Plan for the Northern Gateway Pipeline
Photo Source: Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline. <http://www.northerngateway.ca/ >

In Sabryna Ko’s UBC blog she writes about how Premier Christy Clark wants a fair share of the revenues from Enbridge’s proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline. This pipeline, which would run from Alberta to the west coast of B.C., has been the center for much controversy. Sabryna explains in her blog that the project would “help the Canadian economy” yet “also poses a threat to (British Columbia’s) environment”.

Personally, I am greatly opposed to the idea of a major twin pipeline running through the city. Enbridge has been responsible for 804 spills between 1999 and 2010, which released 168, 645 barrels of oil into the environment¹. The landlocked area proposed for the pipeline means that a spill could not be readily flushed out and the shoreline would require manual clean up. The risk of damage to our ecosystems as well as the clean up costs greatly outweighs the potential economic benefits for the project.

The topic of the Northern Gateway Pipeline is constantly being debated. What would your perspective be? Is a boost in the economy worth the potential threat of an oil spill?

More information here.

¹ “Enbridge”. Wikipedia.com. September 18, 2012. September 30, 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enbridge >

Today I found a blog called The Business Blog, which has an entry all about getting started with investing online. This caught my attention because it’s incredible how so much of our lives revolve around the Internet, and apparently investing is no exception.

With our generation growing up in a time where we are so accustomed to things such as online shopping or Skype, online investing is just another natural progression for us.  Since online trading tools have become more accessible to everyone, it has made a real difference in an investors earning ability and is therefore is a more efficient way to invest.

This blog’s message is important because the popularity of online investment will continue to progress after we graduate. We should familiarize ourselves with the protocols and tips that we might need once we have graduated and have jobs. Having the skills to do such things online will help us adapt to the constant changes in technology that will happen in future years.

Photo Source: datOnline.com. “First Direct Online Banking”. <http://www.datonline.ca/articles/tips-on-internet-banking/>

One interesting issue that I found interesting was written about on Jessica Zhang’s UBC blog.

Organizations such as the International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) claim that Nestlé’s promotion of formulas over breastfeeding has lead to serious health problems and deaths among infants in less developed countries. Nestlé has been accused of using unethical marketing methods while promoting their infant formula.

The IBFAN claim that the company distributes free formula samples to new mothers in hospitals. Since the supplementation interferes with lactation, the families must continue buying the formula.  According to Jessica Zhang’s blog the formula, which must be mixed with water, is often contaminated due to poor sanitation and results in malnutrition.

As we learned in class, there are three main points that a good manager must do: understand what business they’re in, understand the value proposition and do not take advantage of vulnerable people. This is an example of bad business ethics because Nestlé is taking advantage of vulnerable consumers, which in this case are uneducated new mothers in third world countries.

For more information please visit Jessica Zhang’s UBC blog.

Photo Source: Linda Dias. African American Mother Baby. Science and Sensibility. September 6, 2012. <www.scienceandsensibility.org/?attachment_id=5343 >

BP, the company responsible for the largest oil spill in history, is being sued for common law fraud, negligent misrepresentation and statutory fraud by investors. The investors are claiming that BP’s CEO misled them on the extremity of the spill, BP’s level of responsibility and its safely regulations. From 2007 to 2010, BP released legal documents that expressed its devotion to safety, and it was these statements that minimized the decline in stock prices. Yet site investigations found that it was safety failings that led to the spill and that BP lacked any tools for dealing with such disasters but continued to operate. Honestly, stock prices would’ve gone down either way. I believe that if BP had been honest the stocks would’ve plummeted, but the company’s integrity and credibility would remain intact. If their reputation as an honest business remained then the possibility of recovery in the future would be more assured. Consider Maple Leaf Foods and how they responded to their disaster by immediately taking full responsibility of the situation and how they are recovering. After how BP responded by lying to investors and destroying their credibility it is doubtful that they will ever recover.

Additional information here.

U.S. Coast Guard. Deepwater Horizon. <http://www.thedailygreen.com/environmental-news/latest/gulf-of-mexico-oil-spill >