Tiltai

One of the most important aspects influencing the quality of life is education. The paper includes the research results from an analysis of how the level of education affects quality of life, and the development of different initiatives and values. An analysis of scientific literature is performed, with a more detailed analysis of data from Latvia, taking into account the level of household income and satisfaction with life. Research methods applied: analysis of scientific findings, analysis of time-series on several indicators of development related to different education indicators, and income indicators depending on educational level, with a calculation of income confidence interval with a probability of 0.95 for households with different educational levels. Data used in the research: data from databases of the Official Statistics Portal of the Republic of Latvia, Household Finance and Consumption Survey. The research results indicate that households in Latvia with a higher education have a significantly higher income than households with primary or no education.

The aim of the article is to prove the positive impact of education on work salary. For this purpose, the main task of the article is toestimate the Mincer rate of return by taking several factors into account. A secondary task of the research is to analyze the results of2010 and 2011 and to find explanations for the significant differences between the two years. The results of research and a detailedanalysis of the labour market indicate a positive return from attainment of education at an individual level, and they strengthen thehypothesis about a correlation among higher education attainment, higher employment levels and welfare. So far, the Mincer rate ofreturn has not been widely used in Latvia.

The article reflects on the attitude, understanding and knowledge on sustainable marketing, as well as the essence of sustainable marketing,the strategy of its practical use and the concept of development. As a result of research, definitions of sustainable developmentand sustainable marketing and a model of concept of motivation of its use at a company were developed and the strategy of practicaluse of a sustainable marketing and the motivation of use at Latvian companies was ascertained, confirming the initially advancedhypotheses. In order to fulfil the purpose and objectives, the authors used the following quantitative and qualitative methods ofeconomic research: polls, comparisons, grouping. The study is based on scientific papers published by Latvian and foreign scholars,general and special literature, periodicals. The authors performed an assessment, market research, comparative analysis, arrangedan expert examination and used the computer software MS Excel for the analysis and processing of data. The article is based on theresults of the author’s research in 2013. The authors used examination and monitoring in their research.

The main aim of the research is to reveal the philosophical foundations of the concept of sustainable development. The scope of this research includes an analysis of the philosophical meaning of the concept of sustainable development, focusing on the revealing of the synergy of metaphysical, ethical and ecological parameters of this concept. To give a deeper understanding about different opinions and approaches to sustainable development, there will be an interpretation of some theoretical perspective both about sustainable development and also about different philosophical theories and how they are related sustainable development. The concept of sustainable development is not only concerned with the well-being of people but also of the world where human live, therefore the concept of sustainable development can be understood as holistic philosophy that includes classical philosophical prospects as well as harmonizes and integrates the activities of economic, sociopolitical and ecological system. Therefore, in this article are raised concrete tasks: to analyze the literature and reveal the philosophical context of the formation of the concept of sustainable development; to analyze classical ethical philosophical theories and argue their significance for the concept of sustainable development; to analyze a holistic philosophical approach and to argue its significance for the concept of sustainable development.

The 21st century is identified in the country’s strategic documents as a century of rapid technological, climatic and economic change, and countries must not be afraid of innovation and knowledge of the world through information technology. According to strategic documents, the education of gifted children is also one of the country’s priorities. Gifted pre-school children need to develop and continuously improve their abilities, and the stimulation of these abilities can be enhanced by information and communication technologies. The article analyses the educational possibilities for gifted pre-school children using information communication technology, the characteristics of gifted pre-schoolers, and the possibilities for the identification of gifted pre-schoolers. The study suggests that gifted pre-school children are educated in an individualised way according to their needs, they are identified by their abilities which stand out from their peers, information communication technologies are used to diversify the education of gifted pre-school children, and that the biggest problem educators face while developing gifted children is the lack of information and the lack of communication tools.