Report of the Editor for 2021 and Announcements of the President

During 2021 the journal published 15 research articles and summaries of three dissertations. The March issue contains three studies in Australian economic history and a far-reaching piece about ‘Big Economic History’ by long-time contributor Peter Lloyd. The July issue celebrates the many scholarly contributions of Professor Jeffrey G. Williamson. Consulting editor Andrew J. Seltzer introduces the issue with an appreciation of Professor Williamson's rich career and research contributions in the issue from distinguished colleagues on three continents. In November special editors Duol Kim and Andrew J. Seltzer bring together six powerful surveys examining the economic history of China, India, Japan, Korea and Thailand.

I am delighted to announce that the 2021 best paper is ‘Always egalitarian? Australian earnings inequality 1870–1910’. Panza and Williamson trace the origin of Australia's relatively egalitarian earnings distribution to the middle third of the nineteenth century. They attribute an unexpected decline in earnings inequality 1870–1910 to the fast growth of schooling and skilled labour supply relative to changes in the demand for skilled labour. The editorial team and the Board congratulate the authors of the three papers and especially Laura Panza and Jeff Williamson!

The journal's Associate Editors are Sumner Lacroix (University of Hawai'i-Mānoa), Dan Li (Fudan University), Chicheng Ma (University of Hong Kong), Hamish Maxwell-Stewart (University of New England), Jim McAloon (Victoria University of Wellington) and Florian Ploeckl (University of Adelaide). Their efforts are crucial for the success of the journal. They bring the journal to the attention of early career researchers, make it attractive to authors by turning papers around quickly and support authors through multiple revisions (if necessary) to achieve the highest possible standards of scholarship. Consulting Editor Andrew J. Seltzer (Royal Holloway) heroically managed two special issues during the year. Dr. Claire Wright (Macquarie University) has developed our social media presence. We are all grateful for the efforts of this fine team.

The work of the journal depends critically on a large number of referees, listed below, who carefully read and report constructively on individual manuscripts: Vellore Arthi, Frank Bongiorno, Myung Soo Cha, Thanyaporn Chankrajang, Martin Chick, Jari Eloranta, Rob Gillezeau, Hanhui Guan, Tim Hatton, John Hawkins, Greg Huff, Li Jianan, Monica Keneley, Rebecca Kippen, Chun Chee Kok, Yuzuru Kumon, Sumner La Croix, Cong Liu, Peter Lloyd, Ye Ma, Jakob B. Madsen, Jim McAloon Christopher Meissner, Stephen Morgan, Kentaro Nakajima, Ilan Noy, Dorian Owen, Joshua Price, Michael Quinlan, Evan Roberts, Andre Sammartino, Martin Shanahan, Richard Sicotte, John Singleton, Andrew Smith, Anand Swamy, John Tang, Benno Torgler, Brian Varian, Jessica Vechbanyongratana, Jonathan Wadsworth, Sophie Xuefei Wang, John Wilson and Hongjun Zhao.

Each year the editorial team identifies a small number of reviewers whose efforts went ‘above and beyond’. The meritorious reviewers for 2021 are Vellore Arthi, Yuzuru Kumon, Cong Liu, Jakob B. Madsen and Jonathan Wadsworth.

The number of institutions that cover open access publishing costs for their researchers through a ‘transitional agreement’ with Wiley continues to grow. The full list is here. Any corresponding author at an eligible institution may access this funding and publish the paper open access in the journal.

Finally, beginning in 2023 the journal will be an on-line publication with paper copy available to subscribers on demand. One happy consequence is that colour figures will be reproduced digitally and published free of charge.

Announcements

From the Economic History Society of Australia and New Zealand President

Society Prizes

I am pleased to announce the winner of the Asia-Pacific Prize in Economic History, for dissertations awarded in 2019 or 2020:

Yuzuru Kumon (PhD: University of California, Davis). Rich Europe, Poor Asia: How Wealth Inequality, Demography and Crop Risks Explain the Poverty of Pre-industrial East Asia, 1300–1800.

Two short-listed theses were commended by the prize committee:

Lingyu Kong (PhD: University of Adelaide). Modern Chinese Banking Networks during the Republican Era.

Cheng Yang (PhD: University of Cambridge). The occupational structure of late Imperial China, 1736–1898.

Summaries of all three dissertations are published in the current issue of AEHR. On behalf of the Society, I congratulate Dr Kumon, Dr Kong, and Dr Yang.

Nominations for S. J. Butlin Prize, awarded biennially for the best Masters or PhD thesis in Australian or New Zealand economic history are now open. Nominations for thesis awarded in 2020 or 2021 close on September 30, 2022. For further details, see: https://economichistorysociety.wordpress.com/prizes/

Journal title change

With the signing of a new publishing agreement with Wiley, from 2023 onward the Society's journal will be re-titled Asia-Pacific Economic History Review. This title more fully reflects the journal's content. For some time more than half of the articles have focussed on topics outside of Australia and New Zealand. The journal's aims and scope will not change; it will continue to publish work on Australia-New Zealand alongside other economies in the Asia-Pacific region and work of a broadly international character.

Open access publishing facilitated by Monash University, as part of the Wiley - Monash University agreement via the Council of Australian University Librarians.