From Cash to Code: How the Rise of Digital Currencies Could Reshape Trade, Power, and Australia’s Economic Future

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Jun 4, 2025, 12:15 pm

In this webinar, Dr. Marina Yue Zhang explores the transformative impact of mobile payment platforms like Alipay and WeChat Pay in China, which have integrated online and offline life for millions. It also delves into China's Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC), e-CNY, which is a state-backed digital currency designed to function alongside or replace cash. The e-CNY has significant implications for national sovereignty, economic policy, and global trade. China's strategic push for digital finance aims to reshape the global financial order and establish the country as a leader in CBDC technology, influencing future global economic governance.

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Food Security: Prices, Inputs and People

Event Type: Partner Event

Date: Thursday May 15, 2025, 11:00 am

From: Central Council

This panel event brings together a cast of experts across the many dimensions of food security at a time of heightened importance. Supply shocks from COVID-19, natural disasters, and trade wars have rocked the foundations of our economies, putting the supply of our most essential goods in jeopardy. In response, the Hon Min Julie Collins has announced support for a National Food Security Strategy, but the questions remain: what is food security? and what can we actually do to create it?

Australian Population Trends, Prospects, Misconceptions and Economic Implications

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday May 14, 2025, 12:15 pm

Australia’s population has been growing larger and older over time. Both trends are likely to continue into the future. In this Webinar, Dr Nick Parr will discuss the long run, age-structure-related effects of changes to fertility rates, net migration numbers and age composition and mortality rates on future living standards and their sensitivity to other factors, including age-specific consumption needs of the population and social value judgements about intergenerational equity.

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Not all skills shortages are created equal

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Apr 30, 2025, 12:30 pm

This presentation explores the different types of skills shortages in Australia, using insight from Jobs and Skills Australia’s Occupation and Skills List (OSL), Skills Typology, and workforce shortage projections. It highlights the diverse drivers behind shortages and their implications for policy.

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Panel Discussion - The Impact of Trump's Tariffs - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Thursday Apr 24, 2025, 12:00 pm

From: Central Council

The tariffs announced on April 2^nd have disrupted many firms' strategies and thrown financial markets into chaos. Further announcements have increased tariffs on China and reduced other tariffs pending negotiations. What will be the impact of greater uncertainty and volatility on world trade, business investment in Australia, the US and China and other macroeconomic variables?

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Where Have All the Economics Students Gone - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Tuesday Apr 8, 2025, 12:00 pm

From: Central Council

The size and diversity of the economics student population has declined sharply since the early 1990s, raising concerns about economic literacy in society and the long-term health of the economics discipline. Interest in studying economics at university is low, even for those who studied economics in Year 12.

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Globalization and the Environment - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Thursday Apr 3, 2025, 12:00 pm

From: Central Council

For many countries, the race to net zero interacts in complicated ways with trade policy. There has long been research on how globalisation and international economic policy affect the environment: How do tariffs affect greenhouse gas emissions? Does globalisation cause a “race to the bottom” in environmental policy?

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Monetary Policy: Theory vs Practice

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Apr 2, 2025, 12:15 pm

In theory, monetary policy is relatively straightforward. In practice, it is anything but. The gap between theory and practice was brought into sharp focus by the recent review of the RBA. Many observers had expected the review to focus on monetary policy objectives – a relatively theoretical aspect of monetary policy making. Instead, it surprised many by placing a major emphasis on very practical aspects such as institutional governance, culture and communications. This talk will discuss why these often overlooked practical aspects of monetary policy are, in fact, essential to good monetary policy making.

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Real Incomes, Equality and Productivity 2015-25 and policy responses to improve real incomes, equality and productivity

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Mar 26, 2025, 6:00 pm

ESA NSW Branch is delighted to have special guests Dr Craig Emerson and Michael Brennan speak to us on Real Incomes, Equality and Productivity at an engaging panel discussion and networking event on Wednesday, 26 March.  

Following the talks and audience engagement on the issues, attendees will have the opportunity to catch-up over light refreshments.

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PANEL: Housing Affordability and Housing Policy: Where to Next? - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Friday Mar 21, 2025, 12:00 pm

From: Central Council

Australia is in the grips of a housing crisis, driven by rising costs in construction, the adjustment to working-from-home, and other factors. Rental affordability has worsened in the last few years, and rental affordability had been growing worse for the bottom quintile of earners over the last decade. 

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Dollars and Sense: Exposing unfair pricing - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Thursday Mar 13, 2025, 12:30 pm

In this seminar, Professor Byrne explores "price gouging" in oligopolistic industries.  Professor Byrne explores policy reform and Australian and global influences on firm's willingness and ability to price gouge, along with the future role of government in enabling pro-competitive pricing. 

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Going back to the high schools: Challenging stereotypes about economics

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Mar 5, 2025, 12:15 pm

Economics in the UK is an elitist – and male – discipline, and the problem starts in school. Professor Sarah Smith will talk about Discover Economics, an initiative to create opportunities for young people (15 – 17) to find out about economics, with the aim of broadening the subject’s appeal. She will discuss the lessons from a pilot national outreach program.  

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WEN-NSW Coffee Roulette - 2025

Event Type: Women in Economics Event

Date: Friday Feb 28, 2025, 5:00 pm

We are thrilled to announce the 2025 edition of the NSW Women in Economics Network (WEN) Coffee Roulette program. After a successful inaugural run in 2024, we are excited to continue this initiative designed to strengthen connections and foster a vibrant community among women economists in NSW.

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Australia's Energy Future: Where Are We Headed? - ONLINE ONLY

Date: Thursday Feb 27, 2025, 12:00 pm

From: Central Council

Seminar Series on Energy Transition - Session Two

The Australian electricity sector is undergoing a transformation. Our energy demand is growing, and critical policy and investment decisions are needed to ensure our energy future is reliable, sustainable and affordable. With the 2025 federal election on the horizon, decisions made now will shape the nation’s economy, infrastructure and workforce for decades to come. They will also have budgetary outcomes for successive governments to come.

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ABE Annual Forecasting Conference 2025

Event Type: External Event

Date: Thursday Feb 27, 2025, 7:15 am

Mark your calendar for the ABE Annual Forecasting Conference, a must-attend event exploring productivity, reform, and the implications of the 2025 Federal Election. Hosted at the historic Mint in Sydney, this engaging morning event brings together leading economists, industry experts and policymakers to discuss the future of Australia’s economy.

POSTPONED Electricity Price Trends and Energy Wallet - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Thursday Feb 20, 2025, 12:00 pm

From: Central Council

This event is postponed - the new date will be advised as soon as possible

Seminar Series on Energy Transition - Session One

The energy transition is unfolding rapidly. The Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) has recently published a 10-year outlook for residential electricity prices, with a focus on projecting how each cost component might change over the next decade. Beyond just examining electricity costs, the analysis also considers how households' total energy costs (or their 'energy wallet’) will change as they electrify transportation, heating and cooking, transitioning from other fuel sources to electricity.

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The Economics of AI: What to focus on, What to ignore

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Feb 19, 2025, 12:30 pm

David Orsmond speaks on the release of ChatGPT in late 2022, the future direction of artificial intelligence and its impact on the economy. By drawing on experiences seen during previous general purpose technologies, and the economics framework more broadly, this seminar separates the economic impacts that are likely to proceed slowly and be relatively benign from those that should be receiving immediate attention.

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WEN Credible Economist Writing Competition - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: Women in Economics Event

Date: Friday Feb 14, 2025, 12:00 am

Deadline is Friday 14 February 2025.

The Women in Economics Network was created to promote and support the careers of female economists in Australia. As part of this, the Credible Economist blog series promotes public contributions by female economists and on the topic of gender economics.

Working from Home and the Gender Wage Gap, Alison Preston, UWA - ONLINE ONLY

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Feb 12, 2025, 11:00 am

From: Central Council

Join us for this webinar during which Alison Preston examines the impact of working at home on the wages of men and women using data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. 

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HG Brennan Lecture

Event Type: External Event

Date: Thursday Feb 6, 2025, 6:00 pm

Catherine de Fontenay will be speaking on 'Economics and Selfishness' for the annual HG Brennan lecture in economics & theology. 

AGEW 2025

Date: Thursday Feb 6, 2025, 12:00 am

From: Central Council

The 8th Australian Gender Economics Workshop (#AGEW2025) is hosted by the University of Wollongong in partnership with the Women in Economics Network and is organised by Alfredo Paloyo. The workshop will take place on 6‒7 February 2025 in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. Wollongong is in Dharawal Country.

WEN-NSW Coffee Roulette

Event Type: Women in Economics Event

Date: Tuesday Dec 31, 2024, 12:00 pm

We are thrilled to announce the second round of the NSW Women in Economics Network (WEN) Coffee Roulette program beginning in September 2024 — an initiative designed to strengthen connections and foster a vibrant community among women economists in NSW.

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The Works of the 2024 Nobel Prize Winners - A Discussion

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Thursday Dec 12, 2024, 6:00 pm

ESA NSW Branch extends a warm invite to join our End of 2024 Topic and In-Person Meeting. Professor Hugh Harley (USyd) and David Orsmond (McQ) will talk on the fascinating and important works of the 2024 Nobel Prize Winners Daron Acemoglu, Simon Johnson and James Robinson.

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UNSW Economics Summer School

Event Type: External Event

Date: Monday Dec 9, 2024, 8:30 am

The UNSW Sydney Summer School offers two courses: (i) Empirical Methods for Causal Inference and (ii) Expectations in Macroeconomics.

These intensive graduate-level courses are aimed at students, researchers and professionals and provide a combination of lectures and practical examples and tools. Taught by world-leading experts in the respective fields, our courses will bring participants to the current frontier in economic research.

The history of independence of Central Banking

Event Type: ESA Event

Date: Wednesday Dec 4, 2024, 12:15 pm

In this seminar, Dr Currie discusses the history of central banking with reference to the evolution of the current Australian financial system, detailing the role of parliamentary inquiries and the eventual restructuring of the role of central bank prudential supervision as distinct from monetary policy.

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