2016 NIDEA Seminar Series
Monday 21 November 2016
1:10 - 2pm
KG.09
Dr Isabelle Brännlund, Postdoctoral Researcher, CEDAR, Umeå University
‘Connections to place: Taxation lands as objects of place-attachment in southern Sápmi 1740-1870.’
Abstract:
In the Swedish part of Sápmi - the traditional lands of the Sami people, connection to traditional land or place is complex and trailed by histories of dispossession, displacements, and enforced relocations. This complexity can be illustrated by state and settlers’ sequential dispossession of Sami taxation lands during the 18th and 20th century. In this historical study I explore the salience of place-attachment in relation to a taxation land in southern Sápmi over a period of 130 years. The results reveal place-attachment in relation to taxation land as both a social and physical space and at both individual and group levels.
Presenter's Bio:
Isabelle Brännlund is from Suorsá and Máláge tjïelte in southern Sápmi. She is a postdoctoral researcher at CEDAR – Centre for demographic and ageing research and Vaarote- Centre for Sami research at Umeå University, Sweden. She is an historian specialized in Sami studies and her research interests include reindeer husbandry, traditional land tenure systems, people-place connections, health and midwifery in Sápmi.
Tuesday 4 Octoberr 2016
1:10 - 2pm
KG.06
Dr Bill Cochrane, Labour Studies Programme, FASS
‘Empirical evidence on the gender wage gap in NZ’
Abstract:
Using merged data from the Household Labour Force Survey and the Survey for Working Life (in 2012), we analyse the gender pay gap in New Zealand.The estimations presented control for all observable personal, occupational, industry and other job characteristics. The wage wedge between average hourly earnings of males and females is decomposed into an explained and unexplained proportion, with the former based on all available observable controls. The magnitude of the unexplained female wage penalty is calculated for the sample in aggregate, as well as at different points in the wage distribution, to assess the likelihood of a “glass ceiling” and/or “sticky floor” effect. We also supplement this analysis with propensity score matching, where females are the treatment group, and males are considered the control group.
Speaker's Bio:
Bill Cochrane is a Lecturer in and Convenor of the Labour Studies Programme as well as a Research Associate in the National Institute of Demographic and Economic Analysis. He is involved with Jacques Poot and Michael Cameron in the provision of a wide range of consultancy services to local authorities, district health boards and various NGO's in the areas of population projection and labour market analysis. He gained his PhD from the University of Waikato in 2011 researching regional diversity and local labour market outcomes in New Zealand. Bill’s expertise is in regional diversity; local labour market outcomes; organisation of work; industry structure and survey analysis; design and implementation and his main research interests lie in Labour Economics. Bill specialises in the econometric analysis of local labour markets, spatial econometric analysis, evaluation of policy particularly in relation to the labour market and social security system, labour market and small area demographic projections; as well as analysis of the organisation of work and workplace productivity.
Tuesday 6 September 2016
1:10 - 2pm
KG.06
AProf. Michael Cameron, Economics WMS
‘Tracking the Paths of Ageing and Depopulation in Regional New Zealand’
Abstract:
In this seminar, I trace historical and projected paths of subnational population change for territorial authorities (TAs) in New Zealand. Exploring the paths of population change (in terms of rates of natural change and net migration) allows us to categorise areas that are experiencing one of six categories of population change over time (three of which involve population growth, and three of which involve population decline). Tracking the historical and projected paths for different TAs demonstrates a number of important features, including: (1) the extreme variability in historical net migration compared with the stability of natural change; (2) the drift towards depopulation for all TAs over time; and (3) the links between structural ageing and declining natural change. In terms of the last of these, the results are supported by a new axiomatically-based summary measure of population ageing.
Speaker's Bio:
Dr. Michael Cameron is an associate professor in economics. He is also a research associate in the National Institute of Demographic and Economic Analysis (NIDEA), and was a PGDA Visiting Fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health at Harvard University from 2015-16. He is currently a named investigator on the MBIE-funded CADDANZ and CCII projects and the Marsden-funded Tai Timu Tangata project. Dr. Cameron gained his PhD from University of Waikato in 2007, with a thesis titled "The Relationship between Poverty and HIV/AIDS in Rural Thailand". His current research interests include population, health and development issues (including the social impacts of liquor outlet density, the economics of communicable diseases especially HIV/AIDS, health applications of non-market valuation, and health and development project monitoring and evaluation), population modelling and stochastic modelling, financial literacy and economics education. He blogs on economics and other things at Sex, Drugs, and Economics.
Tuesday 9 August 2016
1 - 2pm
KG.06
The seminar will be preceded by a light lunch at 12.30pm in JG.17. Please RSVP to Brenda Hall at bhall@waikato.ac.nz by Wednesday 3 August for catering purposes.
Dr Ross Lawrenson, Professor of Population Health
‘Cancer and Primary Care; the GP role in diagnosis and supportive care’
Abstract:
22,000 New Zealanders are diagnosed with cancer each year. 125,000 are living with a cancer diagnosis and 9,000 people each year will die from cancer. Our research aims to help improve outcomes and reduce inequity from cancer by concentrating on the contribution that can be made through primary care. Our team work closely with both specialists and general practitioners to help improve the care of patients with cancer. The talk will be illustrated with examples of our work in prostate, breast and bowel cancer and outline future research opportunities.
Speaker's Bio:
Ross Lawrenson MBBS; MD; DRCOG; Dip.Comm Health(Otago);FP Cert; DHMSA; FAFPHM; FFPH;FRCGP. Ross trained as a general practitioner in the UK and has worked in rural general practice before working for the Waikato Area Health Board where he managed community health services and rural hospitals. In 1995 he took up a senior lecturer role in public health at the Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School (later Imperial College). He then moved to the University of Surrey where he was a Dean of Medicine and Head of the Postgraduate Medical School. For the last 11 years he has been the Professor of Primary Care and Assistant Dean of the Waikato Clinical Campus, University of Auckland before taking up his current role of Professor of Population Health, University of Waikato. Among other things Ross is a member of the Midland Cancer Network Executive, Chair of the National Screening Advisory Committee, a member of the Ministry’s Taskforce on Prostate Cancer and Chairs their Primary Care subgroup and is also a member of the Ministry of Health Cancer Health Information Strategy Governance Board.
Tuesday 7 June 2016
1 - 2pm
KG.06
The seminar will be preceded by a light lunch at 12.30pm in JG.17. Please RSVP to Brenda Hall at bhall@waikato.ac.nz Wednesday 1 June for catering purposes.
Kim Dunstan, Statistics New Zealand
‘How long are we living? Using cohort mortality to understand past and future longevity’
Abstract:
Mortality, and its flipside survival, has for many years been a neglected aspect of demography. Life expectancy has always been a fundamental measure of well-being and progress, but with our ageing populations there is renewed interest in accurate measures of survival and mortality. This is not just important for public policy debates – say around entitlement to, and sustainability of, public pensions (NZ superannuation) – but increasingly about our own individual survival expectations. How long should I work for? How long will I have in retirement? Statistics NZ’s cohort mortality series was originally developed to provide the most authoritative measures of how long New Zealanders have actually lived. The series tracks people born in each year from 1876, at each age, to reveal how New Zealand’s mortality landscape has changed over 140 years. Deaths of New Zealanders in overseas wars – notably World War I and II – were also included for the first time in any New Zealand life tables. Apart from the historical insights, the series also gives a rich statistical basis for mortality forecasts. Indeed, a ‘coherent functional demographic method’ using this historical data is now used in official population projections. And it is this rich combination of historical and projected mortality data that best answers questions like ‘How long will I live?’ for New Zealanders of all ages. One of the remaining challenges is to convey this information in more interactive ways to reach a broader population.
Speaker's Bio:
Kim Dunstan is a senior demographer with Statistics New Zealand, based in Christchurch. A career spanning several decades has included stints with the national statistical offices in Australia and England & Wales. Over this time he has developed particular expertise in population estimates and projections (including stochastic projections), life tables (both period and cohort), and ethnic demographic data.
Tuesday 17 May 2016
1 - 2pm
KG.06
Dr Francisco Rowe, Lecturer, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom
‘The returns to migration and human capital accumulation pathways: Non-metropolitan youth in the school-to-work transition’
Abstract:
The school-to-work transition comprises a critical period of human capital development for young people. As school-to-work pathways become increasingly diverse and complex, there is growing evidence that transitions during this period significantly influence individual career trajectories and long-term earning capacities. For non-metropolitan youth, this period of the life course often involves migration to urban centres in the search for better educational and employment opportunities. Drawing on longitudinal data, this paper examines the influence of migration and school-to-work pathways on entry-level wages for non-metropolitan youth in Australia. Our results highlight that migration from non-metropolitan communities to urban centres leads to higher entry-level wages, but these wage gains are not immediate, rather they are realised at a period three years post-migration. Individuals remaining in non-metropolitan communities were found to experience pathways that lead to lower wage returns. Furthermore, unobserved attributes, such as motivation and aspirations were found to be a major factor explaining the higher wage returns achieved by non-metropolitan migrants. Findings have important consequences for policy in their potential to contribute to new evidenced-based policy designed to entice the return of young people to nonmetropolitan communities and ameliorate the longstanding net loss of young population from regional areas.
Speaker's Bio:
Francisco is an Economic Geographer and Lecturer in Quantitative Geography within the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Liverpool in the United Kingdom. Previously Dr Rowe was appointed as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Queensland Australia. His research focuses on three core areas of human and economic geography: human capital mobility, spatial labour markets and statistical economic modelling. He has co-authored 26 academic publications. His articles appeared in journals such as Applied Geography, Environment and Planning C and The Australian Geographer. Francisco is currently a guess editor of a Special Issue in Youth and Graduate Mobility in the Journal The Annals of Regional Science and works closely with the UN Latin American Demographic Centre (CELADE).
Tuesday 12 April 2016
1 - 2pm
KG.06
The seminar will be preceded by a light lunch at 12.30pm in JG.17. Please RSVP to Brenda Hall at bhall@waikato.ac.nz by Tuesday 5 April for catering purposes.
Alison Reid, Senior Social Researcher, Auckland Council
‘Growing Pains - Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland in the 21st century’
Abstract:
The story of Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland in the 21st century is one of ongoing growth, diversity and change. While this brings vibrancy and vitality to the city, the rate of growth and change that Auckland is experiencing, and is expected to continue experiencing, presents inherent challenges to our collective ability to meet current demand and plan for the future. Alison will provide a brief overview of the broad global and national demographic shifts and trends shaping Auckland’s future, and will outline of the key challenges and opportunities that Auckland is facing, from a local government perspective. Her presentation will reflect on current initiatives underway such as the development of the Proposed Auckland Unitary Plan, as well as drawing on relevant research undertaken by Auckland Council and research partners.
Speaker's Bio:
Alison is a Senior Social Researcher at Auckland Council, in the Research and Evaluation Unit (RIMU). She has a particular interest in global, national and local population trends and change, and the impacts of change on Auckland’s socio-cultural and housing landscapes. Alison has a Masters of Arts degree in Sociology, from the University of Auckland, and many years’ experience working in local government. After a short stint in public health research at the NZ AIDS Foundation, she entered the heady world of local government research over a decade ago, and has enjoyed being involved in a range of research and monitoring projects over the years. Her current research focuses include the rental sector in Auckland, the status of Older Aucklanders, and co-ordinating Auckland Council’s involvement in the 2016 Quality of Life study.
Tuesday 8 March 2016
1 - 2pm
KG.06
The seminar will be preceded by a light lunch at 12.30pm in JG.17. Please RSVP to Brenda Hall at bhall@waikato.ac.nz by Tuesday 1 March for catering purposes.
Dr Alex Stepick, Professor of Sociology, Portland State University
‘This Land Is Our Land: Power and Newcomer - Established Residents' Relations’
Abstract:
In this seminar, Dr Alex Stepick will summarize over three decades of research on relations between newcomers (i.e. immigrants and refugees), and established residents (i.e. "natives") to Miami, Florida – one of the preeminent new immigrant destinations in the United States. His research uses mixed methods, primarily longitudinal participant observation, surveys, and interviews.
Speaker's Bio:
Alex Stepick is Emeritus Professor of Global and Sociocultural Studies at Florida International University and Professor of Sociology at Portland State University. His co-authored book, City on the Edge won two national awards. A follow-up book, This Land Is Our Land, was hailed as path-setting. His book, Pride Against Prejudice: Haitians in the United States, has already gone through numerous printings. He has also published three books on immigration, religion, and civic engagement that have received acclaim. The American Anthropological Association and the Society for Applied Anthropology awarded him the Margaret Mead Award for his work with Haitian refugees. His law review article on U.S. refugee and asylum law is used as a definitive reference in classrooms at major law schools throughout the U.S. He has received grants from all the major scientific research institutions, including the largest grant ever in Cultural Anthropology from the National Science Foundation.