Manz, B & P Spoonley.  Gendered Work: Female Labour in Pipfruit Production in New Zealand and Chile. 
This article seeks to contribute to the literature on female labour in the pipfruit industry in New Zealand and Chile.  As added workers seeking to supplement household incomes by casualised, seasonal employment, these female workers are significant contributors to what are often declining household incomes, given changes in production and the labour market of the 1990s.  But this enhanced role continues to exist alongside normative expectations about domestic roles and responsibilities.  This research reports on a survey that was completed by female workers in both Chile and New Zealand.  While there are differences in the respective labour markets of the two countries concerned, the role of women in balancing employment and domestic responsibilities is characteristic of both situations.  It is the intersection between normative expectations and participation in casual/seasonal labour in the two research sites that is the focus of this article.

Joseph, AE, JM Lidgard & R Bedford.  Dealing with Ambiguity: On the Interdependence of Change in Agriculture and Rural Communities.
The well-established linkages between the fortunes of agriculture and rural communities that have characterised the histories of rural areas in New Zealand and elsewhere have been severely challenged over the past two decades.  Some commentators have posited a de-coupling of the two sectors.  This paper explores evolving farm and rural community interactions in New Zealand, first with reference to the lived experiences of rural residents in two Central North Island communities, Taumarunui and Tirau.  The key finding from the research is that the distinction between de-coupling and re-linking while conceptually appealing is empirically problematic as observed trends suggest a complex and ambiguous mixture of both.

Engle, ST.  Negotiating Technology - (Re)considering the Use of GIS by Indigenous Peoples.
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been increasingly touted for their ability to help empower indigenous peoples.  The opportunity to discuss the development of an iwi-based GIS with Te Ruunanga O Raukawa provides a platform for reflecting critically on issues that impact the effective use of GIS by indigenous groups.  The dialectical context of GIS is explored by (re)considering the opportunities and challenges of applying GIS as a cross-cultural communication device.  A position is negotiated which interprets GIS as conditionally empowering provided that indigenous peoples consider their symbolic representation in, and physical access to GIS before making an initial investment in the technology.

Higgins, J.  Young Workers in a Deindustrialising Economy: The Case of Christchurch, 1976-1996.
Understanding the specificity of local labour markets is a more productive way of identifying employment dynamics in an era of deindustrialisation than attending to universalist rhetorics on 'the knowledge economy'.  This article explores the employment destinations of young adults in the Christchurch labour market from the 1970s to recent times with a view to identifying how labour market opportunities facing them have changed, not only through the growth of part-time work but also through the changing nature of access to full-time work as sheltered ports of entry are replaced by requirements for tertiary education and training.

Bedford, R.  2001: Reflections on the Spatial Odysseys of New Zealanders.
'Brain drain' has been one of the abiding topics of public debate during 2000.  Emigration of New Zealanders much more than immigration of new settlers has dominated discourses about international migration, even though for much of the year the country experienced overall net migration gains rather than net losses.  This paper addresses the migration of New Zealanders with reference to both the international shortage of skilled labour, especially 'white' English speaking labour, and the growing debate about 'replacement' migration.  The gradual recognition, both by politicans and academics, of a 'New Zealand diaspora' is examined.