gun control and the condition of the country is getting worse as a result. Every politician hides behind the Second Amendment constitution, which says the people have the right to carry arms. The

Commuication and Culture Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Commuication and Culture - Case Study Example Racial abuse is a serious offence and should be dealt with serious punishments. The Blacks were known not only for their physical strength but also for their inventive methods in labor department, and were always successful in whatever the field they had chosen. Blacks were seen as enemies in many societies. During the civil war in US it seemed as perfect situation for those people who always hated the Blacks and used their forces to suppress them. The war has witnessed most of the Blacks being brutally murdered and thrown out of their respective homes. The White forces had committed many atrocities against the Blacks. In US the Blacks and Latinos are the largest immigrants. They migrated from the far lands of the black continent Africa and other parts of the American continent respectively. In the past, since these countries were not as developed as US and their socio-economic structure was on decline, many of the citizens were forced to work as slaves and have to migrate to US. In US, Black and Latino immigrants have less education and less skill set, even among women also. Apart from other groups these Blacks and Latinos have less human capital, so they have very less employers in their group and it is indirectly affecting their economic status and social environment also. Gender inequality was always prevailed among the Blacks.

Reflective of future thinking Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Reflective of future thinking - Essay Example However, there are a myriad of factors to be considered before developing innovations in a company, including the sustainability aspect of new products and technology. Overall, there are many changes in the world, as well as in the business world. These have mainly been realized because of the advanced changes in technology, which in turn influence the economy of a country and the global economy as well. Various industries today also exhibit great changes in their practice and products, compared to past decades. In this presentation, the main focus is on the car industry, which has not been left behind, with regard to technology. In the world of technology today, new inventions are developed to increase efficiency. Similarly, in the car industry, major new technologies are unveiled on a regular basis. These might be concerned with improving safety of cars, usefulness of cars, cars’ entertainment and luxury aspects, or for purely innovative reasons. Most of the new car innovati ons are exciting and have improved efficiency in various aspects of cars. The first car was invented in the year 1769. Today, this first car cannot be compared to the present supercars, in terms of technology and efficiency. As a result of increased technological advances in cars, today’s cars are more safe and reliable than they were in past years. In the car industry, technological advancement is key, therefore, it is expected that this industry will produce more technologically advanced cars in the future (Christidis, Hildalgo & Soria 2003). However, different factors will influence the extent to which technology is adopted in the car industry in future. These include the availability of fuel and level of pollution by cars. With regard to fuel, the car industry, compared to the pat years, has increased the number of cars that it manufactures, and reduced the cost of cars, thus making cars to be affordable to many people. This therefore, has led to high consumption of fuel, and it is feared that in future, fuel might become scarce, since it is being exhausted today at a high rate. Additionally, the car industry is regarded as one of the top industries that highly contribute to global warming. Most cars today use petroleum, which emits Carbon dioxide gas on combustion. Therefore, in future, the car industry might consider fuel economy and reducing global warming, when it develops new car models, as these factors will promote sustainability (Macrel & Cooper 2011). In order to analyze the future of cars with regard to technological improvement, this paper will employ different tools and techniques of foresight. The initial thinking about the future holds that there is so much unpredictability in the future. It is therefore, not possible for people to perfectly figure out what the future holds, since a myriad of factors, which are beyond human control, influence the events of the future. Human beings have different expectations about the future. Although no human being can peer into the future, these use their minds and imagination to create a picture of the future, which might be unrealistic. Overall, people expect positive things to happen in the future. However, these expectations might not be in line with what the future really holds. This

Balance Score Card Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Balance Score Card - Essay Example of the management in terms of implementation of the strategy balance scorecard is often used by the management to analyze whether the objectives have been properly implemented or not. Balanced score card is the most popular tool of performance management. Balanced scorecard helps the manager in keeping a track on the progress of the activities and matching them with the desired level. In this project the balance scorecard of the Coca-Cola Company has been made on the basis of the four different perspective and objectives of each perspective. Different types of metrics have also been used to let in building the balanced scorecard. Performance management is very important for every company. It enables the management to assess the performance of the company and also helps the company to analyze the loop holes or the room for improvement. It helps the management to identify the direction in which the organization is moving. It helps the organization to perform better by enabling the organization. The performance management is done on the basis of various tools of performance management system. The performance management system helps the organization to plan control and measure the performance of activities of the organization beforehand. The different performance management system used for performance management are balanced scorecard, activity based management, quality management, economic value added etc. among the various performance management system the most popular methods are balance scorecard, activity based management and economic value added. Activity based management is done by analyzing those activit ies which adds value to the organization. This is done on the basis of activity based costing. It mainly focuses on reducing the cost and increasing the value received by the customers. The economic value added method enables the organization to analyze the overall performance of the organization. In this method the financial measures are used to measure the

Can Jeffrey Sachs End Global Poverty Research Paper

Can Jeffrey Sachs End Global Poverty - Research Paper Example Global poverty is an issue faced by many nations and should be tackled with some of the recommendations that Jeffrey Sachs gives. 2. The policies of economic growth laid down by Jeffrey Sachs can prove to be beneficial if implemented by the richer nations. 3. The United States has a great role to play in eradicating the issue of global poverty from the world. 4. Yes, the U.S should promote global growth by providing the poor nations with the necessary financial aid. 5. Africa is suffering from extreme poverty and U.S should take a stance on tackling the issue of poverty there through which the threats of terrorism can also be decreased. Cons 1. No, the option of economic growth is not the only solution for global poverty prevailing in this world. 2. Along with economic growth it is also necessary that corruption and malice is eradicated from the governments. 3. No, the U.S alone cannot make much of a difference in eradicating the issue of global poverty from this world because of the role that the home government plays. 4. No, financial aid is not the only solution for the eradication and it should be backed by other reforms. Can Jeffrey Sachs End Global Poverty? The debates about poverty and its consequences are getting increasing attention from the authorities, law regulators, politicians, social welfare organizations, policymakers and the public at large. The reasons behind such importance given to the issues of poverty are the unhealthy, inconsistent and unwelcoming consequences of poverty. These consequences affect all areas from the social, psychological, mental and physical health to access quality food, shelter and other basic necessities for people’s lives. Poverty has turned out to be a global issue affecting a great part of the population living in this world. Jeffrey Sachs is a well qualified professor who has classified poverty into three major classes. He believes that individuals either live in extreme poverty, moderate poverty or relative poverty. Sachs put forwards that in the past 25 years economic growth has been witnessed all around the world but this economic growth has not been significant enough to eradicate poverty even from the developed nations. He believes that a balanced economic growth is necessary to eradicate poverty from the world. He has put several points which according to him are necessary to be implemented so that the global poverty can be ended. A question here arises though as to â€Å"if Jeffrey Sachs can end global poverty or not?†1 From the 1990s it has been seen that the role of international financial institutions have increased in the global politics. These IFIs are responsible on aiding the poor nations with money which they have to use for economic growth. This economic growth can help in eradicating the roots of poverty. Sachs believes that the rich nations have a special role to play in helping to cut off the roots of poverty. The richest countries of the world like United Sta tes can allocate 0.7% of their budget to the poorer nations so that they can prosper and make economic growth. Currently the United States only spends 0.15% in the aid which should be increased by cutting down the defence budgets2. He believes that the country who is participating for a change should make sure that the transformation is really occurring. Lack of commitment by the richer countries can become a hurdle to the progress of economic growth. His emphasis on commitment by the richer nations can be seen in these words â€Å"‘The U.S. lack of support for Bolivia was appalling’.3 Jeffrey Sachs blames the United States for the continuing global poverty in this world. He cites that the war against terrorism launched by the United States is a complete failure and can be tackled in other ways too. According to him the issue of terrorism can be tackled if the interest of US was shifted towards international relations rather than on military advancement. The roots of t errorism can be cut out by economic growth and by helping a poor nation to progress the war against

Nonverbal Communication Codes Essay Example for Free

Nonverbal Communication Codes Essay 1. What nonverbal messages are being sent in this image? Why are you looking at me? Is the nonverbal message that I would take from the woman with the bad tan. 2. What type of nonverbal communication codes are being used to deliver the messages? I believe the nonverbal message in this image is Affect Displays. A woman with an obvious bad tan seems as though she has a negative reaction to the gentleman that’s doing a double take, looking at her. Her facial expression has a look of irritation from the staring 3. What effect does each message have on the other people in the image? It is hard to determine the effect on the other people that is in the image; however, I suppose the people that are around them that saw the interaction should’ve felt the awkwardness as well. It would be obvious that the signal would be not to get involved and to look away. 4. What nonverbal communication skills and strategies could be used to communicate effectively in this situation? Smiling or showing a friendly face and eye contact should have been made to reduce the feeling of inadequacy or awkwardness. 1. What cultural barriers are seen in this image? I believe the gentleman is focused on the group of woman because he is trying to figure out their dress and culture because it is different than his. 2. What type of nonverbal communication codes are being used to deliver the messages? I feel like the type of nonverbal communication codes that is being used is Affect Displays and Regulators. The gentleman’s posture is used to communicate his emotion and his posture asked the question, â€Å"what are you are doing, and why you dressed that way?† This is an example of the affect Displays because his posture is showing emotions. The other code that is then displayed is the regulator because he is giving eye contact to the group with a facial expression, and open mouth or raised eyebrow, trying to get the group’s attention. 3. What effect does each message have on the other people in the image? The effect that each person has in the image is of non-affect. No one has notice the gentleman’s non-verbal communication methods. Either no one sees it, or he is being ignored, based off of the individuals in the picture. 4. What nonverbal communication skills and strategies could be used to communicate effectively in this situation? The nonverbal communication skills and strategies that can be used to communicate effectively in this situation were simply being a friendly face and smile to show no threat. Also, if the gentleman was really serious, he should have stopped and face the group that he was trying to get their attention 1. What nonverbal messages are being sent in this image? The nonverbal message in this image says that there are still places in Asia where smoking continues to be allowed in some public places; and, smoking is a popular thing to do. 2. What type of nonverbal communication codes are being used to deliver the messages? The nonverbal communication code that is used to deliver this message is the Adapters. Adapters are nonverbal behaviors that help you satisfy personal needs and adapt to the immediate situation or surroundings. 3. What effect does each message have on the other people in the image? The effect that being an adapter in this image has on other people in the image I believe is that smoking is addictive and if one person smokes a cigarette and you are a smoker thing you will want a cigarette as well. 4. What nonverbal communication skills and strategies could be used to communicate effectively in this situation? I am not a smoker; I would either leave the room or show displeasure from secondhand smoke. 1. What cultural barriers can be seen in this image? 2. What nonverbal messages are being sent in this image? 3. What type of nonverbal communication codes are being used to deliver the messages? 4. What effect does each message have on the other people in the image? 5. What nonverbal communication skills and strategies could be used to communicate effectively in this situation? 1. What cultural barriers can be seen in this image? The cultural barriers in this image can be defined as business people who are possibly on their way to work on being a know it annoyed by a woman on her cell phone, not paying attention to where she’s going. 2. What nonverbal messages are being sent in this image? In this image, the people display a busy, business like image. The affect display can be displayed through their posture, and by putting little expression on their faces. It is almost as if it is a hostile rush to get where they’re going. 3. What type of nonverbal communication codes are being used to deliver the messages? The nonverbal communication codes that can be displayed from this image is the Affect Display. 4. What effect does each message have on the other people in the image? It seems as though the people in this image are annoyed by the woman was talking on her cell phone and not paying attention to where she’s going or having a very loud conversation. 5. What nonverbal communication skills and strategies could be used to communicate effectively in this situation? Lady, please hang up the phone and watch where you’re going.

Population Pressure And Living Environment Within Slums Sociology Essay

Population Pressure And Living Environment Within Slums Sociology Essay In this context the present paper tries to analyse the variation in composition and distribution of slum population as well as the population pressure and living environment therein. Utilising data from census of India and NSSO 49th, 58th and 65th rounds, the variations in composition and distribution of slum population along with the living environment therein has been analysed. The study shows that the increase in number of urban poor has led to increase in number of slums and this has very adversely affected the living conditions in slums and has resulted in the further deterioration of many essential facilities. In major developed states there has been further deterioration of living conditions in the slums and the most basic necessities have become scarcer. At the district level, higher concentration of slums can be found in northern, north-eastern and western states while dispersed slums can be seen in central and southern states. The problem of slums has turned to be more gig antic than earlier and thus requires immediate actions for checking the further growth of slums and improvement in the living conditions as well. Keywords Slums, population composition, infrastructure, Spatio-temporal pattern. Introduction The mountain of trash seemed to stretch very far, then gradually without perceptible demarcation of boundary it became something else. But what? A jumbled and pathless collection of structures, cardboard cartoons, plywood and rotting bottles, the rusting and glassless shells of cars, had been thrown together to form habitation. Michael Thelwell (Adapted from Mike Davis, 2004) The earth has urbanized even faster than originally predicted by the club of Rome in its popular report limits to growth and this has resulted in the rise of gigantic hyper cities. The megacities have come up as the brightest stars in the urban firmament, but at the same time three quarters of the burden of population growth is borne by faintly visible second tier-cities and smaller urban areas where there is little or no planning to accommodate these people or provide them with services. Urbanization, thus, must be conceptualized as structural transformation along, and intensified interaction between every point of an urban-rural continuum. But the price of new urban order has been increasing inequality within and between cities of different sizes of specializations. Urbanization at many places has been radically decoupled from industrialization, even from development per se. More sinister has been the urbanization-without-growth. The urban population growth in spite of stagnant or negative urban economic growth is the extreme face of what researchers have labelled as over-urbanization. It is just one of the several unexpected tracks down which a neo-liberal world order has shunted millennial urbanization. In spite of the drastically weakened pull of the city by debt and depression, the rapid urban growth in the context of structural adjustment has been an inevitable recipe for the mass production of slums (Davis, 2004). The UN-Habitat report in 2003, titled The Challenge of the Slums stands out to be the first truly global audit of urban poverty. It has established that the primary direction of both national and international interventions during the last twenty years has actually increased urban poverty and slums, increased exclusion and inequality and weakened urban elites in their efforts to use cities as engines of growth. But all other things remaining aside, slums remain an invaluable expose that amplifies urgent research findings with the institutional authority of the United Nations. If the reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change represent an unprecedented scientific consensus on the dangers of global warming, then slums sounds an equally authoritative warning about the global catastrophe of the urban poverty. In fact slums are basically the urbanization of poverty. When human beings were able to produce more than they consumed and had found ways of storing the surplus to provide for a large number of people, living away from the field, they settled on such areas which provided good environment, climate and soil favourable to plant and animal life, an adequate water supply, ready materials for providing shelter and easy access to other peoples. Concentration of population grew at the intersections of trade routes, at harbours and at the mouths of rivers with easy access to the sea. Athens, Rome was located near the sea. Mecca, Damascus and Samarkand were island cities located on caravan routes. In India all big cities were located near the banks of rivers, ports, etc. Varanasi is one of the ancient and famous cities located on the bank of river Ganges. The officials and priests lived in the main hub whereas lower classes craft persons, artisans and labourers lived around the city republics. Gradually people from fields and small settlements sta rted moving to city republics because of lack of farm work all time of the year and safety in cities. These city republics became powerful and tapped the surpluses and other resources. In 1800 only 2% of world population lived in towns of more than 5000 inhabitants. No more than 45 cities had population over 100,000. The 19th and 20th Century saw enormous growth of urban population. In fact the 20th century was a time of great change, and the greatest of those changes was in the numbers of people on the globe and where they lived. Since 1950, mankind has endured its most rapid expansion, from 2.5 billion to 6 billion people. As a result of this rapid increase of population, the cities were not able to sustain the pressure of increased population and could not provide good environment and basic services to new entrants as they were unable to afford reasonable shelter within their means. They were therefore forced to live in slums. Sixty per cent of this gain has been in urban areas, particularly in the urban areas of the developing world, where the urban population has increased more than six fold in only 50 years. Humanity is only about half way through this great transformation to urban living. During the next 30 years, the global urban population will increase by more than 2 billion while rural populations will be almost static. The greatest impact will be felt in the developing world and nowhere more so than throughout South and South-eastern Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. During the next 15 years, many large cities in Asia and Africa will nearly double their population. The huge increase in urban populations amounts to a crisis of unprecedented magnitude in urban shelter provision. Every year, the worlds urban population is increasing by about 70 million, equivalent to seven new megacities. These people all need to be provided with shelter, with employment and with urban services. The stretched capacity of most urban economies in developing countries is unable to meet more than a fraction of these needs, so that the informal sector is providing most of the new employment and housing in environments that have come to be known as informal settlements or slums, where more than half of the population in many cities and towns of developing countries are currently living and working. The evolution of the new urban poverty has been a non- linear historical process. The slow accretion of shanty towns to the shell of the city is punctuated by storms of poverty and sudden explosions of slum building. In this context the present paper tries to analyse the variation in composition and distribution of slum population as well as the population pressure and living environment therein. Utilising data from census of India and NSSO 49th, 58th and 65th rounds, the variations in composition and distribution of slum population along with the living environment therein has been analysed. Apart from this some secondary data published in different books and articles have also formed a part of the analysis. Under the methodological section, firstly on the basis of the literature review, two objectives have been determined for this paper. For the fulfillment of these objectives statistical tools have been widely used to analyse the raw data. Graphical presentation and cartographical tools (maps and diagrams) too have been utilized to extend the level of analysis and explanation. Needs and Approaches to the Study of Slums Slums are consolidated and compact physical, social, cultural and economic units with distinct neighbourhood system within the greater environment of cities. These are patronised by the local political organizations which strengthen their existence on those very locations. The growth and development of slums have never become phenomena of few days or months; a sufficient number of years have been passed to reach the full growth and vigour when it has come to the notice of urban planners, administrators and municipal authorities that slums have become problems and threats to health city life. The growth of slums is a manifestation of urban poverty as the majority of urban poor lives in slums. On one hand the government documents tries to establish a fall in the levels of poverty but on the other hand the consistent rise in slums population and deteriorating living conditions depicts some different story. The provision of lifeline infrastructure lags far behind the pace of urbanization and peri-urban slum areas often have no formal utilities or sanitation provision whatsoever. The urban poor are forced to settle on hazardous and otherwise unbuildable terrains over-steep hill slopes, river banks and flood plains. Likewise they squat in the deadly shadows of refineries, chemical factories, and toxic dumps or in the margins of railroads and highways. Poverty has created an urban disaster problem of unprecedented frequency and scope. The interest and need for the study of slums has stemmed from two basic causes a) An urge to bring about social reform and b) An effort to reach an understanding of the process of urbanization. The studies which have an element of reform interest are preoccupied with poverty and related problems and focus extensively on the working class standards of living. However they have little to speak upon the social life of the slum dwellers. On the other side of the coin lie the urbanization studies that provide a closer approach to the analysis of social behaviour in this area (Whyte, 1943). However off the two reasons the latter claims more attention and validity than the former. Even the global report on slums published by the United Nations Habitat more or less recognises slums as the face of urban poverty in the new millennium. The Slums of the World Report has appeared at a time of growing awareness of the red flags raised by the urbanization process, particularly because of an increasing number and proportion of city residents who live in poverty in precarious settlements in the core historic part of cities and in the peri-urban areas. For the first time in history, rapid population growth and its concentration in cities around the world constitute a crucial element affecting the long-term outlook for humanity. Despite standing out as centres of civilization and economic activity for eight millennia, cities never attracted more than ten per cent of the global population until the second half of the 19th century. Now, systems of cities have become the worlds social , economic, cultural and political matrix. One-third of the worlds urban population lives in slums, and four out of ten inhabitants in the developing world are informal settlers. The report accepts that the number of issues relevant to urban poverty and slums is practically infinite and it requires an in-depth analysis and comprehensive effort to deal with the worsening situations. Understanding the notion of slums The first step in solving a problem is to define it correctly. Therefore a clear understanding of the notion of slums is indispensible. Since its first appearance in Veuxs Flash Dictionary during the 1820s as part of the London cant, the term slum was used to identify the poorest quality housing and the most unsanitary conditions; a refuge for marginal activities including crime, vice and drug abuse; and a likely source for many epidemics that ravaged urban areas a place apart from all that was decent and wholesome. The word slum was derived from slumber which means a sleepy unknown back alley. Slum meant `wet mire where working class housing was built during British Industrial revolution in order to be near the factories. These were uncontrolled settlements and lacked basic services and only poor people lived there. During the major part of the 19th century, the word appeared in the written language in quotation marks mostly as back-slum(s). At the end of the 19th century, slum mea nt a street, alley, court, situated in a crowded district of a town or city and inhabited by people of a low class or by the very poor; a number of these streets or courts forming a thickly populated neighbourhood or district where the houses and the conditions of life are of a squalid and wretched character (oxford dictionary)à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦. a foul back street of a city, especially one filled with a poor, dirty, degraded and often vicious population; any low neighbourhood or dark retreat usually in the plural, as Westminster slums are haunts for thieves (The Challenge of Slums: Global Report on Human Settlements, 2003) The housing reform movement in England during the 1880s changed a popular word that once described an awkward phenomenon to a general operational concept as a house materially unfit for human habitation, and made possible the delimitation of slum areas on city maps for planning purposes. It became a common word in the Anglophone world, used, for example, in India in order to designate without distinction the bustees, chawls or cheris of Mumbai, Delhi or Chennai. The 20th century made the word obsolete in contexts requiring more precise and rigorous terms, such as tenement house, tenement district and deteriorated neighbourhood, because of legislation from the 1890s and 1930s authorizing the eradication of the so-called slums, and imposing technical and legal definitions and standards for such actions. At the same time, the social movement generated new words, such as neighbourhoods or communities, to qualify the designated slums in order to rename the socially stigmatized slum areas. As with most euphemisms, alternative terms were eventually subsumed into the argot and served to maintain rather than counteract the negative prejudices against slum dwellers. The polite neighbourhood has become shortened to hood, a badge of youthful attitude in Los Angeles. Today, the catch-all term slum is loose and deprecatory. It has many connotations and meanings and is banned from many of the more sensitive, politically correct and academically rigorous lexicons. It can also vary considerably in what it describes in different parts of the world, or even in different parts of the same city. In developing countries, the term slum, if it is used, mostly lacks the pejorative and divisive original connotation, and simply refers to lower-quality or informal housing. Large, visible tracts of squatter or informal housing have become intimately connected with perceptions of poverty, lack of access to basic services and insecurity. Terms such as slum, shanty, squatter settlement, informal housing and low-income community are used somewhat interchangeably by agencies and authorities. The coverage of settlement types is even more complex when one considers the variety of equivalent words in other languages and geographical regions. Slums are today known by dif ferent names throughout the world: Barrio or tugurio (Latin America), Basti (Bangladesh), Bidonville (France/Africa), Favela (Brazil), Ghetto, Kampung (Indonesia), Katchi abadi (Pakistan), Masseque (Angola), Shantytown, Skid row, Squatter cities . However at this point a note on the current distinction between slums and shanties is essential. While slums describe old residential buildings which have deteriorated and lack essential services (but in most cases do not lack security in terms of tenure), shanties refer to spontaneous settlements which have developed in outskirts and unbuilt areas of the city. At the FirstWorld Urban Forum, a position paper elaborated by UN-HABITAT on Cities Without Slums used the term slum to describe, a wide range of low-income settlements and/or poor human living conditions and note that these inadequate housing conditions exemplify the variety of manifestations of poverty as defined in the Programme of Action adopted at the World Summit for Social Development. The term slum includes the traditional meaning that is, housing areas that were once respectable or even desirable, but which have since deteriorated, as the original dwellers have moved to new and better areas of cities. The condition of the old houses has then declined, and the units have been progressively subdivided and rented out to lower-income groups. A typical example is the innercity slums of many historical towns and cities in both the industrial and the developing countries. The term slum has, however, come to include also the vast informal settlements that are quickly becoming the most visual expression of urban poverty. The quality of dwellings in such settlements varies from the simplest shack to permanent st ructures, while access to water, electricity, sanitation and other basic services and infrastructure tends to be limited. Such settlements are referred to by a wide range of names and include a variety of tenurial arrangements. Slums: a point of discord The entire scholar community has failed to converge on a single definition of slum. As a result the buzzword has been defined differently for different regions and contexts. The difference in the definitions is primarily the result of discrepancies in the parameters adopted for the purposed of identifying the slums. Even amidst the web of definitions, the basic features rather the elements of the slums remain similar. Slum, at its simplest, is a heavily populated urban area characterized by substandard housing and squalor. This definition encapsulates the essential characteristics of slums: high densities and low standards of housing (structure and services), and squalor. The first two criteria are physical and spatial, while the third is social and behavioural. This spread of associations is typical, not just for the definition of slums but also of our perceptions of them. Dwellings in such settlements vary from simple shacks to more permanent structures, and access to basic service s and infrastructure tends to be limited or badly deteriorated. Slums and urban poverty are not just a manifestation of a population explosion and demographic change, or even of the vast impersonal forces of globalization. Slums must be seen as the result of a failure of housing policies, laws and delivery systems, as well as of national and urban policies. The definition of the term slum includes the traditional meaning that is, housing areas that were once respectable or even desirable, but which have since deteriorated as the original dwellers have moved to new and better areas of the cities. The condition of the old houses has then declined, and the units have been progressively subdivided and rented out to lower-income groups. Typical examples are the inner-city slums of many towns and cities in both the developed and the developing regions. Slums have, however, also come to include the vast informal settlements that are quickly becoming the most visible expression of urban poverty in developing regions cities, including squatter settlement s and illegal subdivisions. The quality of dwellings in such settlements varies from the simplest shack to permanent structures, while access to water, electricity, sanitation and other basic services and infrastructure is usually limited. Such settlements are referred to by a wide range of names and include a variety of tenure arrangements. The problem with measuring slums starts with the lack of an agreed definition. As a result, enumeration of slums has not yet been incorporated within mainstream monitoring instruments, such as national population censuses, demographic and health surveys, and global surveys. Some surveys provide proxies or related variables, such as proportion of unauthorized housing or proportion of squatters. Participatory poverty assessments in many least developed countries (LDCs) generally provide only qualitative information on urban poverty. The generic definition suggests that a slum is a contiguous settlement where the inhabitants are characterized as having inadequate housing and basic services. A slum is often not recognized and addressed by the public authorities as an integral or equal part of the city. According to another definition given by the Cities Alliance Action Plan: Slums are neglected parts of cities where housing and living conditions are appallingly poor. Slums range from high-density, squalid central city tenements to spontaneous squatter settlements without legal recognition or rights, sprawling at the edge of cities. Slums have various names, favelas, kampungs, bidonvilles, tugurios, yet share the same miserable living conditions. The Encyclopaedia Britannica on the other hand defines slums as: residential areas that are physically and socially deteriorated and in which satisfactory family life is impossible. Bad housing is a major index of slum conditions. By bad housing is meant dwellings that have inadequate light, air, toilet and bathing facilities; that are in bad repair, dump and improperly heated; that do not afford opportunity for family privacy; that are subject to fire hazard and that overcrowd the land, leaving no space for recreational use. In India also there is no agreed upon definition of slums and there is no unanimity in the identification criteria used at the various level of governance as well as research. In the year 1993 attempts were made to define the slums on the basis of housing conditions and availability of facilities. However the most accepted definition of slums in the country has been given by the Registrar General of India for the purpose of Census of India. It defines the slums as: All specified areas in a town or city notified as Slum by State/Local Government and UT Administration under any Act including a Slum Act. All areas recognized as Slum by State/Local Government and UT Administration. Housing and Slum Boards, which may have not been formally notified as slum under any act. A compact area of at least 300 populations or above 60-70 households of poorly built congested tenements, in unhygienic environment usually with inadequate infrastructure and lacking in proper sanitary and drinking water facilities. The level of disagreement upon this matter has gone beyond the national level and in an entirely surprising scenario the different states too have set up different landmarks for the identification of slums for their respective territories. The definition of slum area adopted by the Stare Governments is based on slum Acts of the respective States i.e. based on legal stipulations unlike the definitions adopted by RGI and NSSO. The concept, Perception and definition of slums vary across the states, depending on their socio-economic conditions bur their physical characteristics are almost similar. There are discrepancies between the Parameters adopted by State Governments, RGI and NSSO. Thus there exits divergent opinions at the different levels in the country as to what constitutes the key determinants of slums. In fact Slums are too complex to define according to one single parameter. They are a relative concept and what is considered as a slum in one city will be regarded as adequate in another city. Local variations among slums are too wide to define universally applicable criteria and this has been the prominent cause for existence of different definitions of slums. Slums change too fast to render any criterion valid for a reasonably long period of time. The spatial nature of slums means that the size of particular slum areas is vulnerable to changes in jurisdiction or spatial aggregation posing further difficulties in providing any stable definitional criteria for them. Thus what is agreed is that slums, like poverty and secures tenure, is multidimensional in nature. Some of the characteristics of slums, such as access to physical services or density, can be clearly defined, and others, such as social capital, cannot. Even with well-defined indicators, measurement can be very problematic, and acceptable benchmarks are not easy to establish. Even though the identification and differentiation of slums is a difficult nut to crack, Slums has been divided into two broad classes (Davis, 2004): 1. Slums of hope: These are progressing settlements, which are characterized by new, normally self built structures, usually illegal (e.g. squatters) that are in, or have recently been through, a process of development, consolidation and improvement; and 2. Slums of despair: These are declining neighbourhoods, in which environmental conditions and domestic services are undergoing a process of degeneration. Slums of hope may all too easily yield to despair. Thus a review of the definitions used by national and local governments, statistical offices, institutions involved in slum issues and public perceptions reveals the following attributes of slums in the country: lack of basic services, substandard housing or illegal and inadequate building structures, overcrowding and high density, unhealthy living conditions and hazardous locations, insecure tenure; irregular or informal settlements, poverty and social exclusion, and minimum settlement size. Distribution and compositions of slums in India: The Variations The most important characteristics of a population in addition to its size and the rate at which it is expanding or contracting are the ways in which its members are distributed according to age, sex, ethnic or racial category, and residential status. The analysis of distributional and compositional characteristics of slums is requisite for the effective management of problems related with them. In fact the lack of information regarding the dynamism of extent of distribution of the urban poor is one of the main factors which prohibit the extension of vital facilities to them. The figures available till date shows a highest concentration of slum population in two southern states of India Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh respectively. But the district level analysis shows a clearer picture of the concentration of slum population and its alignment with the urban centres. One of the peculiar aspects which emerges out of the distribution of slums is that in states of north, east and north east India, the slums are concentrated in few districts such as in West Bengal, Jharkhand, Orissa etc. while in states of western and Southern India, the slum population is spread in almost all the districts which is an indicator of the level and process of urbanization in the different states. The sex ratio among the slum populations shows very interesting trends. The major proportion of urban poor is considered to be composed of the male population that migrates from rural areas to cities primarily for work. But contrary to this, both the state and district level analysis shows high sex ratio for the four major states of South India Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. More surprisingly the distribution of child population in slums shows just the opposite scenario. In this case, parts of central India, Rajasthan, U.P and Bihar are the leading areas both at state and district level. In Southern India, the population in the 0-6 age group is relatively less which indicates towards the changing population dynamics of the slums. The distribution of scheduled caste population shows some other drastic changes with respect to the slum population. In the hierarchy of status in Indian society the scheduled castes have been regarded at the bottom line and thus are associated with the relatively unclean jobs. The analysis here shows some surprising trends where the proportion of scheduled caste population in the total slum dwellers is less and very few districts shows relatively a higher presence of scheduled caste population. In North, West and North East India their presence is further low. Population pressure and living conditions in slums The increasing pace of urbanization and resultant increase in slum population is a matter of deep concern for sustainable living. A continuous rise in the slum population in India and their increasing concentration in fewer cities is posing a threat to urban healthy life and management of city affairs. Any further deterioration in the quality of life in slums directly affects the environment and is dangerous for the ecological sustainability. The assessment of living conditions with respect to population pressure in slums has been one of the most contested issues. Some of the robust indicators of living conditions can be taken as Structure of housing, Electricity Connection, Roads, Water logging conditions, Status of Latrine facility and type of drainage. The household density among slums shows a higher density in parts of Rajasthan and U.P which indicates that even though the slum population is highest in Maharashtra, the congestion is higher in slums of U.P and Rajasthan. The same is true for the slums in Jammu and Kashmir where the slum population is mainly concentrated in two districts. While for the other parts of the country an average density can be seen. There has been a noticeable change in respect to the type of structure of houses in the slums during the period between 2002 and 2008-09. All the three different categories of housing structure i.e. Pucca; Semi-kutcha and kutcha have undergone considerable change over the quin-quinnial period. The most drastic change has been the increase semi-kutcha and kutcha housing structures under both notified and non-notified category of slums. Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Orissa, Delhi, Karnataka are the states experiencing major changes under the two above mentioned categories. Also there has been decrease in the percentage of pucca slums under both notified and non-notified category of slums. The downfall under this category has been high mainly for Delhi, U.P, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. All such changes signifies the rapid increase in the population of urban poor as well as the deterioration in the quality of living conditions in the slums. The condition of electricity in slums is also not satisfactory among the slums. U.P, Rajasthan, Bihar, Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir are among the major victims where the percentage of slums having no electricity is highest mainly for the non-notified slums. Also there has been a decrease in the number of slums under notified category where electricity is being provided for both households and streets. The condition of street lighting is very poor throughout the slums in the entire northern Indian belt. However none of the slums exists with any electricity under the notified category of slums which is an indication that the major hindrance in the extension of infrastructural facilities to the slums is lack of notification. One of the most drastic deterioration in the electricity facility to the slums have occurred in Karnataka state where almost 100% slums under non-notified category received electricity for both households and streets in 2002; but in 2008-09 this percentage reduced to almost 50%. Another very important infrastruc