The Fair Eco Fashion Review Essay Sample

The Fair Eco Fashion Review Essay Sample The Fair Eco Fashion Review Essay Example The Fair Eco Fashion Review Essay Example Fashion for the environmentally friendly products flashed with a new power. Many producers understood that their fashionable clothes should not only look beautiful, but should also be safe for environment, and for a human body. Naturally, it is much more difficult to make clothes from the natural materials, as such a process is complicated. Moreover, the natural materials cost ten times more than artificial ones and, therefore, the product will become more expensive, but safe. It is not only about the product’s safety, but also about the preservation of environment. The label â€Å"Eco† confirms the ecological purity of all the elements used during the process of manufacturing clothes. Eco-Chic: The Fashion Paradox In the 1960s, the brands started transferring their mass production to the Asian countries. It helped to make the price policies flexible and more available. It proceeded for some time, and the movement â€Å"for ecology† became ethical. Nowadays, a lot of modern brands follow this tendency and produce new collections from eco materials. The concept â€Å"eco-fashion† means the use of eco-friendly raw materials and technologies in clothing production. Owing to their efforts, the principle of Fair Trade, which means a fair attitude towards all participants of the production process, gains popularity in America and Europe (Scaturro 2008). The given essay discusses the eco-fashion, the relationship between fashion and environmental awareness of the consumers, pushing the fashion industry to accommodate the environment concerns of the 21th century. Sustainable Fashion and Relationship between Fashion and Environmental Awareness If earlier only politicians took care of fair trade and ecological goods, nowadays, manufacturers and buyers of clothes try to apply eco-friendly methods of production and demonstrate social responsibility. The tendency towards eco-friendly products or sustainable fashion extended on the world of fashion, as well. Today, more and more fashion designers create the â€Å"correct† and â€Å"eco-friendly† clothes. The motives, promoting such a shift, are not entirely altruistic. Consumers demand the goods they buy to be made in a way that does not cause damage to the environment or to workers producing these goods. Often, they are ready to pay more for the â€Å"ecological† products or goods relating to the category of â€Å"fair trade† (Adolphson 2004). The Ethical Fashion Forum is a community of those, who are not indifferent to the future of ethical fashion. Eco-brands, designers, suppliers, consultants, producers and non-profit organizations united for the solution of the common problems of ecological responsibility. The Ethical Fashion Forum includes the designers-innovators and multibrand shops, the production of which can be bought via the Internet or during trips to Europe. All of them observe the principles of the sustainable production to a greater or lesser extent (Ethical Fashion Forum 2014). The joint efforts of the representatives of the industry and the authorities led to the growth of the coalitions in the United States and Great Britain. These coalitions pursue the aim to estimate the influence of the fashion industry on the planet and to carry out search for the socially responsible methods in its reduction with a simultaneous growth of the profitability of fashion companies. The Sustainable Apparel Coalition, located in the USA, unites the brands of the fashion industry, non-profit organizations and environment protection agencies. Such brands as HM and Wal-Mart are among the founders of the coalition. The activities of the organization are aimed at the creation of an index for the measurement and assessment of compliance to the requirements of socially and ecologically responsible production in a segment of the fashionable clothes and footwear. The part of this index includes a search for the technological innovations, which will allow the industry to become socia lly responsible in the environmental direction (Sustainable Apparel Coalition 2014). The Concept of Eco-Fashion Eco-fashion is also called â€Å"ethical†, as it is produced with the consent of nature with the ethical attitude to people and environment. Eco clothes are produced without the use of skin or fabrics of an animal origin. For example, footwear and bags from vegetable skin might be made of the rubber of Amazon, instead of a skin of animals or processed or artificial materials. Ethical fashion is fashion that has been produced with respect for people and the environment. Although there are existing certifications for Organic and Fair Trade, we want to encourage companies who are taking significant action but don’t qualify for certification (Palmer et al. 2012). Eco-fashion includes the following directions: Hand-made. The products made by hands, for example, an embroidery, keeping primordial traditions; Clothes, made-to-order is a qualitative product, which can be used for a long time, unlike mass fashion, which is often disposable; Products made in accordance with the International Labour Standards, at observance of the rights of workers, without attraction of a child labour and reasonable prices; Organic natural fibers grown up without pesticides and other toxic materials, preserving human health and environment; Recycled everything made of already existing or recycled materials, fabric, metal or fiber. Old products can be altered, remade for the new ones; Vintage/Second-Hand. Vintage is the general term for the clothes created during the period from 1920 to 1975, which can be actual at present. Nevertheless, this term is often used for second-hand clothes; Chemicals-free. The chemical dyes and bleaches should not be used in the production process of ecological clothes (Earley 2007). Eco-fashion is not simply clothes from ecological fabrics. It is the whole concept, ideology, and a way of life. There are the following signs by which the clothes are considered to be eco-friendly: A great attention is paid to human health and a state of environment during production. The care for the improvement of life and working conditions of people, respect for work and worthy payments; A respect for cultural diversity and traditions of different people. Eco-fashion promotes preservation and restoration of traditional techniques, such as embroidery, weaving, knitting, etc.; Certification of fabrics by the special organizations; The clothes made by the 3R concept: reuse, reduce, recycle; Ethical clothes: refusal of the use of fabrics of an animal origin (genuine leather and fur) (Hopkins 2009). Fast Fashion Fast fashion is updating of the brand’s assortment several times during a season. It becomes possible due to the copying of the ideas of the world leading designers. It is most often applied in a mass market. Such brands as Zara, HM and TopShop are the main representatives of fast fashion. Fast fashion means an instant adaptation to new trends copying of the successful models of higher segments a fashion market and their delivery to the market of mass production (Tokatli 2008). In the fast fashion segment, the stocks of fashionable clothes are treated as food which have an expiration date and can be quickly spoiled. Producers quickly update the assortment and offer clothes at the height of fashion at low prices, changing the assortment more often than the main classical seasonal collections are issued. The expenditures from the fast change of the assortment are compensated by sales volumes. Sales are reached by about 10% of goods, in comparison with 80% at more expensive desi gn brands (Joy et al. 2012). The fast-fashion strategy of copying was used by the Spanish brand Zara. At present, the brand does not spend money for advertising, but regularly spends money for the trials with owners of companies whom the models were borrowed from. In the first Zara store, the cheap doubles of the clothes of the known Fashion Houses were presented. At that time, the founder of the company Amancio Ortega considered that slow update of the assortment is the main problem of the development of business. More than ten years later, the revolutionary model of clothes production and distribution was found out (Niinimaki 2010). Owning to the new computerized scheme, the company could reduce time from the design of fashionable clothes up to its coming in the market to 10-15 days, in comparison with the standard half-year. Instead of giving the whole work to one designer, Zara formed the internal team of designers, the quantity of which made more than 200 people by the end of the 20th century. Contrary to the standard norms of the fashionable industry, the brand controls all the stages of the technological process of goods production design, production and distribution (Barnes Lea-Greenwood 2006). Fast fashion seriously changes the attitude of people to shopping. If earlier people went to clothing stores once a month or two, now they are compelled to come weekly, knowing that there can be novelties, which will not lay on shelves for a long time. It helps clothing companies to support high sales and avoid the need to arrange sales, which consequently reduce profit. The scheme of companies’ existence is the same: a retail network, selling only one brand, debugged logistics, cheap production and fast update of collections. Collections in shops are updated each two weeks, not considerably, not completely, but customers always have the feeling of the novelty of models in a store. It warms a consumer demand up. Such networks are much faster than the luxury ones: the thing from the sketch to a hanger goes only two months, whereas in luxury brands this way can last for a year. Own outsourcing production and shops allow these networks to enter the flexible system of discounts an d have their own warehouses (Joy et al. 2012). Marks Spencer and HM Sustainable Programs The first steps in the sphere of responsibility of textile production were taken by the companies making clothes from hemp. Such brands as Hemp, Hempy’s caused an interest only among specific audience, remaining in the shadow for mass market. However, the increasing number of brands departs from the stereotypes and proves that fashion business can be both stylish and socially responsible. In January, 2007, the largest British retailer Marks Spencer declared the start of the Plan A Program, assuming the struggle for the ecological reputation by 100 points of charge of violation of the ecological balance in the world. Since 2010, MS established 62 factories, including points on the reduction of emissions of carbon dioxide (due to the increase of energy efficiency of shops) and cooperation with eco-friendly factories worldwide. One of them, located in the territory of Sri Lanka, manufactures the ethic collection of the organic silk, cotton and jersey created in collaboration with Eco-Boudoir in 2009. This collection broke the popularity records in Britain. Similar factories with the equipment, twice lowering a water consumption and energy by 40%, were opened in Bangladesh and Wales by MS (Hamed 2013). According to Green Retail Decisions (2014), Marks Spencer put the following goals in the sphere of sustainable fashion: â€Å"By 2020, the retailer has also vowed to: Procure 50% of cotton from sustainable sources; Ensure 75% of all MS food comes from eco and ethical benchmarked factories; Derive 50% of the energy used in the U.K. and Ireland stores from small-scale renewable sources; Reduce the U.K. and Ireland store refrigeration gas emissions by 80%; Target a 35% reduction in water usage in MS stores and offices† (Green Retail Decisions 2014). The Swedish brand HM was among the first brands in the segment of a mass market which started using organic cotton. After the entrance into the Organic Exchange, the charitable organization supporting the use of eco-friendly textiles, started promoting the organic chemistry not only for children but also for adults. Since 2004, the HM Company included 5% of integrally grown up cotton into some elements of a kids wear, generally from Turkey and India (Environmental Leader 2013). In 2005, HM became the member of Fair Trade Association, and in 2006, the company was recognized as one of six largest world companies, giving preference to the â€Å"green† dyes and materials. There is no natural fur in the HM collections. During 2005 and 2006, there were about 40 tons of organic cotton annually, and in 2007, HM created the new collection made of 100% organic cotton, and its use made 600 tons. In 2008-2009, this figure grew even more, promising to make 50% of all used materials. Besides, the company composed recycled cotton and wool, and the even processed plastic PET bottles (Forbes 2013). The plan of the future sustainable fashion on HM states: â€Å"Conscious is our plan for creating a better fashion future. It’s built on seven commitments and hundreds of Conscious Actions: We have collected 3,047 tones of garments. That’s the equivalent of about 15 million t-shirts; We have used the equivalent of 9.5 million plastic bottles of recycled polyester; All our regular shopping bags are made from recycled plastic† (HM 2013). Fair Trade Fashion People Tree In materials processing, only natural dyes, for example, powders of natural minerals, flower pollen, juice of berries and other natural raw materials are used. Chemical dyes and bleaches are completely excluded. An important role is played by an ethical aspect of a question of production: the principle of Fair Trade. It is a fair attitude towards each participant of the production process. The whole production should correspond to the international standards of work, which assume the observance of workers’ rights, a ban for the employment of minors and child labour (Niinimaki 2010). The People Tree Company is one of the pioneers of eco-friendly fashion. Since 2007, such supermodels as Helena Christensen, Lily Cole, Shalom Harlow and Anne Watanabe appeared in the People Tree clothes in Japanese Vogue. Unlike the majority of Eco brands, People Tree, founded in 2001, quickly got popularity owning to the identity of its founder, Safia Minney, who was the founder of the Fair Trade movement. People Tree does not use artificial dyes and synthetics, preferring the recycled materials. The things of brand are made only in the countries of Southeast Asia. Earlier, People Tree distinguished only ethics, but after the cooperation with Thakoon, Topshop and the actress Emma Watson, whom Safia sent to Bangladesh, it started to produce its own product (Beard 2008). Designers and Materials Genuine leather and fabrics of animal origin (all types of skin, ivory, fur, baleen, a horsehair, etc.) are not used in the production of eco clothes and footwear. For example, at production of footwear natural materials surpass artificial, such as vegetable skin, obtained from plant juice of a hevea (from Amazon). Eco-clothes should correspond to the concept â€Å"biodegradable†, which means that clothes should decay in order not to pollute the planet. Also, clothes and accessories from the recycled materials are urged to reduce the level of pollution on the planet (it can be processing and synthetics). The prefix â€Å"eco† assumes that a producer establishes fair goods prices, which correspond to real production expenses and are not directed at the reception of excess profit (Eco Fashion World 2014). Designers: Sarah Ratty, Katherine Hamnett The Ciel brand drew attention to itself in 2007, when Sara Ratty, famous for the work with the Conscious Earthwear Brand which received attention of the Victoria and Albert Museum, received the Ethical Fashion Awards. Sienna Miller, Eve Hertsigova and Cate Blanchet were the followers of the brand as the jackets, dresses and womanly, almost air jersey with the French dusting (â€Å"ciel† from French means â€Å"sky†) appeared on the pages of the Italian and British editions of Vogue. Since 2011, Ciel got the line of organic cosmetics and underwear. In order not to spend precious eco fabrics in vain, Sara Ratty organized the waste-free production (assuming total upcycling of the jersey remains), and not only out of organic cotton, but also out of alpaca wool, silk and flax. The various Ciel’s prints on t-shirts and dresses are in an active demand they are put with the dyes, not containing nitrogen, that is harmful to skin (Bonini Oppenheim 2008). The design for Katherine Hamnett was always the mean of the political statement: it is enough to remember a t-shirt with an inscription â€Å"58% do not want pershing†, which she put on for the meeting with Margaret Thatcher, protesting against the placement of rockets in the territory of England. However, Katherine launched the campaign for the education of the industry, but, having realized a vanity of own efforts, simply broke the contracts with all suppliers. In 2004, Hamnett starts a new brand with ethic motives. Since then, Katherine uses only organic cotton, produces it in accordance with the principles of fair trade and with suppliers, worthy of her trust. The main thing is that she started controlling her production completely and cooperates only with her adherents. Thus, in 2013, the designer created the line of jewellery from the â€Å"ethically extracted gold and diamonds† for the Cred brand the first European fair-trade retailer of jewellery, and also presented a capsular collection of the beachwear for Yooxygen the Yoox.com joint project and the International Green Cross. Eco Materials Eco clothes are produced on the basis of exclusively natural fabrics, which include silk, flax, cotton, hemp, wool, etc. At the same time, it is impossible to consider clothes made on the basis of raw materials, grown up in the adverse conditions with the use of chemicals to be the environmentally friendly. Thus, cotton does not belong to the environmentally friendly raw materials if it is grown on the plantations processed by dangerous pesticides. In the modern world, a special attention is paid to this fact; therefore, producers of eco clothes buy cotton, flax, fur only from the checked and reliable enterprises. It should be noted that goods belonging to eco clothes should correspond to the environmentally friendly production by composition. The manufacturing companies bear responsibility for any attempts of the fake of natural fabrics and are obligatory exposed to the penalties in especially large sizes. The quality of organic clothes is usually better than the quality of clothes of mass production. Organically grown cotton, hemp and flax are used in textile production in increasing frequency. The plants for fabrics are grown up without the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, and, therefore, reduce the risk of pollution of ground waters. Such fabrics will also decay naturally after they are thrown out. In order to increase durability and service life of organic fabrics, their fibers are often mixed with other fabrics. At present, organic fabrics are quickly spread in two main directions. First of all, it is greenwashing. Many companies declare themselves as eco brands, but in practice they only improve some production links. The fabrics from ecological cotton are softer and are comfortable to wear. In order to receive the label â€Å"organic†, the product should consist of at least 95% out of the certified organic materials. In order to correspond to the standard, producers should refuse solvents, toxic heavy metals, genetically modified seeds or such chemicals as formaldehyde. All sewage should be cleared, production wastes should be processed, and the used bleaches should have an oxygen basis. Eco fabrics possess very attractive useful properties, hypoallergenicity is one of them. Organic cotton is the most universal and popular fabrics among designers. Owning to a careful collecting and processing organic cotton differs by a higher quality and easy structure, and is very pleasant to the touch. The clothes made out of cotton make people comfortable: in summer it is cool, in winter warm. However, according to Greenpeace, 20% of pesticides and 22% of the insecticides made around the world are used for cotton processing. Thus, a solid share of chemical components is put to each cotton item (Brunger 2012). Bamboo fabric is favourably distinguished by the environmental friendliness, softness, durability and ease. Also, it is capable to support an optimum heat exchange and to protect from the ultra-violet radiation and bacteria. Moreover, the cultivation of a bamboo improves the quality of the soil and can even restore it after the erosion. Besides, the bamboo has some very useful qualities: it easily keeps heat in frosts, but, at the same time, provides a good ventilation, helping a body to remain cooled in a hot weather. Linen fabric possesses antibacterial properties, helps to improve a blood circulation in an organism and to raise vitality. Owning to fine hygroscopic properties, linen is especially popular in summer collections. A natural silk is very light and pleasant to the touch, capable to dry and warm a skin (ideal for people with the increased perspiration), and also is useful for people with blood circulation problems. Wool possesses excellent heat-shielding properties, keeps heat well, and cashmere fabric is very light and pleasant to the touch. The fabric from a nettle differs in a good wear resistance, antistatic, antiseptic and temperature-controlled properties. Visually, such fabric is similar to linen, however, it differs by the gloss. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is a compound polyester, used for production of the diverse packing for products and drinks, cosmetics and pharmaceutical means. The PET materials are irreplaceable at the production of audio, video and x-ray films, car tires, bottles for drinks, films with high barrier properties and fibers for fabrics. The main area of the use of PET in the world is the production of polyester fibers and threads. A broad application of PET started in the 1960s from the production of textiles. Since then, the demand steadily grows, first of all, in the developed countries. There is an extremely rapid growing demand in the PET market in the majority of regions. Polyester fabrics are produced from the polyester threads. An increase in demand for PEF was caused, first of all, by a lower prime cost in comparison with the other types of chemical fibers and threads. PET does not concede to polyamide by durability and lengthening, and even surpasses it; it also surpasses the most form-resistant natural fiber wool, has a low hygroscopicity and a high thermal stability, which is an advantage in the production of technical fabrics. Polyester textile fibers are used for the production of yarn polyester and are widely applied in the production cotton, linen and woollen fabrics. Polyester textile threads are used in the production of a wide range of various types of materials: lining, costume fabrics, etc. (Brunger 2012). Eco Labelling Eco labelling is a sign, found on the packing of the goods, which passed examination and proved an ecological safety and a high quality. Eco labelling was created, on the one hand, to give a reliable criterion of a choice of qualitative production to the consumer, and, on the other hand, to help producers of ecologically safe production with the advance of their goods and increase of competitiveness in the market. Eco labelling and marking is one of the instruments of the ecological management, which is an object of the consideration of a complex of the ISO 14000 standards (namely ISO 14020 14024) (Eco Fashion World 2014). The eco labelling existing in the world can be divided into the following groups: Information on environmental friendliness of production in general considering the whole life cycle of its production; Information on the environmental friendliness of separate properties of production. It also includes the signs reflecting the absence of the substances, leading to the reduction of an ozone layer around the Earth; the signs on consumer goods reflecting the possibility of their utilization with the smallest harm for environment, etc.; Eco fashion and eco clothes compose a new area, which has started its active development in the world recently and represents a huge interest for the future. It assumes a new mentality, respect for the nature and a person, and a reasonable use of natural resources. Today, the subject of eco fashion becomes more and more popular and more and more designers produce eco fashion collections. The percent of consumers of eco-fashion grows slowly but steadily. The American and European fashion industry is full with the eco events shows of eco-friendly clothes within the fashion weeks or separate thematic shows. Eco clothes are not only fashionable and stylish clothes, but also very ethic.

Annotated Bibliography-Sheila Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Annotated Bibliography-Sheila - Coursework Example The authors provide for research in the implementation of the system since it has many factors that limit the application. The changing physician growths study is compared to the increasing technology growth providing an in-depth review analysis. A method of research is limited to sampling of two centers in Canada. A barrier to the implementation includes technology, financial capital, and the time constraints which are in line with the previous research findings. It is important if the report could be implemented to reduce the health hazard. Gottlieb, L. M., Tirozzi, K. J., Manchanda, R., Burns, A. R., & Sandel, M. T. (2015). Moving electronic medical records upstream. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 48(2), 215-218. doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2014.07.009 The article is published by the almetric group. The research tries to find out how the basic clinics in our society can be managed and be controlled by the use electronic medical records especially those found in the vulnerable places. The social determinants of health are well determined that provide an excellent literature review. The author examines various case studies as the methodology criteria to collect data which are in collective agreement to all the researchers. The findings nonetheless seem dissimilar to previous researchers, and they propose further research before any implementation can be done. It is significant if the recommendation of the research be further scrutinized since three cases cannot be used for validity of the study. The article is published online by Eileen Oldfield. The articles narrate how physicians have adopted the use of more simple electronic records in healthcare management with the primary functions of taking patient history, clinic records and demographics. However, ERH does not have complete features hence prompting further research proposal by the author. The review is in-depth analysis that makes the reader generate conclusions with ease. Furthermore, the

Career Path Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Career Path - Essay Example They can tell people how to prepare healthy meal and what must be the ingredients in the same.   Those students who are studying at the high school level and are looking forward to pursue a career in nutrition, they can take up courses in biology, chemistry, micro biology, health, mathematics and also communications. This will help them is some way or the other during their perusal of bachelor courses in nutrition. In 2007, there were 281 bachelor degree program and 22 master degree program approved by American Dietetic Association. The minimum qualification required for the same is a bachelor’s degree in dietetics or in food and nutrition or in similar related areas. But among the various states of USA, licensing and certification requirements for the same are different.   License requirements for the nutritionists vary across the different states in USA. Whereas 35 states have made the license requirement mandatory, 12 require statutory certification, while one state requires only their registration. Certification is not compulsory for the nutritionists to practice their profession. The commission on dietetic Registration of the American Dietetic Association awards the Registered Dietitian (RD) credentials, to those professionals who clear the exam after completing the academic stipulation along with the internship. To maintain the RD status, the professionals must complete as least 75 credit hours in approved education classes every 5 years. The internship can be completed in two ways. In the first case, the candidate is required to complete a program accredited by the commission on Dietetic registration. By the year 2007 there were 53 such accredited programs, which provided a combination of academic and practical internship experiences. These prog rams generally last between 4 to 5 years. The other option involves completion of 900 hours of intern experience in any of the 265 accredited internships. If these internships are full time, then they

Thunder from the Sea Essay Example for Free

Thunder from the Sea Essay The story of Joan Hiatt Harlows Thunder from the Sea (2004) revolves around a 13 year-old boy named Tom Campbell and a dog-called Thunder. Tom has been an orphaned since the age of 3, which is why he has never experience belonging in a family. On the other hand, Thunder was lost at sea during a very bad storm and it was during this time of need that Tom rescued this dog. Tom and Thunder were able to find companionship with each other. Tom experienced having a family with the Murray household and a loyal friend with Thunder. It was through these relationships that he was able to find the sense of acceptance and belongingness that he never experience in the orphanage.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   â€Å"No man is an island.† This line is indeed true especially when you used it in the context of this book. Tom Campbell is like anyone else also needs other people in order to make their lives complete. Almost everyone have to establish a certain connection with others in order to know more about themselves. It is through the very idea of caring for someone, being loyal to other people and most especially loving your fellow individual that one can make sense of the world. The mere idea of feeling these emotions makes a person realized that he or she is indeed a human being that is capable of giving a part of his or her life to other people and sometimes that is what it takes for a life to be meaningful.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   This heart-warming story emphasizes the importance of finding lifes meaning through the influence and aid of others. Someone does not have to be a dog-lover in order to appreciate and see the lessons underlying this book. It approaches the idea of loneliness, loyalty, and love in a way that almost all people could relate to. Harlow succeeded in writing a piece of literature that tackles an important aspect of a persons life especially during this present time that the society is taking for granted how essential it is to establish meaningful and long-lasting relationships.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Thunder from the Sea is a good read that will take its readers to an exciting journey of finding lifes meaning. It will also invokes its readers to re-think and re-assess the relationships that they have or need to have as well as their over all outlook about their lives. Reference Harlow, J. H. (2004). Thunder from the Sea. U.S.A: Simon and Schuster Childrens Publishing.

How Much Deviation from Religious Doctrine is Acceptable? Essay

Central to any religion is a unified set of beliefs that is shared amongst all its followers. These can range from stories about the origin of the universe or the lives of prophets or other important religious figures to sets of rules governing how you live your daily life. It is these beliefs that define who is a follower of that religion, and deviation from them could result in a person being outcast, persecuted, or even put to death in various areas and time periods. However, these beliefs are by no means universal. Interpretations of religious doctrines may strongly differ even between members of the same religious sect. These issues are very relevant even to non-believers as they have a strong influence on people’s opinions of important social issues, such as gay marriage, abortion, and the teaching of creationism in public schools. We have read about several different and contradictory interpretations of Christian theology in class, and through surveys and discussions we have seen that within our own class members of the same religion vary greatly in their beliefs. An important question then is how much should an individual be allowed to deviate in their beliefs from established doctrine? The answer is not so obvious because once some deviations are allowed it can be not easy to know where to stop. I think it is easier to focus mostly on Christianity in answering this question both because of the material we covered in class and because it is most relevant to America today. It is important to realize that from a historical context religious doctrines are by no means an absolute truth, as many would believe. They have been altered many times in the past and should be able to continue to change with the times. No religion shou... ... arbitrary set of rules. This applies not just to religion but to political and moral ideologies as well. If we really want to seek the truth, I think we could really learn a lot from the Gnostic tradition. Works Cited Bacon, Benjamin W. "The Canon of the New Testament" The Biblical World, Vol. 21, No. 2 (Feb., 1903), Published by: The University of Chicago Press. Web. Available at: https://www.jstor.org/stable/3141324?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents Cicero , John Ross, and Horace McGregor. The Nature of the Gods. Penguin Classics, 1972. Print. Pagels, Elaine. The Gnostic Gospels, Vintage, 1989. Print. Plato, and Christopher Gill. The Symposium. Penguin Classics, 2003. Print. Weir, Peter. Dead Poets Society. Perf. Robin Williams. Touchstone Pictures, 1989. Arcand, Denys. Jesus of Montreal. Centre National de la Cinà ©matographie, 1990.

Increasing Porosity in Public Spaces

Introduction The connexion between the built and the unbuilt / between the â€Å"indoor† and the â€Å"outdoor†/ between the mass and the nothingness is a really sensitive and problematic subject. The experience of a infinite can be badly affected by the ways its borders are treated, i.e. by commanding how a individual enters/exits the infinite. Transitional experience plays a critical function in overall feel and experience of infinites. Different types of infinites require different types of interventions on their border conditions. A metropolis needs to be imagined as a infinite occupied by diverse sets of people with diverse demands and aspirations. The quality of a metropolis has to be judged by what it offers to its occupants – the right to populate, travel about and work with self-respect and safety. Porosity is one of the many steering factors in planing a infinite, specially public topographic points, which are the cardinal strategic infinites in supplying the area/city its character. Not merely does careful design of such infinites increase the aesthetic quality of the topographic point, but besides plays a major function in increasing the criterions of functionality, safety, quality and many such factors under which a metropolis can be categorised. Porosity, is one spacial quality that can decidedly profit the public infinites, specially in topographic points like Delhi, where the person is acquiring isolated from the community in his attempts to get by up with the gait of life that the metropolis has to offer. Besides, with the increasing spread between the two utmost income groups of the metropolis, the infinites, which are meant to be ‘public’ , cater merely to a certain subdivision of the society, pretermiting those which fail to carry through the ‘entrant requirements’ . Apart from giving infinites back to all the subdivisions of the society, increasing porousness in community infinites can besides move as a step against increasing offense rates in the metropolis, as it opens up the infinite to a larger subdivision of the society. Subject: Porosity in public infinites Research Question: How can porosity in public infinites be increased to heighten their public-service corporation for the society in general? Public Spaces Public infinites are an inevitable constituent of human colonies. Parks, place, roads, beaches, etc are typically considered public infinites. They are the common land for people to interact with others, portion cognition or goods, or carry out their day-to-day rites, be it day-to-day modus operandi or occasional celebrations. By definition, they are infinites that should be accessible to all the members of the society, irrespective of their economic strength. It was stated that: Sing the standard of entree, public infinite is a topographic point which is unfastened to all. This means its resources, the activities that take topographic point in it, and information about it are available to everybody. Refering the standard of bureau, public infinite is a topographic point controlled by â€Å" public histrions † ( i.e. , agents or bureaus that act on behalf of a community, metropolis, commonwealth or province ) and used by â€Å" the populace † ( i.e. , the people in general ) . As for involvement, public infinite is a topographic point which serves the public involvement ( i.e. , its benefits are controlled and received by all members of the society ) ( Akkar, Z 2005 ) . Of class, these definitions refer to an ideal public infinite, while the urban ambiance is non wholly composed of stiffly public and private infinites ; alternatively, it is an merger of public and private infinites with different grades of publicness. Accepting that the relation between public and private infinite is a continuum, it is possible to specify public infinites as holding assorted grades of publicness. Sing the dimensions of entree, histrion and involvement, the extent of publicness will depend on three classs: the grade to which the populace infinite and its resources, every bit good as the activities happening in it and information about it, are available to all ; the grade to which it is managed and controlled by public histrions and used by the populace ; and the grade to which it serves the public involvement. Life in public infinites, non merely has a map in the society as a whole, but it is besides a rich beginning of single amusement, pleasance and drama. One unfavorable judgment of the predominating socio-functional attack towards urban public infinite can be that the person ‘s position is frequently disregarded. To what extent do metropolis inhabitants like to run into other urbanites in public topographic points? Barely any contriver, designer or urban decision maker seems to be interested in that inquiry. Planners and metropolis councils are eager to talk about public infinites as meeting topographic points. They find it an attractive thought to gestate of public infinites as a consolidative component where all sectors of the urban population meet. With the aid of that image they can show their metropoliss as communities, despite all the contrasts and differences. Most societal scientists covering with urban public infinite besides tend to see procedures that take topographic point in the public kingdom as a part to the societal organisation, as a fulfillment of social demands. This top-down-view, nevertheless, neglects the day-to-day user ‘s position. Do metropolis inhabitants wish to acquire together with all their co-urbanites? Everybody who has of all time been in a metropolis knows the reply: no, surely non with everyone. On the other manus, it can non be denied that at least some persons derive great pleasance from being in populace. Whether a infinite will work good depends on a scope of facets that include graduated table, usage, safety and comfort, denseness and links. In many instances it is the person ‘s experience of walking or dancing down a street, and the quality of environment, that is the most of import component. Design so becomes about maximising pick and seeking to supply for different persons ‘ ends. Mitchell, D ( 1995 ) adds another dimension to public infinite by seting frontward the point that public infinites are besides, and really significantly, infinites for representation. That is, public infinite is a topographic point within which a political motion can interest out the infinite that allows it to be seen. In public infinite, political organisations can stand for themselves to a larger population. By claiming infinite in public, by making public infinites, societal groups themselves become public. Merely in public infinites can the homeless, for illustration, represent themselves as a legitimate portion of â€Å" the public† Public sphere is best imag- ined as the suite of establishments and activities that mediate the dealingss between society and the province ( Howell 1993 ) . Problems with public infinites Despite the revival of involvement in public infinites, urban design and be aftering litera- ture has often hinted at the decreasing â€Å" publicness † of public infinites in modern metropoliss. Some research workers have pointed out the menace of recent denationalization policies, and claimed that public infinites, traditionally unfastened to all sections of the population, are progressively being developed and managed by private bureaus to bring forth net income for the private sector and function the involvements of peculiar subdivisions of the population ( Punter, J 1990 ) . Others have commented on the high grade of control now maintained over entree and usage of public infinites through surveillance cameras and other steps intended to better their security ( Reeve, A 1996 ) . Still others have argued that modern-day public infinites progressively serve a â€Å" homogeneous † public and advance â€Å" societal filtering. † These open-access populace infinites are cherished because they enable metropolis occupants to travel approximately and prosecute in diversion and face-to-face communicating. But, because an open-access infinite is one everyone can come in, public infinites are authoritative sites for â€Å" calamity, † to raise Garrett Hardin ‘s celebrated metaphor for a parks ( H, Garrrett 1968, cited Ellickson, R 1996 ) A infinite that all can come in, nevertheless, is a infinite that each is tempted to mistreat. Societies hence impose rules-of-the-road for public infinites. While these regulations are progressively articulated in legal codifications, most begin as informal norms of public etiquette ( Taylor, R 1984, cited Ellickson, R 1996 ) . Rules of proper street behaviors are non an hindrance to freedom, but a foundation of it ( Ellickson, R 1996 ) Oosterman, J ( 1992 ) , in his diary Play and Entertainment in Urban Public Space: The Example of the Sidewalk Cafe , points out that since 1989, several metropoliss and towns in the Netherlands have invested 1000000s of guldens in the design and redesign of place, streets and Parkss. These designs are besides meant to hold a societal impact. Many treatment Sessionss are held about the nature of societal life in urban public infinite and its map in the greater urban society. This is the instance in arguments among policy-makers and contrivers every bit good as among societal scientists and designers. Although the constructs used in these Sessionss do non ever merit a award for lucidity, some features appear through the haze: urban public topographic points should be accessible, or even democratic topographic points. Other participants in the treatment about public infinite do non portion this belief in the possibilities of altering urban society by altering its public infinites. Richard Sennett ( 1990, p.201 ) for illustration is instead pessimistic in his latest book The Conscience of the Eye. People no longer look to be able to get by with the societal and cultural differences of the modern metropolis. They maintain their web of personal dealingss within physically and visibly segregated societal universes: ‘sealed communities ‘ as he calls them. Harmonizing to Sennett, urban public infinites can non bridge the spread between those universes, even though they are supposed to make so. Today one can non open a book about public infinite design without coming across a image of either the Piazza San Marco in Venice or the Campo in Siena: two attractively designed place mentioning to the romantic ideal of free, accessible public infinite, where everybody meets anybody. Comparing their idealistic theoretical account of a ‘real ‘ public infinite with the modern-day metropolis makes writers like Habermas and Sennett instead pessimistic about modern-day urban civilization. The metropolis ‘s urban district is excessively privatized and unaccessible. This pessimism is non surprising. Over clip, the graduated table of society grew, the mobility of the population increased and new agencies of communicating developed and disseminated among the population. These and other conditions led to different claims on urban public infinites Solution? William H. Whyte argues that metropoliss should exercise no controls on â€Å" undesirables, † including mendicants and aggressive flakes. In his words: The biggest individual obstruction to the proviso of better infinites is the undesirables job. They are themselves non excessively much of a job. It is the actions taken to battle them that is the job. â€Å" The people have the right freely to piece together, to confer with for the common good, to do known their sentiments to their representatives and to request for damages of grudges. † In their survey with the Jagori, Kalpana Viswanath and Surabhi Tandon Mehrotra concluded that Women ‘s ability and right to entree and utilize public infinites is dependent on the sorts of boundaries imposed upon them due to nature of the infinite and its use. Therefore holding a assorted use of infinite is more contributing to free and easy entree. Very rigorous districting leads to separation of infinites for life, commercialism and leisure. This increases the likeliness of some infinites being closed to adult females and other vulnerable groups such as kids. For illustration in Delhi, we ( Viswanath, K Mehrotra, S ) found that sellers selling mundane points make a infinite safer, whether in the metro, residential countries or coach Michigans. The local staff of life and egg marketer gave a sense of comfort to adult females who returned place at dark. Similarly sellers provided visible radiation and a crowd around coach Michigans which tend to go progressively empty and dark as it gets subsequently. But this phenomenon of safety provided by the peddlers is non understood by all govt governments. Anjaria, J ( 2006 ) tells the narrative of status of street peddlers in Mumbai. They are often described by civic militants, municipal functionaries and journalists as a â€Å" nuisance † ; and are seen to stand for the pandemonium of the metropolis ‘s streets and the cause of the metropolis ‘s ill-famed congestion. On the other manus, to others they represent an undeserved claim of the hapless on the metropolis ‘s public infinites. This despite the fact that even a casual expression at the metropolis ‘s streets and pathwaies shows that parked, privately-owned autos are by far the metropolis ‘s greatest invaders of public infinite, and the greatest obstructor to the motion of walkers. However. to the self-proclaimed guardians of public infinite, the civic militants and the NGOs set on taking peddlers from the metropolis ‘s streets, these facts a re irrelevant. Vicinity by vicinity, the metropolis ‘s pathwaies must be reconfigured, disorderly pathwaies must be made monofunctional. The offense of the peddler is to belie this dream. And, therefore they have become a â€Å" public nuisance † because, by working on the street, they are engaged in an activity that contradicts the supposed cosmopolitan ideals of the modern public infinite. The inquiry may be how do we convey the ethos of privatized infinite that we have become used to together with the return to more democratic values that many people aspire to for the Millennium? Kath Shonfield in her recent part to the Demos series on the ‘Richness of Cities ‘ ( Shonfield, 1998 ) focuses on public infinite and what she calls the new urbanity. She promotes the ‘urban right to roll ‘ and suggests alteration to urban policy that would include urban rights to entree, widening public entree as a rule of new developments, and re sing the thought of the arcade as an urban design theoretical account to be explored. ( cited Jon, R 1999 ) In order to determine the design, size and signifier of public infinites in town Centres, it is necessary to understand their functions and maps. Public infinites in town Centres can be classified in two wide classs: links and nodes. Linkss are roads, pavings or pedestrianized countries which constitute paths leting motion between land utilizations and attractive forces. Nodes are transverse roads where a figure of links meet in the signifier of public infinites such as market squares or place. There have been different theoretical accounts of gender witting planning adopted by metropoliss to react to violence against adult females and adult females ‘s fright of force. The â€Å" broken Windowss † attack focuses on zero-tolerance to offense, closed circuit telecastings ( CCTV ) and an exclusionary attack to making safer infinites [ Mitchell, D 2003 ] . This attack criminalises certain sorts of people and behaviour such as cheery work forces. The safer communities theoretical account on the other manus, puts forth a vision of doing public infinites safer through activities, land usage, societal mix and affecting users in planing schemes and enterprises for safer public infinites. These are seen to be more contributing to constructing ownership instead than the top-down attack of the â€Å" broken Windowss † . The safer communities initiatives emphasise â€Å" activity, land usage and societal mix † ( Whitzman, C 2006, cited Viswanath, K and Mehrotr a, S 2007 ) Stavros Stavrides ( 2007 ) says: Alternatively of thought of societal individualities as delimited parts one can see them as interdependent and pass oning countries. In an attempt to depict urban infinite as a procedure instead than a series of physical entities, we can detect patterns that oppose a dominant will to repair spacial significances and utilizations. These patterns mould infinite and make new spacial articulations since they tend to bring forth threshold infinites, those mediate countries that relate instead than divide. Urban porousness may be the consequence of such patterns that perforate a secluding margin, supplying us with an alternate theoretical account to the modern metropolis of urban enclaves. A metropolis of thresholds could therefore stand for the spatial property of a public civilization of reciprocally cognizant, mutualist and involved individualities. Walter Benjamin, in his essay entitled â€Å" Naples, † explored the thought of verve and assortment in the modern metropolis. The porous stones of Naples offered him an image for a city’s public life: â€Å"As porous as this rock is the architecture. Building and action interpenetrate in the courtyards, arcades and stairways† ( Benjamin, W 1985 ) . Porosity seems to depict, in this transition, the manner in which urban infinite is performed in the procedure of being appropriated ( Sennett 1995 ) . It is non that action is contained in infinite. Rather, a rich web of patterns transforms every available infinite into a possible theatre of expressive Acts of the Apostless of brush. A â€Å"passion for improvisation† as Benjamin describes this public behaviour, penetrates and articulates urban infinite, loosening socially programmed correspondences between map and topographic point. Porosity is therefore an indispensable feature of infinite in Naples because life in the metropolis is full of Acts of the Apostless that overflow into each other. Defying any clear limit, infinites are separated and at the same time connected by porous boundaries, through which mundane life takes signifier in reciprocally dependent public public presentations. Therefore, â€Å"just as the life room reappears on the street, with chairs, fireplace and communion table, so, merely much more aloud, the street migrates into the life room† ( Benjamin 1985 ) . Porosity characterizes above all the relationship between private and public infinite, every bit good as the relationship between indoor and out-of-door infinite. For Benjamin porousness is non limited to spacial experience. Urban life is non merely located in infinites that communicate through transitions ( â€Å"pores† ) , but life is performed in a pacing that fails to wholly separate Acts of the Apostless or events. A temporal porousness is experienced while eating in the street, taking a sl eep in a fly-by-night corner, or imbibing a speedy espresso standing in a Neapolitan cafe . It is as if Acts of the Apostless are both detached and connected through temporal transitions that represent the unstable fugitive experience of juncture. Everyday occasions therefore seem to switch and rearrange beat and paths of usage ( de Certeau 1984 ) . merely located in infinites that communicate through transitions ( â€Å"pores† ) , but life is performed in a pacing that fails to wholly separate Acts of the Apostless or events. A temporal porousness is experienced while eating in the street, taking a sleep in a fly-by-night corner, or imbibing a speedy espresso. It is as if Acts of the Apostless are both detached and connected through temporal transitions that represent the unstable fugitive experience of juncture. Everyday occasions therefore seem to switch and rearrange beat and paths of usage ( de Certeau 1984, cited Stavrides, S 2007 ) Harmonizing to Starvides, Porosity may hence be considered an experience of habitation, which articulates urban life while it besides loosens the boundary lines which are erected to continue a rigorous spatial and temporal societal order. Thresholds, therefore play an of import function in happening the drama of connexion and sepration between infinites. A survey of thresholds can assist uncover the existent correspondence and mutuality between spacial individualities. In post-colonial Asiatic metropoliss like Hong Kong similar conditions of urban porousness exist. Hong Kong ‘s urban environment is devoid of the cultural conditions that mark the traditional â€Å" universe metropoliss † of the West. There are no memorable public infinites, no refined residential cloth, and no model memorials to religion, political relations, art, cognition or civilization. â€Å"Urban life in Hong Kong is traditionally additive in signifier. The functions of Parkss, plaza and gardens in Hong Kong take on maps that alteration with the clip of the twenty-four hours. They are by nature multipurpose infinites, festival evidences, concert sites, and jury-rigged athleticss spheres. While these unfastened infinites are to the full utilized in cardinal times, they lack any individuality and are normally wastes and lifeless when non in use.† ( Lu, L 2005 ) 1

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