The South-East Asia Defense Diplomacy for Capacity Building Study Case of the Philippines

The Philippines faces an urgent need to improve its defense capabilities amid China's assertive territorial claims in the South China Sea. This study analyzes the Philippines' cooperation with the United States through the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) as a framework for addressing these pressing challenges. Applying the “Ends, Means, Means, and Risks” model of military planning, this study dissects the goals, resources, actions, and potential pitfalls of these partnerships. Key findings reveal EDCA's critical role in strengthening Philippine maritime security, enhancing joint training and disaster response, and strengthening its integration into a broader network of allies. However, concerns regarding potential Chinese pressure, growing US regional dominance, and domestic political instability highlight the inherent risks associated with this alliance. Ultimately, this study emphasizes the importance for the Philippines to build its strong defense capacity, balancing strategic partnerships with independent capabilities to safeguard its territorial integrity and regional security interests

Canva-based Digital Practical App for Teaching Writing

The objective of this study was to determine how to improve the procedure text teaching in English for students of 10th grade at Vocational High School (SMK) of Taman Siswa in Sukoharjo, Central Java, Indonesia. The study began with observations on September 19, 2022 to October 20, 2022 based on planning and the results of observations and assessments of initial results presenting procedure text. The results conclude that by using the Canva apps in project-based learning could improve the ability of 10th grade students at Taman Siswa Vocational High School in Sukoharjo to present procedural texts, as evidenced by an increase in learning motivation and learning outcomes in each cycle. Based on the observations of researchers and observers during classroom action, the researchers suggest the following. First, the use of the Canva application through project-based learning needs to be implemented by teachers at the Vocational High School of Taman Siswa in Sukoharjo in particular and by teachers in other schools in general. Second, teachers should be able to apply various variations of learning models to create a fun learning process so that they are able to encourage students to learn optimall

Développement Du Secteur Informel Et Son Impact Sur L’Economie : Cas Du Niger

Le secteur informel est entré dans la théorie du développement économique au début des années 1970 avec les premiers travaux du Programme mondial pour l’emploi mis en œuvre par le Bureau international du Travail.Il convient de noter que les caractéristiques qui définissent l'informalité sont : l'ampleur des activités, l'incapacité à tenir une comptabilité honnête, l'absence d'enregistrement, la mobilité du travail, le manque de protection sociale, le paiement des impôts. Les prêts bancaires ne sont pas disponibles.Dans la plupart des pays francophones d’Afrique de l’Ouest, la part du secteur informel dans la valeur ajoutée, y compris le secteur primaire, dépasse 60 %. Mais par contre contribue faiblement aux recettes fiscales bien qu’il crée des opportunités d'emploi, favorise la productivité et la croissance économique.Le Niger est dans le peloton de tête relativement à l’informel dans la valeur ajoutée globale, martèle une enquête nationale sur l’emploi et les secteurs informels au Niger réalisée par l’Institut National de la Statistique en 2012.Ainsi, pour empêcher l’expansion des activités informelles dans l’économie du Niger, l’accent devrait être mis sur le lancement de procédures formelles et sur l’application de taux d’imposition optimal. Il y a donc lieu de penser à la dualité formel-informel dans l’élaboration et la mise en œuvre des politiques économiques et publiques sous l’égide des institutions financières afin de contribuer au déclin de l’importance du secteur informel à moyen et long terme.

Implementation of the International Humanitarian Law in the Russia-Ukraine Conflict

It has been more than a year since Russia launched a military operation against Ukraine in February 2022. Civilians, mostly in Ukraine as the operation take place in the country, have been very vulnerable to the conflict, as shown by the high number of civilian fatalities and the great suffering the civilians have to endure due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Such condition raises a question how the international humanitarian law is being implemented during the conflict and this article tries to explain that. Using qualitative method, the article finds out that due to the enormous civilian fatalities and sufferings, experts of international relation concludes that Russia has violated the international humanitarian law and should be held accountable for war crimes. Realism theory, however, helps to explain why Russia has been performing military operation in Ukraine and will not likely to stop in the near future because it sees itself defending its national interests and as long as it still has the capability and capacity to do so, despite the abundant civilian victims

Traditional uses of the plants consumed by Propithecus deckenii (Peters, 1870) in Mandrozo Protected Area, western Madagascar

This study focused on the diet of Decken’s sifaka (Propithecus deckenii) and was carried out in Mandrozo Protected Area (MPA), in western Madagascar. The main objective was to identify the plants consumed by sifakas and their traditional uses by the local people within and surrounding MPA. For this purpose, we observed and recorded the feeding behavior of four groups of sifakas in two forest fragments (Andapabe and Ampiliravao), during two periods: from March to April 2018 for the wet season and from September to October 2020 for the dry season, using the Focal Animal Sampling method. Sifakas consumed 37 plant species belonging to 20 families and 31 genera and they ate mainly the plant leaves. We found that the sifaka’s diet is more diversified during wet season. We also interviewed 168 local persons from eight villages and recorded their ethnobotanical knowledge on the plant species eaten by sifakas. Local people utilized 70% (n=26) of the plant species eaten by sifakas. Five categories of human uses were recorded: house construction and tools for domestic use, phytotherapy, making of handicrafts, as food sources and traditional culture. Among these, the construction of houses and tools for domestic use and traditional medicine constitute the main mentioned human uses by the queried locals. For the indigenous people, three species of trees: Dalbergia humbertii, Tamarindus indica and Cedrelopsis grevei were used as part of their habits and customs

Opinion des Gestionnaires Pédagogiques des Ecoles Secondaires Publiques et Privées Agrées de la Commune de Ngaliema à Kinshasa sur l'Influence de l'Outil Technologique

The general objective of this article is to analyze the opinions of those responsible for educational management on the influences of the use of technological tools in the process of carrying out their educational tasks. The main results of the study are as follows:- Most of the technological tools available in secondary schools which are used simultaneously in teaching and administration.- Others are used for either educational or administrative purposes.- The effective use of technological tools in secondary schools requires continuing training of teachers and administrators for better appropriation and good mastery.The result is that said schools actually encounter pedagogical and administrative problems on the one hand and on the other hand, they experience difficulties in integrating and using technological tools in school management

Factors Causing Road Damage And Its Impact On The Environment Of Jorong Koto Kaciek Nagari Muaro Paneh Bukit Sundi District Solok District

Roads can connect regions and make it easier for people to travel to an area. Apart from that, roads have an important role in the social, economic and cultural fields, including the Muaro Paneh road. Muaro Paneh Road is a road that connects districts or cities. Apart from that, the road in Muaro Paneh experienced damage which had an impact on the environment and the surrounding community using the road. This research aims to identify factors of road damage that occur and analyze the impact of road damage on the environment in Nagari Muaro Paneh. This research uses a descriptive method with a qualitative approach. Samples were taken using purposive sampling as many as 8 people. The results of the research obtained are the factors that influence road damage in Jorong Koto Kaciek Nagari Muaro Paneh, namely changing weather conditions, the condition of building infrastructure that continues to increase, the increasing number of vehicles, and long-term blocked drainage channels that can affect the environment. around Jalan Muaro Paneh, especially Jorong Koto Kaciek. Meanwhile, the impact on the abiotic environment for dust and noise is still below the threshold of not endangering the environment, but in the future it could be threatening, while the impact on the biotic environment is disrupting community activities, increasing vehicle costs, and disrupting health

Analysis of Consumer Goods Purchase Decision Based Perceived Price, Quality Products and Sales Promotions: Case Study Starbucks consumers in Bogor City

In globalization era, many people are paying attention to what they consume, including coffee. As a result, coffee consumption in Indonesia has been increasing every year because not only older people but also young individuals have started drinking coffee to meet their needs. Therefore, in the transaction of coffee beverages, there are many factors influencing consumers' product choices, as there is a wide variety of products offered by different brands. The objective of this research is to analyze the influence of price perception on purchasing decisions, examine the impact of product quality on purchasing decisions, and investigate the effect of sales promotions on purchasing decisions for Starbucks products. Therefore, the researcher expects to obtain favorable results based on good data, which can have a positive impact on the environment and the company. This study focuses on the influence of price perception, product quality, and sales promotions on purchasing decisions within a specific company, Starbucks. The research was conducted among consumers who are familiar with and have purchased Starbucks products. A questionnaire was employed as the research instrument, and the data collected were quantitative in nature. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used for the analysis, utilizing Lisrel 8.8 and SPSS 26 software. The findings of this study indicate that all three variables, namely price perception, product quality, and sales promotions, have a positive and significant impact. Hence, Starbucks consumers are more likely to make purchases if the offered price aligns with their assessment, the provided quality is excellent, and the promotions are advantageous to the consumers

Evidence-Based Insights: Assessing the Role of Adult Education in Fostering Community Development in Rivers State, Nigeria

This study examined the role of adult education in fostering community development in Oyigbo and Obio/Akpors of Rivers State. Descriptive Survey design was used for the study.  The population of the study comprised of 37,786 beneficiaries of adult education programmes 5 percent of the population was sampled for the study.  A sample of 1770 was draw form the target population.  Proportionate sampling technique was used to select the sample for the study. A self-structured questionnaire which has a reliability coefficient of 0.71 was used for the study.  The data collected were analyzed using mean score.  The findings of the study showed that adult education contributes immensely to community development in both Oyigbo and Obio/Akpor Local Government Area’s respectively.  The study recommended that adequate funding since adult education is essentially central to both personal and communal development and contributes to national development as well.  Thus, the government should therefore, adequately fund education, especially adult education for the promotion of community development in these areas of stud

DFTB1 and DFTB2 Based Real-Time Flipping Motion Studies of Central Phenylene Rotator of Crystalline Siloxaalkane Molecular Gyroscope

Despite adopting ab initio functionalities comprising mathematical formulations and many unique complex computational features, the density-functional based tight-binding (DFTB) scheme presents itself as the standalone, versatile, and efficient quantum mechanical application. The recognizably low-cost, & extremely faster MD simulation parser codes of it run under the DFTB+ atomic simulation environment interface plus the noticeably methodical long ranged molecular interactions addressing 'non-self-consistent-charge' (DFTB1) & 'self-consistent-charge' (DFTB2) formulations adds a substantial value to its rational applications. Herewith, both the DFTB2/ & DFTB1/ MD simulation schemes are employed separately to simulate the siloxaalkane molecular gyroscope under crystalline condition with and without 'dispersion energy corrections' features at wide temperature regimes & the experimentally observed facile flipping motions of its central phenylene rotator are confirmed theoretically in real-time scales. The concerned rotary trajectories depict that: (a) at 800 K ³ T £ 1200 K, the rotator exhibits 1p inversions & frequent flipping motions easily with sub-picoseconds to picoseconds lifetimes; (b) at T = 600 K, the rotator flips between its stable positions at the intervals of several tens of picoseconds; but (c) at T = 300 K, the rotator flips more demonstratively with longer lifespans only after addressing the dispersion energies in DFTB2 scheme. Additionally, the flipping rates of the rotator;  = 0.018 ps-1 & = 0.021 ps-1 predicted at T = 800 K & 1200 K respectively are retarded to 0.009 ps-1 & 0.013 ps-1, and the flipping barrier estimated by using  & as Ea1 = 0.66 kcal/mol is increased to Ea2 = 1.84 kcal/mol after treating dispersion energies; the quite consistent values to those retrieved from the respectively derived potential energy surface (Ea1 =0.70 kcal/mol & Ea2 =1.2 kcal/mol). These quantitative results illuminate that the DFTB2/MD simulation scheme is more demandable than the DFTB1/MD especially for simulating crystalline molecular assembly