Introduction: Health, Human Capital, and Early Economic Development in Australia and New Zealand

The close connection between human resources and economic activity makes it useful to consider the long-term trajectory of health and human capital in Australia and New Zealand. From the earliest days of European settlement and colonisation in the Pacific region, Australasia offered a remarkably healthy environment for immigrants. Contemporaries often referred to the Antipodes as ‘a working-man’s paradise’ because the standard of living for labourers was higher and mortality risk lower than in Europe.1 The early settlers and their descendants lived longer and enjoyed greater health than their siblings and cousins who remained in Europe.