Thursday, August 29, 2013

What role do non-state actors play in the democratic process? Discuss.

Non-State Actors (NSA's) continue to play a crucial role in the democratic process of any country.  For Pacific NSA's, their role as a partner in Pacific development is highlighted in the Cotonou Agreement. Development driven actions under the 10th Development Fund (2008-2013), are sourced from the European Development Fund (EDF) and the budget of the European Commission. Pacific Regional Programme: Under the Pacific Regional Programme the EU has overall allocated a total of 472.9 million euro (in total) to be implemented through the Pacific Island Forum Secretariat (PIFS) for the period 2008-2013.  For regional NSA's: the allocation is 3 to 4 million euro. Table A below (I have requested SOCS for this table; allocate space for this) has a breakdown of the allocation for NSA's for country specific programmes under the non focal sectors for the period 2008-2013.
EU maintains dialogue with Non State Actors:  In recognition of civil society's role under the Cotonou Agreement, the EU through its Delegations in Fiji, Samoa, and New Caledonia, continues to maintain regular dialogue with civil service partners directly, or through its own delegations within the region
disseminating key and relevant information informing NSA's on EU policies and strategies for the Pacific and call for proposals,  to enhance their work on the ground as outlined in the Cotonou Agreement.
Non-state actors (NSAs) have a stake in the healthy functioning of the multilateral trading system. NSAs are expected to present their concerns to the WTO through their respective governments. In recent years the WTO has made efforts to better reach out to NSAs while preserving its fundamental nature as an intergovernmental organization. For example, the WTO Public Forum is open to all participants, most WTO documents are publicly available, and regular WTO briefings are held for non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and parliamentarians. Hearings in some dispute settlement proceedings have also been opened to the public upon agreement among the parties. Despite these developments, the effectiveness of NSA participation remains debatable.
 

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Discuss the achievements of Renaissance in the field of art and architecture.




Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance architecture followed Gothic architecture and was succeeded by Baroque architecture. Developed first in Florence, with Filippo Brunelleschi as one of its innovators, the Renaissance style quickly spread to other Italian cities. The style was carried to France, Germany, England, Russia and other parts of Europe at different dates and with varying degrees of impact.
Renaissance style places emphasis on symmetry, proportion, geometry and the regularity of parts as they are demonstrated in the architecture of classical antiquity and in particular ancient Roman architecture, of which many examples remained. Orderly arrangements of columns, pilasters and lintels, as well as the use of semicircular arches, hemispherical domes, niches and aedicules replaced the more complex proportional systems and irregular profiles of medieval building

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Discuss the achievements of Renaissance in the field of art and architecture.



Renaissance architecture is the architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 17th centuries in different regions of Europe, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture. Stylistically, Renaissance architecture followed Gothic architecture and was succeeded by Baroque architecture. Developed first in Florence, with Filippo Brunelleschi as one of its innovators, the Renaissance style quickly spread to other Italian cities. The style was carried to France, Germany, England, Russia and other parts of Europe at different dates and with varying degrees of impact.

Renaissance style places emphasis on symmetry, proportion, geometry and the regularity of parts as they are demonstrated in the architecture of classical antiquity and in particular ancient Roman architecture, of which many examples remained. Orderly arrangements of columns, pilasters and lintels, as well as the use of semicircular arches, hemispherical domes, niches and aedicules replaced the more complex proportional systems and irregular profiles of medieval building

Monday, August 26, 2013

Analyse the role of Gandhi in the National Movement.

The nationalist movement grew into a wide spread mass anti-imperialist movement at the end of the First World War. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi came into prominence at this time and became the undisputed leader of the nationalist movement. Powerful mass movements were launched under his leadership. These involved defiance of laws, peaceful demonstrations, boycott of educational institutions, boycott of courts, boycott of educational institutions, picketing of shops selling liquor and foreign goods, nonpayment of taxes and the closing of vital business. These non-violent but revolutionary methods influenced millions of people belonging to all sections of society and infused in them bravery and self-confidence. Millions now braved the repression resorted by the govt boldly courted imprisonment and faced lathicharges and firings.Gandhiji lived the simple life of an ascetic and talked to the people in a language they could understand. He came to be known to the people as Mahatma Gandhi.
Gandhiji made social report a part of the programme of the nationalist movement. His greatest achievement in the field of social reform was the campaign against inhuman institution of untouchability which had degraded millions of Indians. His other achievement was in the field of cottage industries. He saw in the charkha, the spinning wheel, the salvation of the village people and its promotion became part of the congress programme.In addition to infusing people with the spirit of nationalism it provided employment to millions and created a large group of people who were ready to throw themselves into the struggle and court imprisonment. The charkha became so important that it eventually became a part of the flag of the Indian National Congress.
Gandhiji devoted himself to the cause of Hindu-Muslim unity .He regarded communalism as anti-national and inhuman. Under his leadership the unity of the nationalist movement was secured and the people worked hard for independence

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Does the post – Industrial society differ from the Industrial society? Explain



Yes the Post – Industrial society is differing from the Industrial society because of the following reason:
Limited production (i.e. artisanship vs. mass production)
Primarily an agricultural economy
Limited division of labor. In pre-industrial societies, production was relatively simple and the number of specialized crafts was limited.
 Limited variation of social classes
Parochialism—Social theories hold that communications were limited between human communities in pre-industrial societies. Few had the opportunity to see or hear beyond their own village. In contrast, industrial societies grew with the help of faster means of communication, having more information at hand about the world, allowing knowledge transfer and cultural diffusion between them.
Pre-industrial societies developed largely in rural communities. Capitalism developed largely in urban areas.
1. Within the economy, there is a transition from goods production to the provision of services. Production of such goods as clothing and steel declines and services such as selling hamburgers and offering advice on investments increase. Although services predominate in a wide range of sectors, health, education, research, and government services are the most decisive for a post-industrial society.
2. The importance of blue-collar, manual work (e.g., assembly line workers) declines and professional (e.g. lawyers, doctors, and engineers) and technical work (e.g. computer programmers) come to predominate. Of special importance is the rise of scientists (e.g., specialized engineers, such as genetic or electric). Many mining towns and similar settlements face large scale unemployment as a result of the increasing importance of both theoretical knowledge with a simultaneous decline in manufacturing and increasing importance of environmentalism. Many industrial towns residents are on benefits, such as the dole.
3. Instead of practical know-how, theoretical knowledge is increasingly essential in a post-industrial society. Such knowledge is seen as the basic source of innovation (e.g., the knowledge created by those scientists involved in the Human Genome Project is leading to new ways of treating many diseases). Advances in knowledge also lead to the need for other innovations such as ways of dealing with ethical questions raised by advances in cloning technology. All of this involved an emphasis on theoretical rather than empirical knowledge and on the codification of knowledge. The exponential growth of theoretical and codified knowledge, in all its varieties, is central to emergence of the post-industrial society.
4. Post-industrial society seeks to assess the impacts of the new technologies and, where necessary, to exercise control over them. The hope is, for example, to better monitor things like nuclear power plants and to improve them so that accidents like that at Three-Mile Island or Chernobyl can be prevented in the future. The goal is a surer and more secure technological world. The doctrine of the precautionary principle is sometimes used in preventing the worst aspects of new technologies, such as cloning and genetic engineering, when there is no evidence of their negative impact.
5. To handle such assessment and control, and more generally the sheer complexity of post-industrial society, new intellectual technologies are developed and implemented. They include cybernetics, Game theory and Information theory.
6. A new relationship is forged in the post-industrial society between scientists and the new technologies they create, as well as systematic technological growth, lies at the base of post-industrial society. This leads to the need for more universities and university-based student. In fact, the university is crucial to post-industrial society. The university produced the experts who can create, guide, and control the new and dramatically changing technologies