Center for Strategic Economic Studies

CSES Seminar Series 2007

TITLE: Emerging ICT Market: South Africa PRESENTER: Mandla Kuzwayo 4 December 2007 On December 3rd, the Victorian Government released its second Emerging Market Strategy report which takes as its subject the assessment of South Africa as an ICT producer and consumer and what this means for Victoria. The research was undertaken by the Centre for Strategic Economic Studies (CSES), Victoria University and BMI-TechKnowledge Group (BMI-T) Johannesburg. It provides market intelligence to the Victorian ICT industry by exploring the: • characteristics of the South African ICT market; • characteristics of the South African ICT industry; • opportunities and challenges; and • issues relating to doing business in South Africa. This seminar will present the main findings of our research and discuss issues arising. Mandla Kuzwayo is a business consultant with extensive experience in business development in information technology and telecommunications (ICT), and director of BMI-TechKnowledge. He has been intimately involved in the transformation of the telecommunications landscape in SA, as part of the leadership of the National Telecommunications Forum, and he is the current chairman of the South African Electro-technical Export Council, a public-private initiative focussed on the global promotion of South Africa's electro-technical products, processes and services. Mandla holds several qualifications in IT and business management. Click here for news of report launch and summary report on Multimedia Victoria website.
TITLE: International Production and Distribution Networks in East Asia: Eighteen Facts, Mechanics and Policy Implications PRESENTER: Dr Fukunari Kimura, Professor, Faculty of Economics, Keio University, Japan (email: fkimura@econ.keio.ac.jp) 13 November 2007 International production/distribution networks in East Asia developed in the 1990s and after have distinctive features in their significance, extensiveness, and sophistication. This paper first lists “18 facts” on production/distribution networks in East Asia that have been identified by a number of studies using international trade data, microdata of Japanese multinational enterprises, and casual observations. It then presents a concept of two-dimensional fragmentation as a starting point of theoretically formalizing the phenomena of fragmentation and agglomeration. It finally discusses the policy environment in which the formation of production/distribution networks has been accelerated and policy implications of the existence of such networks for economic integration in East Asia. Kimura Fukunari is Professor, Faculty of Economics, Keio University. He was born in Tokyo in 1958 and received his Bachelor of laws from the Faculty of Law, University of Tokyo in 1982, his Master of Science and Ph.D. in economics from the Department of Economics, University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1990 and 1991. His major is international trade and development economics. His major publications include Asia & Europe: Beyond Competing Regionalism (Brighton: Sussex Academic Press, 1998, edited with Kiichiro Fukasaku and Shujiro Urata), New East Asian Regionalism: Causes, Progress and Country Perspectives (Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, 2005, edited with Charles Harvie and Hyun-Hoon Lee), and Multinationals and Economic Growth in East Asia: Foreign Direct Investment, Corporate Strategies and National Economic Development (London: Routledge, 2006, edited with Shujiro Urata and Chia Siow Yue). Dr Kimura was Visiting Fellow at the The Crawford School of Economics and Government, ANU. Download presentation or paper.
TITLE: How to Get Your Research Published in (High Ranking) Journals PRESENTER: Dr Sally Weller 7 November 2007 This talk will explore approaches and techniques for publishing research in high ranking journals. It will include targeting journals, positioning and structuring your ideas, and finding your 'voice' and building an international reputation. It will also explain the submission and refereeing process and discuss effective ways to respond to referees' comments. Dr Sally Weller is an economic geographer and Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Strategic Economic Studies. After completing her PhD at the Centre for Strategic Economic Studies in 2004, she was awarded an ARC Post Doctoral Fellowship in 2005. In recent years, Sally has generated a large number of publications in highly cited international journals. In addition to academic citations, her research has been influential in policy development and cited by leading policy institutions in Australia and overseas, including the ILO, OECD and World Bank. Download presentation.
TITLE: Recent Advances in Applied Economic Modelling and Forecasting for Policy Uses PRESENTER: Prof. Tran Van Hoa 31 October 2007 Tran Van Hoa is Professorial Fellow at the Centre for Strategic Economic Studies (Victoria University, Melbourne) and Director, Vietnam and ASEAN+3 Research Program (CSES). He is also Honorary Professor, National Advanced Training Institute (NATI), Vietnam Ministry of Trade; and Honorary Professor, National Economics University, Hanoi, Vietnam. Tran Van Hoa has wide experience and extensive record in research, teaching, training, consulting and publications. His current interests cover Asian economic development and growth, Asian economic and financial crisis and management, trade and investment in Asian economies, international business development and promotion in Asia, Asian transition economies, competition policy and e-commerce in Asia, modelling and forecasting Asian economies, Vietnam, ASEAN, ASEAN+3, ASEAN+6, APEC and WTO. Download presentation.
TITLE: Energy and Transport: Long-Run Relation among Motor Fuel Use, Vehicle Miles Traveled, Income and Gas Price for the US PRESENTER: Dr Brantley Liddle 17 October 2007 Energy used in transport is an important focus since it is increasing in both developed and developing countries and is a carbon-intensive activity everywhere. Gasoline price and per capita motor fuel consumption (thus CO2 emissions) are highly correlated, but it may be too simplistic to assume that higher prices will lead to lower use and emissions. It is true that gasoline price influences technology choice and mobility demand; however, since gasoline price is heavily influenced by government in both market and non-market economies, it is likely that technology and mobility demand affect price too. This paper assumes such a systemic, feedback relationship exists among price, technology, and mobility demand, and tests for cointegration among gasoline price, income, and both per capita motor fuel consumption and per capita vehicle-miles traveled. This paper’s finding of a cointegrating relationship means that gasoline price, technology, and fuel consumption cannot be easily disentangled in the short-run. This result has two important implications for policy. First, in countries like the US, higher standards for vehicle efficiency are preferable to higher gasoline taxes since (i) the former may lead to a faster change in overall vehicle fleet efficiency; and (ii) the level of taxes necessary for the latter approach to cause a sufficient change in vehicle fleet efficiency via the market would be quite painful. Second, countries like China and India would be wise to develop a system of prices, technology, and mobility options that help them avoid the difficult choice the US now faces. Dr Liddle joined the CSES in July 2007 and came from the USA where during 2006 he was Adjunct Professor, Trinity University, Washington, DC and Adjunct Professor, Hood College, Frederick, Maryland. From 2004 – 2005 he was Interdisciplinary Economist, Energy Information Agency (US Department of Energy, Washington). He has also been Research Scientist, Technology and Development Program (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and also Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Research Group on Population, Economy, and Environment, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (Rostock, Germany). Download presentation.
TITLE: The (Un)Happiness of Knowledge and the Knowledge of (Un)Happiness: Happiness Research and Policies for Knowledge-based Economies PRESENTER: Hans-Jürgen Engelbrecht, Department of Applied and International Economics, Massey University, Palmerston North Campus, Palmerston North, New Zealand (email: H.Engelbrecht@massey.ac.nz) 25 July 2007 This paper explores the current state and interfaces of two broad policy discourses, i.e. that of policies for knowledge-based economies (KBEs) and policy implications of happiness research, which so far have exhibited little explicit cross-referencing. I first review the state of ‘mainstream’ knowledge policy associated with the OECD, the related but somewhat separate literature on information society indicators, and some ‘non-mainstream’ knowledge policy analysis. This is followed by a brief overview of some of the major policy implications and controversies in happiness research. Next, I discuss major interfaces of the two policy discourses. They mostly concern the nexus of education, work and innovation. I also illustrate the diversity of beliefs and values about some core elements of KBEs in a group of what are usually regarded as similar countries, and advocate the use of subjective variables to capture these differences. The main argument put forward in this paper is that policies for KBEs should be informed by insights from happiness research. Prof. Engelbrecht was educated in Germany, the UK and Australia. He has published widely in the area of the information and knowledge-based economy. He is an editor of Prometheus and an editorial board member of Information Economics and Policy. For further information, see his webpage at http://www.massey.ac.nz/~hengelbr/." Download presentation or paper.
TITLE: Bilateral and Regional Trade Agreements: Case Study of India PRESENTER: Dr Rajesh Mehta 3 July 2007 Dr. RAJESH MEHTA is a Senior Fellow at the Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS). He is working with the RIS since 1984. He was also Adjunct Professor in the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations. He has also served on the faculty of University of Western Ontario, Institute of Economic Growth and Jawaharlal Nehru University. He did his Ph.D. in economics from the Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. He has been consultant to various national and international organisations including Government of India, ADB, APDC, World Bank, FAO, UNDP, UNCTAD, IFPRI, etc. Professor Mehta has specialisation in the areas of International Trade and Econometric Forecasting. He has written widely in the areas of trade and development, regional trading blocs, trade policies of South Asian countries, WTO-related issues, tariff and non-tariff barriers, etc. He has authored and co-authored seven books/monographs and has contributed regularly to national and international journals. RIS is an autonomous research institution established with the financial support of the Government of India. It is India’s contribution to the fulfilment of the long-felt need of the developing world for creating a ‘Think-Tank’ on global issues in the field of international economic relations and development cooperation. RIS has also been envisioned as a forum for fostering effective intellectual dialogue among developing countries. Download presentation.
TITLE: A Theoretical Framework on the Dynamics of Innovation and Investment: Lessons from Empirical and Simulation Findings PRESENTER: Jerry Courvisanos, Visiting Fellow CSES 28 March 2007 One major, but often neglected, function of investment is the technological innovation that becomes embedded in a region or nation. The dynamics of innovation and investment need to be developed together on the basis of fundamental uncertainty. This results in a non-equilibrium open system based on historical-time processes like cumulative causation and path dependence in the system’s evolution. The investment decision-making dynamics in this approach originate with the work of Michał Kalecki on investment cycles and increasing risk, in which profits derived from effective demand provide both ability and incentive to invest. Kaleckian foundations deliver an investment cycle of corporate instability due to entrepreneurial uncertainty built into conventions and rules that are sensitive to information about the unknown future and evolutionary processes of technological innovation. In this way, investment and technological innovation interact in an endogenous capital accumulation process. This seminar first outlined the theoretical framework that enables both historical analysis and future policy directions to be developed in industrial dynamics. Then, a brief overview was presented of findings from empirical data and computer simulation modelling that support this framework. Empirical findings particularly concentrated on two recent papers. The first is on technological obsolescence in terms of cost minimisation and identifying when firms find it profitable to invest in technological innovation embodied in the newest vintage capital equipment. The second uses computer simulation modelling to chart the clustering of innovation followed by the bunching of investment (“clust-bun” effect) in an endogenous cyclical dynamic. Download presentation. Dr Courvisanos is currently Senior Lecturer in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the School of Business and the Centre for Regional Innovation and Competitiveness (CRIC), University of Ballarat and Visiting Fellow at the CSES for six months. As an economist, he has taught economics for 25 years in various universities in Victoria, NSW.and Tasmania. He has also been a consultant and adviser to local councils, regional development boards and social service organizations on effective methods of identifying economic strengths and establishing new activities, especially in non-metropolitan regional areas. Two papers are available: 1. On technological obsolescence 2. On modelling technological capital accumulation
TITLE: Outwork Regulation in Australia? Does it Work PRESENTERS: Sally Weller (Senior Research Fellow, CSES) and Shelley Marshall (University of Melbourne) 9 March 2007, at Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne Sally Weller is Senior Research Fellow at CSES. She presented this seminar at the Centre for Employment and Labour Relations Law at the University of Melbourne. She will spoke to her recent article published in the Journal of Industrial Relations, where she argued that the new regulatory strategies for the control of clothing outwork effectively privatise responsibility for labour market conditions. CELRL Research Fellow Shelley Marshall provided a response. Weller, Sally (2007) Outwork Regulation: A Sceptic’s View, Journal of Industrial Relations, 49(1): 67-86.
TITLE: Measuring the Economic and Social Impacts of Open Access to Research Findings PRESENTERS: Peter Sheehan (Director CSES) and John Houghton (Professorial Fellow CSES) 7 March 2007 A number of international organisations, research funding bodies, research agencies and governments are seeking to ensure that they maximise the economic and social returns to public expenditure on R&D, and to that end they are introducing hard and/or soft access mandates (e.g. OECD Declaration, CODATA/GICS; NSF, RCUK, ARC and NHMRC; CERN; Australia's Accessibility Framework). To underpin access policy developments in Australia and elsewhere, CSES has been involved in efforts to develop ways to measure the economic and social impacts of open access to research findings (e.g. Report to DEST and the development of the Easi-OA Agenda). The purpose of this seminar was to discuss some of that work and explore possible developments. Download presentation.
TITLE: The Impact of Pharmaceutical Innovation on Longevity in Australia and the US PRESENTER: Professor Frank Lichtenberg, Courtney C. Brown Professor of Business, Colombia University Graduate School of Business 28 February 2007 Frank R. Lichtenberg is Courtney C. Brown Professor of Business at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business, and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. One of America’s leading economists, he has undertaken a path-breaking series of empirical studies on the impact of new medicines on individual outcomes and quality of life, on the utilization of hospitals and nursing homes and on health costs. Download paper or presentation.
TITLE: The Cultural Diversity of Ethical Issues of Nanotechnology PRESENTER: Professor Joachim Schummer, Department of Philosophy, University of Darmstadt 28 February 2007, University of Melbourne Since July 2003 Joachim Schummer is Heisenberg-Fellow at the Department of Philosophy at Darmstadt Technical University, Germany and he is Adjunct Professor at the University of South Carolina. He graduated both in chemistry and philosophy and he received his Ph.D. (1994) and Habilitation (2002) in philosophy from the University of Karlsruhe. From 2003 to 2004, he was Visiting Professor at the University of South Carolina. His research interests focus on the history, philosophy, sociology and ethics of science and technology, with emphasis on chemistry and, since 2002, nanotechnology. He is the author of Realismus und Chemie (1996) and more than 50 research articles; (co-)editor of Philosophie der Chemie (1996), Glück und Ethik (1998), Discovering the Nanoscale (2004), Nanotechnology Challenges (2006), Nanotechnologie im Kontext (2006) and five special journal issues; and the founding editor of Hyle: International Journal for Philosophy of Chemistry (since 1995). His current research on nanotechnology focuses on ethical and societal issues, science policy and communication issues, cross-cultural perspectives, vision dynamics, early history and interdisciplinarity. Joachim Schummer serves on various international committees, including the UNESCO expert group on Nanotechnology and Ethics.
TITLE: Australia-China Free Trade Agreement: Who Loses and Who Gains? PRESENTER: Professor Tran Van Hoa, Professorial Fellow, CSES 28 February 2007, Department of Economics, Monash University, Manton Room, Humanities Building, Clayton Campus The growing economic and political importance of China in the global economy in recent years has been discussed by academic and business economists, trade and investment experts, transnational corporate planners, government advisers and politicians alike worldwide (World Bank, 2005). While the discussions have been useful for global knowledge enhancement, regional and national strategic purposes, they have often been regarded as ‘hypothetical or with fuzzy outcomes’ due to their lack of substantive support of an empirically reliable kind. The paper addressed the issue by applying the recent generalised gravity theory (Tran Van Hoa, 2002, 2003, 2004) to construct a new multi-equation econometric model of trade-growth causality for China. Using historical trade and growth data, advanced estimation, forecasting and stochastic simulation theory (Tran Van Hoa, 1997), the model provides substantive evidence for the intertwining impact of China’s WTO membership, regional economic integration, and structural change (measured by national, regional and global shocks and gradual policy reform) on China’s trade, growth and economic relations. Some resulting major strategic trade, development and co-operation issues were discussed. Download paper or presentation.