Iceland Emma Sutphin
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International Marketing Project: Iceland Emma Sutphin Crater School of Business May 18, 2012 Emma Sutphin Iceland Table of Contents Introduction .................................................................................................... 2 Issue ................................................................................................................ 3 Nonprofit ........................................................................................................ 5 Geographical Area Analysis ........................................................................... 7 Economic Analysis I ....................................................................................... 9 Economic Analysis II ................................................................................... 12 Political System ............................................................................................ 16 Trade Laws and Legal Analysis ................................................................... 19 Population ..................................................................................................... 20 Diet and Nutrition ......................................................................................... 25 Housing ......................................................................................................... 28 Transportation ............................................................................................... 30 Labor ............................................................................................................. 32 Education ...................................................................................................... 34 Clothing ........................................................................................................ 37 Recreation and Leisure ................................................................................. 38 Language ...................................................................................................... 40 Religion ........................................................................................................ 42 Bibliography ................................................................................................. 44 Appendix ...................................................................................................... 46 ICE Print Ad .......................................................................................... 46 ICE Brochure ......................................................................................... 47 Kleinúr Recipe ....................................................................................... 49 Etiquette ............................................................................................... 50 Country Selection Letter .......................................................................... 50 1 Emma Sutphin Iceland Introduction Although there are many countries in the world that need a helping hand from a nonprofit organization, there is one country in particular that is ideal for such a nonprofit. That country is Iceland, and the reasons for choosing it range from its ideal shipping location to its pristine natural beauty. Iceland is a country that is not often offered assistance, since it is considered a highly developed country. However, the best way to start a successful business is to find a niche that provides services no one else can. Small African countries are already inundated with nonprofits that provide basic services, but Iceland has virtually no international assistance from nonprofit organizations. The time is right to help Iceland become independent and self-sufficient, and the way to do that is through a nonprofit by the name of ICE. ICE stands for the International Coalition for the Environment, and it is an organization that is firmly committed to making the world a better place through education and legislation to reduce our impact on the environment. Currently, ICE is focused on an environmental issue in Iceland that has gone unresolved for too long. No other group or organization has taken action to solve Iceland’s environmental problems, and that is why ICE has stepped up and taken on Iceland as the latest country to gain assistance. The issue that is currently plaguing Iceland’s wilderness and the world’s skies is the practice of smelting aluminum. This is a major industry in Iceland that produces a large percentage of the national income by itself, but it is extremely dangerous and must be stopped. Because of these smelting operations, the greenhouse gas emissions of Iceland have increased by twofold over the last twenty years, a rate that even surpasses the United States (earthtrends.wri.org, 2007). As Iceland obtains 80% of its electricity from geothermal or hydroelectric power, the only explanation for this drastic increase is the rapid expansion of the aluminum smelting industry (nationsencyclopedia.com, 2007). The smelting plants also cause extensive damage to the surrounding flora and fauna, and this land does not recover for a long time. Iceland’s wilderness is a major tourist attraction, and that revenue may disappear altogether soon if smelting plants are allowed to continue to destroy the environment in Iceland (savingiceland.org, 2011). In order to fully understand the effects that the aluminum smelting plants have on Iceland, an overview of Iceland is necessary. Iceland is a very small country, with a population of only 317,000 (citypopulation.de, 2012). Over half of those people live in or around the capital city, Reykjavík. So many more people live in this area because of the more temperate climate and extensive infrastructure. In the more northern regions of Iceland, roads are often unpaved and there are few stores. Due to Iceland’s northerly location, the country receives only about four hours of sunlight per day in the winter but over twenty hours in the summer (travelnet.is, 2009). The climate is cold, which means that few crops will grow there. This leaves fishing and sheep farming as the two major agricultural industries in Iceland, and over 70% of jobs are in the service industry (cia.gov, 2012). The only other major industry is aluminum smelting. Shutting down or slowing the production of these plants may be made more difficult by the fact that it is a major source of revenue, but those difficulties will be offset by Iceland’s political climate. Iceland is a very liberal country, with cradle to grave free health care and free education from age six to twenty. They also have strict environmental regulations on every industry and activity except for aluminum smelting. The majority that currently holds the Icelandic Althingi, or parliament, is a coalition between two left-leaning parties: the Left-Green movement and the 2 Emma Sutphin Iceland Social Democratic Alliance. These two groups hold enough votes to pass regulations that would help stop the smelting plants, and ICE is confident that laws can be passed to provide a permanent fix for the issue (nationmaster.com, 2011). There are several ways that the issue may be addressed, and ICE believes that a multi-pronged approach is the best way to resolve this issue. First, the damage that the smelting operations cause to the surrounding land can be offset by trees and native grassed that will be plated in the area. These plants will provide a barrier to chemicals leaching any further into the soil as well as improve the aesthetics of the land. The trees will also remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, which will minimize the environmental harm caused by the release of greenhouse gases from the plants. The trees can be grown as saplings in greenhouses, which will require Icelandic jobs in order to build and maintain the facilities. This would help improve Iceland’s unemployment rate, as long term workers would be needed to grow the plants. Also, a line of Icelandic sweaters will be marketed overseas, with all sales profits going toward the restoration project. ICE believes that this approach will be the most effective one to produce positive and lasting change for Iceland, and we hope that you will join us in completing this goal. Issue As an advanced first world country, Iceland is often viewed as not being in need of any assistance or foreign aid. However, this assumption is highly incorrect. Iceland has several issues that need addressing, most of them caused by the banking collapse in 2008. Iceland has a high rate of alcoholism as well as a relatively high unemployment rate, but the issue that is currently most important to the country is concerning the aluminum smelting plants currently operating there. The plants began expanding their operations after the financial collapse, and some argue that the plants must remain open in order to provide jobs to Icelanders. However, the plants cause extensive environmental damage to Iceland’s pristine countryside. This issue has divided the country for too long. Through decisive action, the pollution of these plants can be stopped in its tracks. The issue at stake is derived from the process of aluminum smelting itself. First, an ore called bauxite, which contains aluminum, is mined. This mineral usually comes from Australia, South America, or Africa, as Iceland does not have any natural bauxite deposits. The bauxite is shipped by boat to one of Iceland’s several smelting plants, where it is refined into pure aluminum. The aluminum contained in bauxite is in the form of aluminum oxide, or alumina,