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=My country for this course is THE NETHERLANDS=



Established in 1815 Official language: Dutch Captial: Amsterdam Population: 16.6 Million people (compared to USA 319 Million)

__12 Provinces__ Flevoland || Noord-Brabant Noord-Holland || Gelderland Groningen Limburg || Overijssel Zuid-Holland Urecht Zeeland ||
 * Drenthe
 * Friesland


 * Fun Facts**:

The Dutch are very tall people. Their average height is 6 feet 1 inch. Gin was invented in the Netherlands!~

The Netherlands is sometimes incorrectly called Holland.


 * News Report #1**

[]

As of April 30, 2013, The Netherlands has a new King! Willem-Alexander became the first Dutch king in more than 120 years on Tuesday as his mother, Queen Beatrix abdicated the throne, ending 33 years as the country's monarch. The press reported very little coverage of the ceremony which they attributed to disintrerest in royalty, distraction of a royal pregancy (William and Kate), or general apathy about monarchies. Despite world wide disinterest, the Dutch enjoyed the lavish ceremony via televsion coverage and apparently celebrated with parties throughout the evening. Implications to workforce will be minimal to none.

__**Situational Ethics**__


 * __Ethics:__** How do you define “ethics”? Write a definition in your own words that reflects your feelings and attitudes about what it means to be “ethical.”

Ethics are a set of rules used to guide behavior. This includes but is not limited to: adherance to all law, societal rules, and norms. To be ethical one must behave in such a way as to be above board, honest, and forthcoming at all times.


 * __Situational Ethics:__** Situational ethics occurs when what appears to be the best course of action is merely the lesser of two or more evils and in and of itself conflicts wtih an ethical belief or code of conduct.

__**Scenarios:**__ 1. While you are trying to gain international marketing access in another country for a product your company produces, you are asked to pay a sizeable sum of money to a government official to gain access for your company to the necessary media coverage. You are told you should place several expensive ads in the magazine owned by the brother of the official. How would you react? What would you think and feel? What cultural factors of the host country and business consequences for your company might you need to consider in deciding what to do? What would you suggest or recommend that your company do?

It almost sounds like the cost of doing business. At least if they give me an ad in return for my money I could have something to put 'on the books'.

2. You are the president of an engineering firm. The firm is negotiating a contract in another country. The engineering firm has not previously worked in this country. A high-ranking official in this country tells you that it is an established and legal custom to give personal gifts to officials who are authorized to award contracts. This official also informs you that no further work will be awarded to your company without such gifts. However, this condition will not be included in the contract. If you do not comply, the government will also be less cooperative in the completion of the first contract. You learn that other firms have given such gifts to officials. You are also aware that if your company is cut out of the contract process, your employees’ jobs will be at risk. What would you do? Why?

If he said it is legal but won't put this in the contract, I would not feel comfortable to work with him. This may sound strange, but i would rather he say that it is NOT legal (and be honest with me) vs deceive me AND break the lay. It would make me doubt anything else he told me. I would seek contracts with other firms.

3. You are asked to head a major project in a developing country that will train many native workers, create 100s of new jobs in the country, and result in generation of a great deal of income for the country. You also discover that the project raises issues of environmental consequences, health and safety concerns for workers, and child labor issues. Will you accept this international development assignment? Why or why not?

I would do an environmental scan and environmental impact report to see the ramifications of the project to the country. Then I would weight the pros and cons of pursuing the project vs abandoning the program. If we decided to proceed, I would put measures into place that would limit the adverse impact.


 * Situational Ethics and International Ethics / Education development**

After considering these scenarios, how would you explain the issue of situational ethics in international economic and educational development? What is your personal stance on this matter?

Ethics seem to swing pretty far to the left in some countries. We need to find a balance between acceptable conduct and crossing the line. This may result in fewer international contracts. Hopefully, if enough people stand for what is right the unethical countries will be forced to changes their ways.

= 3 More Fun Facts = The first country to legalise same sex marriages in 2001.

70% of the world's bacon comes from Netherlands.

It is the bicycle capital of the world with more than 18 million in the country. That's more than 1 bicycle per person.

__**INSIGHT: THE PEOPLE OF THE NETHERLANDS**__ The Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579; during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world. After a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU), and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999.


 * Population: || 16,645,313 (July 2008 est.) ||
 * Age structure: || 0-14 years: 18% (male 1,515,123/female 1,445,390) 15-64 years: 67.8% (male 5,656,448/female 5,525,481) 65 years and over: 14.2% (male 994,723/female 1,354,296) ||
 * Median age: || 39.4 years ||
 * Growth rate: || 0.49% ||
 * Infant mortality: || 4.96 deaths/1,000 live births ||
 * Life expectancy at birth: || total population: 78.96 years male: 76.39 years female: 81.67 years ||
 * Fertility rate: || 1.66 children born/woman ||
 * Nationality: || noun: Dutchman(men), Dutchwoman(women) adjective: Dutch ||
 * Ethnic groups: || Dutch 83%, other 17% (of which 9% are non-Western origin mainly Turks, Moroccans, Antilleans, Surinamese and Indonesians) ||
 * Religions: || Roman Catholic 31%, Dutch Reformed 13%, Calvinist 7%, Muslim 5.5%, other 2.5%, none 41% ||
 * Languages: || Dutch (official language), Frisian (official language) ||
 * Literacy: || definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% ||

Source: []
 * Country name: || conventional long form: Kingdom of the Netherlands local long form: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden local short form: Nederland ||
 * Government type: || constitutional monarchy ||
 * Capital: || Amsterdam; The Hague is the seat of government ||
 * Administrative divisions: || 12 provinces (provincies, singular - provincie); Drenthe, Flevoland, Friesland, Gelderland, Groningen, Limburg, Noord-Brabant, Noord-Holland, Overijssel, Utrecht, Zeeland, Zuid-Holland ||
 * Dependent areas: || Aruba, Netherlands Antilles ||
 * Independence: || 1579 (from Spain); note - the northern provinces of the Low Country concluded the Union of Utrecht, but it was not until 1648 that Spain recognized their independence ||
 * National holiday: || Queen's Day (Birthday of Queen-Mother JULIANA in 1909 and accession to the throne of her oldest daughter BEATRIX in 1980), 30 April ||
 * Constitution: || adopted 1815; amended many times, most recently in 2002 ||
 * Legal system: || civil law system incorporating French penal theory; constitution does not permit judicial review of acts of the States General; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations ||
 * Suffrage: || 18 years of age; universal ||

More fun facts :)

//Getting acquainted//: When meeting family, friends and acquaintances it is common that everyone gives each other three kisses on alternating cheeks. Men in general shake each other’s hand.

//Conversation//: The Dutch are known for being straightforward (which is sometimes experienced as rudeness) and there isn’t a single topic that cannot be discussed in a informal setting. The only thing that is not done is to ask a Dutch acquaintance how much he or she earns.



//Doing Business//: The no-nonsense culture means there’s not much room for chitchatting. You shake hands, introduce yourself and talk business. Often you’re immediately called by your surname or first name, even if you’re the managing director.

[]
 * News Report #2**

Turkey has asked the European Union to open a chapter, but there is talk that Germany and the Netherlands will veto this action. Some believe the veto would be meant to send a message that Germany and the Netherlands do not approve of how Turkey responded to the Gezi Pak demonstrations that began May 28, 2013. Turkey protested due to a wide range of concerns, at the core of which were issues of freedom of the press, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and the government's encroachment on Turkey's secularism. As protests continued across Turkey, particularly in Ankara, police use of tear gas and water cannon led to injuries running into thousands, including critical injuries, loss of sight, and a number of deaths. Over three thousand arrests were made.

__**INSIGHT: How to get along in the Netherlands:**__ __**Do's**__ __**Don't**__ []
 * - be direct and concise. They do not perceive this as rude. This includes small talk. It is not necessary in the Netherlands.**
 * - expect to be called by your first name, and you may feel comfortable to do the same.**
 * - be punctual. This is very important.**
 * - avoid pretention. Dress conservatively. Avoid bragging.**
 * - stick to the agenda for the meeting.**
 * - include education (BS, MBA, etc) on business cards. The Dutch value education.**
 * - do not ever ask about pay!**
 * - do not argue using emotions. Support all your arguments with facts and figures.**
 * - do no inquire about the personal lives of business associates. They are private people.**
 * - do not give praise or reprimands in public. Both are done privately.**
 * - don't refer to the Netherlands as Holland!**
 * - do not give expensive gifts to your business partners. Your generosity may be perceived as a bribe.**
 * - do not chew gum in public. This is considered rude.**
 * - do not talk with your hands in your pocket. This is also considered rude.**
 * News Report #3**

The Netherlands is asking the EU to allow the member states to handle issues which were previously handled by the EU such as: social security, working conditions, media pluralism, flood risk management, and school milk and fruit programs. They are not seeking a treaty amendment. They do want continued EU assistance for issues such as energy, climate change, asylum and migration, and internal market and defense. apparently the UK has long held similar beliefs, so they were glad to see another country agree. There is talk of a reform which will give the states more individual authority.