For a long time it has become common for followers of monetary policy to categorise central banks as ‘hawks’ or ‘doves’, and for their decisions to be seen as ‘hawkish’ for signalling higher interest rates or ‘dovish’ for signalling lower interest rates. In Aotearoa, New Zealand, our equivalent bird life are the kahu (the harrier hawk) and the kererū (the wood pigeon). But when it comes to making monetary policy decisions under uncertainty, it may be that the kōtuku (white heron) provides a much more fitting metaphor. In Māori culture, there are two whakataukī (proverbs) involving the kōtuku that capture how its ... (full story)