Otago Professor Dennis Wesselbaum wins Early Career Award for research impact

The New Zealand Institute of Economic Research is pleased to announce Otago University Associate Professor Dennis Wesselbaum as the 2023 NZIER Early Career Economics Leader Award recipient.

Professor Wesselbaum was awarded the $10,000 prize for his contributions to academia, the profession and work with the media. Selection Panel, Professor Les Oxley said, “There was a strong set of nominees this biennium from which Dennis stood out. The Selection Panel singled out his topical work on inflation, labour market reform, and fair pay agreements as impacting real-world decision making.” 

Professor Wesselbaum is the Editor-in-Chief of New Zealand Economics Papers and Vice President of the New Zealand Association of Economists. He has played an important role in the Otago Foreign Policy School.

The Selection Panel includes the NZIER Panel Chair, the President of the New Zealand Association of Economists, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Governor of the Reserve Bank, an academic, a business leader or their nominees.

The NZIER Early Career Economics Leader Award is part of the NZIER Public Good Programme, organised and underwritten by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research to recognise and encourage the advancement of economics in New Zealand. This is a biennial award.

About NZIER Public Good Programme

At the heart of NZIER’s mission is its Public Good programme, which seeks to educate and encourage debate on economic issues affecting New Zealand. NZIER funds its Public Good programme by reinvesting its surplus from consulting work and membership activity. The Public Good ethos underpins the approach of the Board, the Chief Executive and the staff to all its activities.

For more information, contact:

Professor Les Oxley, Selection Panel Chair
021 89 2121
or
Todd Krieble, Deputy Chief Executive, NZIER
027 742 6415