Kieran Madden
About Kieran Madden
Research Manager
Kieran joined Maxim Institute as a researcher in 2012 after graduating with a Master of Public Policy from the Crawford School of Economics and Government at the Australian National University.
Prior to this he worked as a researcher for an Australian Senator, following several years as a Project Manager for Hewlett Packard.
Most Recent Activity
This is our home
By Kieran Madden
Vibrant flowers gild the gates of the Christchurch mosques, each bouquet laid with trembling hands, representing a beautiful solidarity amidst…
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Now is the time to take our changing future seriously
By Kieran Madden
The Government is dead-set on improving “wellbeing” as the mark of their leadership, and “long-term intergenerational wellbeing” in particular. This…
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Vocational surgery required
By Kieran Madden
Our vocational educational system is on life support— haemorrhaging badly in desperate need of surgery. Four of New Zealand’s sixteen…
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Killing the cult of consumerism
By Kieran Madden
“Our Gross National Product…measures everything, except that which makes life worthwhile.” Bobby Kennedy’s famous 1968 speech decried how measures like…
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On Common Ground
By Kieran Madden
Illustrations by Anieszka Banks “I could have hit him, I could have hurt him…but something in me said, you know…
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The Politics of Diving
By Kieran Madden
Soccer goalkeepers sure look spectacular with their acrobatic dives during penalties, but studies show that simply standing in the middle…
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Shaking off stardust politics
By Kieran Madden
Famously elusive about her political leanings, pop sensation Taylor Swift recently went beyond her usual neutral get-out-and-vote message to endorse…
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Mana in Mahi isn’t your average work-for-the-dole scheme
By Kieran Madden
Translated to “strength in work,” Labour’s Mana in Mahi scheme shows real potential to make a difference in the lives…
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Generational perspective necessary to do policy well
By Kieran Madden
Our view of human nature makes a big difference on which policies we devise and support. “If men were angels,…
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Booming cities, struggling nations
By Kieran Madden
As a football tragic, I’ve been watching many of the World Cup games at ungodly hours these past few weeks….
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The age of misinformation
By Kieran Madden
“Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?” lamented the poet T.S. Eliot. “Where is the knowledge we have…
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Excessive tertiary education sends the wrong signals
By Kieran Madden
The higher education system is a colossal waste of time and money—far more about signaling to future employers than gaining…
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Submission: Child Poverty Reduction Bill
By Kieran Madden
Maxim Institute supports this Bill and proposes amendments to strengthen it. We welcome this Bill and its potential to increase…
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The end of individualism?
By Kieran Madden
In the early nineties, political theorist Francis Fukuyama famously proclaimed the “End of History” was upon us-that western liberal democracy…
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Promises and plans to change poverty in New Zealand
By Kieran Madden
A few weeks ago, my colleague wrote about Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s “courageous move” to introduce the Child Poverty Reduction…
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Kieran Madden on Radio New Zealand
By Kieran Madden
Kieran Madden recently joined Radio New Zealand to discuss the issues of poverty. He argues that the Labour Government must stick…
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Thinking with others
By Kieran Madden
“I thought once everybody could speak freely and exchange information and ideas, the world is automatically going to be a…
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Save Social Investment
By Kieran Madden
National’s Social Investment Approach must stay, but not as we know it. Imagine, for a moment, that policies are cars….
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Following the leader
By Kieran Madden
Can you remember that ground-shaking moment during the election campaign when you heard a policy announcement and were persuaded to…
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Taxes, trust, and transparency
By Kieran Madden
“When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do, sir?” This, apparently, was economist John Maynard Keynes’…
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