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Global Standards (global + standards)
Selected AbstractsGlobal Standards, Local Realities: Private Agrifood Governance and the Restructuring of the Kenyan Horticulture IndustryECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY, Issue 2 2010Stefan Ouma abstract Over the past decade, private food safety and quality standards have become focal points in the supply chain management of large retailers, reshaping governance patterns in global agrifood chains. In this article, I analyze the relationship between private collective standards and the governance of agrifood markets, using the EUREPGAP/GLOBALGAP standard as a vantage point. I discuss the impact of this standard on the organization of supply chains of fresh vegetables in the Kenyan horticulture industry, focusing on the supply chain relationships and practices among exporters and smallholder farmers. In so doing, I seek to highlight the often-contested nature of the implementation of standards in social fields that are marked by different and distributed principles of evaluating quality, production processes, and legitimate actions in the marketplace. I also reconstruct the challenges and opportunities that exporters and farmers are facing with regard to the implementation of and compliance with standards. Finally, I elaborate on the scope for action that producers and policymakers have under these structures to retain sectoral competitiveness in a global economy of qualities. [source] Pilot training program for developing disaster nursing competencies among undergraduate students in ChinaNURSING & HEALTH SCIENCES, Issue 4 2009Samantha M. C. Pang rn Abstract As nurses constitute the largest group of health-care providers, their readiness to respond to disasters and to participate in preparedness and disaster recovery activities will be significant for making a community more resilient against disaster. Concern is raised regarding how to build the capacity of all nurses with a knowledge base and a minimum set of skills in responding to various disasters. Drawing on the ICN Framework of Disaster Nursing Competencies and Global Standards for the Initial Education of Professional Nurses and Midwives, a training program entitled "Introduction to Disaster Nursing" was developed. Four teaching methods including action learning, problem-based learning, skill training, and lecture were used to orchestrate a series of planned activities for helping students develop the required disaster nursing competencies in a 2-week intensive training program held in Sichuan China in July 2009. The pre- and post-tests which were given to assess the students' perceived level of competencies demonstrated a significant gain in relevant knowledge and skills constituting the required competencies upon completion of the program. In the program evaluation, most students indicated their willingness and capability in disaster relief work under supervision, and they were keen to advance their competencies in the field of disaster nursing. [source] Sediment production in large gullies of the Mediterranean area (NE Spain) from high-resolution digital elevation models and geographical information systems analysisEARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 5 2003J. A. Martínez-Casasnovas Abstract Recent studies in the Mediterranean area have shown gully erosion to have a very significant contribution to total soil loss. In the Penedès vineyard region (NE Spain), between 15 and 27% of the land is affected by large gullies and gully-wall retreat seems to be an ongoing process. Multi-date digital elevation model (DEM) analysis has allowed computation of sediment production by gully erosion, showing that the sediment production rates are very high by the, up-to-date, usual global standards. Here, we present a study carried out using large-scale multi-date (1975 and 1995) aerial photographs (1 : 5000 and 1 : 7000) to monitor sediment yield caused by large gullies in the Penedès region (NE Spain). High-resolution DEMs (1 m grid) were derived and analysed by means of geographical information systems techniques to determine the gully erosion rates. Rainfall characteristics within the same study period were also analysed in order to correlate with the soil loss produced. Mass movement was the main process contributing to total sediment production. This process could have been favoured by rainfalls recorded during the period: 58% of the events were of an erosive character and showed high kinetic energy and erosivity. A sediment production rate of 846 ± 40 Mg ha,1 year,1, a sediment deposition rate of 270 ± 18 Mg ha,1 year,1 and a sediment delivery ratio of 68·1% were computed for a gully area of 0·10 km2. The average net erosion within the study period (1975,95) was 576 ± 58 Mg ha,1 year,1. In comparison with other methods, the proposed method also includes sediment produced by processes other than only overland flow, i.e. downcutting, headcutting, and mass movements and bank erosion. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Comparison of dental licensure, specialization and continuing education in five countriesEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF DENTAL EDUCATION, Issue 4 2002Titus Schleyer Dental practice and education are becoming more globalized. Greater practitioner and patient mobility, the free flow of information, increasingly global standards of care and new legal and economic frameworks (such as European Union [EU] legislation) are forcing a review of dental licensure, specialization and continuing education systems. The objective of this study was to compare these systems in Canada, France, Germany, the UK and the US. Representatives from the five countries completed a 29-item questionnaire, and the information was collated and summarized qualitatively. Statutory bodies are responsible for licensing and re-licensing in all countries. In the two North American countries, this responsibility rests with individual states, and in Europe, with the countries themselves, mainly governed by the legal framework of the EU. In some countries, re-licensure requires completion of continuing education credits. Approaches to dental specialization tend to differ widely with regard to definition of specialities, course and duration of training, training facilities, and accreditation of training programmes. In most countries, continuing education is provided by a number of different entities, such as universities, dental associations, companies, institutes and private individuals. Accreditation and recognition of continuing education is primarily process-driven, not outcome-orientated. Working towards a global infrastructure for dental licensing, specialization and continuing education depends on a thorough understanding of the international commonalities and differences identified in this article. [source] Culture Matters: How Our Culture Affects the Audit,ACCOUNTING PERSPECTIVES, Issue 3 2010PHILIP COWPERTHWAITE audit; culture; normes internationales Abstract If the influence of national cultures on the implementation of global standards is not taken into account, the result will be inconsistent implementation at best and outright failure at worst. The experiences in fields such as medicine, peacekeeping, aviation, and environmental protection offer insight into possible difficulties with the implementation, beginning in 2010, of International Standards on Auditing (ISAs) by members of the International Federation of Accountants. Some countries may have difficulty with implementation because of the differences between their cultural assumptions and those embodied in the standards to be adopted. It is too soon to know if and where that will happen, especially because the data on first experiences will not begin to be available until 2013. However, cultural-comparison data can be used to foresee which countries may have difficulty with implementation. But if unintended consequences do become evident, it will be important not to assume that the standards and the standard-setting process are defective; it is more likely that practitioners will need help in interpreting the ISAs in light of their local culture. A useful first step would be for standard-setting bodies to identify explicitly the cultural assumptions inherent in the standards they produce. The standard setters can then give that information to those responsible for standards implementation at the practitioner level to help promote consistent application of the standards globally. Question de culture : en quoi la culture influe sur l'audit Résumé Si l'on ne tient pas compte de l'influence des cultures nationales sur la mise en ,uvre de normes internationales, les résultatsde l'exercice seront incohérents, au mieux, ouse solderont par un échec pur et simple, au pire. Les expériences dans des domaines comme la médecine, le maintien de la paix, l'aviation et la protection de l'environnement nous livrent des indications quant aux problèmes que pourrait présenter la conversion, à compter de 2010, aux normes internationales d'audit et de certification établies par les membres de l'International Federation of Accountants (IFAC). Certains pays pourraient éprouver de la difficultéà instaurer ces normes en raison des différences entre leurs a priori culturels et ceux que véhiculent les normes devant être adoptées. Il est trop tôt pour dire si ces difficultés se manifesteront et à quel moment, notamment du fait que les données relatives aux premières expériences ne seront accessibles qu'à compter de 2013. Toutefois, des donnéesculturelles comparatives peuvent être utilisées pour prévoir quels pays risquent defaire face à des embûches dans la mise en ,uvre de ces normes. Toutefois, s'il émergedu processus des conséquences non souhaitées évidentes, il importera de ne pas en conclure que les normes et les processus de normalisation sont défectueux, mais plutôt que les professionnels en exerciceont besoin d'assistance pour interpréter les normes internationales à la lumière de leur culture nationale. Les organismes de normalisation pourraient faire un premier pas dans ce sens en définissant explicitement les a priori culturels inhérents aux normes qu'ils produisent. Les normalisateurs pourraient ensuite communiquer cette information aux responsables de la mise en ,uvre des normes chez lesprofessionnels en exercice et contribuer ainsi à promouvoir la cohérence dans l'application des normes à l'échelle mondiale. [source] U.S. versus Global Auditing: Why the Differences MatterJOURNAL OF CORPORATE ACCOUNTING & FINANCE, Issue 4 2001Kay W. Tatum You know we now live in a global economy. U.S auditors must comply with global standards when dealing with multinational firms. But did you know that some international auditing requirements are more demanding than ours,and even conflict with them? © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [source] European specifications for global standards in medical educationMEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 10 2007Hans Karle No abstract is available for this article. [source] How standard are standards: An examination of language emphasis in project management standardsPROJECT MANAGEMENT JOURNAL, Issue 3 2007Lynn Crawford Abstract In light of current work toward the development of global standards for project management, this paper analyzes differences between a selection of various countries' existing project management standards. The analysis is conducted using computational corpus linguistics techniques, resulting in the identification of similarities and differences between the standards of five countries. [source] Cancer curriculum in the Asia,Pacific: Opportunities and challenges in the age of globalizationASIA-PACIFIC JOURNAL OF CLINICAL ONCOLOGY, Issue 4 2005Bogda KOCZWARA Abstract With the rising incidence and prevalence of cancer in Asia,Pacific, the need for adequate cancer education of medical graduates in the region has become particularly urgent. There are 769 medical schools across the Asia,Pacific region in 33 countries serving over 60% of the world population in very diverse socioeconomic environments. This paper discusses some of the challenges for medical education in the Asia,Pacific in light of increasing globalization of health care, including the need to develop global standards in the area of diverse resources and health care priorities. It also points out emerging opportunities including online learning, telemedicine and collaborative educational initiatives across the region. [source] | |||||||||||||