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Issues & Experts Archive > Politics, North Korea, families, aculturation, risk management - Issues, experts and ideas
Politics, North Korea, families, aculturation, risk management - Issues, experts and ideas
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October 03, 2005
Issue: Mayoralty race decided, election issues drawn
Vancouver councillor Sam Sullivan will face off against councillor Jim Green for the mayor's chair after a surprise victory over high-profile politician Christy Clark for the Non-Partisan Association leadership on the weekend. SFU political scientists Patrick Smith and Kennedy Stewart can look at how the city's mayoralty campaign will shape up. Smith also says it will be interesting to see how local election campaigns take shape after the “battles” within the GVRD on such projects as RAV and the Port Mann bridge lane twinning take place. He will also be watching to see how the lack of a limit on election spending may influence outcomes. Kennedy can also look at how races are shaping up in the suburbs, particularly Surrey.
Issue: The dangers of paying North Korea up front
US President George Bush's administration is doing some fancy political footwork to push North Korea's government into making the first move in a crucial bargain. North Korea has agreed to scrap its nuclear weapons programs in return for getting more than $15 billion in energy and economic aid, security guarantees and US diplomatic recognition. The US is concerned that the deal does not require North Korea to verify it has dismantled its nuclear programs until after it has received compensation. SFU political scientist Alexander Moens specializes in US politics and can talk about what the US is doing to ensure North Korea holds its part of the bargain.
Idea: Back to school means weaning for parents
Labour Day has come and gone and school is back in session, but for some parents of university-age children the labour pains are just beginning. During this year's move in to residence and housing at SFU, staff noticed a greater parent presence than in previous years. Parents stayed in the campus hotel, The Simon, camped in the dormitories, attended barbecues and orientation sessions and assisted with everything from buying text books to helping their students settle in their dorm rooms. To help parents, SFU has created a Handbook for Parents and Families, available at students.sfu.ca/residences/Parents.htm The handbook covers everything from the emotional strains of having a child in university, to financial, academic and cultural issues. “We recognize that the beginning of the school year is a huge transition for students and their parents and families,” says Jan Fialkowski, director of residence and housing. “It can take up to a full semester for students and their parents to adjust to the rhythm of university life. What parents can do to help is to educate themselves on what it's like for the students and help their children to become accountable, independent adults. They need to learn to do less for their children and help them learn to problem-solve and make responsible decisions.”
Idea: Financial risk management program has strong appeal
At a time when graduate business program enrolments across the country are declining, SFU Business' new Master in Financial Risk Management has attracted an astonishing 250 inquiries and applications from around the world. The one-year, full-time program launched in September with a cohort of 42 students; almost half of them from outside of Canada. The program develops students' quantitative and financial risk management skills and prepares them to identify, implement and monitor systems for managing the risks that confront financial services firms. The program's executive director, Mike Ivanof says graduating students will have the in-depth skills and knowledge they need to become leaders in this field.
Idea: Success at international joint ventures 'context-sensitive'
Firms involved in, or considering, international joint ventures need to think about the context, or environment, in which their firm operates, says SFU Business professor Hemant Merchant. His recent paper examining international joint venture performance recently won the 2004 Douglas MacKay Outstanding Paper award from the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (ASAC), the country's premiere academic management organization. ASAC editors judged it the most valuable paper published in 2004 in the Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences,.
Merchant is the first academic to consider contextual environment when rating the performance of international joint ventures. He discovered that, contrary to popular opinion, firms don't necessarily have to excel on every front in order to do well in a joint venture. “If you have a weaker firm, you can still pull off a successful joint venture by choosing your environment carefully,” he says. For instance, a strong firm can often succeed in a politically risky environment, while a weaker firm should seek joint ventures in more politically stable environments. Overall, says Merchant, the study's information can help those contemplating a joint venture to increase their odds of success. “The difference between positive and negative performers,” he says, “is their fit within their environment.”
Vancouver councillor Sam Sullivan will face off against councillor Jim Green for the mayor's chair after a surprise victory over high-profile politician Christy Clark for the Non-Partisan Association leadership on the weekend. SFU political scientists Patrick Smith and Kennedy Stewart can look at how the city's mayoralty campaign will shape up. Smith also says it will be interesting to see how local election campaigns take shape after the “battles” within the GVRD on such projects as RAV and the Port Mann bridge lane twinning take place. He will also be watching to see how the lack of a limit on election spending may influence outcomes. Kennedy can also look at how races are shaping up in the suburbs, particularly Surrey.
- Patrick Smith, 604.291.1544 (h); psmith@sfu.caKennedy Stewart, 604.268.7913; kennedys@sfu.ca
Issue: The dangers of paying North Korea up front
US President George Bush's administration is doing some fancy political footwork to push North Korea's government into making the first move in a crucial bargain. North Korea has agreed to scrap its nuclear weapons programs in return for getting more than $15 billion in energy and economic aid, security guarantees and US diplomatic recognition. The US is concerned that the deal does not require North Korea to verify it has dismantled its nuclear programs until after it has received compensation. SFU political scientist Alexander Moens specializes in US politics and can talk about what the US is doing to ensure North Korea holds its part of the bargain.
- Alexander Moens, 604.291.4361, 604.858.0917, alexander_moens@sfu.ca
Idea: Back to school means weaning for parents
Labour Day has come and gone and school is back in session, but for some parents of university-age children the labour pains are just beginning. During this year's move in to residence and housing at SFU, staff noticed a greater parent presence than in previous years. Parents stayed in the campus hotel, The Simon, camped in the dormitories, attended barbecues and orientation sessions and assisted with everything from buying text books to helping their students settle in their dorm rooms. To help parents, SFU has created a Handbook for Parents and Families, available at students.sfu.ca/residences/Parents.htm The handbook covers everything from the emotional strains of having a child in university, to financial, academic and cultural issues. “We recognize that the beginning of the school year is a huge transition for students and their parents and families,” says Jan Fialkowski, director of residence and housing. “It can take up to a full semester for students and their parents to adjust to the rhythm of university life. What parents can do to help is to educate themselves on what it's like for the students and help their children to become accountable, independent adults. They need to learn to do less for their children and help them learn to problem-solve and make responsible decisions.”
- Jan Fialkowski, 604.291.4535, jan_fialkowski@sfu.ca
Idea: Financial risk management program has strong appeal
At a time when graduate business program enrolments across the country are declining, SFU Business' new Master in Financial Risk Management has attracted an astonishing 250 inquiries and applications from around the world. The one-year, full-time program launched in September with a cohort of 42 students; almost half of them from outside of Canada. The program develops students' quantitative and financial risk management skills and prepares them to identify, implement and monitor systems for managing the risks that confront financial services firms. The program's executive director, Mike Ivanof says graduating students will have the in-depth skills and knowledge they need to become leaders in this field.
- -Mike Ivanof, 604.268.7921, mike_ivanof@sfu.ca,
Idea: Success at international joint ventures 'context-sensitive'
Firms involved in, or considering, international joint ventures need to think about the context, or environment, in which their firm operates, says SFU Business professor Hemant Merchant. His recent paper examining international joint venture performance recently won the 2004 Douglas MacKay Outstanding Paper award from the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada (ASAC), the country's premiere academic management organization. ASAC editors judged it the most valuable paper published in 2004 in the Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences,.
Merchant is the first academic to consider contextual environment when rating the performance of international joint ventures. He discovered that, contrary to popular opinion, firms don't necessarily have to excel on every front in order to do well in a joint venture. “If you have a weaker firm, you can still pull off a successful joint venture by choosing your environment carefully,” he says. For instance, a strong firm can often succeed in a politically risky environment, while a weaker firm should seek joint ventures in more politically stable environments. Overall, says Merchant, the study's information can help those contemplating a joint venture to increase their odds of success. “The difference between positive and negative performers,” he says, “is their fit within their environment.”
- Hemant Merchant, 604.291.4491, hemant_merchant@sfu.ca