An opportunity always exists within a crisis. Now, Japan is in a crisis. The country is suffering from the aftermath of a strong earthquake and tsunami. Furthermore, they are exposed to radiation. However, I think that the Japanese crisis might give an opportunity to them.
'Crisis' is written as 'êËѦ' in Chinese characters. 'êË' means a risk and ¡®Ñ¦¡¯ means an opportunity. The Chinese characters ¡®êËѦ¡¯ mean that risk and opportunity exist together. In western side, the word 'crisis' is derived from the Greek word 'krinein' which is used in medical language meaning a sudden and crucial change of illness which could decide life or death. Therefore, if it is wisely overcome, it would end up with living.
Many historic accidents have demonstrated the coexistence of crises and opportunities. Lots of experts agree that since the 1990s, Korea's biggest crisis was the IMF crisis. However, most major firms started to manage their companies with more transparency, and a lot of insolvent financial companies disappeared after the IMF crisis. Also, international trade has been extended and liberalized. Korea's economy has grown and the export volume has increased.
The disaster in Japan can offer a great opportunity to stimulate their economy. Actually, Japan has gone through economic stagnation for 20 years. However, the government couldn't reform the high exchange rate of the yen due to a close relationship between political and banking circles. Experts anticipate that the Japanese economy can boom again as the government has issued much money to help the recovery. Also, although it takes a long time to recover from the situation, the economic activity for the recovery process will help to stimulate the Japanese economy.
Not only Japan but also the present Korean university students and universities are in a crisis. The college students have been having a hard time. Tuitions have increased rapidly as time has gone by. Moreover, inflation is rising quickly and employment rates are so low. They have to study hard to get a good job, and they also have to earn money due to the expensive tuition fees and the high inflation.
However, I believe that these bad situations will certainly bring a chance to solve the problems of universities and Korean education policies. Some students have already left school out of skepticism about universities, and other students succeeded in business after quitting school. We can't overcome our crises with just routine solutions, but we can overcome them with creative solutions. That will be an opportunity to make us grow.
|