INVESTING IN IT: SOME CHALLENGES FOR GLOBALIZATION PROCESS IN ALBANIA

Globalization is an inevitable and irreversible process. The globalization is the philosophy that support establishment of private company (business) without boundary and in the all word. It is the irreversible process. The ideology of globalization is that the world is the big market where each company, undistinguished the country, has the access (the right) to compete without national or local boundary with the others company. The money, the technology, and the stock have moved fast between the countries. Together with products and the finances also the ideas and the cultures are moved freely. The FDI in ICT are the most important factor for the development of this sector in Albania and has more to do to stimulate the foreign investments. How it will be the process of globalization for Albania within the ICT contect of investment? Why so many multinational corporate are addressed to invest in ICT sector in Albania? How can explain the fast economic growth of ICT investment in Albania?Globalization, ICT, Investment, Albania

“ALLEGRETTO ALBANIA”- STEFAN CAPALIKU'S SERIOUS COMEDY UNDER THE DIRECTION OF ALTIN BASHA

“Allegretto Albania” is the only Albanian drama with the largest number of performances in different parts of the world. "Due to its originality and finest compositionin the dramatic treatment of an acute topic of Albanian society," Stefan Çapaliku, the playwright of this play, won in 2007 for the third time the award as the Best Dramatic Author with the serious comedy "Allegretto Albania". In 2008, “Allegretto Albania” comes on the stage at the NationalTheatre and this same year, the author is nominated for "Europe" prize, for TheatreInnovations.“Allegretto Albania” is a serious comedy, which, since in her title, carriesthe grotesque paradox, as well as the irony: while in this country, since the state does not act, the citizens address to  an old primitive Kanun to put order. In the mean time,  it is organised an extraordinary concert season with guests from abroad, to give the idea ofa developed European country.This serious comedy is putted on stage by the director Altin Basha, who is characterized for his experimental spirit, theatrical research and alternative aesthetics, expressed those especially in Albanian dramaturgy. The performance of this playis constructed  through a laboratory process, where the playwright was an integral part of this process."Allegretto Albania", in June 2010, attended the Wiesbaden Festival in Mainz, Germany, and this year, Stefan Capalikuwas awarded with the "Critics Award" at the Biennale Theatre in Germany for its originality of the themes, sarcasm and construction. This comedy conveyed a new theatre, where Albanian language comes with a stylistic fund and high-spirited tools that are traversed by irony, that was perched between the interconnection of scenic symbolism, tragicomedy and grotesque, giving  a postmodernist creation on the theatrical scene, both in textual and directorial approach.Keywords:  drama, theatre, director, Albanian theatre, postmodern plays, grotesque, tragicomic

A Translator in Power: Ernest Koliqi and his Role during the Fascist Occupation of Albania

This essay discusses the political events that took place in Albania in 1939 and the linguistic policies that were implemented in the newly reformed state as part of a well-organized plan that would lead to the ‘Italianization’ and ‘Fascist-ization’ of Albania. Following the unification of Albania with the Italian state the 7th of April 1939, the need for an efficient communication between the two countries was one of the most important matters in terms of the functioning of political and bureaucratic matters. Certainly, a communicative exchange between two countries that were relatively different from the linguistic and cultural point of view was of crucial importance both from the historical and the linguistic point of view (e.g. interpreting and translation). The moment of collision between the two countries (with two different – if not completely radically opposite – language and cultural identities) generated the need for cultural mediators (such as interpreters and translators) to act as ambassadors and messengers in the new, critical political-military situation. The following political context – the annexation of the Albanian state by Fascist Italy – is a context where patriotism, loyalty and admiration for one's own country but also corruption, collaborationism and many more were key elements strictly correlated to the needs and interests of the Fascist Regime for the occupation of Albania and its political, social and cultural submission. The translation act represented a crucial, indispensable means of communication when performing institutional and bureaucratic acts

Relations of the “Vatra”, (The Hearth), Federation with "Free Albania" organization, in United States of America during 1945-1960

The activity of the Albanian emigration organizations in the United States grew more after the Second World War. Their actions and programs were generally consistent with US policy. The federation “Vatra” and the “Free Albania” organization disagreed with the policy pursued by the United States against the communist regime of Albania. The fact that these two organizations had long been unaware of the events in Albania and of the nature of the new post-war regime. Also influenced was the low level of intellectual and political formation of some of the “Vatra” leaders as well as their left-wing tendencies. Since the beginning of 1945, the “Vatra” federation called for the Albanian government to be known by the allies and to be admitted to the San Francisco Conference. The “Vatra” federation's campaign to collect material and food aid to send it to Albania was vast. It started immediately after the end of the war. For "Vatras" it was necessary not to miss basic and vital products to survive, such as clothes and food. For the bread problem, the newspaper the “Sun” wrote: “The bread problem in Albania, especially in Tirana, where a large population is gathered, is one of the most serious problems that the governor is trying to alleviate. The maize that went to 37 Lek was now regulated and deducted in 27 leks. It is hope to be subtracted below.” This was one of the mian letters of the “Vatra” federation. Since the end of 1945, the Albanian government prepared a project for a state loan that would be derived from Albanian colonies. What was most interested in the communist regime was the colonies of America, as there was a large number of Albanians, about 70,000, and their economic status was better than other colonies. Under the Albanian government's plans, this project would have economic but also political impact in the colonies of America. In this campaign, the Albanians of America would notice the “great advances” that Albania had made, thanks to the communist government, in the economic and cultural fields. The success of this loan would depend on good organization of work and the choice of suitable persons.Keywords: “Vatra” federation, “Free Albania” Organisation, Albanian Relief Fund, Communist regime, the “Sun” paper

Being a Social Enterprise: Value-added or Fuel to the Misconceptions? The Case of Social Enterprises in Kosovo

The main focus of this research study is to understand the current state of social enterprise development in Kosovo and public perception about them, as well as to look at the methods that social enterprises use to reach their customers. Since social enterprises have emerged as innovative models in the recent decades, their importance has been growing continuously. The social enterprise’s approach to address social and environmental issues through a market-driven approach has contributed to its financial stability and long-term sustainability. However, the public has not been able and has not been educated to grasp the concept of social enterprises. Most commonly, social enterprises have been linked to non-governmental organizations, charities amongst others. Such misconceptions have hindered the further development of social enterprises. Kosovo has enjoyed a growth of social enterprises, but little research has been done in this area. With this in mind, this study, which includes both primary and secondary data, analyzes what exactly social enterprises are doing to reach their customers, and, most importantly, how the public perceives social enterprises. Interviews with social enterprise experts and social enterprise representative have been conducted, along with a survey with 225 respondents, and research in regards to social enterprises in other countries have been conducted to provide a list of recommendations for social enterprises in Kosovo

Addressing sustainability in architectural education from urban to building scale: Reflections on the environmental design studio

Over the past decade, new approaches have emerged to renewable energy educationto address the needs for sustainable energy supply systems. In addition, unlike conventional architectural education, which does not cover renewable energy issues in its curriculum,these days, renewable energy education has an identity of its own within the discipline ofarchitecture. The fluid and multi-layered structure of the environment requires a broaderperspective with a more expanded, cross-boundary knowledge and skills. In addition, a setof academic obstacles impeding the development of sustainable architectural education isexplored such as ambiguous definitions and lack of experts in this field.This paper mainly concentrates on the structure of architectural studies and the significance of environmental design. The study presents a descriptive reading throughthe experiences in the environmental design studio in the Architecture Department-Epoka University, and in this sense evaluates the outcomes within the educational process. Theaim is to discuss the relationship between the interior/exterior or environment/buildingthrough the ideas created in the design studio. The key points are elucidated through examples of student work from architecture department. The reflections upon developing the knowledge of "environmental consciousness" and establishing the dialogue between different scales of environment on student work are examined and discussed in the scopeof this pape

The Albanian question at the Paris Peace Conference during 1919-1920

This paper aims to bring to the public one of the most important moments in the history of modern times of Albania. After the Albanian independence on 28 November 1912 and international recognition of Albanian state on 29 July 1913, in 1919-1920, many national and international events unraveled which initially posed a real danger for Albania to become an independent state. The Paris Peace Conference, organized after the First World War by the Great Powers which win the war, and in which 27 winning states took part, became the real world center of that time. The Albanian point of view was headed directly at this Conference, with the hope to gain its independence and to win the right of self determination for its people. The main issues of the Conference were: border correction, especially in the southern part of Albania, relations between the Balkan states regarding Albania, the position of Italy, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, and the position of Greece over Albania, and the real threat of secret pact during the First World War and the new role of American President, Woodrow Wilson. This paper also aims to bring the attitude of the Albanian delegation at the Paris Peace Conference and the position of Italy, France, Great Britain and Greece

IMMOVABLE PROPERTY MARKETS IN METROPOLITAN TIRANA, ALBANIA

This paper uses information from three empirical studies to describe, after seven years of privatization and real estate market transactions, how the physical space of the city of Tirana is presently organized, and how active real estate markets have been. The first empirical study, fielded in December 1997 (completed in January 1998), was based on an "area sample" of the city of Tirana. One-hectare grid squares were overlaid on the city's 3,060 hectares within the municipal boundary, and a random sample was taken of these grids. Eighteen grid squares within the ring roads (an area of 340 hectares) and 14 grid squares between the ring roads and the outer municipal boundary (an area of 2,720 hectares) were randomly selected. Within the selected grid squares of 1 hectare each, research teams visited each property and questioned the holders about its use, who owned it, when it was constructed, and other characteristics of the property. The sample values obtained from the questionnaires were then "expanded" by the sampling ratio to describe the physical space of Tirana within the city's municipal boundaries. The second study of the transactions recorded in the Hipoteka Office of Tirana was done in early 1998. All documents from 1993 through 1997 were classified according to type of property involved, and the number of transactions were tabulated. The third study of real estate prices from 1993 to 1997 was done based on the data of one real estate agency in February 1998. This database represents approximately 70 percent of all offerings of real estate for sale done through real estate agencies in Tirana.Real property--Prices--Albania--Tirana, Land use, Urban--Albania--Tirana, Land titles--Registration and transfer--Albania--Tirana, Real estate development--Albania--Tirana, Land markets--Albania--Tirana, Land tenure, Urban--Albania--Tirana, Land Economics/Use,