About the PPI
About the PPI
The Public Policy Institute (PPI) has been established to foster independent, critical research on key policy issues affecting New Zealand, the Asia Pacific, and the global community.
We bring together researchers from across disciplines to create and disseminate evidence-informed, policy-relevant knowledge that speaks to policy agendas, amplifies policy impact, and grows our partnerships with governments, both local and central, as well as non-profits, communities and others engaged in policy research and evaluation in New Zealand and internationally.
The PPI is committed to creating meaningful relationships with Māori to ensure that all aspects of our research, teaching, and external activities support and engage with te Tiriti o Waitangi, acknowledging our responsibilities to support Māori self-determination and development.
The PPI is also home to the Master of Public Policy, where postgraduate students engage in learning and knowledge exchange with researchers and professionals to address a range of challenging policy questions.
Research themes
- Gender, intersectionality and good governance
- Data, democracy and digital futures
- Global policy, trade and foreign affairs
- Diversity and justice in a bicultural society
- Co-Creating Sustainable Societies
- Well-being and equality across generations
- Liveability, ecology and infrastructure
The Auckland Policy Commons is the official blog of the University of Auckland’s Public Policy Institute.
Contributors to the Public Policy Institute are academic researchers, including doctoral scholars, from New Zealand universities and around the world, professionals with a research-based interest in policy, from government, the non-profit sector, think tanks, business and international organisations, and alumni who are policy advocates, practitioners and researchers across the globe.
You can find out more about individual members of our staff, academic advisors and research associates by navigating to one of the teams below.
Public Policy Institute Team
Professor Jennifer Curtin
Director
Jennifer is a Professor of Politics and Director of the Public Policy Institute at the University of Auckland. Her research and publications focus on Australian and New Zealand politics and policy, gender, policy analysis and political leadership, and the politics of sport. She teaches comparative public policy, lesson drawing and the gender analysis in the Master of Public Policy and she is the PhD Adviser for Public Policy. Her research involves engagement with a range of government agencies, policy consultancies and non-profit organisations, and her publications appear in scholarly outlets, peer reviewed reports, and policy briefings. She regularly shares her findings with community organisations and the media, both in New Zealand and internationally.
Jennifer is currently leading externally funded projects on the following topics: Gender Responsive Budgeting in New Zealand; the Gendered Effects of COVID19 globally and locally; Gender and Political Leadership at the Subnational Level in Australia and Canada; as well as being a Principal Investigator on the New Zealand Election Study. You can find more of her policy-relevant research on this website Auckland Policy Commons, and the Gender Responsive Analysis and Budgeting website.
Email: j.curtin@auckland.ac.nz
Dr Suzanne Woodward
Associate Director External Engagement
Knowledge Translation Specialist
Suzanne’s work has a strong social focus in terms of equity and research impact through partner engagement and knowledge mobilisation. She works directly with marginalised communities to improve their wellbeing. Her work also produces recommendations for improved policies and procedures in a range of areas, including social justice, infrastructure, health and technology. As part of the Public Policy Institute, she also works with a number of research collaborators on environmental, health and technology policy and implementation, most recently on projects about Kaumātua and intergenerational homes, breast cancer among Samoan women, family violence, health reform, robots and AI.
Suzanne is the Co-Director of the Infrastructure for Community Futures Research Centre. She is a member of the Natural, Artificial and Organisational Intelligence Research Centre, Ngā Ara Whetū, the Transportation Research Centre, the Centre for Methods and Policy in Social Sciences (COMPASS), the Health Reform Collective, and the Centre for Robotics and Automated Engineering.
Email: s.woodward@auckland.ac.nz
Dr Timothy Fadgen
Associate Director Postgraduate Programmes
Tim is a Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations and Programme Director of Master of Public Policy. Tim’s research has explored public policy and law in the areas of mental health and disability, immigration, deportation and asylum policy. Tim’s current research considers aspects of Aotearoa New Zealand’s immigration policy and how legal practitioners use the law to advocate for client’s facing deportation. Tim is a former Fulbright (Public Policy) Fellow and Mellon Foundation/American Council of Learned Societies postdoctoral fellow. He practiced law in the United States, American Samoa and Samoa, including handling immigration and asylum claims, is a member of the Maine bar (USA) and is admitted before the United States Supreme Court.
Dr Mohammad Salimifar
Lecturer in Public Policy
Mohammad is a lecturer at the Public Policy Institute, University of Auckland. He joined the institute in 2020 and since then has been involved in teaching (economics of public policy – POLICY 702 and 743) and supervising dissertations for the Master of Public Policy (MPP) programme. Mohammad obtained his PhD in Economics from the University of Auckland, where he was awarded MSA and EETNZ doctoral scholarships for his thesis, “Institutions and the Environment”. Mohammad holds a BSc in Business Economics and MA in Economic Development and Planning, and has teaching and research experience in the Department of Economics and Graduate School of Management (University of Auckland). His research interest is in environmental economics with a focus on cross-country empirical analysis.
Email: m.salimifar@auckland.ac.nz
Dr Gay Marie Francisco
Research Fellow
Gay Marie Manalo Francisco completed her doctoral studies in Politics and International Relations at the University of Auckland (UoA) as a University of Auckland Doctoral Scholar. She also finished her Master of Public Policy at UoA as a New Zealand ASEAN scholar.
She has years of experience in the education, non-profit, and corporate sectors. As Vice President for Administration of First Asia Institute of Technology and Humanities, she established the school’s Office of Career and Placement Services and managed a number of international partnerships and campaigns, including a special project with the ASEAN Secretariat. She was Executive Director of Muntinlupa Development Foundation which helps urban poor communities and was also involved in the ASEAN Unity Park project of the FAITH Botanic Gardens Foundation, a private sector initiative which advocates the establishment of private parks and recreational spaces for the community. She was also the Director for Communication of Bato Balani Foundation, a corporate foundation which aims to help in uplifting the quality of education in the Philippines.
Dr Komathi Kolandai
Research Fellow
Dr. Komathi Kolandai brings over 13 years of post-PhD research experience, encompassing transdisciplinary research and work across multiple disciplines. Currently, at the Public Policy Institute, her collaborative projects with Professor Jennifer Curtin examine the gendered impacts of COVID-19, including changes in unpaid care work, the development of gender-sensitive wellbeing indicators, and gender-responsive analysis and budgeting.
At the School of Psychology, she collaborates with Professor Niki Harré on publications related to community psychology, including outputs from the Rōpū Whai Whakaaro action research project, which focuses on values-based living.
Dr. Kolandai is committed to mentoring early-career researchers and graduate students in her various roles.
Research Associates
Academic Advisory Board
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