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Purpose: This paper explores the economic and social effects of human capital investment in the 20th century. As well as drawing on census data and statistical yearbooks in Australia and Aoteoroa/New Zealand, the paper develops its argument by an intersection of scholarly work in sociology, economics and the history of education to consider the effects of increased human capital investment on economic growth but also on the experiences of childhood, work discipline and the present climate crisis. Design/methodology/approach: This paper considers the implications of what economic historian Claudia Goldin has described as the "human capital century" for the history of school and university education. By reconsidering education in the settler colonies, especially Australia and Aoteoroa/New Zealand, as "stimulus", this helps explain key aspects of contemporary human capital investment, which the paper argues should be understood as constituted by children's and young people's free labour at school, university and across the economy. Findings: This research argues that children's and young people's free labour, performed in educational institutions, constitutes a large portion of Australia and Aoteoroa/New Zealand's national investment in human capital. At key points, this investment has acted as an economic stimulus, promoting surges of profitability. The effects were not confined to young people. Systematised, educational expansion also became the foundation of environmental degradation, labour market exploitation and a relentless increase in service-sector productivity that is worn on professional bodies. Productivity increases have been associated with reduced professional autonomy as a managerial class coerced professionals into working harder, though often under the guise of working "smarter" -- a fiction that encouraged or coerced even greater personal investment in collective human capital. This investment of personal time, effort and selfhood by children and the professionals they grew into can thus be seen, in Marxian terms, as a crucial vector of capitalist exploitation in the 20th century. Practical implications: The paper concludes by suggesting that a reduction of managerial influence in educational settings would improve learner and professional autonomy with improved labour and environmental conditions. Originality/value: The paper makes a unique contribution to the history of education by exploring education as stimulus as a key component of education's role in 20th and 21st century capitalism. It interrogates exploitative aspects of human capital investment, especially in the midst of environmental catastrophe and the recent COVID crisis.

This paper focuses on the rapidly expanding field of largescale international assessment surveys and their impact on the field of adult education and learning. I take the case of OECD's survey assessing adult skills (PIAAC) and situate it within the wider context of the datification of educational policy and practice. The claims made for the policy effects of surveys like PIAAC are far-reaching and include the promotion of economic growth and more inclusive and equitable societies. I examine how these claims are translated into national contexts by examining documentary data collected from the OECDs publicity materials and media coverage of the second round PIAAC survey findings in 2016 in four of the nine countries that took part: Singapore, Greece, New Zealand and Slovenia. Using a socio-material approach, I discuss how these discourses were managed by the OECD and national actors and show how the survey findings are framed and interpreted through existing public debates. The paper concludes that international assessments do not serve the goals of growth and equity in any straightforward way, since many interests and contextual factors may intervene to create a mismatch between the testers' intentions, media discourse and policy outcomes.

This paper examines the framing of globalising education as an industry in New Zealand. It traces the development of industry institutions to promote and regulate cross-border educational relations and practices. The paper argues that the making of a national "international education industry" has framed entrepreneurial education providers, international students and other subjects and spaces of globalising education for a particular form of governance. Framed as an industry these subjects and spaces have been made available for, and mobilised in, political projects of globalisation, knowledge economy, and other after-neo-liberal political projects. The case is used to reflect on "how" education is being globalised as well as globalisation constituted. (Contains 8 notes, 3 tables, and 1 figure.)

This paper examines discourses and developments of the knowledge economy and learning society in Australia and New Zealand. It outlines the international context of the rise of the knowledge-based economy and sets the New Zealand and Australian debates against this backdrop. A current heightened emphasis on education and learning in both countries is closely aligned with the key imperatives of economic development and competitiveness. Older models of the learning society based more on cultural and humanistic aspirations remain evident and competitive with economic models. Prospects for further innovative development in education and learning across the life course, and across a broader population in democratic societies are considered. The paper concludes that notwithstanding the current influence of singularly economic discourses shaping conceptions of the learning economy and society there is no definitive or triumphant model of the learning society prevailing in Australia and New Zealand.

Data show that educated workers earn higher wages and are unemployed less often. Some researchers believe that education improves a worker's productivity (or "human capital"), making them more desirable on the job market, while others believe that it improves a worker's network (or "social capital"), giving them more information about lucrative openings and more resources to secure a job (such as references from peers). Much of the research on human and social capital focuses on quantifying the various impacts of schooling on workers and often overlooks how economic systems actually manage to produce those outcomes. This paper develops an agent-based complex adaptive system featuring formal schooling and on-the-job training, social networks, labour market search and durable employment contracts to explain the process linking education to labour market outcomes and economic performance in New Zealand (and similar economies). Sample simulations show that human capital accumulation explains many of the novel facts seen in the data, while social capital alone is not enough.

Purpose: Temporary labour mobility programmes (TLMPs) are initiated by high-income nations to fill their labour demands by offering temporary work opportunities to migrants from low-income nations. TLMPs also seek to contribute to economic development in workers' home countries. This paper aims to assess the accountability of New Zealand's Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Scheme and Australia's Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) in reaching their economic development objectives in one sending nation, Samoa. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative study with RSE and SWP workers and key informants (collectively stakeholders) in Samoa was undertaken to assess the contributions of these schemes to economic development. An interdisciplinary research approach was taken using the Pacific methodology of talanoa. Talanoa was used to "operationalise engagement" and empower local stakeholder accounts. Findings: Talanoa supported the elicitation of accounts that contributed nuanced insights into the accountability of TLMPs. Specifically, stakeholder accounts revealed limitations in the ability of the RSE Scheme and SWP to meet their economic development objectives for Samoan communities and workers. Adjustments are necessary to meet Pacific nations' economic development objectives. Practical implications: This study responds to calls for on-the-ground accounts of stakeholders involved in TLMPs. It provides insights that may contribute to the development of more effective TLMPs, particularly regarding economic development in workers' home countries. Originality/value: Drawing on dialogic accounting literature, which calls for engagement with the marginalised, a talanoa approach has been engaged to assess TLMPs via on-the-ground participant accounts in a specific context. This paper introduces talanoa to the critical and social accounting literature, to move beyond a typical accounting qualitative interview process and encourage greater engagement and collaboration with Pacific scholars and partners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a critique of academic experiences of neoliberal economic reform at a New Zealand (NZ) university. The authors engaged in a collaborative inquiry that was based upon a developing theoretical perspective of the reform process and how this affected their academic lives. We were keen to develop an understanding of liberal educational philosophy and how neoliberalism impacts on this. In this context we examined the nature of compliance and an academic's role in society. We conclude that universities in NZ are historically liberal and that there are limits to the neoliberal project due to the relationship that individuals have with knowledge and the pressures that come from being part of a worldwide academic community that aspires to excellence in research and teaching. However, new compliance measures, such as Performance-based Research Funding, have changed academic work and made a broader societal role for academics more difficult. In serving society universities are required to accept a role as critic and conscience of society. We suggest that academics must be both critic and conscience and that this responsibility can be fulfilled through our conduct, empowerment and speaking on behalf of others.

Rural places acquire value in different ways and geographers have adopted a range of approaches to understand the way value is created in land and place. This paper analyses the case of the Gimblett Gravels wine district in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. This district has been transformed over the space of 20 years from a peri-urban wasteland to, now, one of the most sought-after and expensive winegrowing areas in the country. In this process of revaluation, several forces were evident. There was an economic-environmental process, by which grape growers and winemakers learned that the district possessed the ability to produce consistent harvests of high quality red grapes and, consequently, land was purchased at ever-increasing rates. There was then a deliberate attempt to "construct" the Gimblett Gravels district in the market place, the result of concerted co-operative action by winegrowers in the district to promote the idea of a Gimblett Gravels terroir in a registered trademark. Finally, we can see that the revaluation of the district has also been related to the wider social acceptance of wine as a fashionable commodity. These processes have occurred in a virtual legislative vacuum in New Zealand regarding the protection and regulation of geographical indicators, though this may soon change. Thus, to understand the value of place, it is argued that we need a multi-faceted approach that incorporates environmental and economic processes alongside political regulation and social construction. (Contains 3 figures and 3 tables.)

This paper describes how New Zealand's leading research university, the University of Auckland, dealt with the issue of transforming knowledge into wealth using a "whole of institution" approach. The context of New Zealand's growth and innovation initiatives is outlined and the University of Auckland's engagement with and institutional response to these initiatives are discussed. The initiatives include the joint government-private-sector funding of a "partnership for excellence" programme; programmes to create a culture of enterprise, innovation and entrepreneurship; the use of entrepreneurs-in-residence; the development of new boundary-spanning structures and organizations; the melding of new approaches with existing technology transfer structures; and the creation of new networks. Key lessons learned throughout the process are described. (Contains 1 figure and 5 notes.)

Recounts the history of some of the earliest tribal colleges and poses questions regarding the current state of American Indian higher education institutions. Argues that, though the colleges are expanding, the larger goals of nurturing sustainable communities remain unfulfilled. Compares tribal colleges to Maori schools in New Zealand. (NB)

Radically new economic arrangements are needed for just and sustainable transitions to a more environmentally and ecologically resilient world. Yet little progress is being made to imagine the new economy‐environment relations around which resources, actors, and ethics might be configured to enact the novel economic forms needed. This article uses a Social Studies of Economisation and Marketisation (SSEM) approach to examine a suite of differently scaled and structured environmentally focused economic development initiatives in New Zealand. We explore how the initiatives have assembled diverse actors and investment projects into experimental economy‐environment relations. Our account highlights experimentation as a pivotal mode of economisation, and we argue that the initiatives studied by us expose a new experimentation‐led agenda for transitioning to more environmentally and economically just futures. Working with the idea of experimentation in an SSEM framework, we also argue that the diverse initiatives are creating an experimentation infrastructure that provides a more generative platform for novel economy‐environment relations than top–down models of change such as transition pathways. The article opens up a critical politics of environmental economy that focuses attention on emergence, agency, and practice and allows us to reimagine processes of transitioning. This paper brings the Social Studies of Economisation and Marketisation to a suite of diverse environmentally‐focused economic development initiatives in New Zealand. We argue that the initiatives register an experimentation‐led agenda for societal transitioning and that not only is experimentation a pivotal mode of economisation, but it can cohere into an experimentation infrastructure that has a wider collective potentiality, offering us other ways to stimulate processes of transitioning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years in New Zealand the provision of vocational education and training has been perceived as crucial to the development of an economy that embodies a high degree of skill and expertise. The purpose of this paper is to trace the development of vocational education and training in New Zealand over the long term to highlight the way in which this sector of education bas been influenced by the demands of government, industry and students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the creation of an amphibious capability for New Zealand in the 21st Century as an essential in an uncertain security environment. It discusses several facts which includes necessity of concept of feasibility, governmental review by the Ministry of Defence on behalf of the New Zealand government and development and capabilities of New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF).

Provides an overview and definition of local authority and town planning in New Zealand. Demonstrates the relevance of planning matters to the teaching of geography. Reviews objectives of geography and specific planning methods used in several districts. (BR)

Identifies social policy issues for rural communities affected by major development projects. Advocates increased attention in legislation by community workers and fuller recognition of social policy as a planning and development priority. Concludes that economics is still the major concern for development projects, rather than social policy. (BR)

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of the arrival of Colombo Plan Scholars in New Zealand and consider ways in which their experience helped to bridge distances between "east and west", as well as to create connections that traversed geographical and cultural boundaries. Design/methodology/approach -- It draws on contemporary newspaper articles to ascertain how public talk about the Colombo Plan programme shaped initial engagements between New Zealand and the scholarship holders. The paper then analyses archival files from the Department of External Affairs to present an overview of the university courses undertaken by Colombo plan scholars. The final section of the paper draws on oral and archival sources to examine individual encounters between former Colombo Plan scholars and New Zealanders. Findings -- The paper argues that while the public aims of the Colombo Plan focused on the containment of communism and the development of post-colonial connections in the South East Asian region, individual encounters between Colombo Plan scholars and New Zealanders played a role in changing social attitudes in what had been a deeply mono-cultural society. Originality/value -- The paper draws on previously unpublished archival and documentary evidence and oral sources to examine a unique aspect of the history of international education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a critical critique of alt/far-right political thought on indigenous issues in Aotearoa New Zealand. In doing so it examines the opening preface of the published work, One Treaty, One Nation entitled, 'Some of the Myths on which the Treaty Industry is Based' by emerging alt/far-right publisher, Tross Publishing. A selection of five of the twenty-three so-called myths put forward by the authors are considered. The work is grounded in sociological thought with an exploration of the relevance of Australian Aboriginal academic Aileen Moreton-Robinson's White Possessive Doctrine and Veracini's commentary of 'On Settling', and Goulet's development economics. This piece ends by engaging and providing commentary on what the collective future of Aotearoa New Zealand should look like based on these recent developments in moving towards a collective future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The New Zealand government approach to regional development and the economy more broadly has oscillated from the 1970s economic growth and investment focus to 1980s neoliberal neglect, followed by the more recent rediscovery of the regions' importance in national economies, all with tenuous outcomes. This paper explores the changing scope of regional development initiatives by successive New Zealand governments over the last 60 years to show a pattern of opportunism and neglect that suggests regional development is more aligned to electoral priorities than regional success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose — The purpose of this paper is to describe the results of two projects aimed at testing market responses to the first-ever fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) independently certified as sustainable. Design/methodology/approach — The method used comprised three phases: independent sustainability certification of products using a full life cycle assessment; nationwide roll-out of seven certified household products in retail outlets throughout New Zealand, and trials of certified lamb meat in three butcher shops in Brisbane, Australia; and monitoring of sales data and consumer responses to certified products. Findings — Record sales averaging +52 per cent above historical were achieved and sustained for the seven household products over a period of 18 months. Certified lamb meat product was well received, with 95 per cent of customers surveyed indicating that they would consider buying certified meat in future. Practical implications — The paper indicates that there is consumer demand for products that are clearly identified as genuinely sustainable, even though they may be perceived to be more expensive than traditional products. The market for certified sustainable products may become more mainstream as consumer concern regarding sustainability increases, and product disclosure standards become more stringent. Originality/value — The paper describes the results of the first-ever market tests of independently certified sustainable products in the FMCG sector. It gives an early indication that some consumers will select independently certified sustainable products in preference to others, provided that the product is clearly labeled and well marketed. The results also indicate that sales of certified sustainable products can be sustained over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to describe the influence of the creative industries on design education in New Zealand. Design/methodology/approach - A range of contemporary literature is presented to help define the term ‘creative industries’, and to locate this new ‘culture of creativity’ within a wider global trend of creative cultural theory. Findings - Cultural policy initiatives from Britain, Canada and New Zealand are reviewed and used to demonstrate how creative industries theory has sought to combine social, cultural and economic development. Research limitations/implications - This paper is primarily concerned with recent changes to design education and the ways in which universities and polytechnics are attempting to meet the challenges of this new holistic approach to creativity and innovation. Practical implications - In the final section the concept of interdisciplinary study of design is explored. This new model is developed through the example of a new interdisciplinary programme structure developed by the Wellington Institute of Technology in New Zealand. Originality/value - In conclusion the concept of a ‘virtuous cycle’ is used to describe the relationship between design education and the creative industries. This paper argues that, if this cycle continues, the creative industries will expand to become the model for a new economy based on social, cultural and economic entrepreneurship and change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper outlines how regional development policy in New Zealand has attempted to reshape the organizational and institutional foundations of regional growth and innovation since the government initiated the implementation of growth and innovation-focused policies in 2000. Dealing with the governance and the economic dimension, the paper elaborates on the challenges encountered in different regional environments that range from metropolitan areas to remote rural regions. The paper outlines New Zealand's institutional and economic framework and the set of programmes used to foster regional development and innovation. Principal lessons from New Zealand's experience are the importance of the institutional set-up in regions, the need to tailor initiatives to different regional contexts, and insights into the complex relationship between regional development and regional innovation policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the impact off fifteen years of economic and social change on income inequality and poverty in New Zealand. The paper considers how a consensual poverty line was established through the use of a series of focus groups. This leads into a discussion on who was poor in 1998. Problems in measuring trends in the incidence and severity of poverty during a period when economic growth is absent and the income distribution is widening are then analysed. The discussion briefly incorporates current New Zealand debates on benefit dependency, intergenerational transmission of poverty and social exclusion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main components of most economic development ( ED) strategies are very similar. The visions and aspirational goals also sound alike for most communities. Most communities have also had a series of ED strategies that, over time, were often never implemented because of poor stakeholder buy-in. This paper considers the importance of community support for an ED strategy and compares the engagement processes of the Auckland Council and the Hawke's Bay in developing their respective regional economic development strategies. In the Hawke's Bay situation, the process is more important than the actual strategy document. This paper argues that garnering stakeholder buy-in is the most critical component of the strategy development process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores what it takes to develop a common language and shared sense of purpose between Māori and the high-tech science sector. Robotics and automation, 3-D printing, sensors, and digital technologies are shaping New Zealand's economy in fundamental ways. If, as envisioned under New Zealand's Vision Mātauranga policy, Māori contribution to economic growth through distinctive Indigenous innovation is to be recognised and valued, then how this happens in these frontier science domains requires investigation. Findings are presented from the first phase of a longitudinal study of one National Science Challenge: Science for Technological Innovation (SfTI) – Kia Kotahi Mai, Te Ao Pūtaiao me te Ao Hangarau. Collecting a variety of data from science, business and Māori participants, the findings suggest that while there is enabling macro policy, organisational and science team human and relational capacities require recalibrating. The authors outline a model of how this can be done through a focus on mātauranga (knowledge), tikanga (practice) and kaupapa (focus areas) and how SfTI is reshaping its organisational practice to align to this model. The research also identifies the important role of the science intermediary as crucial to this alignment within teams. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates whether tourism expenditure and exchange rates influence local GDP for the city of Christchurch (New Zealand), following the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes. Domestic and international expenditures are analysed separately using vector auto-regression (VAR) models. We perform Granger causality tests to determine the directionality of the relationships uncovered. Our results show that increased domestic and international visitor spending is followed by a measurable and significant increase in local GDP. Exchange rates have a small but non-significant impact on international tourist spending. Stimulating tourism demand will be an essential element to achieve substantial economic growth in Christchurch. The findings have implications for policy making in terms of promoting economic growth in disaster prone areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes an application of group support technology to a series of economic policy-making meetings. The meetings were part of a national study aiming to upgrade New Zealand's competitive position in global markets. The aim of the research is to determine if electronic meeting technology could support an economic development process where participants came from a variety of backgrounds (e.g., business competitors, different ethnic groups) and where meeting urgency and efficiency were of prime importance. A multiple case approach was adopted. The meetings were organized and facilitated by the coordinator of the national study. Research data were gathered by observing the meetings, by questionnaires administered to participants, and by interviews with the coordinator and his staff. Analysis of these data indicates that participants felt that the meetings were both very effective and efficient. Implications for using group support technology for economic policy development are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A scan of social research about rural New Zealand from the 1980s reveals power divisions which have muted the voices of 'others'. Listening to these voices could transform how we manage the economy, sustain the environment and promote social well-being in future. Rural sociological attention in New Zealand has focused on the people and communities associated with land and resource-based assets, with little attention to the rural majority not engaged in primary production. Indigenous voices are also missing. As Jessica Hutchings argues, decisions on economic development, the environment and social services continue to uphold colonial hegemony as the dominant worldview in Aotearoa New Zealand. By being open to the perspectives of people normally ignored and particularly engaging with indigenous approaches, application of capital and power in development can be rethought and structural inequalities addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many governments are going ‘beyond GDP’ to measure standards of living and to base policy on such wider considerations. One of the more advanced approaches is theLiving Standards Frameworkused by the New Zealand Treasury as a complementary input into the policy process. This paper uses theFrameworkas a case study to highlight shortcomings and unresolved theoretical and empirical issues in the underlying theoretical model (i.e., the capital approach to development based on mainstream neoclassical economics). In particular, innovation is noticeable mostly by its absence, despite being the main driver of living standards in the long-run. It is argued that innovation should be at the centre of theFramework. Moreover, one must go beyond standard welfare analysis and use a model of the innovation–subjective wellbeing nexus in order to assess the many, potentially very complex, wellbeing implications of innovation. Adoption of such a perspective, although currently resisted by many policy makers, seems to fit well with the ‘normative turn’ in innovation economics. It does not make one a neo-Luddite. Instead, adoption might help overcome resistance to innovation. This should be especially important at a time when the spread of digital technologies is forecast to cause major societal disruptions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The construction sector is a key driver of economic growth in New Zealand; however, its productivity is still considered to be low. Prior research has suggested that information and communication technology (ICT) can help enhance efficiency and productivity. However, there is little research on the use of mobile technologies by New Zealand construction workforce. This paper reports findings of an exploratory study with the objective of examining the perceived benefits regarding uptake of apps in New Zealand construction sector. Using self-administered questionnaire survey, feedback was received from the major construction trade and professional organisations in New Zealand. Survey data was analyzed using descriptive, one-sample t-test, Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and structural equation modeling. Results showed that iPhone and Android phone currently dominate the smartphone market in New Zealand construction industry. The top three application areas are site photos, health and safety reporting and timekeeping. The benefits of mobile apps were widely confirmed by the construction professionals. The benefit of "better client relationship management and satisfaction" has substantial correlation with overall productivity improvement and best predictor of the overall productivity improvement. These findings provide a starting point for further research aimed at improving the uptake and full leveraging of mobile technologies to improve the dwindling productivity trend in New Zealand construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the use of concessions for tourism business in protected areas, including National Parks (NPs), in New Zealand, with specific reference to their financial and in-kind contributions to conservation work. A holistic approach is taken, examining the design and implementation of policies affecting concessions, and their interactions with wider governance arrangements for NPs. The case study considers a range of legal and policy questions, informed by 42 non-structured interviews with concessionaires, park staff and other stakeholders. It explores neo-liberal government policies implemented since 2009, as part of a Conservation Economy vision, aiming to stimulate economic growth by opening-up business access to natural heritage and resources in NPs. More and longer contracts have been granted against the promise of conservation, environmental and infrastructural gains from concessionaires. The research found that, so far, there is no evidence of improvements in the latter aspects, and expectations of gains from donations and voluntary business action have remained only symbolic. Powers to impose such contractual responsibilities are unused. Other significant, and related, neo-liberal governance changes have been implemented or under consideration, raising concerns that a tipping point in NPs' governance towards unsustainable tourism development may be on the horizon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines the value-generating strategies used in some of New Zealand's primary activities in a rapidly changing trading context in which the countries of East Asia increasingly figure. These strategies range from scaling up volume, with a consequent conspicuous impact on rural landscapes, to innovative value-enhancing relationships linking producers, processors and consumers in processes which value landscapes for the contribution they make to provenance stories. Our argument is that higher-value strategies are necessarily more intensely collaborative and involve a pursuit of engaged relationships, especially between onshore producers and manufacturers and consumers at a distance. We term this collaborative form of strategising as 'the relationships economy'. We illustrate our argument using two case studies, dairying and merino. While there are great differences in scale between them, and dairying focuses significantly on volume-generating capacity, there are players in dairying who are adopting higher-value relationships-based approaches similar to those developed in the merino industry. The common thread connecting the case studies is that of intentional enactment, which echoes earlier periods in New Zealand's trading history when considerable work was undertaken by industry participants to create new markets for primary products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper a comparison is made between the structure and operations of the Australian Learning and Teaching Council and the Ako Aotearoa National Centre for Tertiary Teaching Excellence of New Zealand. Both of these organisations were established in the mid 2000s and were created at a time when higher education institutions in both countries were attempting to increase their research profiles in response to changing funding criteria. Although the two organisations were established for similar reasons they did not operate in quite the same fashion and with the same degree of focus. Instead large differences in the scale of funding has meant that the Australian agency undertakes far more activities than its New Zealand counterpart, although the relative influence of the two bodies in their respective jurisdictions is similar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the capital structure of New Zealand firms influences their product-market performance in the period from 1984 to 2008. Our main findings are that the use of leverage by publicly listed New Zealand companies leads to an increase in relative-to-industry sales growth, but a decrease in relative-to-industry return on assets (ROA). We also conduct a reverse causality test by examining whether sales growth and ROA influence leverage. We find no evidence that sales growth has an impact on the use of debt, but significant evidence that ROA is negatively correlated with its use. Our results suggest that New Zealand firms use debt to compete more aggressively in their product markets, even though this strategy comes at a cost of lower relative-to-industry profitability. A possible explanation for this behavior is the more competitive trading environment that has developed in New Zealand over the last 25 years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many indigenous tribes have received settlements of resources enabling them to become major entrepreneurial players. This paper attempts to identify barriers impacting on Maori economic growth. While firms operate with an eye to the future, decision-making in Maori tribes operates with constant historical reference. To accommodate this difference, an evolutionary approach is suggested as the best way to analyse tribal economic status. Historical analysis of cultural-economic evolution reveals adoption of memes and routines as the resource base changed. Adopted memes and routines continue to shape contemporary economic behaviour and define identity. Preserving identity is often held as a barrier to adaptation, but economic growth and exploitation of an expanded resources base requires the adoption of new productive techniques and changes in behaviours, memes and routines. Inherited cultural legacies include sensitivity to mana, kinship groupings, leadership styles, technical isolation and others which have created both barriers and opportunities. Barriers to change include a reaction against the culture competent in that technology. Overcoming these barriers requires an understanding that culture is not a point in time, but an evolving force. This paper suggests that an evolutionary view of economic development may offer added insight in exploring and solving development issues, particularly for indigenous peoples and tribes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The endogenous growth literature can be broadly separated into two classes of growth models: Rival human capital models and non-rival "idea" models. Both classes differ in their positive and normative implications for growth. Following Klenow's (1998) approach, this paper uses industry panel data to investigate which class of growth models might be the most appropriate for the New Zealand economy: Exogenous growth, or one of the two classes of endogenous growth models. In contrast to Klenow's findings for the United States, in the New Zealand case rival human capital models seem more applicable, though none of the models correctly predicts all of the empirical relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper contributes a New Zealand perspective to this special issue on engendering cities by considering what a gender approach to planning involves. It examines the New Zealand approach and why it has not embraced a gender sensitive approach to planning and the role played by Maori. It discusses how the EU–New Zealand Agreements, linked to the European Growth Strategy 2020 (European Commission, 2010) and the associated research strategy Horizon 2020 (European Commission, 2011a), could deliver gender sensitive responses to planning in New Zealand. It asks what role the pilot international genderSTE network could play and what challenges need to be overcome. The investigation found that: (1) New Zealand’s approach to gender has been, and continues to be, gender neutral. A specific issue-based approach has been a feature of New Zealand, resulting in a lack of gender visibility in planning; (2) the subordination of the feminist discourse to Maori issues is a feature of New Zealand; and (3) the NZ–EU Science Agreements, linked to Horizon 2020, could potentially help to deliver gender sensitive responses to planning in New Zealand and fledging international networks, such as genderSTE, could also potentially play an important role in providing mutual support to groups in New Zealand, advocating for progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the infrastructure charges of seaports and port pricing policies in Australia and New Zealand. Its analysis covers 40 seaports and takes into account their administrative roles as well as geographical factors. An analysis of the effectiveness of port pricing policies and their relationship with port reforms is also conducted. The paper finds the existence of disparities in the growth rates of port infrastructure tariffs across ports in both countries. Port infrastructure tariffs have grown considerably over the study period, but at different rates. Port pricing policies also vary substantially across the states and between the two countries, notwithstanding the fact that the ports have different traffic volumes. Infrastructure pricing practice is affected by port reform and administrative regime. While corporatised ports appear to have high growth rates of their infrastructure charges, commercialised and privatised ports tend to maintain lower growth rates of infrastructure tariffs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Pioneered by New Zealand in 1990, a growing number of countries have adopted the practice of inflation targeting, the international experience of which has been reported as satisfactory. However, existing empirical evidence fails to support inflation targeting as having a positive growth effect. To provide further evidence, this study adopts a new classification system for monetary policy regimes that allows the empirical estimation of the effect of inflation targeting on economic growth in comparison with its main alternative, exchange rate targeting. Our study, which covers more than 100 countries for the 35 years from 1974 to 2009, presents robust evidence that inflation targeting promotes economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indigenous people are considering how to safeguard their natural resources, culture and knowledge against illegal, inappropriate or unauthorised use. Such protection is needed to maintain the integrity of Indigenous relationship to and control over such resources, while allowing for potential benefits from such resources to support tribal social and economic development. Using the case study of taramea (Aciphylla aurea), a sub-alpine speargrass, traditionally used to make fragrance by Ngāi Tahu (a large tribe from the South Island, New Zealand), we assess potential approaches to protection, ranging from national and international intellectual property approaches such as trademarking, copyright and patenting to extra-legal approaches such as supply chain auditing, blockchain, biocultural trademarks and biocultural labels. From this assessment, we evaluate approaches' usefulness against a range of Indigenous and market-oriented attributes. We find that while each approach has advantages and disadvantages, no one method is superior, so we recommend a mix of approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development sector appeals to emotions in its marketing and education material to raise awareness and funds for its work. Much of this material is now directed at schools, where young people form long-lasting opinions about development and the developing world. This paper draws upon research with 118 students in five New Zealand/Aotearoa secondary schools to show that young people are not passive receptors of development marketing and education. Instead, they question the activities of internationalngos involved in aid work and how they are meant to feel or act in response. We examine these emotional responses of young people and the demoralising feelings of guilt, sadness and scepticism that arise, often alongside an innocent paternalism and a desire to help. We outline possibilities for more socially progressive forms of development education, based on the recognition that young people are questioning old ways of doing aid work and looking for something new. We challengengos to be part of new forms of global connectedness that disrupt old ‘us and them’ binaries based on difference, and instead to pursue new linkages based on shared feelings of empathy, friendship and social justice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Recent changes in national science policies have seen a strong swing towards demand-side policies whereby national innovation systems are harnessed as a means of achieving economic growth. In this paper, we analyse more than a decade of change within New Zealand science policy—a period during which economic arguments and priorities have become increasingly dominant. In particular, we examine the relative shifts in stakeholder power relations embodied in the changes, a subject that is not generally considered in science policy and innovation studies. Researchers are increasingly disempowered as the policy agency becomes the ‘driver’ of innovation in a demand-led scenario. A likely consequence of these changes is that the boundary between science and consultancy will become harder to distinguish. We argue that the potential ethical and accountability consequences of these changes have yet to be fully explored or addressed within science policy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper we draw on the concept of governmentality to examine the relationships between donors and northern non-governmental organisations (NGOs) during moments of policy change. Our case study comes from New Zealand/Aotearoa where a change in government has seen aid policy shift from poverty alleviation to sustainable economic development. We detail three mechanisms through which the government sought to normalise this change: changes in language and fields of visibility; institutional reform; and funding delays and cuts. Far from being complete, however, we also trace how some NGOs contested the new agenda through engaging in the practice of politics and how, at least temporarily, new more politicised development subjectivities were created. While our study raises awkward questions about the autonomy of NGOs within current funding environments, we also emphasise the productive possibilities and openings that emerge as one set of development ideas and techniques, or developmentalities, shifts to another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cittaslow is an Italian-inspired global network of towns that collectively resist globalization and mainstream corporate-centred development through planning and urban design that prioritize each town's local, unique and historic resources. Internationally, Cittaslow's regulations-for-action approach has assisted towns to more effectively implement sustainable development principles. This paper presents research from three New Zealand case-study towns, to assess the potential application of Cittaslow principles to aid sustainable development and economic growth in small towns. The findings revealed that planners and community members generally perceived Cittaslow as a superfluous ‘brand’ that imposed additional unnecessary regulations and an approach that lacked general community support. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Surprisingly little theoretical or empirical research is available on Auckland's actual functional and geographic connectivity, including developments relating to closer economic relations with Australia. This paper draws on the geography of accumulation literatures to argue that close attention must be given to developments in the three circuits of capital (trade, production and finance) if the changing character and contributions of globalising firm networks are to be discerned and understood. The empirical investigations show that for Australian owned firms globalising rather than purely Australasian networks are the norm, network complexity is considerable and that it makes sense to think of Auckland's economy in globalising terms. A globalising networks perspective means that estimates of the magnitude and assessments of the character of employment contributions of Australian owned firms to the Auckland economy reflects these interdependencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Is there a distinctive Antipodean approach to development? In this introduction I take up Raewyn Connell's challenge to explore the possibilities for knowledge production that reflects Australia's and New Zealand's geographical situation of rich peripheral countries and their history of settler colonisation. While Antipodeans' contributions to development theory have been limited, their work is characterised by close connections between theory and practice. The Antipodes' positioning as global North in the geographical South has stimulated a search for alternative approaches to development knowledge. This is variously pursued through collaborative research relationships with indigenous communities, close engagement with non-Western cultural frameworks, and a focus on marginal spaces and positions. As the centre of global economic power shifts to the South, existing development relationships and established ways of doing development are increasingly challenged by newly constituted subject positions and coalitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Education has long been regarded as the foundation stone of national growth and international competitiveness. In the last three decades national educational reforms to improve access to higher education qualifications, individual higher education institution's aggressive national and international marketing initiatives and improved information and communication technology (ICT) systems and infrastructure have resulted in greatly increased participation in tertiary education. As a consequence of this wider participation, tertiary educators are now engaging with increased numbers of culturally and economically diverse learners in distributed ICT environments that they, the educators and learners, are often unfamiliar with. There is an expectation that these educators will be able to design learning modules to meet student's multi-cultural needs, in a range of contexts, with no additional resources. In essence, it is expected that learners will participate in individually customised learning events at a cost similar to traditional delivery. This requires a fundamental shift in educators and learners conceptions on the provision of education. The purpose of this paper is to explore how the development and deployment of reflective frameworks, based on recognised international standards, can fully engage learners in mass-customised environments. First this article outlines the key building blocks required for reflective mass-customisation to occur. Second, it illustrates how this concept is being tentatively explored at a New Zealand institution. Finally, it recommends the areas of action for further research on the impact and effect of masscustomisation on learners, educators and institutions to be undertaken. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- Building a bioeconomy requires efficient technology transfer and global linkages to exploit finite intellectual property exclusivity periods. The purpose of this paper, using a resource-based view lens, is to assess the priorities, capabilities, and competitiveness of the emerging New Zealand (NZ) bioeconomy. Design/methodology/approach -- A triangulated design was used that involved four focus groups, 27 interviews, five case studies, and survey of 176 NZ biotechnology industry participants from a broad range of backgrounds such as scientists, managers, and investors. Findings -- Two high-priority capabilities were identified as being critical to fostering a competitive bioeconomy -- access to talent and access to funding. Participants also identified the critical role of government in building and coordinating infrastructure, enabling critical capabilities, and accelerating bi-directional technology and capital flows. Originality/value -- Most biotechnology research and data has focused on the USA and European Union. This is one of the first studies of NZ biotechnology participants, and insights gained within this context are potentially applicable for increasing our understanding of building biotechnology industries outside established clusters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]