By: Jaron Serven, Staff Writer

Russ Leiner sits back in his chair, the cool early-April breeze wafting past us into the spacious living room, and smiles.

“[Saltwater fish] were the most colorful, unbelievable fish you’d ever seen,” he says, remembering first glimpsing them at 15 or 16. “At that same time, Jacques Cousteau was on television—”

He breaks off, laughing slightly. His eyes gleam with good nature behind his spectacles and his black hair is dappled with grey.

“They didn’t have Discovery Channels back then.”

Russ has good reason to laugh—he’s looking back at the beginning of his success as a small-business owner.

As a country, America has never really been at the forefront of entrepreneurialism when it comes to small businesses. The primary mentality seems to be “go big, or go home.” However, with the recent economic hardship, more and more Americans—about 9.3 million since 2001, Forbes reports—are forging their own path, foregoing the usual routes to success and creating their own  businesses.

Yet there are still many jobless Americans out there who may be thinking about starting their own home-based entrepreneurship without any clue as to which field would suit them best. In Russ’s case, the choice was a very specific one:

“I’m a purveyor of saltwater aquarium equipment.”

Say what?

“I sell on the Internet, and through home-based business, dry goods and equipment for people to put together saltwater reef aquariums.”

Most people who hear about what he does initially meet the news with a mixture of apprehension and surprise, but Russ, like many writers, musicians and educators, is working in one of his oldest passions. Not in saltwater livestock itself, which he admires wholeheartedly, but in literally creating small environments for these beautiful creatures to live in, which he then sells on saltwatercritters.com

This is, briefly, a more complicated science than it seems. You must create the exact conditions of the ocean in the middle of your living room for the livestock to survive comfortably, which includes circulation, neutrality, salt content, everything. Even rudimentary set-ups recommended by pet-stores provide a complicated and thorough step-by-step process, which would prove infuriating to those expecting the easy set-up of a freshwater tank.

He wasn’t always in this field, and the path to it was long and, in its own way, fateful.  Russ originally comes from a background in accounting.  “And computer science…” he adds, smiling again. “But [that field] was a lot different than it is today.” He was a successful contractor, accountant and businessman for years.

Then, an unfortunate car accident left Russ unable to do his regular job, and the career he’d been working on for decades was suddenly gone.

But where some would find mere tribulation, Russ saw opportunity. “I got a chance to go and basically take my passion and make a business out of it.” What started as a childhood passion for colorful fish—one visit to the pet store, and he was hooked—grew into something that could flourish in our day and age. Still, the task of starting a business from scratch was (and is) no joke, especially during a time when the economy was in flux.

It doesn’t appear to have stressed Russ too much. In contrast to your stereotypical American citizen, he has an almost unusually calm demeanor. It might be influenced by that breeze, heralding the incoming arrival of spring and refreshing the living room of his home, or it could be encouraged by his small dog, Scooter, curled asleep in his lap.

That calm, as much as it’s a part of his personality, is also a carefully cultivated aspect of his business, and it’s likely contributed to his success.

Written by Oxana Tsirelman, Staff Writer

Many Canadians are currently struggling with how to wisely invest their money in order to retire with comfort. After all, any avenue is risky since you always have to decide which calculated risk is the best to take.

Try not to forget this fundamental rule in finance: “What you need to do is weigh out the risk versus the potential return. The difference between saving and investing is that investing is much riskier but has a much higher potential rate-of-return.”

One potential avenue to consider is property ownership. After all, most people want to eventually live on their own. If you can retire in a location that does not require monthly rental payments or a mortgage is a sound option. Besides, “if you can earn enough to buy a second house outright then you will be able to live in one and live off the rental from the other.”

Another viable option to invest your money is in pension funds since the money goes directly back to you when you retire. The way it works is that you invest a certain amount from your current income in a pension fund for retirement. However, considering the current collapse of some pension funds, you should exercise caution and consideration if pursuing this path.

Another good option is the Stock Purchase Plans since you are able to invest by little amounts. Investing small amounts of money through Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRPs) or Direct Stock Purchase Plans (DSPs) enables you to purchase right from the companies rather than going through a broker. Countless companies are offering this option and make it possible to invest as little as $20. Frankly, “basically these investments allow you to reinvest your dividends and slowly grow your investment.”

//
//
Lastly, investing your money in index funds works out well if you have several hundred dollars to invest. Basically, index funds finds index like the Dow, the Nasdaq, or the S&P500-an index based on 500 top companies in the main industry sector. Not only that, some index’s like the IRAs let you invest as little as $250! The advantage of this option is that index funds is a low cost option since they find the index for you, which saves you high management costs. If you decide to choose this option, be aware that the two primary ways to invest in index funds are through mutual funds or ETFs, short for exchange traded funds. ToInvestMoney.net asserts that “when investing in an index fund, you should keep your transaction costs less than 2% of the value of the transactions. So if you invest $500, you should ensure the transaction cost is no more than $10.”

These are just some of the wise ways of investing money into your retirement. Before you make your final decision, just don’t forget to do a lot of research!

ARB Team
Arbitrage Magazine
Business News with BITE.

By: Maureen Lu, Staff Writer

May 8th Protest at the State Library in Melbourne

For the first time, registered voters looking to vote on Malaysia’s 13^th general election were able to do so overseas at Malaysian diplomatic missions. Eileen Yong is an Australian-based Malaysian. Like a lot of her peers in both Malaysia and overseas, she is enthusiastic about Malaysian politics. She voted in Melbourne on May 4^th 2013, one day before the formal election process in Malaysia.

Eileen is not alone in voting for the Malaysian Election from Australia. Around 1700 Malaysians took advantage of this new process, with voting available at the Malaysian High Commission in Canberra and two consulates in Melbourne and Perth. Malaysians from Sydney and Brisbane drove or flew to Melbourne to vote.

“People are passionate about this election, because it is anticipated that the election will be very close between the incumbent and the opposition. People realize that for this time their one vote can actually make a difference,” said a Melbourne-based Malaysian banker.

However, passion for voting swiftly turned into protesting after the election result was announced. Malaysia’s governing coalition, Barisan Nasional, won 133 out of 222 seats, insuring its continuation as one of the world’s longest-ruling parties.  The BN has ruled the country since its independence from Britain in 1957.

Allegations of a fraud election are now floating around, especially through social media.

Allegations also assert that the ruling government created power blackouts at several polling centers where the Opposition had a lead. After the electricity came back, the votes counting for the ruling party had suspiciously increased.

The election authorities explained that the Malaysians include different ethnic communities with different appearances, so it is hard to just tell from the looks of someone whether they are in fact a legitimate Malaysian voter. They also firmly denied the allegations of blackouts. “Most of my friends have changed their Facebook profile image to black to show their anger about the blackout scheme of the government,” said Yong.

On May 8^th, Anwar Ibrahim, the opposition leader, called for a “Black 505” rally to protest the result. The rally spread throughout Malaysia and overseas to Australia. On the same day, almost 200 Malaysians gathered in front of the State Library in Melbourne. Most of them were in their twenties. They wore black to support the rally in Malaysia and held up signs proclaiming “save Malaysia” and “we want a clean and fair election.”

As a Chinese Malaysian, Yong also expressed her concern when Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak unhappily called the Chinese voters for the opposition  “Chinese tsunami,” and blamed them for the loss of several administration candidates in a national television news conference after the election.

This accusation might cause more racial division throughout the country. Under the current system, the ethnic Malays majority have been given preference in business, housing and education in fear of Indian and Chinese minorities gaining greater prosperity. This policy has lead to a flight of capital and talents from the country.

Chinese voters traditionally have great power in Malaysian economy. Even though ethnic Malays have benefited from positive discrimination in business, ethnic Chinese still hold economic control and are the wealthiest community in the country.

First published in jobpostings magazine

careers. education. ideas. all of it.

By Rebecca Feigelsohn

Image courtesy of JobPostings.ca

What in the heck is mediation, anyhow?

So, you have a bachelor of arts, and sometimes, you wonder why you didn’t study business or engineering—your friends in those faculties had secured jobs months before graduation. By now, you’re sick and tired of being asked if you are going to law school or teachers college, but those options are starting to seem more appealing, as the task of figuring out what you want to do is more daunting than ever.

But fear not, young arts grad: Mediation could be the career answer for you.

So, what exactly is mediation, anyways? It’s “a process of intervention in a dispute or negotiation by an impartial third party who has no decision making power,” writes ADR Canada, a non-profit organization promoting dispute resolution services. A mediator is neutral, and helps disputants settle disagreements by assisting them to find their own solution, one that’s acceptable to both parties.

Mediation is not therapy, nor is it legal advice; it’s a process that eliminates the misunderstandings that create conflicts. There’s a common misconception that mediators must be lawyers—this isn’t true. Mediators come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and according to Slaw, Canada’s online legal magazine, less than half have legal backgrounds. Virginia Harwood, program coordinator for Durham College’s mediation-ADR program, estimates 50 per cent of students enrolled in her program applied with a general B.A., though some had legal specializations.

Your arts degree has given you communication, problem solving and analytical skills, now all you need to do is to translate your proficiencies into a career. If you’re creative, patient and enjoy listening to people’s problems, becoming a mediator is a viable option. Even better: Job satisfaction is high, as you’re directly facilitating change, and, according to Who’s Who Legal, the job market is expected to experience growth in the coming years.

//

//

Litigation is, like, so passé

“Discourage litigation. Persuade your neighbours to compromise whenever you can. Point out to them how the nominal winner is often a real loser–in fees, expenses and waste of time.”

Abraham Lincoln’s advice from over a century ago is becoming progressively more relevant today. The popularity of mediation is rising, says ADR Canada, as individuals and businesses are increasingly interested in avoiding delays, publicity, and high costs of going to court, along with ensuring confidentiality and preserving existing relationships.

Mary Damianakis, a mediator who’s been practicing since the 1980s, says “There was a study that showed that approximately 80% of family disputes are being settled in mediation and only 20% are using the court system. So I think that’s a phenomenal change.” She believes community mediation also going to grow across Canada, and there will be a new demand for community mediators. Susan Baker, manager of the certificate program in Conflict Management at Conrad Grebel University College adds that “elder mediation is sort of currently gaining momentum”.

Training in mediation will provide you with communication, negotiation, conflict resolution, and people skills, along with the ability to think strategically. The general skills these courses provide should be accompanied by volunteering at organizations like Family Mediation Canada, or interning to gain hands-on experience.

By: Liana Crocco

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nevrlndtink/424712586/

Discussions about the impacts of sugar upon health have been enjoying their share of the media spotlight recently, especially in relation to concerns about rising obesity rates in America. Some have reason to believe sugar is largely responsible for the nation’s health problems and have suggested controversial solutions to the battle of the bulge; namely, making sugar less available to the general public. However, some wonder whether such regulations infringe too heavily on the expression of personal freedom.

New York City Mayor Bloomberg doesn’t seem to think so. He recently proposed a city wide ban on the sale of soda and other sweetened drinks in containers larger than 16 ounces at restaurants, movies theaters, food carts and ball parks. Characterizing his plan as an effort to “encourage people to live longer”, the mayor explains that the ban is motivated by concerns about increasing obesity rates.

//
//

The proposal has attracted its share of supporters; many feel the ban will impact the health of those affected in a positive way because it will force the consumer to think twice about buying a second drink and consuming more sugar. Conversely, detractors believe the ban restricts personal choice to an unacceptable degree. Bloomberg has countered such “Nanny State” accusations by emphasizing that the proposal would not prohibit individuals from purchasing 32 ounce bottles of soda from grocery stores, nor would the ban prevent customers from purchasing multiple 16 ounce soda containers from other venues.

As a result of the media frenzy generated by such debates, sugar and sugary drinks have recently become Public Enemy #1, but some feel the soda industry is being unjustly targeted and is not primarily responsible for the nation’s struggle with obesity. For example, Karen Hanretty, Vice President of Public Affairs for the American Beverage Association (ABA), told CNN the following: “Soda consumption has declined, even as obesity has increased. To say that sugar is solely responsible for obesity doesn’t make sense.”

Major soda companies also try to quell health concerns about their product through corporate social responsibility campaigns (CSR’s), according to media and public health experts writing in the journal PLoS Medicine. Examples of such campaigns include the Pepsi Refresh project: in 2010, Pepsi launched a social media campaign that sought consumer ideas for worthy causes, and then donated $20 million to the projects that received the greatest number of votes each month.

Similarly, Coca Cola’s Live Positively Campaign promoted healthy lifestyles among consumers with educational slogans and encouraged customers to support charitable projects. Such campaigns have garnered their share of backlash; critics believe that worthy causes are being allied with a particular soda so that the company can dodge health concerns about their drink.

Some researchers examining CSR initiatives argue that such campaigns are comparable to tactics employed by the tobacco industry in the 1950’s to sell their product. Further, numerous researchers argue that the harms of sugary beverages are similar to those of cigarettes. “Emerging science on the addictiveness of sugar, especially when combined with the known addictive properties of caffeine found in many sugary beverages, should further heighten awareness of the product’s public health threat similar to the understanding about the addictiveness of tobacco products,” they write.

For their part, the American Beverage Association contends:  “there is simply no comparison between soda and tobacco — not among our products, nor our business practices”.

Image Courtesy of: cbc.ca

Public transit was the theme of this year’s Global Engineering Innovation Challenge, as aspiring engineers were faced with the task of finding a solution to traffic congestion and to make Toronto a more transit-friendly city. The challenge was open to “anyone interested in taking an active role towards innovative solutions to real-world problems.” The team with the most feasible and inventive solution was awarded a $2,000 prize. The event was held on Mar. 23 at Victoria College, University of Toronto.

Lindsay Roxton and Howard Tran of team 21 were this year’s winners. The team focused on coming up with a way to raise money for transit that is also transparent to the public. The proposed approach was to involve a public referendum on new taxation to finance an infrastructure bank and to use traditional funding levels in a way that appeals to all stakeholders.

“She was big on the bonds, I was big on transit development and referendum,” said Tran. “She said, ‘what about a bank to tie it all together?’ It took us a while to figure it out and eventually got around it.”

This was the first GEIC event to take place in Toronto and there are plans to bring it back to the city next year. Joseph Yang was one of the main organizers from event sponsor Engineers Without Borders.

“As engineers we are trained to solve problems. You can build a faster car or a better smart phone, but we’re asking what problems are we solving that are giving benefits to society?” said Yang.

The GEIC aims to bring attention to these problems that go beyond improving consumer technology and focusing on problems that have a direct impact on society. The focus of coming up with ideas to improve public transportation in the GTHA (Greater Toronto Hamilton Area) fits into that criteria.

A big element of the whole event was the keynote presentation by Paul Bedford, a former Metrolinx director who is now an adjunct professor of urban and regional planning at Ryerson University and the University of Toronto. Bedford was also Toronto’s chief city planner for eight years. His speech touched on some of the latest issues public transportation is facing and also ways to get politicians more involved.

“The government has to educate the public better about the real costs and the real choices because people don’t have all the information their need to make intelligent decisions,” he said. “Some politicians need to bite the bullet on those tough decisions.”

Bedford believes that politicians need to start making the hard decisions of going through with urban plans to intensify public transit to improve the lives of citizens in the GTHA.

The need for innovations to meet challenges such as traffic congestion, or improvements to public transit is a growing concern, but initiatives like the GEIC hope to provide positive change for the future.

By: Sarah Hartwick, Staff Writer

Image courtesy of lestudio1.com

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield sang his goodbyes to the International Space Station on Sunday night with his own version of David Bowie’s Space Oddity.

The video, created by Hadfield and his son Evan, features the astronaut portraying the fictional ‘Major Tom,’ singing and playing his guitar. Shots of his performance, as he floats “in a most peculiar way,” are interspersed with scenes of the Earth below.

On Monday, the first Canadian commander of the space station returned to Earth with crew members Roman Romanenko and Tom Marshburn, landing on the Kazakhstan steppes in a Russian Soyuz space capsule.

Hadfield has gained status as a social media darling and celebrity spaceman over the course of his five-month mission, tweeting stunning pictures of Earth taken from the space station. He also posted a series of videos, documenting his day-to-day life, from downtime playing his guitar to the insides of an astronaut’s lunchbox.  His twitter feed now boasts 860,000 followers.

Hadfield isn’t the only astronaut with a knack for social media. NASA’s Twitter account has just over four million followers, and American astronaut Karen Nyberg, who will be on the space station for Expeditions 36 and 37, is a frequent tweeter.

Unfortunately, Canadians will be taking a break from direct space exploration. As it stands, the Canadian Space Agency’s interim head Gilles Leclerc has told the media that no Canadians are scheduled to man the station until 2016 at the earliest.

The wave of popularity comes at a conflicted time for the space agency. It faced budget cuts and controversies throughout the past year, culminating in January as former astronaut Steve MacLean left his post as president of the agency to begin research work on quantum physics. His departure followed a panel review on aerospace led by former Conservative cabinet minister David Emerson.

Although the review called for Canada to better sell its aerospace program on a global scale, it also condemned the agency’s handling of a project meant to provide Canada with three new observation satellites.

Sarah Hartwick is a freelance writer, an avid traveler, and a self-confessed crazy cat lady. In her spare time, she sits on the board of a growing NGO that’s striving to spread access to education throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Check out her blog to follow her adventures around the globe.

Sources

Canadian Space Agency

Commander Hafield’s Twitter

CBC News

Lestudio1.com

Gnews pics

By Viviane Fairbank, Staff Writer

Image Courtesy of: cbc.ca

Bixi Toronto’s financial troubles may soon be over as the TTC explores the possibility of a merge between the two public transit systems.

Karen Stintz, chair of the TTC, told CP24 that she intends to “move a motion to request a review of whether the TTC could actually take over the BIXI portfolio” during a recent council meeting.

Stintz reasons that an added component of Bixi bikes to the TTC system would allow for new, mutually beneficial public transit opportunities in Toronto. She suggested the placement of new bike share stations close to TTC stations, to help fill in what Jared Kolb of Cycle Toronto called “the gaps for trips that are too short to take transit or too far to walk – that two-kilometre sweet spot,” the Toronto Star reports.

This announcement follows a staff report that was presented to the executive committee last month, suggesting that the city consider options for restructuring its relationship with the struggling company.

Bixi Toronto, a child company for the Public Bike System Company based in Montreal, has been in financial trouble for the past few months.

Bixi’s spokesperson, Michel Philibert, told the Toronto Star that “the system is too small for Toronto,” and that it has been set up for failure. The company, which currently consists of 1,000 bikes at 80 stations, would need at least three times that number to be financially viable, says Philibert.

Starting out in 2011 with a $4.8 million loan guarantee from the city, the company has only been able to repay about one quarter so far. This is on top of a $108 million bailout package, including a $71 million loan guarantee and $37-million loan, from Montreal during its start-up year.

While Kolb believes that Bixi and the TTC are a natural fit, some city councillors are not so enthusiastic about the solution. Even Mayor Rob Ford said Bixi Toronto “should be dissolved. It’s a failure.”

Many are intimidated by the financial loss that Bixi represents. According to the Toronto Star, some Toronto staff warn that uncertainty about Bixi could hamper membership and make it “very challenging” to attract the corporate sponsorships that the program relies on.

By Sarah Munn, staff writer

Photo courtesy of PanARMENIAN_Photo

An unnamed top Syrian official is calling Israel’s latest attack on the country’s capital, Damascus, a “declaration of war.” The statement came in an exclusive interview with CNN.

Syria was not a good place to be on May 5. Structural damage and casualties were caused in what the Syrian government says is the second Israeli airstrike in three days. The Israeli military, however, has neither confirmed nor denied that they were the source of the rockets.

Despite Israel’s elusive stance on the matter, experts say it is highly likely the Israeli military was targeting a shipment of high-precision Iranian missiles being transported to Hezbollah, in Lebanon.

In the past, Israel has consistently said it wants no part in Syria’s civil war. However they have said they will stop weapons from reaching extremist groups who are a threat to Israel. Hezbollah and Israel have a long history of conflict.

The problem in this case is that Syria views the airstrike as a direct attack on its government. It stated the purpose of Israel’s attacks is “to give direct military support to terrorist groups,” the same groups fighting the Syrian government.

The fact that there have been two other notable strikes this year, seemingly by Israel, doesn’t help.

In late January, Syria said the same Jamraya research centre was attacked by Israel, though Israel said the target was weapons on their way to Hezbollah.

On May 3 another strike hit a shipment of missiles near the Lebanon border. This was confirmed by US and Israeli officials.

Omran Zoabi, the Syrian Information Minister said these attacks “open the door to all possibilities.”

Although there has not been a statement of Syria’s plan of action in response to the Israeli airstrike, Zoabi did say Damascus has to protect the state from any “domestic or foreign attack through all available means.”

Sources

Syria: Attack on Military Facility was a ‘Declaration of War’ by Israel, by Frederik Pleigten

Fresh Israeli Attacks ‘Open the Door to all Possibilities,’ Syria Says, by Basem Mroue and Ian Deitch

Israeli Strikes on Syria ‘Co-ordinated with Terrorists,’ by Yolande Knell

PanARMENIAN_Photo

By Jordan Smith, staff writer

According to Yun Sun’s article China’s Increasing Interest in Africa: Benign but Hardly Altruistic, Chinese president Xi Jinping recently committed another $20 billion for development projects in Africa.

“China usually attaches a significant amount of such funding to infrastructure projects, which forms the foundation for Africa’s industrialization and economic development” states Yun.

“Anaemic growth in the rich world has made sub-Saharan Africa an attractive destination for money and its managers. Foreign direct investment has increased by about 50% since 2005” according to the The Economist.

Although he is not against China’s investments in the continent, Nigeria’s Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi warns against repeating the costly mistakes of European colonialism. His concerns are not so much a warning to foreign investors as they are a call to people in Africa to recognize the pitfalls of such relationships and be proactive in helping themselves assert economic independence.

“Africa must seize the moment. We must encourage a shift from consuming Chinese-made goods to making and consuming our own. We must add value to our own agricultural products” says Sanusi.

In addressing his compatriots Sanusi asserts that “We must blame ourselves for our fuel subsidy scams, for oil theft if in the Niger Delta, for our neglect of agriculture and education, and for our limitless tolerance of incompetence.”

“New discoveries of oil, gas, and other minerals in African countries will generate a wave of significant mineral wealth in the region” according to an article published by The World Bank.

Infrastructure investments are vital to economic progress. Without them the resources that are so abundant (for now) have no way of reaching their respective markets.

In accordance with Sanusi’s mantra African nations and their populations must be proactive in their nation’s fragile but valuable economies.

During the scramble for Africa in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries there was little to no foresight into how the economic practices of European nations would undermine Africa’s potential. This proved to be a disastrous mistake with long lasting repercussions for both Europe and Africa.

Now it is up to African leaders and the population to make known that Africa will develop on its own terms, and not fall prey to a second scramble.