| Summary: | This paper examines the influence of islandness on development and governance of Bruny Island (offshore from Tasmania, Australia’s only island state). While traditional economic activities, particularly agriculture, are in decline, tourism is increasingly important to the island economy. While some 600 people live on the island all-year-round; there are some 2,000 ratepayers, including holiday home owners. This location is being rapidly ‘discovered’ by people drawn from interstate and overseas to the island lifestyle, and this is leading to a process of gentrification, with consequences for islanders. Bruny Island’s local governing authority is based on the Tasmanian mainland and hence is another source of externally-driven change. Amidst these pressures, island community visioning can be an important source of resilience.
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