The labour market and settlement outcomes of migrant partners in New Zealand

Introduction: Analysis of LisNZ data to date has primarily explored skilled principal migrants and their settlement and labour market outcomes. However, the settlement of family members and the labour market outcomes of partners are equally as important to understand. The presence of family members alongside the principal migrant plays an important role in the settlement process by providing social and economic support and assistance.1 In addition, children in particular have been found to increase the social connectedness of principal migrants and therefore support positive settlement outcomes.2 Understanding the settlement of partners and children is important as it has been identified that if a partner and family are not happy, then the retention of the skilled principal migrant is unlikely.3 Facilitating employment opportunities and settlement services for partners of skilled migrants may be just as important as those developed for skilled principal migrants. The settlement of families who migrate to New Zealand is increasingly important given the demographic challenges facing the country. Taking a longer-term view, retaining migrants who have partners and children benefits New Zealand not only by gaining the skills we need immediately from the parent(s), but also by potentially increasing the number of New Zealand educated workers when their children eventually enter the labour l force. This may be particularly valuable as ‘baby boomers’ increasingly retire over the next 20 years. By understanding the factors that influence the successful settlement of families, we can better improve or target settlement services and policies, therefore maximising economic contribution

Predatory Lending: Practices, Remedies and Lack of Adequate Protection for Ohio Consumers

This note focuses on remedies available to borrowers who fall prey to predatory lending practices on their home equity loans where their homes are used as collateral. Part II gives basic background information on predatory lending: what predatory lending is, examples of common predatory lending techniques, and, who benefits and who is hurt by predatory lending practices. Part III discusses and critiques current federal laws that borrowers have used to combat predatory mortgage lending practices. Part IV explains the current forms of relief available in Ohio and the limitations of these remedies. Part V discusses remedies in other states, focusing on North Carolina and New York. Part VI proposes changes in Ohio law to provide remedies for victims of predatory lending practices

Extending public transit through micromobility facilities and services in the Bay Area

Micromobility—including bicycles, electric bicycles, and electric scooters—is well-suited to address first- and last-mile connectivity with public transit by bridging the gaps of service for riders. This extends the geographic region where residents are likely to access and exit a transit station, facilitating access to more jobs, services, and recreation. However, public use of micromobility depends on a variety of factors. These include availability of secure parking facilities or other environmental design features at and around public transit stations. UC Davis researchers and urban design experts considered these issues in a case study of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) heavy rail system. The study included environmental audits at 18 BART stations. The study also hosted an online survey of BART and micromobility users and included interviews with government, industry, and community stakeholders. This policy brief summarizes the findings from this study and provides policy implications. View the NCST Project Webpag

No. 04: The Urban Food System of Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston is a colonial city and, like the country of Jamaica more generally, was the product of early mercantilism moulded by colonialism, sugar plantations and slavery. As Jamaica’s capital, Kingston is an economic and administrative hub with a social geography marked by many of the characteristic fissures of emerging cities in transition economies. Its population is fed by a combination of food imports and domestic production from agricultural areas across the island. The key trading point for fresh produce flows into Kingston is Coronation Market in the city centre. Between 60% and 70% of fruit and vegetables arriving at Coronation Market are re-distributed through other wholesale markets in and around Kingston. Domestically produced foods flow into Kingston largely through Jamaica’s higgler system. These informal vendors perform many functions as market intermediaries, including trade, harvesting, post-harvest processing, re-distribution and sales. Jamaicans spend an average of 43% of their income on food; a figure significantly influenced by price shocks. Some of these shocks are the result of severe weather conditions, including cyclones with excessive rains as well as drought. While there is a strong preference for domestically produced goods, cheaper prices and perceived safety of imports entice consumers. Jamaica has also moved increasingly towards a higher fat, more refined diet, resulting in higher rates of obesity and nutrition-related chronic diseases

Is It OK to Get in a Car with a Stranger? Risks and Benefits of Ride-pooling in Shared Automated Vehicles

We currently know little about what to expect regarding ride-pooling in shared automated vehicles (SAVs). Who will be willing to share rides, with whom, and under what conditions? This report details the efforts and results funded by two seed grants that converged on these questions. A broad-based literature review and review of automated vehicle (AV designs) leads to the articulation of potential risks and benefits of the pooled SAV experience and potential design solutions and supports, respectively. Risks could be related to compromised personal space, security, control, and convenience. Design features that might mitigate these risks include large windows to afford a high degree of visibility into and out of the vehicle, spacious seating and legroom (relative to larger shared vehicles like buses, trains, and planes), access to a remote human administrator who can observe inside the vehicle at all times, easy means to program private stops that are nearby one’s ultimate origins and destinations (to maintain privacy), and options for large groups or associations to “own” a particular vehicle (e.g., a female only SAV). Benefits of pooled SAVs could be related to restoration and social capital. Design features that could support these benefits include themed interiors; quizzes, games and ambient entertainment; augmented reality windshields; flexible seating allowing riders to face each other; accommodations for food and drink; ensuring broad access; and making SAVs a canvas for local art. The reports ends with a proposed research agenda highlighting the importance of qualitative engagement with consumers to understand the issues related to: switching to pooled SAVs from various dominant travel modes (e.g., private cars, ride-hailing, public transit); leveraging analogous modes (e.g., pooled ride-hailing) to study the potential of pooled SAVs; and conducting experiments to understand the influence of various features of the pooled SAV experience that will impact consumer adoption. This report can inform SAV designers, policy-makers, private transit service providers, and other stakeholders about behavioral and design factors that will impact uptake of pooled SAVs

Celebrate Your Plate: Nutrition Education Through Social Marketing

The State Nutrition Action Committee (SNAC) was created in 2007 to bring together several health- and community-based organizations throughout the state of Ohio including SNAP-Ed, EFNEP, Department of Aging, Department of Education, Department of Health including WIC, Creating Healthy Communities and the Early Childhood Obesity Prevention Program, Department of Aging, Department of Job and Family Services, and the Mid-Ohio Foodbank. SNAC's aim is to promote shared goals and collaborate on related programming efforts. In the spring of 2016, SNAC decided to embark on a social marketing campaign together. SNAP-Ed facilitates the partnership between The Ohio State University and the program assistants (PAs), program coordinators (PCs) and FCS educators who are in 80 of Ohio's 88 counties delivering direct education and community programming. The SNAP-Ed social marketing campaign, Celebrate Your Plate (CYP), will support existing direct education programming across the state and encourage low-income audiences to increase their fruit and vegetable consumption. Social marketing is defined as "the application of commercial marketing technologies to the analysis, planning, execution, and evaluation of programs designed to influence voluntary behavior of target audiences to improve their personal welfare and that of society." (Andreasen, 1995). Work on a SNAP-Ed social marketing campaign began in early 2016 with the formation of the Social Marketing Core Team (SMCT) and the development of a campaign plan with the members of SNAC. The objectives of the SNAP-Ed social marketing campaign are as follows: 1) Plan, design, implement, and evaluate a social marketing campaign that increases fruit and vegetable consumption in low-income audiences by supporting the existing OSU Extension SNAP-Ed direct education program. 2) Create and document the processes of the social marketing campaign and its pilot and staged implementation throughout Ohio. Formative research was conducted during the summer of 2016 to inform the direction of the campaign; and a marketing agency, Fahlgren Mortine, was hired through the Ohio State University bid process to handle materials development and media purchasing. Data from formative research informed the direction of the campaign and determined the tone of the campaign, media approaches, and material design. Based on results from the pilot, a selection of marketing materials will be used in different quadrants across the state during the next two years. Fruit and vegetable consumption is the dietary guideline with the lowest achievement rate among all Ohioans. Celebrate Your Plate will facilitate additional partnerships to advance health and wellness through increasing fruit and vegetable consumption.AUTHOR AFFILIATION: Alisha Ferguson, SNAP-Ed Program Assistant, Social Marketing, [email protected] (Corresponding Author); Beth Hustead, SNAP-Ed Program Coordinator, Social Marketing; B.R. Butler, FCS Program Evaluation Director; K.L. Golis, OSU Nutrition Program Graduate Research Associate; A.C. Zubieta, SNAP-Ed Director.The State Nutrition Action Committee (SNAC) was created in 2007 to bring together several health and community-based organizations throughout the state of Ohio. SNAC's aim is to promote shared goals and collaborate on related programming efforts. For 10 years, SNAC has given committee members the opportunity to work together, connect with other public health and nutrition organizations, and create new and meaningful projects such as a social marketing campaign. Work on a SNAP-Ed social marketing campaign, Celebrate Your Plate, began in early 2016 with the formation of the Social Marketing Core Team (SMCT) and the development of a campaign plan with the members of SNAC. With fruit and vegetable consumption the dietary guideline with the lowest achievement rate among all Ohioans, it is important for Celebrate Your Plate to create more partnerships to advance health and wellness

Paths to Recovery: Coordinated and Comprehensive Care for Landmine Survivors

By conducting interviews with survivors of landmine incidents, Landmine Survivors Network (LSN) has been able to learn a lot about rehabilitative needs from the perspective of the patients. This article describes how physical health, psychological well-being and socio-economic reintegration are all important components of a complete recovery for landmine victims

Digital Address Book for the Baby Boomer Generation

We intend to recycle LCD monitors coupled with overhead projectors to project movies for communities of developing countries and their schools.Ope