This book interprets the predicament faced by Australia's regional people from their own perspective and proposes a means by which they can act together to find a secure future under globalisation. It argues that neoliberalism in combination with its 'real world' effects in economic policy are driving regional Australia further into social, environmental and economic decay. The book will be of great interest to all concerned about the future of regional Australia, and will make a lively and relevant text for students studying the social sciences in the countryside or in the major cities.
Delves behind the too-often negative media headlines and stereotypes about regional Australia, and considers the true state of Australia’s regions, including metropolitan regions, and what can be done to improve their economic, social and environmental well-being.
The Welsh Government has set an ambitious and innovative path for regional development and public investment – one focused on generating growth and increasing productivity, while also reducing territorial disparities and ensuring the well-being of citizens, now and in the future. Yet, it faces significant challenges, accentuated by limited fiscal decentralisation and changes to public investment financing post-Brexit.
Agriculture, mining and related rural industries have been central to the development of Australia’s economy. This book details the role that the Australian Government has played in the making of rural and regional Australia, particularly since World War II. The book reviews these policies and evaluates them with regards the commitments undertaken by the Government to contribute towards vibrant, rural communities. Policy areas addressed include agriculture, water, education, welfare and population, natural resource management, resource extraction, Indigenous and affairs, localism, rural research and regional innovation, Youth Affairs and the devolution of regional governance. Overall two distinct policy strategies can be observed: one wherein the government saw its role as part of the entrepreneurial state and a sector wherein government has increasingly taken itself out of industry development, leaving this role to the market. Having considered these strategies and their impacts, the book concludes that policy over the past 40 years has not in fact contributed to a more vibrant, prosperous rural and regional Australia. Rural and Regional Futures concludes with several chapters looking to the future. One chapter explores what the role of the state can be within a social market economy while the final chapter gives consideration to the initial steps rural communities will need to take to begin the process of revitalisation. While these materials present as a case study of developments in Australia, the policy shift from the Government as entrepreneur to a focus on markets is an international one and as such, the insights offered by this book will have wide appeal.
In Australia, regions are not just geographic locations, they are also cultural ideas. Being regional means being located outside the nation’s capital cities and in the periphery of its centres of power and influence. Regional development in Australia is thus significantly different than its European or American counterparts. However, surprisingly little has been written about the unique dynamics of development in Australia's regions; this book has been written to fill this gap. In recent decades the Australian government has made repeated policy efforts to achieve sustainable development in its non-metropolitan areas. Over the same period, those who live and work outside the nation’s capital cities have come to identify as regional Australians. This book takes an anthropological approach to understanding the particularities of regional development in Australia. It draws upon rich, on-the-ground observations of towns, industries, universities, development organisations, and communities across different settings to provide an in-depth understanding of the subject. This book will be of interest to researchers and practitioners concerned with regional development and policy.
The distribution and re-distribution of people across the landscape has signi cant implications for ecological, economic and social dynamics. Movement of people to urban centres (mostly from rural landscapes, especially in the developing world) is a major global phenomenon. This can result in the de-population of rural landscapes. Conversely, population growth and a changing demographic pro le have been id- ti ed for particular rural landscapes with notable examples from North America, Europe and Australia. Yet we know little of the factors that drive demographic changes in rural landscapes and even less about the implications of these changes. This book examines broad and local-scale patterns of demographic change in rural landscapes, identi es some of the drivers of these changes using Australian case studies or comparisons between Australian and international contexts, and outlines the implications of changes for society and the environment. This book makes a valuable contribution to the literature because it adopts an integrated and interdisciplinary approach by explicitly linking demographic change with environmental, land-use, social and economic factors. This integrated approach was achieved by encouraging interaction among authors writing on similar topics to ensure coherency and complementarity among chapters, and cross-pollination of ideas and perspectives. Chapters are presented as interactive and re ective d- cussions that address the ndings of other contributors; yet, each chapter contains enough background to stand alone as a unique contribution.
‘If we are to understand global capital, neoliberalism and the state in meaningful ways, we must understand them as they operate in, and on, particular places and people.’ Amanda Walsh Globalisation is an inescapable term in the 21st century, but its real meaning is often difficult to pin down. This book sheds new light on the political and economic implications of globalisation by examining the lived experience of a particular region: the Shoalhaven area of New South Wales, where two iconic Australian industries – dairying and manufacturing – struggled to survive in the face of global competition. Drilling down through layers of theory, policy and politics, Amanda Walsh surveys how globalisation has played out in regional Australia. Using industry case studies, she explores how decisions made at a national level have affected regional communities, and considers the role of the state in promoting and mediating globalising forces.
The book examines the extent to which the sustained population growth of Australia’s heartland regional centres has come at the expense of demographic decline in their own hinterlands, and, ultimately, of their entire regions. It presents a longitudinal study, over the period 1947-2011, of the extensive functional regions centred on six rapidly growing non-metropolitan cities in south-eastern Australia, emphasising rapid change since 1981. The selected cities are dominantly service centres in either inland or remote coastal agricultural settings. The book shows how intensified age-specific migration and structural ageing arising from macro-economic reforms in the 1980s fundamentally changed the economic and demographic landscapes of the case study regions. It traces the demographic consequences of the change from a relative balance between central city, minor urban centres and dispersed rural population within each functional region in 1947, to one of extreme central city dominance by 2011, and examines the long-term implications of these changes for regional policy. The book constitutes the first in-depth longitudinal study over the entire post-WWII period of a varied group of Australian regional cities and their hinterlands, defined in terms of functional regions. It employs a novel set of indices which combine numerical and visual expression to measure the structural ageing process.
Endurance presents stories of ordinary Australians grappling with extraordinary circumstances, providing insight into their lives, their experiences with drought and their perceptions of climate change. The book opens with the physical impacts, science, politics and economics of drought and climate change in rural Australia. It then highlights the cultural and historical dimensions — taking us to the Mallee wheat-belt, where researcher Deb Anderson interviewed farm families from 2004 to 2007, as climate change awareness grew. Each story is grouped into one of three themes: Survival, Uncertainty and Adaptation. Illustrated with beautiful colour photographs from Museum Victoria, Endurance will appeal to anyone with an interest in life stories, rural Australia and the environment.
Australia's Rural, Remote and Indigenous Health 3e is a practical guide to the delivery of health care in rural and remote Australia. Drawing on personal experiences of rural and remote practitioners, historical accounts, literature analysis and epidemiology, this frank and engaging text examines the economic, social and political forces that shape healthcare in rural and remote Australia. With limited current resources to support studies in rural and remote healthcare, this title bridges the gap by offering valuable insights into Indigenous life and social determinants of health through the use of storytelling. It is the perfect guide for anyone working in or planning to work in rural, remote or Indigenous Australia; and for those undertaking cultural studies, or social policy. Only text covering both rural and remote health in Australia Placement preparation with StudentConsult video interviews of experienced rural and remote practitioners providing first-hand experience of rural and remote practice Pause and Think questions provide a framework to apply learned knowledge to practice Pause and think question boxes train the reader to critically assess and apply concepts to practical situations. New Chapter: Working with Indigenous Australians - Written by Shannon Springer, describes how to consult with Indigenous patients and draws on his experience in clinical practice. It offers consultation signposts and practical principles for working with Indigenous Australians. New Chapter: Remote health practice - Written by Sue Lenthall, this chapter examines the differences and commonalities between the remote communities and then applies this information to a case study on 'a day in the life of a remote area nurse'. It presents a remote client consultation model and a StudentConsult audio consultation between a nurse and a distant doctor, as well as tips for working in remote practice. The audio consultation gives a first-hand account of the experience of a remote area nurse managing an emergency case. Video and audio content - video interviews of experienced rural, remote and Indigenous health practitioners as well as students. The videos contain first-hand experience of rural and remote practice as well as tips to help prepare those new to rural or remote practice.
