https://blogs.ubc.ca/bryanwoo/2012/09/25/icelands-attitude-towards-the-loonie-gets-icy/

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/top-business-stories/canadian-dollar-a-poor-choice-for-iceland-central-bank-says/article4564361/

I have to disagree with Bryan, I don’t think most people would find the Canadian dollar to be a “sound and viable option” when it comes to currency substitution. I almost find it odd that Iceland’s central bank would consider the Canadian dollar as their national currency.  While the Canadian dollar may be financially stable, Canada’s economy has very little interaction with the Icelandic economy. Iceland would be far better off joining the Eurozone, whose currency is backed by the European Central Bank. The stability of the euro would help eradicate the financial instability associated with the current Icelandic currency.

The referenced article also goes on to mention that there is currently a bull market for the Canadian dollar, and that many investors are betting that it will continue to grow in the future. While this may present potential profit for Iceland, they should be careful and realise that the Canadian dollar belongs to a relatively small economy and can be easily affected by other currencies in the marketplace. All of these reasons lead me to believe that Iceland is right in saying no to the Canadian dollar, and that they should look for a stronger substitute.

Image Source: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_hggYo1TvxHs/SO-URNxgyjI/AAAAAAAACeg/i5KXNvFOVNs/s400/KRONO.jpg

http://www2.macleans.ca/2012/11/09/why-environmentalists-should-be-open-minded-about-the-oil-sands/#more-312660

Environmentalism is an issue that has become controversial in the fields of economics and business. It runs against the basic idea of profit-maximization, which is fundamental to both of these faculties. According to this blog post, Tim Haab, an environmental economics professor, debunks the myth that the ideal level of pollution is zero pollution. I found it interesting that someone with an environmental background would take a stance that seems to oppose the conventional thought of his peers, but he justifies his points succinctly and clearly. Essentially, he states that the pollution level is optimized when the marginal benefit that the last unit of pollution provides to society is equivalent to the marginal cost of that same unit. The only catch to his explanation is that all of the externalities (the costs that members of society who don’t necessarily enjoy the benefits of the polluting act have to bear) are currently not accounted for. By implementing a tax that incorporates these externalities, Tim believes that the market will show the true net benefit to society and will adjust accordingly.

The topic of this blog post is a direct application of not only my business fundamentals class, but also my elementary microeconomics course. Because of this, and the post’s simplicity, it is an excellent read for any business student that is beginning their academic career.

Image Source: http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/image/2010/4/teaser/tar%20sands/Jiri%20Rezac.jpg

http://www.urthecast.com/

Urthecast is a Canadian media company that plans to mount cameras on the International Space Station which will stream high-definition video of earth online for public viewing. Their industry is brand new, nobody has undertaken such a bold venture in this field. Some may say that space-mounted cameras are too risky of an investment, and that the costs of the business will greatly exceed the revenue generated. However, the fact that it is mounted on the ISS means that the company can circumvent the large start-up costs associated with launching satellites, which makes the business proposition much more enticing.

In my opinion, one of the most interesting applications of this idea is to the field of journalism. The company is looking to license off high-profile areas to certain news agencies whenever breaking news occurs in that area. For example, UrtheCast could use its cameras to track the effects of natural disasters and then sell the video stream to the highest bidder. Live video of mass protests would also be invaluable to large news companies trying to cover political upheaval in different parts of the world.

The company has also expressed interest in integrating social media into the UrtheCast video stream. This, ideally, would allow real time news updates from social media sites (such as Twitter) to show up when the camera is viewing a specific area. Personally, I see  this as being problematic. It is very hard to filter what is on the internet, and the vast majority of what shows up on the live stream will just be useless clutter. Another issue is privacy, as many people wouldn’t like their social media posts to instantly become public.

If UrtheCast is able to overcome these issues, and is able to collect the funding needed to start streaming, then they have a creative and potentially profitable idea that could revolutionize the media industry.

Image Source: https://github.com/urthecast

https://blogs.ubc.ca/hardevsidhu/2012/10/07/mcdonald-indias-high-end-problems/

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/has-mcdonalds-bitten-off-more-than-it-can-chew/488790/

I definitely agree with Hardev on this issue. Mcdonald’s India is already successful on a large scale; they have opened over  280 stores since they opened 15 years ago. Now, they are trying to improve the quality and customization of the food served, at the sacrifice of production speed. However, trying to change the tried and true business model may do more harm than good.

While the company has had success with their new “Made For You” business model in the Western world, I have difficulty believing that these gains will be possible in India. The middle class Indian’s disposable income is much lower than someone who lives in a developed country, and this means that the increased customization (and the increased price that comes with it) may not be met with open arms by consumers.

Another advantage that Mcdonald’s gives up when it switches to this new business model is the speed that the heating lamp and continuous stocking system offers to consumers. Many Indian consumers greatly value how quickly they are served when they go to a Mcdonald’s compared to other fast food chains. Without this speed of service, many time sensitive consumers will go to different stores that can meet their needs.

Mcdonald’s should avoid this change in their business model, as it eliminates too many key points of difference over its competition, which will greatly cut their sales.

Image Source: http://ascjportfolios.org/mmm/?p=493

http://bx.businessweek.com/social-entrepreneurship/view?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.socialenterprisebuzz.com%2F2012%2F10%2F17%2Fsprinkles-micronutrient-sachets-for-children%2F

Malnutrition is a crippling problem to the vast majority of impoverished nations across the globe. These countries are unable to provide their people balanced, nutritional diets, which results in mass starvation and suffering. Dr. Stanley Zlotkin, a research scientist and professor, has developed a solution to this devastating issue. His product, called “Sprinkles”, is a small packet filled with powder that fortifies food with key nutrients to survival, such as iron. It is cheap to produce, at just $0.035 USD, which makes it accessible to a large portion of the population. “Sprinkles” also has a long shelf like, lasting two years, making it both easy to transport and easy to store.

Dr. Stanley Zlotkin is the perfect example of a social entrepreneur. He has identified a problem plaguing society, which in this case is malnutrition, and tackled it head on. He has created a sustainable business model for his idea, which allows his product to grow exponentially and make a large positive impact on society.

He has supplied 15 million children across the globe with these nutritional packets, and continues to grow his business even further. Unfortunately, there are still roughly 600-700 million starving children across the world. Hopefully his company continues to grow, and “Sprinkles” will be able to serve the nutritional needs of every starving child in the world, and the issue of malnutrition will be solved.

Image Source: http://bx.businessweek.com/social-entrepreneurship/view?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.socialenterprisebuzz.com%2F2012%2F10%2F17%2Fsprinkles-micronutrient-sachets-for-children%2F

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/facebook-launches-gift-service-ventures-into-amazons-territory/article4573963/

Facebook always seems to be the king of innovation. From ad revenue, to virtual goods sales, they seem to always be more creative, and more successful than their competition. But when it comes to a gift service, I can’t see the social networking giant earning profit.

At first glance, it seems like a great idea. The convenience of gift-giving on Facebook seems apparent; all you have to do is click on a friends name on their birthday, and press “send”. But as the article outlined, there are some inherent problems.

The biggest problem would have to be the privacy. When you send a gift to your friends, they have to enter their address on the site. Facebook has been called into question on their privacy practices before. In the article, they say that Facebook’s current methods of keeping information private are “overrated”. If anyone on the internet were able to acquire your home address through this gift-giving service, consumers would have a hard time justifying its use.

It also has competition in this field, especially from Amazon. While Facebook has strength in convenience, Amazon towers over them in infrastructure. Amazon has well-built connections in shipping and distribution, which have taken years to develop. For Facebook to come in and try to compete would be a disaster. Amazon also has a much wider choice of products, whereas Facebook is limited to products such as cupcakes and Starbucks giftcards at the moment.

While I may disagree with the profit potential of Facebook’s gift-giving and “social commerce” projects, it isn’t the first time they’ve tried something new. Maybe these creative ideas are what Facebook needs to continue growing in the social networking sector.

Image Source: http://giftfind.ca/