GIS Taiwan 2009 - Global Initiatives Symposium in Taiwan 2009

Challenges & Opportunities ¡ª the Global Economy in the Transition Phase

The host team prepares three subtopics for participants to write their essays. The actual contents of the events during the sessions are more diversified. Please carefully read through the study guide first to learn more about GIS Taiwan 2009.

As the old saying goes, "Where there is a will, there is a way." We once have pondered what might have happened when we reach the millennium roughly nine years ago, and now we¡¯re seeing another crisis in front of us, the financial turmoil commencing since the second half of 2007, and trying to find a way out. Needless to say, the importance of acknowledging ongoing human history and analyzing each event lies in the responsibility of humans while analysis is conducted in the manner of defining the problem and trying to solve it with the most adequate method.

The topic: "Challenges & Opportunities ¡ª the Global Economy in the Transition Phase" shall be examined and discussed thoroughly through out this symposium. We hope to gather the talented youth with a variety of cultural background around the world, in the hope of obtaining cross-country fertilization and innovative perspective on this far-reaching event through discussing, brainstorming, and collaborating. A broader scope is expected to be taken as we try not to narrow down ourselves to only financial and economic issues.

It¡¯s a chance for you to be a "fortune-teller", or even the one who shape the future world landscape. The impacts and implications for worldwide financial turmoil shouldn¡¯t be ignored. The conference is aimed to give participants the position of ¡°where we currently are¡± after the financial tsunami, as well as providing a possible road-map to our career and a valuable guidance to our lives. It would be therefore interesting to flash back years later to examine the fruitful results yield in this conference. And we firmly believe that issues discussed here will have surprisingly close interaction with the world.


Subtopic 1: Rethinking of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Social Entrepreneurship

In the past few years, the relationship between "corporations" and the "society" has transformed significantly.

Today, most companies endeavor to involve themselves in philanthropy activities to demonstrate to the public that they indeed care about the society while pursing their primary business goals - profits. A recent survey showed that over 95% of CEOs indicated that the society has higher expectations for the corporations to take on more social responsibilities than it did five years ago. These phenomena seem to point out one changing trend in the business field: Corporate Social Responsibility , which once seemed only to play a supporting role on the stage, may now be host ing the show in the business world.

McKinsey's surveys in 2007, however, revealed that CSR was simply superficial for most companies and proved that CSR was implicitly only a flashing fad. Moreover, Milton Friedman, the Nobel Laureate in Economics Science, in his 1970 article entitled "The Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Its Profits" contended that enterprises' managers did not have the right to represent their stockholders to perform excessive social responsibilities. Many of the anti-CSR discussions prompted by the recent global financial crisis might stem from some of his principles. On the other hand, for firms seen to perform CSR well are encouraged by NGOs and CSR advocates to take on additional responsibilities that do not agree with the fundamental goals of their businesses.

Following the trend that more people are concerned about the society, a group of people is now adopting a different measure to realize their view on social responsibility. They are the so-called "social entrepreneurs." They recognize and focus on social issues and apply entrepreneurial principles to organize a venture to solve the social problems they have observed . Different from business entrepreneurs, they assess the performance of their approaches in terms of the impact they have on the society. For example, one well-known contemporary social entrepreneur is Muhammad Yunus, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize with Grameen Bank, which he founded.

However, social entrepreneurs face many potential issues. They may not obtain enough support to achieve their goals. In addition, they may sometimes make wrong business decisions. This is because there is no supervisory third party to oversee their activities, causing their organizations becomes monopolies in certain fields. When such a situation occurs, waste of valuable resources takes place.

After rethinking the definitions of CSR and social entrepreneurship, please describe a problem that might emerge and elaborate it with possible solutions.



Subtopic 2: Bliss or Misery? ¡ª Contemplating the Engagement of Cultural Forms and Economic Progress

The engagement of culture and economic progress has been a rising concern. Increasing interaction and speeding tension between culture and economic progress, especially sharpened by globalization, have drawn the attention of many political entities and economic organizations. In the past, economists used to exclude culture from decision making; now many of them address it as an indispensible part of economic policy. In the World Bank and UNESCO, many projects have been developed regarding the beneficial effect of both culture sustainability and economic development. With the global economy in transition, it is crucial to contemplate the engagement of culture and economic progress, as well as its potential risk and opportunity.

When considering the relation of culture and economic progress, there exist complex situations and variable opportunities worth further examination and inquiry. For instance, the Cultural and Creative Industry (CCI) is considered a brand-new form for combining culture and economy. By either innovation or refinement, CCI integrates the culture elements into profitable business. Yet, some criticisms arise when some cultural workers worry the combination of culture with business may smother the creativity and debase the value of art. In the case of regional development, for another example, when the utmost priority is to develop economy, the culture value of a society might be at the same time compromised and thus go through great changes. Changing values, such as the possible neglect on environmental-friendly policy and business ethic, may in turn have negative influences on continuous development. Even at the individualistic level, rich cultural-economic context may be observed. The development of Internet and new technology fosters an Internet culture which highlights sharing by clicks. The Internet behavior and ethic is now getting people¡¯s attention, as well as to its considerable impact on the economic pattern.

Choose a specific case which sheds light on further study to the engagement of culture and economic progress and analyze it thoroughly and creatively. What¡¯s the relation of culture and economic progress in the case? Are there any potential risks or possible opportunities? How can one lesson the risks or make the most of the opportunities?



Subtopic 3: Find the Next Wave to Ride On ¡ª New Business Strategies in the Changing World

"You can never step into the same river twice." Ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus said. The world never stops changing. Some changes are small and temporary, while others are significant, irresistible and they become worldwide phenomenon. This is what referred to as a "trend." Trend is defined as "a general development or change in a situation that people are behaving." It is inevitable, continuous, and makes a great impact on people's lives, as well as the business entities involved.

Evidently, there is a link between business and trend. The core concept of business is about "people," and most people follow trends. However, trend usually leads to a dead end because it is no longer able to attract the public's attention by going down the road not taken. Unclever decision will be made and company will not survive if the industries can not be aware of any shifts. Therefore, understanding the importance of trend to business and learning how to respond to it become key factors in determining whether a company can survive or not.

To survive, individual company or the whole industries adjust themselves to match the shift. For example, after Apple Inc. revealed its iphone, which combined mobile phone and personal computer in a stylish technological instrument, not only the original cell phone makers but also the PC industry felt threatened. Now, almost every cell phone company is dedicated to inventing new mobile phones that are more useful and humane compared to I-Phone. One particular competitor is Google Inc just announced the sales of their new product. G-phone, is a revolutionary in including all programs Google offered online in a cell phone, or "smart phone," as its official title reads.

More and more trends are happening right now. Financial Tsunami forced institutions to reorganize. The stricter-than-ever environmental standards forced new process of making original products to be adapted. Are there other trends developing right now? Yes! How will the trend affects the business entities? More importantly, how should the companies involved respond to the flow of changing?