In my thesis I will compare the public diplomacy and national branding of the Czech Republic and Switzerland. The goal of the thesis is to define, explore and evaluate these fields for both countries. This paper will focus on identifying different aspects of nation branding in these two countries and will aim to evaluate the strategy and sketch the recommendations. The thesis is divided into 3 parts. In the first part the author defines and describes public diplomacy as general term. The second part is dedicated to the public diplomacy of small and medium states. The last chapter focuses on the comparison of public diplomacy and nation branding of the Czech Republic and lesson that could be learned from Switzerland. The goals of this chapter are as follows. To compare aspects and specifics of these two states and evaluate specific activities developed by governments to improve the perception of their country by the foreign public.

Small and medium sized enterprises(SME) play a crucial role in Slovak economy. However, Slovak market is relatively small, therefore SMEs are forced to penetrate international markets. If they want to succeed, they have to offer cheaper or better goods than their foreign competitors. Authors offer many solutions how to improve competitiveness. Thats why I decided to analyse main factors which directly or indirectly have an impact on companies'export performance.

The thesis deals with services of CzechTrade foreign offices and evaluation of the services contribution to small and medium enterprises. The first two parts of the thesis describe the state support of export and CzechTrade agency. The following part of the thesis provides details about services of CzechTrade foreign offices. The last part of the thesis evaluates the services contribution to small and medium enterprises. The thesis on the basis of survey compares the state's and companies' point of view regarding the countries of priority interest for export and it appraises the level of cooperation between the public and private sector.

The diploma thesis focuses on developing a business plan to project Cinema-café. The goal is an overall assessment of the viability of the business plan, developing the financial plan, marketing strategy, SWOT analysis, evaluation of project risks and their elimination.

La crise du logement en France pose la question de la production de foncier pour le logement. Les collectivités locales sont souvent désignées comme responsables majeurs de la pénurie foncière, que ce soit par manque de volonté politique, par manque de moyens, ou par une difficile coordination des échelles de décisions (commune/intercommunalité). Le parti pris de cette thèse est de questionner cette vision en effectuant un travail empirique. Il s’agit alors d’analyser les pratiques et stratégies des collectivités locales (communes et EPCI) en faveur de la mobilisation du foncier à destination de l’habitat. Cette analyse prend comme objet des agglomérations moyennes, le Pays Voironnais (Isère) et le Beauvaisis (Oise), qui doivent aujourd’hui retrouver un dynamisme économique et démographique tout en étant confronté à la crise des finances publiques. Ces territoires ont l’intérêt de présenter des profils de communes très différentes (urbain, périurbain, rural) qui peuvent jouer sur l’appréhension de la question foncière. Un éclairage comparatif est également apporté à partir d’un cas néerlandais (Nimègue). Nous développons une méthode d’analyse empirique en recensant l’ensemble des interventions foncières des collectivités pour identifier les leviers (outils, procédures, etc.) qui ont conduit à la mobilisation des terrains et à la maitrise des projets. Cette méthode permet de redéfinir les contours de ce qu’est concrètement une politique foncière locale, en tenant compte de la diversité des expériences et des modes de faire des collectivités. / The current French housing crisis rises the question of land production for housing development. Local authorities are often considered as the major responsible for the land unavailability, because of their lack of means or of political will, or because of bad scale coordination between local decision-makers (municipalities/multi-municipal administrations). The thesis addresses this view through an empirical study. We analyse practices and strategies of local authorities (municipalities and multi-municipal administrations) in favour of land production for housing development. This analysis applies to medium-sized agglomerations, the Pays Voironnais (Isère) and the Beauvaisis (Oise), which need to stimulate residential and economic development while facing local resources decrease. We find varied municipal profiles (urban suburban, rural) in those territories, which may influence the perception of land issues. Comparison is made with a Dutch case (Nijmegen). For our empirical analysis, we inventory all municipal interventions in land and property, in order to identify the levers (tools, procedures) that supports the land production and the control of housing projects. This method allows us to redefine the outlines of what is actually a land policy, taking into account the diversity of experiences and practices of local authorities. This work questions the obstacles and incentives of local land policies and gives sense to those practices that are rarely expressed as public policies.

The media play an indisputable role in human life. Thus, we come across media communication daily in today's world. Online social networks have had a significant role in such communication over the past decade. The Facebook social network presents an example of such a phenomenon, which does not have a rival in terms of its size in the Czech Republic. It has rapidly become a communication media through which millions of people around the world consume various content. In recent years, this platform has been applying and continually adjusting its algorithm to provide users with personalized content. The personalized content is provided on the basis of the algorithm which evaluates what might be appropriate or interesting for people. From this point of view, this thesis called Filter bubbles on Facebook social network is examining the existence of a so-called filter bubble phenomenon. The information bubbles present information isolation in which people lack a diversity of information which would help people to get into an opinion diversification, and therefore to have an opportunity to have a new point of view about a certain phenomenon. Through the combined qualitative method of diaries and subsequent interviews, it explores how young people consume news content on this social network and, above...

Orientador: Fernanda da Cruz Landim / Resumo: As células-tronco mesenquimais (MSCs) exercem seus efeitos terapêuticos predominantemente pela sua atividade parácrina. Como o secretoma desempenha um papel direto nas atividades biológicas das MSCs, a análise de seus componentes proteicos é um passo fundamental para identificar os principais responsáveis no controle e regulação dos muitos processos biológicos desenvolvidos por essas células. O secretoma de MSCs pode ser modificado e melhorado de forma in vitro para estimular efeitos celulares específicos desejados para aplicações terapêuticas, e uma maneira de modificá-lo é por meio de modificações nas condições de cultura. No presente estudo, objetivou-se descrever o secretoma de células-tronco mesenquimais derivadas de tecido adiposo (AD-MSCs) de gatos e cães submetidos a diferentes condições de cultivo, identificamos e comparamos os efeitos exercidos por diferentes modificações de cultivo. Para a produção de meio condicionado, as células foram descongeladas e cultivadas com meio DMEM/F12 com 20% de FBS, suplementado com antibióticos e antimicóticos em uma incubadora com umidade controlada a 37,5 °C, e 5% de CO2. Após atingir pelo menos 70% de confluência, as garrafas foram lavadas três vezes com solução salina balanceada Hanks (HBSS) e foram cultivadas em quatro condicionamentos distintos. O meio condicionado foi colhido após 4 dias, centrifugado por 10 min/300 g, filtrado em um filtro 0,22 μm e congelado a -80 °C. Foram realizadas a extração e concentração proteica de to... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: It is now known that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) exert their therapeutic effects predominantly through their paracrine activity. Since the secretome plays a direct role in the biological activities of MSCs, the analysis of their protein components is a fundamental step in identifying the main responsible for the control and regulation of the many biological processes developed by these cells. The MSCs secretome can be modified and improved in vitro to stimulate specific cellular effects desired for therapeutic applications, and one way of modifying it is through modifications in the culture conditions. In the present study, in addition to describing for the first time the secretome of mesenchymal stem cells derived from adipose tissue (AD-MSCs) in feline species, we identified and compared the effects exerted by different culture modifications, such as the use of serum-free medium and hypoxia in the protein production by AD-MSCs in canines and felines. For the conditioned media production, the cells were thawed and cultured with DMEM/F12 medium with 20% fetal bovine serum (FBS), supplemented with antibiotics and antimycotics in controlled incubator ay 37.5 °C with 5% CO2. After reaching at least 70% confluency, the flasks were washed three times with Hanks balanced salt solution (HBSS) and were grown in four different conditions. Conditioned media were collected after 4 days, centrifuged for 10 min/300 g, filtered on a 0.22 μm filter and frozen at -80 °C. Protein extraction... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre

South Africa, like most developing countries, has one of the highest levels of unemployment. Within South Africa’s borders the highest levels of unemployment are found in areas of the Eastern Cape Province, which is one of the poorest provinces. In these areas, Small Medium Micro Enterprises (SMMEs) have grown out of the necessity for employment. For these SMMEs to succeed, good support programmes from development agencies is vital. It is also important that the recipients of the support perceive this support to be meeting their needs. This research surveyed the perceptions of Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) supported SMMEs regarding the support services they received in the OR Tambo District municipality. The findings confirmed that the SMME entrepreneurs surveyed perceive the ECDC’s financial and non-financial support as particularly instrumental in helping them start up their businesses. The biggest perceived challenge is that ECDC does not have enough programmes to help SMMEs to grow beyond start-up stage. Furthermore, the SMME entrepreneurs are dissatisfied with the quality of service they receive from ECDC employees. The lessons of this study are that the SMME entrepreneurs realise the important role that ECDC plays in contributing to their business success. They also believe that ECDC has to evolve constantly with the times by having programmes targeted at start-up businesses, strengthening existing businesses, and growing established businesses to higher levels. The study results suggest that ECDC needs to improve on the quality of their programmes to meet the needs of all types of SMMEs, create more awareness about its programmes, but most importantly, ECDC needs to equip its employees with the skills to support SMMEs of various backgrounds.

Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) in the South African present context are integral instruments of economic and social development. In these times of high unemployment in South Africa, the need for SMMEs to alleviate the high rate of poverty due to unemployment is evident. The government is committed to ensure that small businesses progressively increase their contribution growth and performance of the South African economy in critical areas such as job creation, equity and access to markets. As from 1994, with the new advent of a new democratic era, government has taken measures to ensure that small business development becomes a key focus. Since then, government has put in place institutions and programmes within all three tiers of government with the aim of providing comprehensive support to small business. This is suggestive of the government being mindful of the challenges/gaps which still need to be addressed to support small business especially in rural areas where unemployment and poverty are rife. Whilst there are institutions which provide support to SMMEs, the overall impact of these initiatives is insignificant. This study explored the perceptions of the owners of rural-based SMMEs about factors responsible for the success and failure of rural-based SMMEs. The study adopted a qualitative approach and it was exploratory in nature. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five owners of rural-based SMMEs and with three key informants from three local municipal districts/offices around Pietermaritzburg in KZN. The main findings of the study identified initiatives to address the challenges to rural-based SMMEs, such as, provision of good infrastructure, business management skills, business equipment and land/premises. The recommendations suggested a need of partnerships between banks and community business support organizations, subcontracting of SMMEs to big business, introducing entrepreneurship from school level and introducing monitoring and evaluation systems in all government levels as proposals to address challenges to rural-based SMMEs.

A research submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of Witwatersrand in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Commerce (Taxation), Johannesburg, 2017 / South Africa is young democratic country with just 22 years in democracy underpinned by the South African Constitution Act of 1996. Achievements and strides have been made to address the ills of the past but like any other emerging economy, major challenges remain. These challenges impact on business and the society at large. These challenges include lack of education, high rate of unemployment, high levels of inequality, lack of infrastructure and investment stimulate growth. This has been compounded by the slowdown in the world economy. The culmination of these issues has resulted in slow or very little economic growth. The South African Government remains instrumental in the development of the economy. Much is still required to ensure that there is prosperity for all that live in the country. The Government has come-up with the National Development Plan (NDP) 2030 as the economic growth strategy to address these major challenges. There are various programmes and plans set up by the Government to address these challenges. This research discusses some of the initiatives to address these challenges. As mentioned above, one of the critical issues facing South Africa is the lack of infrastructure and investment to boost the South African economy. The focus of this report is on tax incentives to support Small Medium Enterprises and industry at large with a view that development of Small Medium Enterprises will yield economic growth. Reputable institutions such as OECD share a view that development and growth of SMEs is quite critical to the economic growth, SMEs are equally important for South African economic growth. ‘SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) account for 60 to 70 per cent of jobs in most OECD countries, with a particularly large share in Italy and Japan, and a relatively smaller share in the United States. Throughout they also account for a disproportionately large share of new jobs, especially in those countries which have displayed a strong employment record, including the United States and the Netherlands.’ OECD publication, SMALL BUSINESSES, JOB CREATION AND GROWTH: FACTS, OBSTACLES AND BEST PRACTICE. One can argue that with 60 to 70 per cent of jobs for most OECD countries, Small Medium Enterprises are actually the economic drivers for these countries. / XL2018