Latest News
Awards 2025
A number of prestigious awards were bestowed upon worthy economists at ACE2025 which held in Sydney during July.
Economists eye costs of a failed energy transition
Poll 67
Poll finds support for aligning net zero, reliability and price,
Peter Martin
Responses (996)
ACE 2025
ACE 2025 was held in Sydney from 6-9 July 2025. Economics is essential to many of the pressing issues of our time including climate and the energy transition, aging population, inequality, geoeconomic competition, resource management and circular economy, healthcare, water and food security, poverty employment and livelihoods. It is with this in mind that Australian Conference of Economists (ACE) 2025 explored Economics for a Changing World, illustrating the practical and solution focused contribution of economics to these challenges. An acceleration in the availability, use and scale of data and experimental techniques has transformed our approach to these challenges.
The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia (ASSA)
Spark Grants for Social Science Week events. The Academy is delighted to launch of a new small grants program to support social science organisations to hold in-person and online events during the annual Social Sciences Week program: 8-14 September 2025.
Rechnitz Memorial Award for Indigenous society, culture and language. Nominations are open for the Academy’s inaugural Rechnitz Memorial Award, recognising excellence in research leadership and advancement of knowledge of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander society, culture and language.
Election of President, Secretary & Treasurer
The election process is now complete and the following people are hereby elected to roles of President, Secretary and Treasurer.
Invitation to Participate in Survey for Economic Society of Australia (ESA) NSW Branch
Survey closed on 15 June 2025. The NSW Branch will be reviewing the findings from the survey over the coming months
Trump's impact on the Australian Economy
Poll 66
Top economists say Trump’s policies will hit Australian economic growth and push up inflation and interest rates in the US.
Responses (38)
AGEW 2025
The 8th Australian Gender Economics Workshop (#AGEW2025) was hosted by the University of Wollongong in partnership with the Women in Economics Network and was organised by Alfredo Paloyo. The workshop took place on 6‒7 February 2025 in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. Wollongong is in Dharawal Country.
Housing Reform
Poll 65
Panellists are unanimous in believing Australia’s housing market is in crisis.
Offered a choice of 14 measures identified by the Economic Society of Australia as likely to restrain prices for buyers and renters, none of the 49 leading economists polled picked: “do nothing, the market will determine appropriate prices”.
Responses (967)
CBA Forum - catch up on the recordings
If you missed the ESA NSW Branch Cost Benefit Analysis Forum this year, you can catch up on the recordings. Visit this page.
Unreserved - RBA's latest release of digitised archival records
The Reserve Bank has been releasing a large volume of digitised archival records to the public through our digital archive (called Unreserved). These records span nearly 200 years of Australia’s economic, financial and social history. The latest release includes records about the work and influence of Dr HC Coombs along with additional records from the Bank’s Research Department, with much of the new information covering the period from the Bank’s ‘separation’ from the original Commonwealth Bank in 1960 through to the early 1970s.
Events
Charting Australia’s path to a fairer and more prosperous future - ONLINE ONLY
Event Type: ESA Event
Date: Wednesday Jul 30, 2025, 12:30 pm
Recent events in the USA and Europe show how rising inequalities can fuel social division, polarisation and political instability. This serves as a stark reminder of how important it is to monitor the health of our nation and take action to avoid a similar fate. So how does Australia’s progress on key economic, social and environmental indicators compare to our peers? Where are we falling behind and what are the risks? Can we turn around the rising levels of inequality, declining investment in innovation, and persistent poverty in Australia and chart a path to a fairer and more prosperous future? Our new report card on Australia’s progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) helps to answer these crucial questions.
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Emerging Women in Economics Cocktail Event
Event Type: ESA Event
Date: Thursday Jul 31, 2025, 6:00 pm
The Economic Society of Australia invites you to an inspiring evening of connection and conversation at our ‘Emerging Women in Economics’ cocktail event.
This special gathering is designed to bring together early-career women economists, students, professionals, and friends of the field for a relaxed and uplifting night of networking and idea-sharing.
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The paradigm shift in Australian labour market policy: Balancing efficiency with equity
Event Type: ESA Event
Date: Wednesday Aug 6, 2025, 12:30 pm
Australia’s labour market reforms since the 1990s were aimed at prioritising business ‘efficiency’ over other policy goals. Governments gave employers increased discretion over workforce decisions relating to pay-setting, recruitment and training, and reduced the influence of trade unions and employment tribunals over these processes. These changes were seen as necessary to allow employers to adjust to an increasingly competitive business environment following the liberal economic reforms of the 1980s. In this context, this presentation will analyse the paradigm shift in Australian labour market policy since 2022 aimed at balancing business ‘efficiency’ with workforce ‘equity’. Through an analysis of changes to wage-setting and bargaining, workplace gender equality and skilled immigration, it will argue the post-1990s wave of efficiency-oriented policies produced not only ‘inequities’ including low wage growth, gender-based job undervaluation and underpayment, but also ‘inefficiencies’ including skills shortages and competitive disadvantages for compliant employers. As well as analysing the post-2022 changes, the presentation will consider possible future labour market reform options.
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Medicine in an era of exponential technological change: what will this mean for you, and for Australia?
Event Type: ESA Event
Date: Wednesday Sep 17, 2025, 11:45 am
We are in the midst of a transformation of medical technology, driven in large part by parallel exponential changes in three areas of technology: genomics, which provides high-resolution data about the molecular composition of our bodies; data science and AI, which allow us to identify patterns in these data; and therapeutics, which provides increasingly precise ways to intervene in human biology to prevent or cure disease. In combination, these technologies define the emerging field of genomic medicine, which has already had a profound impact on the diagnosis of genetic disorders and the treatment of cancer, and has the potential to improve virtually all areas of healthcare. However, these technologies also create new challenges, including maintaining high quality in an era of rapid change; potential increases in the cost of healthcare; and equity of access and impact. Prof MacArthur will outline the potential of the field of genomic medicine and summarise the challenges ahead, acknowledging that resolving them will require a multi-pronged strategy across research, healthcare systems, policy, and society.
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Welcome to the New South Wales Branch of the Economic Society of Australia
The NSW Branch of the Economic Society of Australia was formed in 1925, making it one of the most established professional associations in Australia. The rich history of activities continues, and with a strong membership, it is the largest of the state branches in Australia.
