The On-Going Conversation

IBM Awards Smarter Cities

New Orleans, Newark, Rio de Janeiro and Jakarta were awarded grants via a three-year, $50 million Smarter Cities Challenge by IBM.

Read the full article at Fast Company

Support International Women’s Day via Social Media

International Women's Day is celebrating its 100th birthday; take the time to embrace the achievements of women worldwide.

Read the full article via Mashable

An Avenue of Violence

Approximately 43% believe the United States is losing ground on drug violence along the border, compared to 12% who #perceive progress.

* Source: Pew Research Center

The Health of Wikileaks: Twitter Style

The U.S. Department of Justice served Twitter with a subpoena seeking data about the accounts of Wikileaks and its founder Julian Assange.

The American Mind

I consider myself to be fortunate and cannot imagine being born anywhere else in the world. As an American, I realize that I take many elements of my life for granted. Among these are my personal freedom, education, public infrastructure, clean drinking water, the ability to find a satisfying career and the relatively safe communities that we have to choose from.

But we didn’t do anything to enable our success – we just happened to be born in a place that values liberty and the capacity to become anything that you want. At least it seems as though this particular mantra has been communicated to us since we were young.

This approach has a tendency to create a population that remains motivated and even helps maintain a degree of optimism. Obviously this frame of mind isn’t present throughout the world, especially in countries that are classified as underdeveloped. Within a country that is classified by this terminology, it can be challenging to cultivate happiness and a degree of optimism. Citizens don’t envision more fulfilling days, because they grow accustomed to the reality that they experience on a daily basis.

It can be hard to understand another perspective and way of life, especially if you haven’t experienced it for yourself. This seems to be the case for a majority of individuals that live in the United States. We cannot actually fathom the reality in opposing countries that are less fortunate than us. We can only imagine what it would be like, but will never have to face such dire circumstances. Even though we cannot fully understand what it would be like, that doesn’t excuse us from at least trying to permit growth and prospective success in such places.

As a result, I believe that more developed countries have an obligation to help enable success in underdeveloped nations. It could either be financially, democratically or even emotionally. Less fortunate countries and individuals want to feel as though they aren’t alone in the lingering chaos.

However it can be tough to decipher if assistance will truly benefit an underdeveloped country. If the support happens to be economic, it can be difficult to guarantee that the monetary help won’t be utilized in selfish ways, by manipulative individuals. Who knows, it may not even reach the individuals that truly need it.

They may not even have the ability to drink fresh water and shower on a daily basis. Many remain rural and don’t consist of public transportation and urban development, making citizens to some extent stationary. This limits their potential for job opportunities, unless they are employed within the place they directly live. With this in mind, more fortunate countries should even consider commencing businesses in such locations, which will hopefully help provide stability and opportunities for personal economic growth.

If they do incorporate business in such a place, they need to make sure to not take advantage of the situation. They must provide considerable wages that can benefit citizens, who happen to be on the low end of the socioeconomic spectrum. The work must also be safe and ethical, without potential for health issues and prospective concerns that may occur because of the work itself.

Organizations may also need to provide transportation to and from work. Not to mention, external assistance can even help create a safer environment within particular communities. People in ominous circumstances may potentially resort to crime, which generates unsafe neighbors in devastated areas. This can be another area for interaction by more fortunate countries, which may have resources to provide heightened security.

All in all, I cannot help but question if developed nations have an obligation to facilitate success in such countries. We have extensive resources and seemingly unlimited opportunities for citizens to flourish from. At times our resources even seem quite unnecessary, especially considering they have been ingrained in our lives since youth. Take the time to consider those that are less fortunate, who need assistance – assistance that we merely take care granted on a perpetual basis.

Earth: The Place We Call Home

We all live and flourish within the ecosystem that we call Earth. It is our home for the time being and I don’t envision this changing anytime soon. Regardless of your thoughts on preservin  g the environment, we all play a critical role in maintaining it for future generations. This responsibility is especially applicable to businesses that may potentially jeopardize the beauty of the world surrounding us all. This can be dependent upon the way in which a business conducts operations on an international stage. 

It is relatively obvious that certain international business pursuits are more likely to influence environmental conditions. These types of businesses need to be especially concerned about the fashion in which they conduct business. They must assure citizens that the environment will not be tarnished for decades to come. I have no qualms about them facilitating business in an international setting, but they need to make sure that the environment doesn’t become degraded as a result of their organizational operations.

In fact, they should strive to improve environmental conditions through the capital that they acquire. Obviously they shouldn’t feel obligated, although if the business becomes economically successful throughout the duration of their venture, I see no reason why they couldn’t allocate some of their financial security towards enhancing the communities they operate in.

In my mind, it is especially evident and critical in countries and communities that are less fortunate. I would also say that this is generally where businesses envision maximum potential for sustained growth and interaction.

Mining for example directly affects the soil and could even potentially devastate ground water if stringent regulations aren’t in place. If water happens to become polluted, it can be difficult to decipher who caused the problem and could even put individuals at risk without their knowledge. This behavior shouldn’t be condoned and needs to be brought to light immediately.

Even though the company might not be directly from the country in which they are facilitating production, they need to be held accountable by universal standards. They should also be pursued legally on an international level, so that companies are well aware that these unjustified activities will not be tolerated. It will even help establish a precedence of responsibility, which will hopefully deter prospective business ventures from operating within the same means.

It may be more challenging to determine, but that doesn’t provide an excuse for not investigating on an international level. Internationally operated companies need to be well-aware that they don’t live above the law. They must strive to maintain high living standards for the areas that they facilitate operations in. Communities don’t have the ability to choose whenever or not a company invades their parameters.

This makes it even more pertinent to maintain the environment for those individuals that have always lived there. This seems logical, but we shouldn’t assume that all businesses will accomplish operations in an ethical and credible manner. Another business venture that could prospectively put the environment in a state of vulnerability is off shore drilling. We all witnessed the lingering implications of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster, which may take years for the ecosystem system and the gulf economy to fully recover.

As a result, it is critical to examine the obligations that businesses have in regards to the environment before disasters inevitably occur. Without setting standards on an international basis, companies won’t have a frame of reference and may feel as though they have the ability to conduct business in whatever manner they see fit.