Tourism Policy and Strategy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Tourism Policy and Strategy - Essay Example The theoretical framework can be found useful in evaluating the efficiency of the collaborative stakeholder based processes such as framing the tourism policy and planning. Tourism policy and planning is one of the central topics in the academic tourism research as well in the functional directions of national, regional and local tourism organizations. It is considered as an important part of tourism destination strategy and planning. (Heath & Wall, 1992; Prideaux & Cooper, 2002) From the perspective of tourism planning, tourism can be identified as a complex system. This system is considered central to the analysis of power relationships among the various stakeholder groups which are involved in the process of decision making. The tourism system can be described as one which is structured around "a core [that] generally consists of an assemblage of structures, goods, services, and resources directly contributing to the sector, the comprehensive tourism system includes significant social, economic, geological, and ecological components, along with processes and functions that complement its totality and are essential to its sustainability'. (Farrell & Twining-Ward, 2004) Tourism has been considered as a context for research rather than a discipline in its own tenets (Cooper, Fletcher, Fyall, Gilbert & Wanhill, 2005; Jafari & Ritchie, 1981) On this basis sociology offers a theoretical perspective to the study on tourism. This theoretical perspective is discussed in this paper in the context of the application of stakeholder and collaboration theory on tourism policy and planning. Complexity of the Tourism System The linking of so many diverse kinds of products and services has made the tourism industry and the system as a complicated one (Edgell 1990). The tourism system is so fragmented (Shaw & Williams, 2002) in that there exist a number of different players involved in a problem domain who have different interests and attribute different values (Trist, 1983). It is but critical to have a methodology that studies the stakeholder power structure precisely. Further the tourism decision making process is usually characterized in terms of the collaborative power that the stakeholders possess (de Araujo & Bramwell, 2000; Keogh, 1990; Ladkin & Bertramini, 2002; Murphy, 988) However Reed (1997) point out that the authors on the community tourism do not mention any issue of power being involved in the process. Collaborative processes, like destination branding, are therefore at risk of power imbalances that can inhibit both their initiation and success (Jamal & Getz, 1995). Tourism as a Product Tourism when considered as a product can be construed as an experience of a place with its location and people visited at a particular time (Wheeler 1995) Tourism as a product has been conceptualized in a number of ways. Medlik and Middleton (1973) considered the tourism product as a bundle of activities, services, and benefits that constitute the entire tourism experience. Tourism was looked at from two view points by Middleton (1989). In one angle he looked at tourism as a discrete product resulting from the offer of a single business. In another way tourism was looked as a total product describing the relative experience of the tourist. Smith (1994) had

Tel-com-TEK Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Tel-com-TEK - Article Example Atasi Das has an MBA degree from a UK university and has 12 years of experience working in TCT. She won’t be a foreign national in the sense that her parents are first-generation immigrants; she is rooted to Indian culture and speaks Hindi well. She can devote on her job better than other candidates, being unmarried, therefore free from the family responsibilities unlike other candidates. Although her birth country is not India but her parents are Indians and she has many relatives in the North of India. The new assignment might be very challenging for Atasi Das as she has no experience of the Indian work environment. Her earlier assignments in staff and line positions may not help her in the role of managing director of the Indian division, as profile of the managing director is totally different from her previous and current job rankings. Ravi Desai has been in the position of assistant managing director of Southeast Asian markets for production and sales only. Managing the functions singularly of all departments might be challenging for him. Tom Wallace has experience of only technical and sales portfolios of TCT, which might be challenging in taking the overall in charge of the Indian division because of little experience in other areas. Brett Harrison has been in supervisory roles and is fine-tuned to take senior level responsibilities but the rank of managing director might prove to be too high with the related challenges. Jalan Bukit Seng also falls short because of his sigular expertise in assembly operation, which has been outside india. Saumitra Chakraborty although might be the most suitable man for the post of managing director of TCT because of his profile of assistant to the outgoing managing director besides functioning competently in operations, customer relations and to some good extent the employee relations but lacking in direct-line experience might prove a big hurdle to the responsibilities attached with the rank of managing

The Welcome Table Essay Example for Free

The Welcome Table Essay We as humans have learned to be considerate of people and their differences, we have also encouraged the development of all human beings. But many years ago people were not considerate of people of other ethnicities. The possibilities for everyone have become more equal during modern times. I have been intrigued by the racial and ethical dilemmas that most of our ancestors had to endure. The short story that I have chosen to discuss is â€Å"The Welcome Table† By Alice Walker. The human race has come so far since we have had such severe racial discrimination, although it has not disappeared completely. The Welcome Table, along with many other new age stories really have shown the importance of acceptance of many ethnicities. Point of View The theme of a story is a representation of the idea behind the story. (Clugston 2010). â€Å"The Welcome Table† written by Alice Walker, is about an old African American woman who attends a white community church. This story is told in omniscient third person point of view. Third person point of view occurs when the speaker is not the participant in the story. (Clugston 2010). On her way to church, she received looks of horrible disgust. People felt sorry for her, and they feared her. She walked into the church, and she was immediately the center of attention by the congregation. It was made clear to this elderly lady that she was not welcome to worship with this church. She wanted to be in the house of God, she also needed her time with a higher power, and those rights were stripped from her for being from an African American background. She left without a fight; God immediately approached the old lady as she left this church and they walked off together. Walker shows us how important skin color was to people back in this time in history. Not only were they segregated, it was not considered wrong to decline services to those of a different ethnic background. Walker uses a third person point of view in telling the story. She switches points of view throughout the story and really emphasizing the theme of the story. As she walks into to the church Walker is speaking from the congregations point of view, then to the ushers, then to the white congregation. Character She was angular and lean and the color of poor gray. Walker 2003). She was dressed in her Sunday meeting clothes. She wore a long mildewed rusted black dress with missing buttons and a grease-stained scarf covering her pigtails. She has blue-brown eyes, is ashen in appearance and very wrinkled. She is sweating from her walk and is shivering from the cold. She enters the white church and sits, singing in her head. She is physically thrown out of the church. She sees Jesus walking down the highway and is giddy with joy. Jesus tells her to follow him and she does, walking alongside him. He looks just like she thought he would, and he listens to her sing and talk to him. He was wearing immaculate white, long dress trimmed in gold around the neck and hem, and a red, a bright red cape. (Walker 2003) Over his left arm he carried a brilliant blue blanket. He is wearing sandals and a beard and long hair parted on the side. (Walker 2003). She feels great beside him and can walk as long as he wants. She tells him about her hardship works for whites and the injustices that have taken place . She feels his kindness and instantly feels better. The old elderly woman saw Jesus wave to her. He told her to follow him. She broke her silence to tell Jesus how glad she was that he had come, how she had often looked at his picture. They continue to walk together. The ground began to look like clouds. They continued to walk looking straight ahead, she had a smile on her face. Conclusion The Welcome Table is told in omniscient third person and shifts the point of view from which the story is told. The beginning of the story is told from the point of view of the white congregation. They view the elderly black woman as being beneath them. She receives evil stares as she enters the church to seek Jesus. She feels her time on earth is coming to an end. She is treated badly because of her ethnic background. The usher then asks the elderly woman to leave the church. The women in church feel threatened by the aging woman because of the color of her skin view switches to the usher who tells the elderly African American woman to leave. The men in the church carry the elderly woman out of the church. The woman then sees Jesus walking down the highway. She walks along with him and she is never seen again.

Evaluation and Control Methods at McDonalds

Evaluation and Control Methods at McDonalds Evaluation and Control of Marketing Plans I. Abstract Every commercial organization looks to the bottom line to measure their degree of success over a given fiscal period, and as a barometer of performance as well as profitability. And regardless of the product(s), goods or services that company is engaged in the success of the organization depends on effective methods to generate sales, which is marketing and the evaluation and control of all factors within the enterprise. In addition, to the degree in which it can, the company also needs to evaluate and control factors or influence those aspects that are outside of the enterprise. The degree to which a company employs the correct methods within these spheres will determine to a great extent the degree(s) of success it will have in the marketplace. Achieving success in the consumer arena, as well as staying and thriving there, is a function of an organizations ability to implement what it has learned through market research and then implement those plans while evaluating and controlling their progress through the monitoring and measurement of results against forecasts. The preceding is important, because without goals and objectives the process itself is moot. And to attain the foregoing management must be able to pin point as well as understand the relative progress being made at every step in the selling and administrative (support) process to increase the quality, value and reputation of its offering, be it a product goods or services as well as adjust, modify, control, and factors that act upon or are inherent in this synergy. The preceding success is defined by the proper application of evaluative and control theories, of which there are a number of excellent examples. Toys R Us, Nabisco, Honda, British Airways and countless other industry leaders have all managed to find the proper mix of evaluation and control methodologies in their industry sectors. And while there is no definitive system or methodology that is universal there are principles that form the foundation for the development of those methods that work within the confines of a particular industry classification and thus, marketplace. Given the subtle nature of the components comprising these processes, evaluation and control, it was determined that the selection of the McDonalds Corporation would provide an illustrative example whereby the synergies are readily apparent. The promotion and selling of hamburgers has vaulted this company into a global icon that was fostered by creating a marketing concept that the company utilizes throughout its organizational matrix. McDonalds is a stellar example of a marketing driven company that has forged new ground in its industry classification as a result of successful evaluative and control techniques. II. Introduction In business, the scorecard is revenue. It measures the success of management in developing and organizing the enterprise into a coherent operation that effectively and efficiently produces and sells its products. McDonalds is one of the worlds most successful marketing driven companies regardless of whether you personally partake of its menu offerings, the company has managed to build an extremely successful brand franchise with young adults, as well as segments of the population above thirty. The company recognized that adults have a wide breathe of selections from which to choose, and are subject to the influences of associates, co-workers and circumstances in making such. Whereas children do not have this luxury, they are a product of the small environment they operate in, which is by and large home, school and their play interludes with friends. And one of the most influential components within that environment is television. McDonalds built and maintains its franchise by consistently cultivating and dominating afternoon as well as Saturday cartoon and childrens shows to create a built in recognition and sales base in the young generation. This influence thus extends to their parents, who become marketing targets as well, and continues as McDonalds follows as well as leads them through elementary and high school, into college and the working world. The image built through these advertising messages is reinforced in locations, the huge McDonalds tractor-trailers with giant hamburgers on the side and the delivery of the product in outlets. Even the use of the color red has been selected to achieve consumer recognition (Goodell, 2003) as it relies upon its location in the color spectrum to draw our eyes to it. Red, along with yellow tends to raise ones blood pressure ever so slightly as well as very moderately dilate the pupils. These attention and recall factors have been incorporated into the recognizable McDonalds signage, locations and interiors. The preceding examples are long term components of the companys marketing strategy that have helped to drive sales making it the worlds largest fast food operator. III. An Appraisal of Evaluation and Control Methods Kotlers (2003) book Marketing Management essentially states that the understanding of what to do and adjusting the processes while in motion, are the key principles of forging a marketing plan into revenue success. Least we forget, no matter how expertly crafted a marketing plan may be, results are not guaranteed. The foregoing is because market conditions change on a consistent basis, as must varied components of the marketing plan to adjust to market realities. This does not say that the core or foundation of the plan needs adjustment, just its branches and tentacles (Britannica, 2005). Cook, et al (1993) indicated that overlooking the importance of theory in program evaluation is a mistake. Senge (1994) elaborates on the foregoing in explaining that theory is a set of assumptions that are utilized in building a practical model on varied topics or business areas. Scriven (1991) states evaluation is the process of determining the merit, worth and value of things and goes on to add, evaluations are the products of that process Control theories are outgrowth of the requirement for businesses to gather information into meaningful statistical data for evaluation. Control also entails administrative, supervisory, production and logistics management (Schoensleben, 2000), and represents the data, processes and systems that evaluation theories as well as processes look at. Together, these two areas form the analytical process which is the key to all intellectual endeavors and the most powerful as well as versatile of tool disciplines such as design, statistics and logic. Brassington et al (2002) discusses the importance of controls and the establishment of them to effectively monitor and manage information as well as oversee results by gathering data for management review and evaluation. Without controls evaluation would be reduced to a study of planning measures to develop a means by which to gauge the effectiveness of varied business functions such as manufacturing, sales, marketing campaigns, etc. These are subject areas broached by Mills (1988) in describing the importance of verifying information gathered for analysis to ensure the proper foundational data is utilized in the process. The evaluation process is not just about raw numbers and data, Scriven (1980) states that Evaluation is what it is and adds that it is the determination of merit or worth, and what it is used for is another matter. Weiss (1972) sees the process in a broader context that encompasses policies, processes, people and any aspect that forms a functioning part of operation s. The core of the preceding references establishes that purpose of evaluations is to measure the results against the goals set at the onset, and to utilize this data in decision processes concerning modification and or improvement, if required. IV. The Importance of Evaluation and Control Methods at McDonalds Founded by Dick and Mac McDonald in 1948 as a restaurant. The McDonalds we know today did not begin its fast food origins until the brothers introduced their Speedee Service System that Ray Kroc utilized to establish the franchise system. This system, represents the control mechanism that McDonalds utilizes to control quality, sales and all aspects of operations that are tied into headquarter operations through regional branches that review and correlate the daily data. While the implications of the preceding are obvious in todays terms, such was not the case when the company established its first franchised outlet in 1953 (McDonalds Corporation, 2005). It is this franchise system that provides McDonalds with the perfect control mechanism for its 20,000 global locations and the information tools via which the company can evaluate each operation (McDonalds Corporation, 2005). The McDonalds franchise system works so well because they say that headquarters actually listens to them. This two-way communication path is a critical tool in retaining management control as well as a means to evaluate performance. The relationship between the individual McDonalds outlets and the corporation are so good that the idea for the Big Mac, Egg McMuffin and Ronald McDonald did not come from the headquarters operation, or even the companys advertising agency, but from a franchised store owner (McDonalds Corporation, 2005). As a result of management listening so closely to its franchisees the companys same store sales actually continue to increase with the opening of more McDonalds, belying the problem of potential saturation and the resultant reduction of revenues. The company has managed to develop such an excellent system of control because each of its outlets are owned by individuals with ties to their community and they are granted the freedom to run their business on a day to day basis within the broad context of McDonalds quality guidelines (McDonalds Corporation, 2005). The companys support and availability to its franchisees represents one of its most successful controls in that the assistance is welcomed, rather than being seen as supervision or meddling. The data collected through web based computer systems aids the company in understanding individual territories as well as individual store performance and assists in the planning of marketing and promotional campaigns as well as understanding competitive tactics and developments as part of the excellent two-way feed-back process that exists between the franchise owners and the company. V. Assessment of the Methods of Evaluation and Control at McDonalds The open two-way communication system that exists on the franchisor to franchisee basis within the McDonalds corporate culture and organizational matrix represents the interpersonal side of the relationship that fosters the flow of ideas as well as suggestions and innovations. On the data side, the restaurants are all equipped with a two-way data link system that permits them to send updates on the daily tally of sales. This information provides McDonalds with information on the consumption percentage of products as well as the success rate of promotions and advertising/marketing programs. The sophistication of this information provides the company with data on adjustments, modifications and other changes that might need to be made to either increase the effectiveness of these programs, as well as the planning, timing and spacing of future programs, advertising and campaigns. The preceding represents the heart of the McDonalds franchise driven success in that the effectiveness of its marketing program has created an atmosphere where the company is ingrained as an iconic part of lifestyles. An audience the company keeps close tabs on through its daily product sales updates. One of the methods that the company employs to evaluate quality throughout its franchise chain is the utilization of mystery shoppers to provide feed-back (Leung, 2001). This program was implemented to keep franchise owners on their toes concerning quality control and policy with respect to customer greetings, the offering of special promotions and order fulfillment along with a host of other things. This particular program has seen the quality scores come in at 81.9%, which is just marginally better than Burger King at 80.1%, Wendys at 80.7% and the 77% recorded for Taco Bell. The McDonalds score was only slightly higher than the 80% that is the mean average for all restaurant establishments nationwide (Leung, 2001). And while the company has not seen any dramatic increase from this particular program, the cumulative effect of all of the in-place as well as yet to be implemented measures represents a commitment to evaluative and control methodologies. Even in the face of mixed resul ts in this instance, the continued emphasis within this area is beneficial as a policy. VI. Recommendations The evaluation and control theories and practices of McDonalds as part of their franchisee relationship, represents a company wide commitment to a two-way communication methodology for that doubles as a feed-back as well as data collection system. As is usually the case with any program(s) there will be periods and or instances that suffer from quality or information slippage as well as a net performance that is less than optimal however, the commitment to such a policy has helped to make the company the leader within its field. The commitment of McDonalds to its open communication system and data collection methods provides the company with the means to monitor, evaluate and review marketing, administrative, policy and other areas which are all dependent upon public opinion. The seamless nature of the companys marketing, data and communication systems is a plus in providing management with information to make adjustments in control mechanisms through the evaluation of various programs and data sets. The culture as well as methodology is in place, and even though there will be instances whereby the individual applications might not yield the anticipated results the commitment to such close ties and pulse beat on its customers represents a company that understands the nature of the business it is engaged in customer satisfaction on all levels of contact. It is possible that the addition of short surveys and interviews might provide further benefits, but all in all McDonalds is actively engaged in maintaining a close relationship with its outlets and customers through active control and assessment methodologies. VII. Bibliography Brassington, Frances, Pettitt, Stephen. 2002. Principles of Marketing. Pp 623 675. Prentice Hall. ISBN: 0273657917 Britannica Online. 2005. The Marketing Process: Marketing Evaluation and Control. http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-27222?tocId=27222 Cook, T.D., Shadish, W.R., Leviton, L.C. 1993. Foundations of Program Evaluation. P. 20. Sage Publications. ISBN: 0803953011 Goodell, JJ. 2003. Some Thoughts on Color. http://www.goodellgroup.com/color.html Kolter, Philip. 2003. Marketing Management. Pp 256-345. Prentice Hall. ISBN: 0130336297 Leung, Shirley. 2001. McDonalds Asks Mystery Shoppers What Ails Sales. 17/12/2001. P. B1,3. The Wall Street Journal McDonalds. 2005. The McDonalds History. http://www.mcdonalds.com/corp/about/mcd_history_pg1.html Mills, Charles. 1988. The Quality Audit: A Management Evaluation Tool. McGraw-Hill. ISBN: 007042484 Schoensleben, Paul. 2000. Integral Logistics Management: Planning Control of Comprehensive Business Processes. Pp 162 221. Saint Lucie Press. ISBN: 1574442724 Scriven, M. 1991. Evaluation Thesaurus. P 1 Sage Publications. ISBN: 0803943644 Scriven, M. 1980. The Logic of Evaluation. P. 7. Edgepress Senge, Peter. 1994. The Fifth Discipline. Currency Publications. ISBN: 0385260954 Weiss, Carol. 1972. Evaluation Research: Methods for Assessing Program Effectiveness. Prentice Hall. ISBN: 0132921936

The Devastating Suicide in Bone Essays -- Bone Essays

The Devastating Suicide in Bone        Ã‚   In Bone, by Fae Myenne Ng, the character Ona Leong grows up in a Chinese-American family in San Francisco. Ona shared her home with two sisters that are extreme opposites, a mother who works in sweatshops and a father who works out at sea for long periods. Ona grew up loving every member of her family and each one of them believed that she was on the road to success. But on a day like any other, Ona commits suicide by jumping off of the thirteenth floor of the Nam building. Without any warning of her unhappiness, the family finds themselves only being able to guess as to why she would do such a thing. How did Ona express her unhappiness? And how does Ona's choice of suicide affect loved ones?    Suicide often follows depression, proving false the stereotype of depression being only general sadness. Depression can be anything from temporary to extreme, and from insignificant to greatly significant. What significant might be characterized as could be the outcome of a loss of ones life. In a case where a woman's husband committed suicide, the woman later said, "'He was like anybody else with depression. But it was much more extreme than he ever let us know'" (Robinson, R. 33). However, Ona Leong appeared no different up to the day that she jumped; never even appearing depressed. Throughout the novel, the impact of suicide is seen from within the home, leading back to early childhood.    When thinking back, every detail of a person's life can be thought of as being a clue to the mystery of suicide. After Ona's death, both mother and sister alike, ask themselves, "What could have saved Ona?... If I'd been living [at home with Ona] on the Alley, could I have had that talk with... ...the case of leaving a suicide note, can sometimes only explain so much, but actions do in fact speak louder. Taking your own life, in the case of Ona wanting to make a point, could quite possibly be the loudest action there is, an action impossible to ignore.    Works Cited: Robinson, Rita. Survivors Of Suicide. Van Nuys: Newcastle, 1989. Barrington, Mary Rose. "The Right to Suicide." Problems of Death. Ed. Bender, David L. Anoka: Greenhaven, 1974. 114-119. JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association, Regional variations in suicide rates - United States, 1990-1994. (From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Sep 24, 1997, v278 n12. Robinson, Edward Arlington. "Richard Cory." The Pocket Book of Modern Verse. New York: Washington Square Press, 1954. 153. Ng, Fae Myenne. Bone. New York: HarperCollins, 1994.      

Ministers Black Veil :: Character Analysis, Hawthorne

Nathaniel Hawthorne has always been [caracterizado] for using symbols and ambiguity on all of his stories. This is the case in â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil† where he introduces the story of Minister Hooper, a religious man that starts wearing a black veil on his face until the day he dies. While re reading the Ministers Black Veil it is impossible just to come up with one conclusion of the motives why Minister Hooper puts on the veil. Since Hawthorne uses the act of ambiguity in this parable for the reader to come to their own conclusion, there are a significant amount of interpretations of the Minister’s black veil. The reader becomes acquainted with the protagonist at the crucial moment of his life, the moment in which he decides to wear a black veil on his face. But every reader encounters the same question, why did Minister Hooper put on the veil? {NEED A TOPIC SENTENCE} The very beginning of the story is a portrait of a happy everyday life in Milford - merry children are willing to make fun of a graver's gait, spruce bachelors are looking sidelong at the pretty maidens and a sexton is tolling the bell - and its light-hearted mood contrasts with that of the rest of the story. It gives us a taste of what the parson's life was like before his decision to wear his black veil.When Mr. Hooper appears wearing a black veil â€Å"[s]wathed about his forehead, and hanging down over his face, so low as to be shaken by his breath† (1) a period of alienation starts in his life. This event is not expected since Mr. Hooper is â€Å"a gentlemanly person† (1) and has the reputation of a â€Å"of a good preacher, but not an energetic one: he strove to win his people heavenward by mild, persuasive influences, rather than to drive them thither by the thunders of the Word† (2). The veil itself, Hawthorne tells us, consists o f two folds of crape which entirely conceal Mr. Hooper's features, "except the mouth and chin, but probably did not intercept his sight, further than to give a darkened aspect to all living and inanimate things"(1). E. Earle Stibitz explains how Mr. Hopper’s is shown as an â€Å"essentially weak man, poorly prepared by his unmarried solitude, his somewhat morbid temperament, and his professional position to deal in a stable way with an absorbing religious idea that harmonizes with his personal and vocational prejudices(188).

Impact on the Small Coralline Cay

Experiment Number: 5 Date: December 8,2011. Aim: To assess and analyze man’s impact on the small coralline cay- Lime cay. Apparatus: boat Introduction: Lime cay is a small coralline cay that is mostly used by humans for their personal entertainment. By visiting this cay, man has had detrimental effects on the environment. In the earlier times, man’s impact was not so prevalent, however, overtime it has increased as agricultural practices and technology has been introduced. The effects can rise from pollution to global deforestation, which results in the death of many organisms.This can lead to species and genetic diversity being lost and also gives rise to extinction of some species. The adverse effects will be discussed later in details. Procedure: A small boat was used to travel to lime cay where the students walked around the small coralline cay and recorded all observations, which indicated man’s impact on this environment. Observation: Pictures showing the s mall coraline cay-Lime cay and evidence of the presence of man’s pollution. Picture showing an example of an organism that lives on the cay that is affected by man’s presence (sea urchin).Table showing the organisms present on the cay and their preys Organisms Being Fed On| Organisms Feeding| Flowers| Snails and Bees| Snails and Fish| Turtle| Leaf litter | Earthworm| Phytoplankton| Zooplankton| Algae| Sea Urchin and Fish| Fungi| Crab and Sand Fly| Wood| Wood Boring Beetle| Tree Bark| Termite| Woodlouse and Bees| Spider| Bird| Pelican| Bees and Earthworm | Bird| Discussion Questions: (a) Create a food web of all the organisms present on the cay. Pelican Stingray Shark LizardBird Turtle Spider Fish Wood boring Earthworm Sea urchin Zooplankton Bees Snails Crab Sandfly Beetle Termite Leaf litter Algae Phytoplankton Flowers Fungi Wood Treebark (b) What is the significance of the cay? The significance of the cay is to: (1) provide a habitat for a variety of organisms that we re present on the cay (2) to aid in breaking heavy wave and tidal action and (3) to serve as a recreational ground for humans. c) What are the ways that man affects this habitat? Man affects this habitat by pollution when it is used for recreation, by deforestation/slash and burn method, by causing eutrophication, overfishing, oil spills and exposing unwanted predators. (d) Do you see any animals or evidence of any animals? What organisms are affected by man’s activities and how? Yes, there were animals seen. The animals seen were crabs (their tracks and their holes were spotted) ground lizards, pelicans, birds, fishes, sea urchins, spiders (spider webs were spotted) snails, stingray and a turtle.Generally speaking, with human activities being practiced on the cay, it resulted in habitat destruction. Changes usually take time for the organisms to adjust. However, when changes occur at a fast pace, there is little or no time for individual species to react and adjust to new ci rcumstances. This created disastrous results, and for this reason, the rapid habitat loss causes species to migrate to other areas to live. On the cay there was a lot of garbage left behind from human activities. These consisted of mainly plastic materials such as cups and bags.Trash like plastic, can cause death to fishes as plastics take a while to biodegrade and therefore remain in the water. Fishes sometimes mistake plastic for food and ingest it, which results in a blockage in their digestive systems killing the fish. Plastic can also get wrapped around their necks and choke them or it could get stuck in their mouths, making it unable for the fish to eat and so it might starve and also die. Another observation made was a traveling cargo ship. This activity released pollutants into the water and also made it prone to oil spills.An oil spill has the most hazardous effect on aquatic and terrestrial life. The oil coats the fish’s outer layer and kills it. Also, oil affects s ea birds as it sticks to their wings rendering them flightless. Oil settles on top of water and so forms a thick layer that is opaque, which prevents sunlight from reaching marine plants, so photosynthesis is obstructed. Oil spills may result in eutrophication, which feeds algae blooms. When algae dies they sink to the bottom where they are decomposed. The decomposition process uses oxygen and deprives the deeper waters of oxygen, which can kill fish and other organisms.Also the necessary nutrients are all at the bottom of the aquatic ecosystem and if they are not brought up closer to the surface, where there is more available light allowing for photosynthesis for aquatic plants, a serious strain is placed on algae populations. Growth of algal blooms disrupts normal functioning of the ecosystem, causing a variety of problems such as a lack of oxygen needed for fish and other organisms to survive. Also it may be noted that by human activities, which cause organisms to migrate, makes them more available to predation.Additionally, it can increase competition for food and space between organisms. Another point that was observed was the presence of fishermen. Overfishing decreases the population of fishes in the area, which disrupts the food chain as terrestrial organisms that feed on aquatic life have less food to eat. Also human activities affect turtle nesting, as the turtle was seen moving outwards from the cay. This suggested that based on the exposure to unwanted predators, turtles might see the cay as unsafe to lay their eggs.There may have also been introduction to pests as a result of the garbage and also pests may come to the cay in boats. Lastly, we can look at the effect of the method slash and burn method. Evidence of the burning of wood was seen which resulted in the various plants and animals that lived there being swept away. This could also have been the area where only one particular species is kept and slashing and burning could result in extinct ion for that species. This also affects organisms that live in the soil, like the bacteria, that would result in their death. e) Is the only impact by those who visit the cay? No, the impact is not only by those who visit the cay, the impact of the habitat destruction is also by pests as stated before like rats who come on the cay and create mass destruction to the organisms living there. (f) As a manager, what would you suggest to minimize man’s impact on this environment? There should be provision of proper disposal facilities, where the site can be kept clean of litter and the waste and contaminants are not runoff into the water.Implementing in-situ conversation and management practices to exclude or eliminate pests, so pesticides are unnecessary and the organisms will be protected is another suggestion for minimizing the impact. With the prevention of pollution, eutrophication will decrease. Plastics can be collected in a container for recycling, so recycling bin can also be put into play. And lastly, rules should be implemented against burning of materials on the cay. Conclusion: Man has significantly impacted lime cay and evidence was there to support this theory, which resulted in many detrimental effects to the organism present on this cay.