Your connection between Asia and TMA Made by students for students
India Survival Guide Travelling to India? Not without having read our survival guide! Tips and tricks on what (not) to do.
TMA’s 2014 Winning Essay An impressive essay written by Irene Porreca, a first-year Trade Management for Asia student.
Passing the ball to Asia As we support the Netherlands into the 2014 football world cup, lets take a look at how passionate the Japanese and Koreans can be!
China on the ‘rise’ juli 2014
A closer look at one of China’s most ambitious construction projects. And how it might save humankind from alien disaster. 1
Contents Passing the ball to Asia (pg. 4) As we support the Netherlands into the 2014 football world cup, lets take a look at how passionate the Japanese and Koreans can be!
India Survival Guide (pg. 5) Travelling to India? Not without having read our survival guide! Tips and tricks on what (not) to do.
China on the ‘rise’ (pg. 7) A closer look at one of China’s most ambitious construction projects. And how it might prevent humankind from alien disaster.
Faster and Faster (pg. 8) Living in the Netherlands 4G is great, but we want to stream the latest Game of Thrones within 1.3 seconds on our mobile phones. And that’s about to happen.
(pg. 9) How does it feel to study on the other side of the world? We asked Koji and Ayana, two Japanese exchange students
School info (pg. 12)
An interview on China
A follow-up of explaining committees that concern TMA.
(pg. 15) AsiaLine interviewed a Lithuanian student in Beijing on his experiences there.
University graduate? TMA SPECIAL: China’s Who cares! (pg. 20) race for water (pg. 21)
What do managers look at when An impressive essay written by hiring people? The results are Irene Porreca, a first-year Trade good news to some, bad news Management for Asia student. to most. 2
The power of South Korea’s Chaebols (pg. 10) South Korea’s conglomerates such as Samsung, Hyundai and LG played an extremely important part in contributing to the country’s welfare nowadays.
South Korea’s peculiar voting culture (pg. 17) How would we respond to Mark Rutte texting us with: “I love you”? Perfectly normal in South-Korea.
Welcome to the second issue It’s a succes!
Hello? Anyone still here? Granted, we might be a bit late with this edition. Most of the student populace will have booked their holidays by now. But believe us when we say we won’t disappoint. We just took a while to recover from the success of the first edition. That’s all. With a reach of over a 1000 people and hundreds of unique readers, the benchmark is set. Now we move onwards. Let’s guide you through some of the topics in this second edition of AsiaLine.
not degrees. What do you do to –actively- develop yourself during your TMA course? Mind you, we’re not talking about ‘hitting the gym’. Are you just enjoying the ride, destination unknown? Just some food for thought.
“The main topics related to entrepreneurship and business are meant to inspire, to grant you the insight required to accomplish your own goals.”
Wesley Broekhoven & Tobias Descamps – Editors in Chief
One such development opportunity lies right here. We’re still on the lookout for diligent writers and journalists. We’ve whipped our current recruits too often, too hard. They’re exhausted. Cut them some slack by applying for AsiaLine! The perks are numerous: zero salary, no travel If you’re travelling to India this summer, be sure to check expenses covered, strict deadlines and a property rights agreement. You leave the team, we take half your stuff. out our ‘’India Survival Guide’’. It’s no stretch of the imagination that any trip to India requires a hefty amount And okay, the real perk, it’s an amazing topic during job of preparation for both dietary and sanitary reasons. This interviews. guide will sort you right out. Just mail us your motivation at asialinehr@gmail.com if you’re interested. Beyond topics like the above, and other news-worthy items such as the Phoenix Towers in China, voting culture in South Korea, not to mention our flagship TMA-related For now, happy reading! interviews, we want to hold true to our words in the first Yours sincerely, edition. And we quote:
To put our money where our mouth was back there, we urge you to read our article on the (relative) importance of degrees. More and more business leaders look at skills, 3
Passing the ball to Asia Asia is well-known to be a leading country in gymnastics and computer-based sports, but what about football? So far, the performances of South Korea and Japan in Brazil 2014 have not been spectacular, but then again same goes to some European countries, previously considered being powerhouses. And while western fans are known all over the world for their exploits, the Asians, although being more introverts in terms of culture, are not lagging behind either, as Japan and South Korea have both placed their bids for the 2022 World Cup.
their appreciation to the national team and claimed to be proud of their performance. However, not all Korean supporters were satisfied with their team’s performance. When the Korean football team arrived at the airport after they had been eliminated, people threw toffees. This might sound a bit weird. However, throwing toffees in Korea is very assaulting. The Korean word for toffee “yut”, also means “fuck” as in fuck you. By throwing the toffees to the team, the Koreans basically tried to say “fuck off” to show their disappointment.
Coming into the tournament, Japan’s national team received enormous support from home, as people were gathering at homes and at local sports bars to watch their games and encourage them on the team’s official Facebook account.
Author: Aleksander Naydenov
Japan’s team with players such as Yasuhito Endo and Yasuyuki Konno , lost their opening match against the strong enemy of Cote d’Ivoire and reached a draw with Greece. There were 15.000 Japanese supporters in Brazil, also known as the “Samurai blues”. “Fighting!” is what is shouted by every Korean, during their games to show support and high spirits. Although Korea’s national team was not very successful, their efforts did not go unnoticed, as thousands of people had gathered in the centre of Seoul, dressed in red clothes in order to watch and cheer on their beloved “red devils”. The municipality had supplied huge screens for all the fans to be able to share the emotions and joy of the game. Whoever thought that world-cup enthusiasm was only limited to ordinary people couldn’t have been more wrong! Minutes before Korea’s clash with Russia in the first game, a wave of K-pop idols shared pictures on Facebook and Twitter wearing red shirts and horns expressing their support for the national team’s players and claiming they will watch all the matches. Even after the disappointing results many idols have sent 4
India survival guide “Truth alone triumphs” – Indian national motto India is the second most populated country in the world and a country with one of the biggest contrasts and diversity. This extremely large market, with a rapidly rising English-speaking middle class has continuously been receiving bad press because of its poor hygiene and sanitary conditions. The extent of this bad publicity has been so rampant, that it has caused many foreigners to shiver of horror when they have to go to the birthplace of Buddhism, even for a short business trip. A peculiar little fact worth mentioning is that the ranks of those fearful foreigners are mostly comprised of westerners, although India’s main export and import partners, apart from the USA, are almost exclusively Asian countries, such as China, Hong-Kong and the UAE. Are those Asian businessmen less concerned about their health, or are they simply more adequately prepared for spending time in the country?
have not had generations to build proper antibodies, causing infections and deceases like typhoid. Nevertheless, many diseases can be prevented by taking the proper shots before your flight, or simply by drinking bottled water. The latter has become extremely popular in the country and there are two types – bottled tap and mineral water. Although both are safe to drink, the first type has been through a process of chemical purification, while the second one is naturally gathered from springs, usually in the mountainous areas. Indian traditional tea is also quite safe to drink, since it has been cooked before served.
Demystifying the local fauna
As long as you are not visiting ancient temples in the jungles and stick to the cities, your biggest problem will not be the poisonous snakes since you are unlikely to come into close contact with them, apart from a snake charming show. A bigger risk would be the mosquitoes which carry malaria, dengue fever and various bacterial diseases. While the reader may be quite frightened by the sound of the world “malaria”, it is actually not that common in India, although the media has given it quite a lot of coverage. Dengue fever, however, is much more of a realistic threat; therefore it is still advisable to ward off mosquitoes through repellents. Rats in India are extremely common, so you need not to bother going to Deshnoke to see the Karni Mata – temple dedicated to rats, with some 20.000 being worshiped in it. Instead, you could encounter many of those four-legged fellows in the poorer neighbourhoods, not to mention in the slumps. Do not bother packing your combat boots yet, as they are not likely to pose a problem for the western visitor, as long as you minimise drinking from public taps and keep good personal hygiene.
The environmental factors
Any diligent web-search will point your attention to the fact that the natural environment, mentioned above, is the main problem to tourists and visitors in India. Similarly to classic move “War of the worlds”, it is not the pollution, nor the infrastructure or the poor sanitary conditions, but rather the tiniest organisms and the specifics of the local climate, that are the most common cause of the foreigners’ health issues! This, however, is only to be expected, due to India’s geographic location. The “Tropic of Cancer” passes through the middle of the country, with unstable weather patterns such as a monsoonal season, quite often accompanied by floods and cyclones and a dry season. Staying out of harm’s way during the rainy monsoon season can be quite hard, since you are likely to be drenched with water at some point. Whilst the water being polluted is also a problem, your biggest concern would be the microorganisms and bacteria swarming around. Nowadays many Indian homes and restaurants have installed water filters; however those are more efficient in removing pollution, not bacteria. Although harmless for the locals, they can be quite annoying and dangerous for those who
Keep an eye on your plate
While India is quite famous for its delicious dishes and exotic fruits, it is advisable to show a degree of restraint before you start enjoying it! While 5
the hygiene standards in the country have been improving significantly, they are still far lower than what the westerners are generally used to. The mentality of the Indian people, especially those with lower income and social status, is to avoid throwing away food, unless it is simply rotten. This is even more applicable for meat or eggs, which are much more expensive than vegetables. Even worse, meat is often not stored in a fridge, but rather displayed outside in the sun, where not only customers, but also swarms of flies can have some of it. Additionally, animals are often allowed to feed on garbage or in polluted areas, so you’re consuming meet on your own risk.
to have your jaw drop at the sight of the piles of trash lying around on the streets. The lack of trash containers is not helping to reduce this problem; however the government has taken steps to reduce pollution as much as possible. If the rubbish has gotten your jaw down you may want to pick it up if you see people relieving themselves on the street, or behind some taller buildings and bushes. The state of the public toilets which are messy and unsanitary, as well as the lack of proper toilets in some households are pointed out to be the main reason for this. An interesting thing worth mentioning is the Indian-style toilets, which require you to squat above them. They can be strange to a westerner, but they do have the advantage of minimum contact, making them perfect for life in a country with so little attention to hygiene. Naturally, the situation is not the same throughout the country, or even the cities. If you are staying at the campus of a large IT firm or one of the richer neighbourhoods of New Delhi, you are not likely to witness any of the appalling sights described above, apart from when you walk through the general areas of the city.
Cut of destiny
The situation with vegetables is somewhat similar to meat – the ones you can buy on the streets or get in cheaper restaurants are likely to have been washed with dirty water and can be unsafe to consume. The respectable elder people selling tasty cane juice on the streets rarely have access to really clean water, so keep that in mind before you buy some. Fruits which can be peeled such as mangos, leeches or apples are safer to consume, as the crust has absorbed any pollution, leaving the inside clean.
The Indian folklore is full of stories of strong men dying from strange poisons and unless you are keen to experience one of those stories, it is advisable to try to minimise the cuts and bruises on your body. The reason for this is that they expose you to the bacteria. A minor cut could easily turn into a major swollen wound causing fever and vomiting. Being drenched in water or walking through it on your way to work could get you a nice fungal infection, if not cleaned at an early stage. All in all, some antibacterial wipes could save you a lot of trouble if used in the right time.
These somewhat grim descriptions are, of course, not applicable to the entirety of this country of opposites. The good news is that food in the Hinduism’s motherland is incredibly cheap for the western standards; therefore one can easily afford to skip the cheapest alternatives and go for the more expensive restaurants, as they are much more likely to at least try to have proper hygiene. It is quite easy to spot out the better restaurants.
Why so serious?
All things considered, if someone tells you that you would be perfectly safe on your visit to India, they would be lying. That being said, there are a handful of timely measures you could take to make sure your visit to that fascinating Southern Asian country is as trouble-free as possible. The hygiene standards have been improving and there are already many ways to make sure you don’t consume any contaminated food or water. You would, of course, have to exercise extra caution in order to stay healthy, however India is well worth it, with both, its new and lucrative business opportunities as well as vastly unique cultural heritage. And after all, without a small degree of risk, our lives would be too boring, wouldn’t they?
Public hygiene
While the awareness towards public and personal hygiene is growing, the current situation is not too good. The country is still unable to deal with the tons of garbage its growing population produces on a daily bases, especially in the major city. If this is your first time in India, you are likely
Author: Aleksander Naydenov
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China on the ‘rise’ Dubbed the ‘Phoenix Towers’, Fènghuángtǎ in Mandarin, China launches its next new innovative construction project. Set at a height of 1 kilometre, the pink skyscrapers will stand as the tallest buildings in the world upon completion in 2018. The cost? Not that bad. A mere €1.5 billion! Wuhan, China. The year is 2048 AD. A year in which Holland loses the World Cup final for the seventh time to the new superpower of global football; the United States. Hand-egg (read: American Football) is now an abolished sport, only played for leisure at kindergarten level.
Gardens of Babylon, filled to the brim with the most exotic of plants and flowers. Is it some sort of master-plan where the ‘Lady’ tower provides the ‘Gentleman ‘ tower with the breath of life, oxygen? We don’t know. There’s plenty of other things to cover anyway. The colour, for instance. Did we mention the towers are pink? The exterior of both towers will be covered by photovoltaic panels, resulting in a hue that matches the evening sunsets. Not only does this sound cool, it will literally keep the buildings cool. These massive solar panels are the primary energy source to fuel the various components within the building, be it heating, ICT or cooling systems. Not only that, the towers will be surrounded by other means of green energy, like wind, thermal, biomass boilers and hydrogen fuel cells.
Yet, it is also a year in which an advanced race from the Struve 2398 solar system concludes its long journey towards Earth. They are on the hunt for biomass and explore rumours of a magical stimulating substance. Known to us as delicious coffee. As they part the skies of Earth’s atmosphere and descend onto the plains of Eastern China, they suddenly halt their tracks. Towering out above them is a dual-structure of such splendour and magnificence, of such technological prowess and engineering marvel, that they quite simply poop their ET pants. Leave it to China to deter any alien invasion for the next five hundred years or so.
Any structure of this size needs great support. The designers settled for an island construction on which the towers will be situated, surrounded by a lake. At least, that’s what we deduce from the picture. It’s not hard to fathom an entire village spawning next to it, similar to the keeps and castles of old.
The picture itself speaks volumes. The design by London-based Chetwoods Architects makes for an amazing visual impression. The two skyscrapers represent the male (Feng tower) and female (Huang tower) dualistic aspects of Chinese culture. A clear sign the nation of the orient strives towards conveying its proud national symbols far beyond their own borders (and into space).
That leaves us with those weird planetary orbs that seem to orbit the structures up at around 400 meter into the air. Their purpose? Hard to tell. An educated guess would be that they serve as some kind of interstellar dimensional gate. Just watch the movie Contact and you’ll know. Author: Wesley Broekhoven
Now, what higher purpose do these twin spires serve? Surely a project of this scope is bound to transcend mere prestige. Not really. While the Feng tower will host about 100 floors-worth of residential space and offices, the Huang tower will be host to the world’s tallest garden. Tallest, you say? Yes. Practical use is not really of major concern here. The full kilometre of Huang’s interior will be much akin to the ancient Hanging 7
Faster and faster to become technological leaders again, which they announced to be one of their priorities.
The new generation is raising and we are going to face a lot of changes. Current 4G internet is going to be replaced by new faster mobile internet which will be known as 5G. South Korea and the European Union joined forces in creating a fastest mobile internet in the world called 5G. They are going to create a joint venture of developers that will execute the plan of creating 5G mobile-internet by the end of 2015. With this internet it would take seconds to download a HD movie. Besides the development of technology, this collaboration also strengthens the relations between South Korea and the European Union.
Not only Europe and South Korea are investing in the new technology. China’s Huawei has also joined the race of 5G by investing enormous amounts of money. While America is backing down on the huge investments, top universities are researching influence of incoming new networks. With the upcoming technology, opportunities for the Netherlands and Europe are huge. Dutch telecom is one of the most progressive in the whole world with effective cross-platform competition.
Europe had a huge loss when the implementation of 4G was late. This deal between countries might become a crucial one for Europe, as they can redeem their past mistakes by becoming first with South Korea. In the 90s, Europe was leading is fast mobile networks. However, because of the implementation of 3G and 4G, they lost that position. Europe is eager
Author: Paulius Januska
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Name: Age: Origin:
Name: Age: Origin:
Ayana Okada 21 Japan, Osaka
Koji Ninomiya 21 Japan, Osaka
What are you studying in Japan?
What are you studying in Japan?
Why did you choose to do your exchange program in the Netherlands?
Why did you choose to do your exchange program in the Netherlands?
I'm studying English Communication Studies and International Business.
I'm studying English Communication at Kansai Gaidai University in Osaka.
I learned from one of the classes was taking, that the Netherlands is the happiest country in the world. I want to live a country that is the opposite from Japan and I want to live with people who are from different countries and have different cultures.
The Netherlands is a big country in agriculture. That is something I find very interesting and attracted me to this country. Therefore, I chose to go to the Netherlands.
What cultural differences do you experience?
What cultural differences do you experience?
There are a lot of differences between Japan and the Netherlands. I noticed that the biggest difference is the way of thinking.
The biggest differences I noticed are directness, freedom and equality. Japanese people are always trying to hide their true feeling to keep the atmosphere or harmony. As for education, the Netherlands and Japan are completely different. We, Japanese people, are always trying to be the same as others.
What are you trying to learn in the Netherlands?
By doing my exchange program at the Rotterdam Business School, I am learning a lot of things. Besides, I will do my internship here which will give me the possibility to learn even more. My goal is to acquire knowledge about business efficiency.
What are you trying to learn in the Netherlands?
I am learning many things, not only subjects or studying, but also cultural differences or communicating with people who do not have the same native language as me.
What is your plan for the future?
The reason I want to learn about business efficiency is related to my future plans. After my graduation, I would like to set up my own company. I still have to think about where I want to do that.
What is your plan for the future?
After finishing this study abroad, I will graduate from my university in Japan. I will work at a company that is doing business through the internet. This company has various businesses. I would like to learn a lot of things and to meet many people. Till I will be 26, I want to go study in the USA to get my Master’s Degree. I did not really decide yet, but my dream is to be a professor.
9
The power of South Korea’s Chaebols South Korea, also known as ‘the miracle of the Han river’, has the privilege to be the better half of the Korean peninsula after its separation from the northern namesake. By enormous funds from the United States, South Korea started to develop in the 60s. As North Korea has a severe reputation of dictatorship, pressure and a lack of freedom, South Korea seems to be one of the wealthiest countries of the Asian continent nowadays. A continuing increase of welfare and GDP was a result and therefore, the Korean citizens are still very grateful to the creators of their country’s success. The companies are still highly respected. Moreover, they had the possibility to create themselves into massive corporations since there barely were any companies after the Korean War. Because of the amazing annual growths that barely were interrupted, the conglomerates have created an 82 per cent share of the GDP nowadays.
The country’s conglomerates operating on a global scale such as Samsung, Hyundai and LG which are dominating the Korean economy have delivered a huge contribution to welfare. However, these prince royals do have a downside to South Korea’s society. The pressure to make a career at one of those companies after graduating is terrifying since other, less meaningful, companies are considered to be for ‘losers’. Especially students and starters on the job market are suffering under this pressure. Moreover, there are criticisms saying the conglomerates are impeding medium and small enterprises. There is a decrease of entrepreneurship that, many say, is caused by the power of the conglomerates.
The conglomerates, especially Samsung, LG, Hyundai and SK, have made the country extremely dependent on their services and products. They build up an empire consisting of hundreds of subsidiaries which are
Peremptory as the conglomerates are, few dare to challenge them. However, there seems to be a change in South Korea as more dare to speak up. The conglomerates, creators of the country’s welfare and spectacular economic growth after the Korean War, are experiencing a decrease of support from governmental institutions. Still, enormous companies’ chairmen being convicted of over $100 million frauds, only have to stay behind bars a couple of months after their conviction. Moreover, the conglomerates are the fundament of the Korean economy with an 82 per cent share in GDP. The massive chaebols’ founders already were from higher hierarchal levels before the Korean War. When the Korean peninsula separated into two countries, South Korea was supported by the United States with huge funds in order to capitalise the country. The chaebols saw the successes of their former colonisers’ keiretsu’s as an example and were appointed as companies that had to grow in order to increase the country’s economy and welfare. Since South Korea still was a third world country during the 60s, the chaebols had the possibility to expand their business fields after they started in heavy industries. 10
market leaders in more than 50 per cent of the country’s business fields. Oil, banking, cars, fashion, amusement, broadcasting, electronics and real estate are just a few examples of fields in which they operate.
The discontent about the chaebols’ greed and self-enrichment is rising. Moreover, the income gap is increasing, there is a lot of gender inequality and the economy is growing less.
The growths still did not stop increasing and the expectations are that these increases will continue. As a result, small and medium sized enterprises continue to go bankrupt. Moreover, the chaebols have strong ties with the government.
The Korean population accepted the dominance of the conglomerates for a long time, since they were creating welfare. However, it seems that the problems in the country are reason to turn against the chaebols. As politicians are arguing them for a longer period, the citizens seem to follow. Bribe scandals and a lack of transparency are increasing the country’s discontent.
When one wants to be successful in Korea, it is a requisite to work at one of the conglomerates. However, these conglomerates only hire graduates from the prestigious universities Seoul Nation University, Korea University and Yonsei University.
Most importantly, the discontent about unfair competition with small enterprises, the high pressure and suicide numbers and the bad social security are reasons for the population to start protesting against these mass corporations. They are being blamed for the huge pressure and all its consequences.
75 per cent of the youngsters in Korea go to university. Just a small part made it to one of the prestigious universities and is assured of a good career. The other students will find way more difficulties in succeeding and are considered to be “losers”.
Big corporations can create a lot of employment. However, when collapsing, the consequences are disastrous. The country already experienced mass bankruptcies during the Asian crisis that started in 1997. The bankruptcy of Daewoo was unconceivable but did happen. Being dependent of a few massive corporations makes a country’s economy extremely vulnerable.
The pressure to make the university admission test is enormous. Average school days of 14 hours are part of daily life because of the extra lessons 75 per cent of the students take. Students’ lives are completely focussed on getting high grades. The consequences of the pressure are extraordinary. People younger than 40-years-old are mainly suffering because of this pressure. In order to take away insecurity, plastic surgery is a common solution. Concerning plastic surgery visits, South Korea is number one of the world. However, there are way more extreme consequences because of the pressure.
Moreover, entrepreneurship will die out since the chaebols are buying all enterprises or franchising them. As a result, the enterprises left will go bankrupt since they are not able to compete with them. Moreover, the population’s freedom is a risk because of the totalitarian system the chaebols are using. Complete districts in Seoul are bought by Samsung, meaning people live in a Samsung house. Moreover, they drive a Hyundai car, call with a Samsung phone, have Samsung insurances, go to Samsung supermarkets and buy SK petrol. Since these chaebols are cooperating intensively, the citizens are, and will be even more dependent of these companies.
Tens of thousands of kids become runaways and end up in prostitution or get abused. Moreover, suicide is death cause number among people under 40. Especially the university admission test and graduating are crucial moments. A quarter of the Korean pupils considered suicide within the last 12 months. 1 out 7 actually attempted suicide. The Han bridges were the places where at least 900 suicide attempts took place within five years.
When a revolution against the conglomerations would break out, the country’s economy is very likely to collapse. (This article contains text used in the essay “The power of chaebols, dominating South Korea’s economy” also written by Tobias Descamps)
The wielded power by the conglomerates is massive. The conglomerations have built sophisticated networks between each other and with governmental institutions. Moreover, the conglomerates practically are the economy of South Korea. This makes the Korean government and economy very vulnerable. Therefore, people prefer not to argue with the conglomerates.
Author: Tobias Descamps
Ridiculous bribes and tax evasions do result in more questioning from the population. Especially when the culprits only have to stay behind bars for a couple of months. But on the other hand, the Koreans are very proud that their country is represented by companies as Samsung worldwide. In case politicians do argue the conglomerates, they will try to bribe them. Commoners that protest are portrayed as communists and friend of North Korea at the television channels of the conglomerates. Moreover, everyone has family working at one of the conglomerates and do not want to endanger their position. By bribing and creating fear among the citizens, the conglomerates have a lot of freedom and influence on the society. 11
Teacher Announcements Here you will find announcement from the teachers made by the teachers Curriculum board
My name is Cheryl Gerretsen, lecturer at TMA and chair of the TMA curriculum board. As chair it is my intention to keep you informed on the work and important decisions of the curriculum board. The TMA curriculum board is a crucial part of the TMA organization. Members of the board are: the course director (Bert ter Horst) and four TMA lecturers who represent different disciplines. The board keeps an eye on the content and quality of the curriculum and meets at least ten times a year. Besides that, it also meets twice a year with the TMA Advisory Board. The latter board, with representatives of the work field, advises TMA on the practical relevance to the work field of the program. The curriculum board decides upon recommendations from the RBS board of directors, or on its own initiative, about adaptations to the curriculum or parts of it.
The curriculum board receives its information on the quality of the curriculum from:
- The outcomes of the digital student surveys on modules. - The coordinators of projects and of the Study Career Coaching program. These coordinators are lecturers that evaluate the projects with students and, if necessary, the coordinator makes recommendations for further improvement in the next school year - The country coordinators who evaluate the programs at the Asian partner universities. - The National Student Survey. - The Test Advisory Board.
Beneath you will find some of the most important decisions that the curriculum board took in the last year, which directly affect the students:
- On account of the many complaints about the module Essay Doing business with Asia (TMAZAC01R1) in the previous school year: complete revision of the syllabus and better tuning between the different lecturers teaching this module. - Study Career Coaching year 3: an extra group meeting in December. - Third year project: process coaching only by lecturers who teach economics or marketing. - Second year Import project: investment capital raised from €1200 to €1600. - Starting with the incoming cohort of next year: a revised structure of the curriculum in year one, aiming to raise the study success of students as well as to better comply with new rules from our University. The main changes are: only modules worth at least 2 ECTS, a swop of the projects of the third and fourth block in order to make feedback on the company analysis easier.
Study Program Advisory Board TMA The Study Program Advisory Board (Opleidingscommissie/OC) of TMA is a body that represents students as well as lecturers of the TMA program and is a direct sparring partner for the course director with regard to the TMA study program. It can give advice to the course manager upon request or on its own initiative, on all kinds of issues regarding education at TMA. In the course-year 2012-2013 the board gathered on several occasions and a number of relevant issues were discussed, that are relevant for the quality of the TMA study program. Last year’s members were: Lecturers: Anneloes Harreveld, Coby Snel, Bart Brinkman Students: Oliev Ririhena, Vincent Ovaa (year 1), Lies Supusepa & Leandra Wildeboer (year 2), Stephan de Oude and Pam Beemster (year 3), Caspar van der plas (year 4). Matters handled and discussed with the course manager were: - Improvement of the study success rate in the first block of year 3 (regarded as a very heavy block, with many modules beside the challenging Export project) - How to realize a better start-up with students that return from Asia in the fourth year and have trouble getting back on track and graduating in time. Due to the discussion with the course manager, some of the recommendations were implemented. Apart from these important issues, there were also the more ordinary matters that are discussed each year, such as the quality of lessons and exams, facilities, peer coaching and grading time. Read on further for the study year of 2013-14 >> 12
Members Lecturers: Bart Brinkman, Loek Brok, Esther van Oosten Students: Iris Wolf and Joris Yauw (year 1), Oliev Ririhena (year 2), Lies Supusepa (year 3),Stephan de Oude (year 4) The most important matter that was discussed are the adaptations of the curriculum for the new cohort coming in in 2014-2015. Further, the quarterly meetings will be continued, to discuss all relevant matters for the students regarding the study program, facilities, exams, lecturers etc. Especially related to the new English-stream classes that started from 2012-2013, the committee will keep an extra focus on its developments. For any important matters that you, as a TMA student, think is necessary to discuss within this committee, please feel free to contact any of the student members or one of the lecturers involved. Also, this committee has its own mailbox between the other lecturers’ mailboxes on the D2-floor. Any idea or comment about the study program of TMA can be posted here and will be discussed within the committee.
THE RBS ADMIN OFFICE: HELPFUL, OR HARMFUL? Most students will be inclined to think the RBS office is about as helpful as a spell of amnesia during a finance exam. That’s great, but our mission here is to get the facts. How do they handle important requests or complaints and what are your options as a student?
claim be dismissed by the exam board. What do you do?
• Option 1: You slip her the note. You’re not allowed to, but assume the exam result can be nullified should the exam board dismiss her request. Now. No one’s interested in the simple issues. If you’re not on the list of • Option 2: You do not pass her the note. Rules are rules. No one can take exam-takers, they’ll usually fix that right up. If you need to borrow their an exam when not registered. However, should the exam board rule in pen, all is still dandy. However, to see how they handle problems that her favour after the exam, she has missed out on a valid exam opporturequire some deeper thought, where much more is at stake, we sent one of nity. AsiaLine’s reporters over to the administration office with a hypothetical • Option 3: You stare blankly at your screen and hope she will just leave. situation. • Option 4: You inform her you are unable to assist her at the time, but will upscale this matter to higher management given the peculiar circumAfter examining it, they had to encircle what they felt to be the most appro- stance, to work towards a solution. priate response. We posed them the following situation: Their conclusion was interesting. They did not opt for any of the available Exam week is coming up and the registration period has closed. A student options. Instead, they mentioned: “This situation is not realistic. What we comes to you with the following problem. She has failed to register for a would do is request evidence or find out if the student really had a valid particular exam and informs you that this was a technical error, with evi- claim in place and if there had been a mistake somewhere along the line. dence to prove it. She has submitted a claim to the exam board which has If that were the case, we would definitely allow her to participate. We yet to reply and it is unlikely they will do so in time for the exam. In awaiting would always be able to research if a student had a real, viable claim in that reply, she asks for a note to grant her permission to take the exam. place with the exam board.” She informs you that the result can just be nullified afterwards, should her An excellent reply. Exactly how it should be done. But is it put to prac13
tice? The “not realistic” situation as posed above is actually far from hypothetical. It was a real situation, which took place during the Q3 exam round. AsiaLine learned of this through the actual source. The student was not given a note to take the exam, nor did they look into the matter or request any ‘’evidence’’. Instead, the student was curtly told there was nothing to be done and she should have just registered. No additional information was given to her on what to do next.
An interview with Mizuho Watanabe who studied in the Netherlands @ HR for a year
Two weeks later, long after the exam itself had passed, the exam board ruled in her favour, stating “There was obviously a problem in the registration software. You can take the exam.” What is the cause of the stark difference between how they claim they would approach this problem, versus how they actually handled the problem? A lot of it would depend on who you would encounter at the front desk when requiring help. Some are simply more helpful than others, as in any organisation. Or, better put, they might not know what to do. Yet it would seem odd that important matters like these are dependent on who one encounters, instead of it being up-scaled properly to someone who might hold a helpful answer. There was very little else for the student to do. She was on time with reporting the problem and taking it up with the exam board. Her claim was even found to be justified eventually. Name: Age: Origin:
Judging by the earlier response of the RBS admin desk on how they would ‘normally’ handle this type of situation, one can only deduce that the staff do not all operate on the same line. This is bolstered by the fact that similar stories have reached us. We feel, however, the significance and impact is better shown through one clear example.
Mizuho Watanabe 22 Japan, Osaka
How does it feel to be back in Japan after studying a year in the Netherlands? I was struggling with adapting again to my own culture a bit first. It might be only me, but most of my friends do not understand English and they seemed a bit conservative. I had never thought such a thing before. So, I felt a little distance between me and them. But, luckily everything was fixed very quickly. Now, I am starting to get used to the way of Japanese thinking again.
That is not to say your own stories, as a reader, aren’t welcome here. Have you had similar experiences with the RBS admin desk and would you like to share it? Feel free to e-mail us at asialineHR@gmail.com. We all benefit from a smoothly run front desk. AsiaLine will definitely follow up on this topic in the future. Author: Wesley Broekhoven, Aleksander Naydenov, Paulius Januska
What are you going to miss most? I miss the diversity in the Netherlands. Not only concerning races, but everybody has their own thoughts and nobody criticizes it. I miss that atmosphere, it felt so free. What did you learn in the Netherlands? This sounds a bit abstract, but in terms of studying, I think I have learned about occupational knowledge. We never have projects in our university. Besides the concept of an internship is still not that common in Japan. So I think it was the most important thing that I could have learned as in practical experiences during my study in the Netherlands. But I also think I have learned that there are different ways of thinking. I really think Dutch people have a completely different mindset compared to us, Japanese. So it was kind of hard to understand them first. But thanks to the Dutch, I understand the standard of good things. Besides, bad things can easily change once you are away from your home country for a while.
Indonesia’s denuding According to research done by Nature, Brasil is no longer the world’s number one country in denuding tropical forests. An increasing demand of palm oil makes companies in Indonesia denude enormous surfaces. Between 2000 and 2012, a surface of 60.000 square kilometers was denuded in Indonesia. To compare, that surface equals the Netherlands times 1.5. As the report shows, this development has a negative effect on the living conditions of endangered species.
What are your plans for the future? At the moment I am very busy doing my job hunting. 14
An interview on China AsiaLine interviewed Motiejus, a second year student from Lithuania who is currently studying at the International Business School of Lithuania also known as TVM. In the second year he chose to continue his studies in Beijing, China. We asked him about his experiences in China. What made you decide to go to China ?
allowed in restricted places in public, this is a bit annoying. Other than that, littering doesn’t seem to bother anyone, since there are people cleaning and taking care of parks and other places for public use.”
“I got the chance to study in China because the Chinese university (Beijing Language and Culture University) had a full scholarship program for half a year. Initially it was planned to be a year program to study Chinese and business subjects, but because of miss-coordination and other miss-management issues, I was informed only to be allowed to attend the second semester. Therefore, I missed the Chinese classes. Personally I am very interested in Asian cultures, so the possibility to experience this seemed to be an exciting opportunity.”
How are the living conditions?
“Since I came to Beijing and pretty much did not go beyond the city‘s borders, I cannot really tell about other regions, but at least in Beijing the conditions are somewhat different than one would expect in Europe. Initially, foreign students stay either in a room for two people, or have individual rooms. This is different for the Chinese. They are usually with 4 people in a room, so it gets really cramped as you can imagine. One of the locals I befriended by ended up showing his dormitory and it was interesting to see how 4 people could fit in a room where 2 people would already be a lot.
Do you find difficulties in communicating with the locals?
“I found out that the Chinese are very centered on their language. Unlike most European countries where you would be able to talk to people in English at least on a basic level, here people see Chinese as a necessity and English, as well as other languages, as a secondary measure of use. Thus, getting anywhere initially was a bit tricky, since pretty much none of the senior staff talks any foreign language. However, the Chinese, apart from the inherent language barrier, seems like a nice folk and if you managed to get someone to talk to you, even though it‘s a bit of a struggle for them, they usually try to do their best.
Of course, there is always the option of renting a flat, or sharing one with several people. Even though this is more expensive, I would choose the last option if I would be staying here for a longer time. Besides, the living conditions are relatively good. The internet is fast (thankfully). However, they blocked most of the foreign social networks. Food is very cheap and there are facilities for doing sports or parks if you just want to relax after a hard day of work. Moreover, most universities have dining halls.”
Naturally it‘s much easier to communicate with youngster than seniors, but apart from that most people are open in their nature to help a stranger, or talk to them. Since I stay at BLCU, there are quite a number of foreign students studying Chinese and the staff is mostly well versed in both Chinese and English.
What do you think about the food?
“Usually, for day-to-day meals I go for Asian food, since that is most popular and available. The food, for the most part, is all tasty but has that certain difference in the way it is prepared from what I would be used to have in Europe. Having tried the Beijing duck, as well as other local meals I can definitely say that the food here is good. Moreover, there are plenty of international brands like McDonald’s, KFC, Wal-Mart, but the shopping centers have an assortment of goods that is heavily influenced by the local customs, as you would expect.”
As I’ve already said, they are easily approachable, but there are some customs I have to get used to. For example, they do not have as many rules as there are in Europe. What I mean is for example, smoking is allowed in almost any place. People even smoke in elevators and dining halls. To them, it’s fine, but coming from a country where smoking is only 15
How do you experience living in Beijing?
To conclude, what are you impressions of China, or Beijing in particular?
“Completely different than where I come from. Coming from Vilnius (the capital of Lithuania) I found that Beijing was a breeze to navigate through. Most of the city is built in rings and squares which makes it very easy. The public transportation system is also very well developed. Busses, taxies and subways are all fast and reliable. One of the things that completely baffled me was the prices. A 10 km ride by taxy to the city center from my dorm costs only 4 euro’s. It’s insanely cheap compared to what I was expecting it to be. Other forms of public transportation follow a similar trend: the busses having a 1 Yuan fare (roughly 10 euro cents) and subways having a fare of 2 Yuan.
“As a whole, I think Beijing is a mix between the Chinese movement to modernize the country and their heritage and traditions. This can be seen by the classical structure of their old town contrasting with fast food restaurants that you find just across the street. It really looks like they are rushing to keep up with the current, while also retaining what makes their culture so unique. I am not sure about all of China, but from what I can understand while talking to Chinese people from different regions, the amount of differentiation is immense. Whether you are from a region near Mongolia, or you are from the southern part of China, there is always something unique about the region.
Furthermore, there are dozens of small shops on every street corner, most not even collecting tax, just selling goods straight up. Apart from that there are also people on tricycles riding around selling goods. It is chaotic and brings up a feeling of really being thrown back in time. There are a lot of counterfeited products being sold, so you need to pay attention to that. Usually if you want something to be certified and “legitimate” you will have to pay extra.
To conclude, I would say that I really enjoyed Beijing. As an experience it is truly unique and I would love to travel to more remote regions of China, because from the stories that people shared, it is a country that covers so much.” Author: Paulius Januska
Moreover, one must never forget to negotiate when purchasing something. Chinese are very cheeky with their pricing. Sometimes they even charge different prices for two customers standing next to each other. One thing to keep in mind is that the pollution is not as bad as advertised. Most days, especially when it is a windy day, there are not a lot of pollution problems. However, there are “hazy days” when there is no wind, then it is not recommended to stay outside and you will really notice a change of the weather. Another thing you will notice is that the air is very dry, but you stop noticing it soon afterwards.”
MH370 On 8 March, the world was startled by the suspicious disappearance of flight 370 of Malaysia Airlines. In the weeks after, this only increased. An airplane disappeared from sight all of a sudden without any proper explanation. Four months later, despite efforts from multiple nations (i.e. 26), the plane is yet to be found. Malaysia’s defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein recently declared to continue searching the plane in order to be able to illustrate what happened. After several changes of the searching area, Hussein expects to reach the new search area in August.
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South Korea’s peculiar voting culture The elections for the European parliament, between the 21st and the 25th of May are very close in time to another type of elections on the other side of the globe. On the 4th of June, Korea voted for their local legislation. Within the contents of this article, Korea will only encompass South Korea, since it is hardly a challenge for anyone to predict another landslide victory of the Democratic Front for the Reunification of the Fatherland in the North would take place. While South Korea is similarly to the majority of the EU countries a republic, there are some peculiar differences when it comes to electing representatives. The structure of the election itself
western world, where it is more common that younger people participate in election campaigns largely because of their own beliefs.
In contrast to the Netherlands, for instance, Koreans vote for a mayor of the geographical area where they live, for a mayor of the particular city and, lastly, for the mayor for the city district, where they currently live. But that is not all. The same day, people also vote for councillors of the area, the city and the district where they live. Those are the people with whom the elected mayors will work. The people must vote for two of the candidates to go in each of the councils.
Going mobile?
Usually, the groups of bowing elder ladies who give business cards are supplemented by small trucks with speakers broadcasting the ideas and agendas of the specific candidate. It remains a mystery how they manage not to get all of those trucks in the same street.
What all of this means, in terms of raw numbers, is that in one day the Korean voters will elect a total of nine people!
If you had thought you were safe from the election propaganda when you are texting during the evening, then guess again. Text messages from various political parties and candidates are sent out to almost everyone, even foreigners who don’t have the right to vote. The content of those messages is even more interesting. How would a western voter react to a text message saying “I have always suffered and rejoiced alongside the people of this area!” or “I will work harder, wiser and be more diligent to ensure a better future for both the elderly and the children”?
The way the election campaigns are conducted
Usually, prior the elections the main crossings of Seoul are occupied by campaigners, supporting different candidates by handing out business cards, bowling simultaneously to the passing pedestrians and reading bits of the candidate’s programme. Annoying or not, this has been established as a common way of attracting supporters. As strange as it may seem to the Europeans, the people who do these campaign-supporting activities take their jobs quite seriously; as they even have superiors who set an example and make sure everyone moves in synchrony with each other.
Such kind of emotional messages, aimed directly at influencing the amygdala are more common than mentioning specifics plans. Regardless of the style of message, they always and up with a “Thank you” from the sender. If the examples above were simply unorthodox, there are some which are downright weird, even hilarious to the western reader. Imagine if a spokesperson of the EPP (European People’s Party) claimed they would “take responsibility for your happiness, or swear to “invest both
Because the Korean culture is one of ascribed status and high filial piety, most campaigners are around the age of fifty. That is in contrast with the 17
his/her heart and soul into aiding the people!”. Strange habits aside, there are some things that western politicians could do well to learn from their Korean counterparts and that is mixing with the public. We are not talking about visiting cheaper restaurants so that people see you, but rather that candidates themselves tend to walk around the city in order to meet and talk to people in the scope of their campaign. Such kind of first-person contact would allow people to judge the man or the woman that they had seen and could be quite impactful.
The aftermath
Naturally, everyone who has read so far is curious whether the approaches described above were actually efficient in Korea. Well the most vivid trend was the downfall of Park Geun-hye’s party at the local elections; however this was largely due to its perceived failure to deal with the ferry accident in April and a chain of other unfortunate events, rather than their rhetoric. While detrimental to the party’s general image, this loss goes a long way to dispel the rumours about Ms. Park and her party achieving undemocratic victory through the connections of her father, the late general Park Chung-hee. Generally, the play on pathos and the emotional speeches given to candidates at stands in parts of their cities seem to have yielded sufficient results for them. Text messages such as “I have won the elections, now I will work even more tirelessly, always yours …” or “I will never forget you” follow as candidates express their gratitude and satisfaction. One particularly interesting poster simply stated “I love you” – as ridiculous as it may seem to the western viewer, this defines the cultural gap between us and Asia’s Confucianism. Regardless, a kind cultural acceptance in absolutely necessary – after all who knows, perhaps a serious Dutch politician would look just as strange to the average Korean voter? Author: Aleksander Naydenov
An interview with Sota Sakuma who studied in the Netherlands @ HR for a year 1. How does it feel to be back in Japan after studying a year in the Netherlands? Even though Japan is my home country, I needed some time to adapt to the Japanese society again. I just got used to the Dutch way of communicating and thinking and actually, I liked that. 2. What are you going to miss most? My friends. Fortunately, I could make a lot of friends in the Netherlands during my one year exchange program. 3. What did you learn in the Netherlands? I became able to understand the differences in culture, race and the way of thinking. Because of this exchange program I really broadened my way of thinking and motivation. Name: Age: Origin:
Sota Sakuma 24 Japan, Tokyo 18
4. What are your plans for the future? I am doing my job hunting (shuukatsu) now. I will start working at a Japanese company. After a few years, I hope that I could transfer to a foreign department of that company
University Graduate Hypothetical statement: As a business leader you’re searching for a programmer. What do you do? 1. Find someone who’s really awesome at coding. 2. Find someone who holds a degree in Computer Science
the highest in the world, and conventionally, top level university graduates attain a clear path towards a secure and well-paid job within the government, banking system or one of South Korea’s chaebol (there’s another article about these in this edition!) But this system has its flaws. With a decreasing amount of jobs available in South Korea’s current economic climate, many top graduates remain unemployed for quite some time. Change seems to loom on the horizon, if we have a look at what Professor JuHo Lee, former education minister, has to say:
You might think both answers amount to the same. AsiaLine went out to explore how western business leaders tackle this recruitment dilemma and the results are interesting indeed.
“Test scores may be important in the age of industrialisation, but not anymore. So we look into the ways to reform our education system, not based on test scores, but based on creativity and social and emotional capacities.”
Hiring decisions traditionally focussed on two things. Who you know, and what kind of degree you possess. While the former is still true, the latter is succumbing under an influx of graduates. A university degree is now the norm for any individual, and as such its value becomes very relative indeed. Gallup’s recent survey uncovered that 84% percent of business leaders said knowledge of an applicant was a deciding factor, followed by 79% who mentioned applied skills mattered to them. Far down the list were the ‘traditional’ factors. A mere 28% of business leaders attached any value to an applicant’s college major or where the degree was attained (9%).
Business leaders recognise this and favour those with the knowledge and skills required. Now it’s up to the educational systems worldwide (and parents who whine about your mediocre mid-term results) to adapt to this trend.
While this statement does not pertain to hiring decisions, but rather the “When hiring, U.S. business leaders say the amount of knowledge the can- educational system as a whole, even nations within Asia are beginning to didate has in a field, as well as applied skills, are more important factors realise that one’s actual skillset, instead of test scores; the subject matter than where a candidate attended school or what their college major was.”- of which one is likely to eradicate from the mind after a month or two, is pivotal in a professional environment. Gallup.com
Take Google for instance. In an interview with the New York Times, Google’s head of ‘people’s operations’, Laszlo Bock, had the following to say: “When you look at people who don’t go to school and make their way in the world, those are exceptional human beings. And we should do everything we can to find those people.” An amazing degree is no longer the prime rationale for a decision. How often do people graduate from (prestigious) institutions, but lack real (applied) skills that make them survive in the professional world? When the objective of attaining a degree becomes one’s sole motivation through the assumption of “this will get me a job”, proper personal development grinds to a halt. This is especially true when a school or university cannot deliver on what it promises. Ambiguous curriculums, vague lessons. None of these will magically shape an individual into the next big professional superstar. Google’s Laszlo Bock shares a similar thought, by saying ‘Your degree is not a proxy for your ability to do any job. The world only cares about — and pays off on — what you can do with what you know (and it doesn’t care how you learned it).’
Educational systems should change, starting in Asia
This new paradigm shift stands for mostly the West, but what of Asia? A region still adorned with tradition where academic excellence is still revered and seen as the highest ideal. Let’s take, for instance, South Korea. Performance pressure is amongst 19
Author: Wesley Broekhoven
Colofon Kralingse Zoom Hogeschool Rotterdam Adress: Kralingse Zoom 91 3063 ND Rotterdam Phone number: 010 794 6201 E-mail: asialineHR@gmail.com Names: Wesley Broekhoven Tobias Descamps Paulius Januska Aleksander Naydenov Jill Smit Design: Jill Smit Guests: Mizuho Watanabe, Motiejus, Ayana Okada, Koji Ninomiya, Sota Sakuma Next Issue: December 2014
For the establishment of a school paper focused around the ‘TMA’ course and its periphery of Asian business in general, we are looking for diligent and able writers. The objective is to have two publications this academic year. Currently, four positions are available; pertaining to the following: -
Visual design (1x)
-
Journalist/writer (3x)
Up to two ECTS’s are available for selected students, corresponding to a total of 56 hours starting from around mid-December. Should you be interested, please send your motivational letter plus CV to 0867710@hr.nl Your applications will be taken into consideration and responded to as soon as possible. 20
TMA SPECIAL 2014’s winning TMA essay
We don’t envy the teachers tasked with the job to review dozens upon dozens of research papers in the first year of TMA. But it’s not all that horrid. A few gems arise each year and it would certainly be a shame to miss out on them. AsiaLine struck an agreement with the responsible lecturers of the “Essay Writing” course which entailed that the highest-scoring essays would be published in this magazine. We had a grand total of four winning essays sent to our mailbox. Of course, we can’t really clog up a magazine with all four of them, so we had to choose a true winner. To determine one, we had a look at various criteria. 1. 2. 3.
It had to be well written, in both style and readability. The essay had to follow a logical structure. The topic would have to be non-cookie cutter. Something unique.
We’re glad to announce that this year’s winner is Irene Porreca of TMA06. Her topic on China’s race for water offers an interesting and well-written insight in one of China’s struggles and how it gave rise to one of the largest engineering projects in recent times. A heartfelt congratulations to her!
China’s Race for Water Introduction “A river is more than an amenity, it is a treasure.” Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. “When the well is dry, we learn the worth of water.” Benjamin Franklin These remarkable words of two famous Americans, define clearly and prior to their times how water is important to life. In China for instance, run a great number of clean waters as rivers and lakes: in 1950 these precious water ways amounted to nearly 50 thousand. Among them, two of the most important for their size and water capacity, are the Yellow River and the Yangtze River, which run from West to East, with a distance of almost 2 thousands kilometres from each other. Unfortunately, since the 1950’s, the number of rivers in China has drastically diminished, because of massive agricultural works and the development of factories which have been using a lot of those rivers’ water to function. China’s Northern region in particular, has been affected by water drought since the early 90’s and even Mao realized the importance of solving this matter. Ever since China has become one of the leading economies in the world, its water management has grown in importance: very low water tariffs, low rate of water conservation and no recycling policy are only few of the causes that drove to the northern shortage. The following research has been written to answer the research question: To what extent will the Grand Canal Diversion Project solve the water drought problem in China’s North region? The research question has been thought up in relation with the importance of the topic: the Grand Canal is an ancient and important waterway in China and the South-North Diversion Project is one of the biggest engineering projects ever realized after the Panama Channel. The Grand Canal will now be an important part of the Diversion Project in the attempt to solve the Northern region water scarcity. The first part is dedicated to present some useful background and historical information about the Grand Canal itself. The water drought problem will then be explained, next to the South-North diversion project in its stages and completeness. In the conclusion part, the reader will find some alternative solutions to the matter and a brief description of how they could be applied.
Historical Background of the Grand Canal
The Grand Canal, the Chinese original name being Dà Yùnhé (大运河), is the biggest artificial water way ever realized by humans. Unlike the Chinese Long Wall, this masterpiece of engineering had both a different purpose and was realized in a different era. The construction of the Grand Canal began 21
with the Sui dynasty (581-618): Emperor Yang of Sui inherited the completion of the works by his father emperor and the Grand Canal was completed in six years (Johnson, 2013). Finally, the Grand Canal runs from North to South, connecting Beijing to Hangzhou, through more than 1,700 km (Ebrey, 2009). The Chinese emperor thought about the canal for three main reasons: to enhance the commerce between South and North, to supply the royal army battling at the northern frontiers and to unite the Nation. The project was a success. Even though the canal has been divided into seven sections since ancient times, today the Grand Canal is still considered the major water “highway” for China’s trade and people movements. Its historical parts have been remarkably maintained, for local culture’s sake and as a touristic attraction; on the other hand, the Canal is transporting about “100,000 river vessels transit on the canal each year, carrying about 260 million tons, mostly construction material” (Delfs, 1990). This data clearly shows how important the Grand Canal still is for China. The Grand Canal indeed contributed in its early history to diminish the water scarcity that affects the north region nowadays: linking the shallow, muddy Yellow River in the North, to the healthier Yangtze River to the South, it contributed to the water supplies, along with the changing of the landscape and environment. Although the Yellow River is still known for its tremendous floods, which changed its original path more than once, the Chinese engineers were able to maintain the Grand Canal, thanks to their remarkable skills with dams and underground reservoirs.
The Water Provision in the North
Nowadays, China is facing serious water scarcity problems, especially the northern regions. This is partially because of natural environment development, such as the expansion of the desert areas in the West, but also because of the fast industrial and urbanization growth of the Asian giant. The rise of global climate temperature already began to affect the water provisions in China: according to the experts, the rising temperatures will cause the shrinking of the Himalayan glaciers, resulting in more frequent and dangerous floods in the Chinese territories, especially the Yellow River (Stanway, 2013). This of course is already resulting in serious damages for the rise of agriculture and industries. The fast and somehow not fully regulatory industrial and agriculture development have had important consequences on water quality and supplies as well: according to The Economist, while in 1950 the country had almost 50,000 rivers and water sites, in 2013 the number had reached the 23,000 . The Grand Canal itself has unfortunately become the dumping site for farmers and industrial wastes causing the water quality to worsen drastically in the last five years (Wang, 2013). The water consumption is also a cause of the water scarcity: the price Chinese population pay every year is about half of what the Brazilians pay for the same amount (Freeman, s.d.). This situation results in people using and wasting much more water than European countries and Americans would do. Moreover, the impact that the polluted water have on the national health standards, account for 2.3% on a year’s GDP .
The Diversion Project
To solve the water scarcity problem that northern China is facing, the government approved one of the most ambitious projects ever attempted since the Panama Channel: the South-North Diversion Project. The first to understand the Northern region problems and to think of the South-North Diversion Project, was none other than Mao Zedong: in 1952 Mao observed, “The South has plenty of water and the North lacks it, so if possible why not borrow some?” (Freeman, s.d.). The project is indeed ambitious and it involves the Grand Canal: it consists of three main “routes”, Western, Central and Eastern, linking the major Chinese rivers Yangtze, Yellow River, Huaihe and Haihe. The Eastern route will take water from the southern Yangtze way and flow it into the ancient Grand Canal: this should meet not only the water demand for the industries and farmers in the Jiangsu, Anhui, Shandong and Hebei provinces, as well as the city of Tianjin, but it should also make the grand canal navigable during the entire year, without having it influenced by the seasonal floods. The other two artificial canals, the Central and Western will link, and respectively, form a water reservoir on the Han River to a dozen cities and from three major tributaries to replenish the Yellow River in the North. Both the Central and Eastern routes are underground canals, running under the Yellow River, while the Western will converge into it (Freeman, s.d.). In December 2002 this massive project had been forecast to cost $62Bln before it began, but at the end of its first phase, when the Eastern route was completed, this amount was already surpassed. Now that in 2013 the first phase was completed, the whole project is forecast to be completed in 2050 (Ningzhu, 2014). When finalized, the Diversion Project will bring almost 45 billion cubic metres of water into the Yellow River (Tay, 2014). The Northern cities and the industries will take the major advantages of the project: the Eastern route will provide enough water for the domestic and industrial consumption needs of the Shandong and Jiangsu areas, while the central route will supply water to more than 20 cities, Beijing and Tianjin among them. This should relieve the Northern region of its water scarcity problem, but as soon as the first phase of the project had been completed, the first problems came to the surface: it was certainly astonishing, for instance, when hundreds of pig carcasses were found in the Huangpu River in Shanghai (Wang, 2013). This is probably the first unquestionable proof that the water supplied from the Eastern section, is still too polluted to be drank and the central government was already compelled to spend other $1.5 billion for antipollution water treatment in the eastern route (Tay, 2014). As the project budget was already surpassed, the experts estimated that it could have been much cheaper for instance, to have the same huge quantity of water desalinized, even though of course the water would have to be transported to the users . The project did not only take into consideration 22
the other costs that derived from the pollution treatments, but also human and political costs. First of all, when the Diversion Project was approved, it was clear that thousands of families would have moved: for the completion of the first route in fact, more than 300,000 people were forced to leave their homes, even though of course temporary locations were also provided by the government. With the on-going project yet to complete, another 1,800 people will have to be relocated in the Henan province (Tay, 2014). As for the political costs, these are caused largely by the Western route, the most complicated and controversial of the three routes of the project. The Diversion Project could in fact affect negatively the downstream nations, like Bangladesh, Myanmar and India, with its polluted water (Mead, 2013). It would seem that China is approaching the water drought from the wrong prospect: the gigantic South-North Diversion Project is not likely to solve the water scarcity for as much time as for China to recover from its costs and human/environmental problems (Moore, 2013).
Alternative Solutions
Experts from all over the world are arguing on how China should apply different methods to solve the drought problem of the Northern regions. Recently, Chinese authorities are also proposing different solutions to the Diversion Project: it was then evident that the completion of the project cannot alone be effective. For instance, it is suggested that the water should be used more efficiently and economically in China, both for domestic and industrial/agriculture purposes. According to the Economist “for each cubic meter of water used, China gets $8-worth of output—about 14% of the average of European countries” (Wang, 2013). In order to increase the water efficiency, China could try different approaches: the easiest, but maybe also the most unpopular, can be to raise the water tariffs. This can easily result in a decrease in usage and an encouragement to water conservation. Looking at the agriculture system in fact, farmers are only paying a pricing scheme based on the area of the field that they cultivate, which means that there is no restriction on the amount of water they can use on their fields. This has created an enormous quantity of water wasted on farmland, more than what could have been conserved if the tariffs had been higher. It is said that the government should invest more in conservation and water management projects: currently there are in China more than 55 pilot projects to collect and use rainwater, which is indeed a start. The Beijing Municipal Water Authority “estimates that 230 million cubic meters of rainwater could be used annually” (Wong, 2007). Encouraging the industries to recycle water could also be an advantage for the environment and improve water management costs.
Conclusions
The Grand Canal has always represented the power of China, along with the Great Wall; since when it was constructed it was meant to unify the country and it let the commerce between South and North flourish. Recently, in order to make an end to the drought problem from which the northern regions are suffering, the Grand Canal has become part of yet another great engineering modern project. The South-North Diversion Project will connect the Yangtze River to the Yellow River through long, sometimes subterranean, galleries and artificial basins: it will all be done by constructing three main routes. The project started in early 2005 and it will take other 35 years to be completed, together with another large amount of people forced to relocate to make way for it. Since the project began, experts from all over the world argued on its effectiveness: it was said that the central government would better manage the country’s water resources, by promoting conservation and more parsimonious use of it in agriculture and industry, for instance. The ones presented above, are all possible solutions that the western countries are already taking into consideration, the water drought being not only a Chinese problem. The “Blue Print for Safeguarding European Waters” adopted by the European Commission on 14 November 2012, is a concrete example on how the European Union acquired new measures against water drought in Europe (European Commission, 2012). Among these measures the water pricing policy, the improvement of the water scarcity management and the “emergence of a water-saving culture in Europe” can be counted . Of course not a single one of the methods hereby suggested is sufficient alone to solve the water shortage China is facing, just like the South-North Diversion Project: the Chinese government should approve a series of projects, as it is currently doing, in order to create a synergy between the industries, farmers and private users. Naturally, as it often happens when governments are forced to introduce new regulations to solve a major problem, these regulations will be difficult to follow in the beginning. Nevertheless, the benefits of a more efficient water management and conservation methods could lead, in the long term, to the resolution of the drought matter. The Diversion Project will be completed around 2050 but, in the meantime, the environmental and human problems that it will get to the surface, should lead the government toward more consolidated decisions for the water management in the country.
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