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Motu Notes
Motu Notes are designed to appeal to a general or policy audience, and are less technical than our working papers.
Motu Note #12: The Adoption of Environmentally Friendly Technologies in Agriculture
This research note considers the decision faced by farmers who have the option of adopting a new, environmentally friendly production technology. It discusses why the rate of adoption is likely to deviate from the rate that is socially optimal, and outlines potential roles for intervention...
Sin, Isabelle. 2012. "The Adoption of Environmentally Friendly Technologies in Agriculture," Motu Note #12, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #11: Optimal Infrastructure Adaptation to Climate Change
Considerable emphasis has been placed on designing climate change mitigation policies, both in New Zealand and internationally. This paper, while also dealing with climate change, alters the focus to adaptation policy. Adaptation is important whether or not a country adopts mitigation...
Grimes, Arthur. 2012. "Optimal Infrastructure Adaptation to Climate Change," Motu Note #11, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #10: Nutrient Trading in Lake Rotorua: A Policy Prototype
Water quality in Lake Rotorua has been declining for at least the last 30 years as increased levels of nutrients have entered the lake. Despite significant effort and expenditure, the level of nutrients entering the lake still exceeds sustainable levels. A nutrient trading system would help...
Kerr, Suzi, Hugh McDonald, and Kit Rutherford. 2012. "Nutrient Trading in Lake Rotorua: A Policy Prototype", Motu Note #10, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #9: Why Do New Zealanders Care About Agricultural Emissions?
The question of how to effectively address agricultural greenhouse gas emissions is of critical importance for New Zealand and the world. Ensuring that our responses are effective requires us to first consider what we aim to achieve: why do we care about agricultural emissions? This paper...
McDonald, Hugh, and Suzi Kerr. 2011. "Why do New Zealanders Care About Agricultural Emissions?" Motu Note #9, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #8: PAYGO v SAYGO: Prefunding Government-Provided Pensions
In 2001, the New Zealand Superannuation Fund was created to partially prefund the future cost of New Zealand’s pay-as-you-go superannuation scheme. In 2009, in response to worsening government finances, additional contributions to the Fund ceased. This note provides a brief overview of the...
Coleman, Andrew. 2011. "PAYGO v SAYGO: Prefunding Government-Provided Pensions," Motu Note #8, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #7: Behavioural Economics: Implications for the Savings Literature
In the last two decades, economics rediscovered its psychological roots. It now imports insights about the way people act from psychology at an enormous rate. The economics based on these insights, which is known as behavioral economics, is taught in most economics programs. This note...
Coleman, Andrew. 2011. "Behavioural Economics: Implications for the Savings Literature," Motu Note #7, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #6: Mandatory Retirement Income Schemes, Saving Incentives, and KiwiSaver
All OECD countries have schemes that help people manage their retirement. Some of these schemes are mandatory, and are implemented through the tax system; others are voluntary but receive substantial subsidies. There is considerable variety across countries. While New Zealand has both...
Coleman, Andrew. 2011. "Mandatory Retirement Income Schemes, Saving Incentives, and KiwiSaver," Motu Note #6, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington.
Download documentMotu Note #5: Strategic Transport Choices
Why does transport deserve its own conference, its own government department and delivery agencies, its own trade journals, academic journals and books? The reason is not because transport is valued particularly in its own right. Instead, transport is a critical means to an end; in fact, to...
Grimes, Arthur. January 2011. "Strategic Transport Choices," Motu Note #5, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, Wellington
Download documentMotu Note #4: Transport infrastructure, lock-out, and urban form: Highway development in Auckland and the United States
Evidence from the 1950s US highway building programme suggests that better roading infrastructure within a city makes it more attractive to migrants, but that most new development takes place in sprawling suburbs. These suburbs are less suited to public transport, so road construction...
Coleman, Andrew. November 2010. "Transport infrastructure, lock-out, and urban form: Highway development in Auckland and the United States," Motu Note #4.
Download documentMotu Note #3: Pacific Peoples’ Homeownership in New Zealand
Pacific peoples in New Zealand have low rates of homeownership compared with the average homeownership rate in the country. There is a tendency also for Pacific peoples to have relatively low incomes and to live in areas with high concentrations of Pacific ethnicity. While incomes may, on...
Grimes, Arthur and Chris Young. September 2009. "Pacific Peoples' Homeownership in New Zealand," Motu Note #3.
Download documentMotu Note #2: Greenhouse Gases and Water Pollutants: Interactions Between Concurrent New Zealand Trading Systems
Motu has extensive research programmes in the areas of emissions trading to address greenhouse gases and nutrient trading for water quality. This Motu Note provides an introduction to both fields and surveys interactions between nutrient trading and the agricultural component of the New...
Kerr, Suzi and Marianna Kennedy. 2009. 'Greenhouse Gases and Water Pollutants: Interactions Between Concurrent New Zealand Trading Systems,' Motu Note #2.
Download documentMotu Note #1: The Role of Infrastructure in Developing New Zealand’s Economy
Motu Research is conducting a four-year project examining the net benefits provided by New Zealand’s infrastructure. This Motu Note gives a non-technical introduction to the issues of infrastructure investment in New Zealand and presents an overview of Motu’s findings to date.
...Grimes, Arthur. 2009. 'The Role of Infrastructure in Developing New Zealand's Economy,' Motu Note #1.
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