Changes in the age of New Zealand farmers: Problems for the future?

Earlier research shows that between 1971 and 1981, the number of farmers in New Zealand increased and their average age decreased, whereas between 1981 and 1991, the opposite trend occurred. This article addresses the issue of change in the average age of farmers since 1991 using recent census data. It reviews the difficulties in obtaining good data and describes the adjustments need to be made to obtain a consistent data series from 1971 to 2006. The long-term trend for increasing age of farmers and farm workers continues. This demographic aspect of farm structural change is then discussed in terms of the sustainability of farming by reference to productivity and potential problems with succession.     

The New Zealand Coastal Society: What does it do and who is it for?

Abstract:   This article briefly outlines the aims and activities of the New Zealand Coastal Society, a technical interest group formed in 1992. It explains the history of the society, who its members are, and addresses the question of who would benefit from joining the society.     

Growing pains? Change in the New Zealand childcare market 2006–2016

There has been a significant growth in childcare in New Zealand (NZ) since 2006. Shaped by debates around the marketisation of childcare, this paper will make some key observations about the NZ childcare market. I will argue that the landscape of childcare has changed in favour of a burgeoning private sector and consider the recent impetus for corporatisation. Finally, I will examine the discourse of parental ‘choice’ which pervades policy discussions around ECE in New Zealand and how this plays out in the face of an expanding private for‐profit sector.     

Still a good neighbour? Implications of changing priorities in New Zealand Aotearoa's aid sector

The period following the election of the National government in 2008 has been controversial for Aotearoa New Zealand's aid programme for a number of reasons. This article examines changes in funding modalities and other aspects of non‐governmental organisation (NGO)–government relations as the sites of contested philosophies that surround aid and development discourse. In focusing on the introduction of the Sustainable Development Fund in 2010, the article argues that this shift has generated significant uncertainty among the aid community and may ultimately undermine many of the relationships NGOs previously enjoyed with partners in the Global South.     

Red deer in New Zealand: Game animal,economic resource or environmental pest?

The 150‐year history of red deer in New Zealand reflects changing relations between people and introduced animals and has involved recreational, environmental and commercial hunting. Hunters initially pursued red deer for recreation then for environmental control before the animals were subsumed into society's economic processes. After 1930, they were regarded as environmental pests and hunting was open to all. Commercial hunting started after World War II, when economic value redefined the relationship between red deer and people. Relations between people and red deer continued to evolve as New Zealanders generated progressively more refined understandings of nature and the place of introduced species in this country's diverse environments.     

Sleeping with the past? Heritage,recreation and transition in New Zealand tramping huts

New Zealand tramping huts are a rudimentary but valued form of recreational accommodation. While huts fundamentally offer shelter, their aesthetics and history can also be valued. We review the origins of the huts system and draw on entries in visitor books to demonstrate divergent views regarding newer and more traditional huts. We conclude that while ‘new‐generation’ huts facilitate a broader spectrum of users, ‘heritage’ huts may need partnerships with user groups and corporate sponsorship to ensure their survival.     

End of an Era? Population Geography in New Zealand at the Turn of the Century

Research into and teaching on population issues in New Zealand's university geography departments is at a crossroads. A significant cohort of New Zealand population geographers who gained their graduate and post-graduate training during the 1950s and 1960s is rapidly diminishing as a result of retirements and late career shifts. In the much more competitive university environment of the 1990s staff are either not being replaced, or their positions and programmes are being reshaped as part of radical restructuring of the social sciences and humanities. This paper reflects on recent developments in population geography in New Zealand, highlighting the contributions made by three of the country's most prominent researchers and teachers in what is fast becoming a dying field of discourse in university geography departments. The paper concludes on an ambivalent note about prospects for geographers in the era of sub-replacement fertility and the heightened attention that will be accorded to migration processes.     

Hollowing out the state? Some observations on the restructuring of hospital services in New Zealand

Summary This study applies Jessop's idea of the 'hollowed-out' state to an analysis of the restructuring of hospital services in New Zealand. Decentralization of responsibility for the funding and provision of hospital services to regional and local levels has had distinct fiscal and political advantages for the state and is rapidly changing the geography of hospital provision.     

Climate change policy and practice in regional New Zealand: How are actors negotiating science and policy?

Regional governance to address climate change is being constituted in New Zealand through domestic policy measures and international discourses. We examine climate change responses in two regions: Marlborough and Waikato. Informants expressed a desire for more transparent government policy; that planning for climate change makes good business sense for farmers and other businesses; that technology is sought to increase productivity and decrease environmental impact; and research networks build capacity for local action, linking sectors and organisations. Often conflicting, these responses to climate change were informed by a mix of discourses shaping New Zealand, including participatory democracy, the knowledge economy and sustainable development.     

How many seasonal workers from the Pacific have been employed in New Zealand since the RSE scheme began?

This Research Note provides the first reliable figures on the numbers of seasonal workers from the Pacific Islands who participated in the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme between July 2007 and June 2022. The method for deriving these figures is explained briefly before examining the frequency of return by men and women for employment in subsequent seasons from the nine participating Pacific states. Clarification of the numbers of seasonal workers involved in the scheme, as distinct from work visas issued each year for RSE employment, is timely for two reasons. Firstly, the RSE scheme is under review in March 2023 by Immigration New Zealand. Secondly, the three major sources of Pacific seasonal labour are raising questions in 2023 about the impact of the scheme on their domestic labour markets and economies. Robust data on numbers of Pacific seasonal workers during the scheme's first 15 years contributes important information in both these contexts.     

Co-Governance and Local Empowerment? Conservation Partnership Frameworks and Marine Protection at Mimiwhangata,New Zealand

This study examines the conservation partnership activities conducted as part of the Mimiwhangata marine reserve project. This project involved the formation of a partnership between the Department of Conservation (DOC) and an indigenous Maori community, who sought to establish and co-govern a marine reserve at Mimiwhangata, New Zealand (NZ). Drawing on the discourse of contemporary Treaty of Waitangi politics, the article argues that participatory processes can be effective means through which to pursue both positive conservation and social outcomes. However, unless the appropriate legislative framework exists in which meaningful ongoing community involvement and control can be constituted, partnership-based conservation is unlikely to deliver substantial conservation or social gains. Fundamental issues concerning indigenous rights, authority, and control persist within the “partnership” framework, which existing marine reserve governance mechanisms in New Zealand do not resolve.     

The population of the southern Alps: a new equilibrium?

Recent demographic trends in the Alpine areas of France are examined. It is found that a shift of population away from the Cote d'Azur has occurred since 1975. The importance of tourism for population growth in the Alpine areas is noted.     

Flower viewing from horseback? New directions in Chinese tourism in Australia

ABSTRACT

In this century Chinese tourists in Australia have rapidly become the most numerous national source. Relatively little is known about their socio-economic status, their geographical origins and expectations of tourism, and their attitudes to and perceptions of Australia, although every Australian state has devised a specific Chinese tourism strategy to tap into this market. Chinese tourism is concentrated in metropolitan areas in the eastern states, has evolved from group tours to individual plans, and is relatively high spending. Unless geographical and tourism research on Chinese tourism aligns with contemporary theoretical developments in tourism studies, the type of knowledge being produced will be limited. Whilst there is value in extending existing knowledge, important social insights into the Chinese tourists’ experience of Australia will not emerge. Although Chinese tourism is similar to earlier waves from East Asia, it constitutes a distinct component of the contemporary Australian market. A deeper understanding of this phenomenon requires the adoption of practice theories that privilege social practices as the entry point for theorising and conducting research. In advocating such an approach, we highlight challenges of linguistic and cultural differences, scale and governmentality in providing a qualitative research agenda for geographical and tourism studies’ engagements with Chinese tourism.     

Is there diversity in the New Urbanism? Analyzing the demographic characteristics of New Urbanist neighborhoods in the United States

The New Urbanism (NU) planning movement aspires to create socially diverse neighborhoods. It is unclear, however, whether this movement lives up to its aspirations in practice. In an effort to systematically examine this aspect of the movement, this paper analyzes age, family type, income, and race data of 70 NU neighborhoods in the United States. The paper uses a diversity index to compare the NU neighborhoods with control sites. Findings show that NU neighborhoods have lower racial diversity, but may have higher income diversity. Consideration of variations within the way NU is implemented reveals that the low racial diversity is associated with a single approach, but higher income diversity is associated with all variants. This paper argues that NU generates places that are more socially diverse than what is described in the literature and uses two case studies to explore the ways in which diversity is produced and its relation to gentrification.