An environmentally friendly company is just like any ordinary company; it thrives for success

Purpose: To explore whether the view on Business Models and Value Creation, can explain the lack of Venture Capital investments in green start-ups, by examining how green start-up Entrepreneurs, and Venture Capitalist investors, view these two factors. Theoretical framework: The aim of this thesis is to address some of the key knowledge gaps in research available today, regarding why there is a lack of investments within the green start-up sector. By applying Behavioral Finance as a tool when examining Entrepreneurs and Venture Capitalist Investors view on certain factors, the goal is to receive a better understanding of the reasoning behind the investor’s decision-making. This case study will concentrate on the two factors, Value Creation, and Business Models, and together with Behavioral Finance these three theories will build up the theoretical framework of this thesis to find answer to the research questions and purpose. Methodology: This study is a qualitative case study of the view on Business Models and Value Creation with elements of an adductive approach. A theoretical framework was developed and compared to the empirical findings from eight semi-structured in-depth interviews. Results: To summarize the results, Venture Capitalist Investors view Value Creating and Business Models of green start-ups differently, but a general theme is that investors tend to be aiming more for Profit Maximization. On the other hand, green start-up Entrepreneurs view Value Creation and Business Models out of a Shared Value perspective, but realize the importance of building up an attractive track record. Behavioral Finance can to some extent function as a good tool and theory for explaining the underinvestment in green start-ups. A Skepticism towards the green start-up sector was described by several of the interviewees. The skepticism was grounded in a lack of “success stories” and track record within the green start-up sector and therefore the findings of this case study indicate that the view on green start-ups is to some extent damaged by several bad historical results, previous weak return on investment and lack of strong track records.An exploring study of why there is a lack of investments in the green start-up sector For a long time, a transition to an environmental sustainable society has been on the agenda, now more than ever. In late 2015 the UN chief Ban Ki Moon stressed the importance, describing their UN initiative: “Trillions of dollars in public and private funds are to be redirected towards the Sustainable Development Goals, creating huge opportunities for responsible companies to deliver solutions.” 1 Yet there is a lack of investments in the green start-up sector. A qualitative case study has been made to explore the reasoning behind why green-startups have not yet become successful and attractive on the global market. There is a growing positivity towards building up a sustainable and environmental friendly world. However, an absence of investments has been identified within the green start-up sector. While there are not enough investments, there are not uncommon to find articles in most prominent papers and media with messages such as: “Companies that invest in Sustainability do better financially.” 2 To understand this situation, Entrepreneurs and Venture Capital investors have been interviewed with the purpose to explore whether their view on the Business Models and Value Creation, can explain the lack of Venture Capital investments in green start-ups. After having interviewed green start-up entrepreneurs and investors, several key findings were found. A skepticism towards the green start-up sector was described by several of the interviewees. The skepticism was based on a lack of “success stories” and track record within the green start-up sector. The findings of this case study indicate that the view on green start-ups is to some extent damaged by several bad historical results and previous weak return on investment. One of the most apparent findings is how different entrepreneurs and investors view the creation of value. In general, investors tend to aim more for Profit Maximization, while on the other hand, green start-up Entrepreneurs view Value Creation out of a Shared Value perspective. A Shared Value perspective means that you invest or/and create business models that support long term solutions for the society. An other important key finding is that the Pension Fund´s view on Value Creation can be one of the main reasons as to why there is a lack in green start-up investments. This study is too small to confirm any patterns or leave any certain answers. However, the lack of investments is still a fact. An explanation can be the skepticism towards green start-ups the interviewees indicate, not to be a regular start-up. Therefore, my suggestion is to continue to work on the understanding of green start-ups and illustrate and prove that “an environmentally friendly company is just like any ordinary company; it thrives for success”. 1 Ki- Moon, B. (2015, 26 Sep) Secretary- General's remarks at the United Nations Private Sector Forum. Unites Nations. Accessed, 2016-05-15: http://www.un.org/sg/statements/index.asp?nid=9020 2 Gerrit, H. (2012, 19 Sep). Companies that Invest in Sustainability Do Better Financially. Harvard Business Review. Accessed, 2016-05-15: https://hbr.org/2012/09/sustainable-investing-time-t

die politische Theologie von Walter Benjamin und Gershom Scholem

Title Deutsche Zusammenfassung and Introduction 1 The Messianic State: does the Messiah initiate or consummate? 30 The division of the Holy and Profane 38 The Messianic Intensity of Happiness 44 Tragic Devotion 49 Restitutio in Integrum and immortality 57 Nihilism 63 The theological politics of Gershom Scholem 66 Tradition and anarchism 68 Zion: anarchist praxis or metaphor 71 A programmatic Torah 75 Revolutionary nihilism 78 Cataclysmic anarchism 82 Critical anarchism 93 On the origins of language and the true name of things 98 Metaphor of the Divine 103 The Magic of the inexpressible in language 108 Symbolic revelation 114 Magic and the divine word 118 Reception as translation 124 Sign and Symbol 128 Judgment 130 Jewish linguistic theory and christian Kabbalah 133 Gershom Scholem and the name of God: "On language as such reconsidered" 143 Toward a structure of symbolic mysticism 146 The creating word and the unpronouncable name 150 The existence of matter and magic in the Torah and its letters 154 Grammarians of the name 158 Micro-lingustic speculation 161 The metaphysics of the divine name, ist substance and attributes 165 A micro-linguistic science of prophecy 169 On a Mesianic conception of language 174 A redemptive conception of justice 176 Theses of the concept of justice 195 Prophetic justice 199 Judaism and revolution 209 Judgment and violence 215 Punishment and fate 223 Divine postponement and the question of violence 238 The righteous, the pious, the scholar 243 Bibliography 253">Walter Benjamin attests to Gershom Scholem in a rather emphatic moment in 1915 that if he should ever have a philosophy of his own, it would be a philosophy of Judaism. In many ways, this statement forms the basis of a discussion on three main ideas which would capture the imagination of the authors: on Messianism, language and justice. Following along the lines of this tripartite division, the dissertation is divided into three sections reflecting the original tone of the authors' dialogue. The first section is perhaps the most helpful for readers interested in Benjamin's early writings, for it seeks to explain many of the early texts in the context of this pursuit of the Messianic in history. The reconstruction of Benjamin's Messianism is based largely on an early text from 1921 entitled the Theological-Political Fragment. This is followed by more narrative section in which Benjamin's movement toward abstract, political and theological speculation is brought together with Scholem's own Messianic politics and a nihilism regarding the affairs of Europe. These two dimension ? a utopian, anarchist theological politics and a nihilism regarding worldly affairs ? converge when the authors are finally reunited in Muri, Switzerland in 1917-18 at the height of the First World War. This is followed by a broader portrayal of Scholem, the categories of his theological politics and the metamorphosis this politics undergoes.Die Dissertation befaßt sich mit den frühen politischen und theologischen Begriffen der beiden Autoren aus der Zeit von 1915 bis 1923. Sie verfolgt die Absicht, die frühen Diskussionen Benjamins und Scholems zu Politik und Theologie zu rekonstruieren. Dabei konzentriert sie sich auf die Themen von Messianismus, Sprache und Gerechtigkeit. Auf der einen Seite wird die Verwurzelung der sprachtheoretischen und geschichtsphilosophischen Konzepte Walter Benjamins in einer vom Judentum geprägten theologischen Tradition herausgearbeitet. Auf der anderen Seite wird der theoretische und politische Gehalt zentraler Kategorien ihrer frühen Diskussionen in einigen Teilen von Scholems Spätwerk dargestellt. Auf diese Weise wird der enge Zusammenhang von Grundbegriffen der jüdischen Tradition, vor allem mystischer und messianischer Richtungen, mit den politischen und theologischen Ideen Benjamins und Scholems deutlich gemacht. Diese Ideen, die sich bei beiden Autoren schon früh herausbildeten, haben grundlegende Bedeutung für ihre späteren Auffassungen und haben damit auch einen nachhaltigen Einfluß auf die Gegenwartsphilosophie sowie die Judaistik dieses Jahrhunderts ausgeübt

Why did Hannah Arendt Reject the Partition of Palestine?

ERIC JACOBSON, JOURNAL FOR CULTURAL RESEARCH, 201

Do southern Africa’s dominant-party systems affect popular attitudes?

Among the most distinctive features of Southern African politics is the region’s preponderance of one-party dominant systems. Considerable effort has been made to explain the unusual phenomenon with some analysts emphasizing the potential of such imbalances of power to undermine the effectiveness of a democracy’s institutions. However, political science has only just begun to study the repercussions the status quo may have for political culture in the region. Using survey data collected across the continent, this paper shifts the focus to this unexplored link between dominance and culture, aiming to shed some light on the relationship by studying the effect dominant party systems have on three specific political attitudes in Africa: demand for democracy, evaluation of the supply of democracy, and pluralism. The academic literature on Southern Africa’s dominant party systems has produced a theoretical distinction between two types of dominance. On the one hand is simple dominance, characterized only by long-term electoral success by a single party. On the other hand is dominance by parties who emerged from national liberation movements. Some analysts have argued that the ideological orientation of liberation parties and their unique claim to the right to rule renders them incompatible with essential features of democracy. This paper investigates the possibility that these distinct varieties of dominance have distinct effects on political attitudes. The results of the analyses conducted here offer strong evidence that dominant party systems do have implications for mass attitudes. Further, this research finds strong support for the argument that the nature of a party’s dominance matters, as means comparisons and regression analyses showed that the effects of dominance on popular attitudes were considerably stronger in systems where the dominant party was descended from a national liberation movement

Diplomats, Scientists, and Politicians: The United States and the Nuclear Test Ban Negotiations

This study began in 1961 as a limited attempt to assess the impact of science and modern technology on the negotiating process and concepts of international organization, using the test ban negotiations then in progress as a case study. When the Moscow Treaty was signed, however, it seemed wise to broaden the focus and to capture as many of the details as we could that might help to explain this first formal arms control agreement between East and West in the nuclear age. Our analysis is clearly not definitive, but hopefully, it will be a useful source, even after all relevant documents have been published. We hope also that the study will fulfill something of its original purpose. The principal written sources have been the records of the negotiations and the memoirs thus far published. In addition, a large number of the participants have been interviewed. These include President Eisenhower, all three of the Special Assistants to the President for Science and Technology who were involved, Ambassador Arthur H. Dean, Adrian S. Fisher, John J. McNaughton, various other officials of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, the Atomic Energy Commission, the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and most of the American scientists who took part, including Robert F. Bacher, Hans A. Bethe, James B. Fisk, Wolfgang K. H. Panofsky, and Edward Teller. Several United Nations and United Kingdom officials were also interviewed. For obvious reasons, there are no citations for any of the material gained through interviews.https://repository.law.umich.edu/michigan_legal_studies/1014/thumbnail.jp

Transitioning from wild collection to forest cultivation of indigenous medicinal forest plants in eastern North America

Paper presented at the 11th North American Agroforesty Conference, which was held May 31-June 3, 2009 in Columbia, Missouri.In Gold, M.A. and M.M. Hall, eds. Agroforestry Comes of Age: Putting Science into Practice. Proceedings, 11th North American Agroforestry Conference, Columbia, Mo., May 31-June 3, 2009.The forest flora of eastern North America includes many herbaceous plant species traded in domestic and international medicinal markets. Conservation concerns surrounding wild-collection exist and transitioning to cultivation in agroforestry systems has potential economic and ecological benefits. Costs and revenues associated with adopting forest cultivation were modeled for eight North American medicinal forest plants. Sensitivity analysis examined profit potential in relation to (1) discount rates; (2) propagation methods; (3) prices; (4) growing period; (5) production costs; and (6) yields. Results indicate that intensive husbandry of six of eight species would be unprofitable at recent (1990-2005) price levels. Exceptions are American ginseng (Panax quinquefolius L.), and under certain circumstances (e.g., maximum historic prices, low production costs) goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis L.). Direct marketing to consumers and retailers might improve grower profits, but is undermined by the availability of cheaper, wild-collected product. We suggest that the North American medicinal plant industry could play a key role in facilitating any transition from wild to cultivated product, perhaps through development of a certification and labeling program that brands "forest cultivated" products. This could generate price premiums, to be passed along to growers, but must be accompanied by aggressive consumer education. A "forest cultivated" certification and labeling program has potential to benefit industry and consumers if assurances regarding product identity and quality are a central feature. Plant species that are not viable candidates for commercial cultivation due to limited consumer demand (i.e., species with "shallow," erratic markets) are best addressed through proactive government and industry initiatives involving targeted harvester education programs.Eric P. Burkhart (1) and Michael G. Jacobson (2) ; 1. Shaver's Creek Environmental Center, the Pennsylvania State University, Petersburg, PA 16669, USA. 2. School of Forest Resources, the Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.Includes bibliographical references

Bostonia: 1998-1999, no. 1, 3-4

Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs