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Nau mai, haere mai.
The recent launch of a much-hyped Amazon Web Services “cloud region” in Auckland was slightly undercut by the absence of any tangible commitment to build the promised data centres or create the jobs to run them.
None of which stopped Prime Minister Christopher Luxon claiming the project was an opportunity for New Zealand to emulate the economic strategies and success of Singapore and Ireland, both of which have attracted big-tech investment to boost their GDPs.
But as Angus Dowell argues today, the comparison is simplistic and misleading on several counts. “Unlike Ireland, New Zealand does not sit at the junction of the European Union and the United States. And it is not a logistics-finance hub strategically perched on global shipping routes like Singapore.”
This tendency to locate New Zealand’s fortunes on an imaginary world map is not new – recall the notion that we could be a “Switzerland of the South Pacific” – but it ignores the unique political and economic circumstances that underpin the strategies of other nations.
In the cases of Singapore and Ireland, Dowell writes, “Neither represents a path that can, or should be, easily transplanted elsewhere.”
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Finlay Macdonald
New Zealand Editor
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Angus Dowell, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
Christopher Luxon has hyped Amazon Web Service’ data centre plans as a chance for NZ to emulate Singapore and Ireland. Politics and geography make this unlikely.
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Shubham Tiwari, University of Waikato; James Lim, University of Waikato; Krishanu Roy, University of Waikato
Roofs are often the first point of failure in a storm, exposing homes to rainwater damage and creating flying debris that poses further risks to people and property.
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Ross Hendy, Monash University
The violent end of the hunt for Tom Phillips is a reminder of the tactical calculations Australian police must make in their search for alleged killer Dezi Freeman.
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Dat Tien Doan, Auckland University of Technology; Ali Ghaffarian Hoseini, Auckland University of Technology; Amir Ghaffarianhoseini, Auckland University of Technology
The leaky homes crisis showed the risk of relying on paper trails to track building records. Digital approval and inspection records are the answer.
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Richard Meade, Griffith University
It sounds counterintuitive, but making it easier for customers to switch electricity retailers is part of a bigger problem.
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Blake Bennett, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
A proposed new law won’t require online casinos to pay back a share of profits to community organisations, with potentially dire consequences.
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From our foreign editions
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Rick Sarre, University of South Australia; Ben Livings, University of South Australia
One of the most high-profile court cases in Australian history has ended in the maximum sentence. Two legal experts explain the process.
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Gregory Moore, The University of Melbourne
It makes great sense many plants flower when the insects and birds so vital to their reproductive success are also getting busier (and getting busy).
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Ian Langford, UNSW Sydney
Xi has removed nearly every rival, but he still governs with the urgency of someone who knows how quickly fortunes can turn.
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Sarah A. Walker, Durham University
Narcissism is a picture that includes insecurity, emotional sensitivity and surprising fragility.
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Jennifer Mathers, Aberystwyth University
Control of the Black Sea coast would threaten neighbouring Moldova.
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Mary Ellen O'Connell, University of Notre Dame
An expert in international law explains that the Trump administration’s justification for deadly strike doesn’t hold water.
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John Joseph Chin, Carnegie Mellon University; Joe Wright, Penn State
Failed coup leaders don’t always face punishment – and some who do receive treatment outside of courts.
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Sebastian Maslow, University of Tokyo
Ishiba inherited a deeply troubled party. Whoever succeeds him will need to restore public trust, or the party may fall victim to its own dominance.
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Stéphane Sirot, CY Cergy Paris Université
The ‘block everything’ movement aims to paralyse France, and a hard-left leader has called for a general strike. What role have strikes played in French trade union and political history?
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Elisabetta Canteri, University of Copenhagen; Damien Fordham, University of Adelaide
Despite surviving through large climatic fluctuations in the past, future climate warming may cause a drastic decline in caribou populations.
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Auckland University of Technology
Auckland, New Zealand
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Contract
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The Conversation AU/NZ
New Zealand
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Full Time
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AUT
Auckland CBD, Auckland, New Zealand
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Full Time
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Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research
Parkville, Melbourne, Australia
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Contract
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9 October 2025
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Auckland
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