A.Prof Martin Brueckner

In December 2002, the Northern Territory (NT) Labor government in Australia released a new tourism plan, Northern Territory Tourism Strategic Plan - 2003-2007. The turbulent events of 2001 that had a significant impact on the tourism industry in the NT and included the collapse of the Australian carrier Ansett Airlines and 'September 11' provided the impetus for the new strategy. Purportedly, this plan was designed to direct and guide the NT tourism industry's future development based on sound research and extensive consultation with key stakeholders. Such a partnership approach was regarded as crucial for the success of future tourism in the Territory. This paper specifically focuses on the formulation process of this Tourism Strategic Plan. In particular, it explores the effectiveness of the underlying consultation process. A closer examination, however, shows that the government's claims to having prepared the tourism plan in consultation with a wide range of stakeholders are not justified.

Australian federal government policy over the last ten years has renewed the focus on closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians, targeting chiefly improvements in health and economic participation among Indigenous people. Thus far, however, the results have been mixed, in part because of the endurance of Indigenous socio-economic disadvantage in Australia which cannot be expected to be undone within a matter of years. Failure to deliver better policy outcomes, however, can also be seen as a function of an inflexible policy design, which aims at the mainstreaming of Indigenous communities on non-Indigenous terms, whilst militating against the potential for Indigenous entrepreneurial activities especially in rural and remote regions.Against this policy background, this paper reports on local entrepreneurial activities by local Yolngu clans in East Arnhem Land in the Northern Territories (NT). In particular, attention is directed to local for-profit and not-for-profit activities by members of the Gumatj clan south of the regional centre of Nhulunbuy and the Rirratjingu operations in the town Yirrkala respectively. The paper describes how the ventures run by the Gumatj and Rirratjingu clans offer pathways for the creation of income, employment and social capital within the respective local communities whilst also being axiomatic in the protection of cultural vitality and integrity. The findings point to the need for more flexible approaches to policy design and delivery, enabling the establishment and growth of Indigenous business activities outside the economic mainstream targeted by federal government policy. As such, the authors echo calls in the literature for policy support for what has been described as the 'hybrid economy', which allows for participation in both economic and cultural activities both of which are crucial for Indigenous future well-being as they are for any cultural group.

Historically, the terms ‘development’ and ‘prosperity’ have been much traded commodities and to this day are treated largely as being synonymous. This paper, based on a Western Australian experience, explores the issues surrounding economic development, focusing on questions about the sharing of social, economic and environmental costs and benefits associated with it. While the notion remains unchallenged that development leads to higher levels of prosperity, at least for some, this paper raises questions about the impacts development can have on the prosperity of local communities beyond financial resources such as community health, well-being and social cohesion. In this context, the potential for friction between government, industry and communities is highlighted in the perceived absence of a requisite balance between public costs and private gains. Case study data presented brings to light the implications conflicts such as these can have for regional sustainability and governance and help distil lessons for decision-makers confronted with industry community conflicts.

Notions of holism and systemic health have broadened our understanding of the treatment and prevention of disease. Integral to these concepts is a whole-system perspective, which enables the holistic treatment of health and its dimensions. A perspective such as this demands that the focus be directed at the health of an entire system and that of its constituent parts; their health becomes a prerequisite for the health of the whole (systemic health). In the context of ecosystem health, social and political systems can be understood as subsystems of a wider natural system and their 'health' or 'well-being' as contributing to the health of this broader system in which they are embedded. In Australia, the relationships between socio-political systems and ecosystems have undergone considerable changes over the last 50 years. Growing levels of environmental awareness, for instance, have led to an increase in public concern about, and scrutiny of, the governance and management of the environment and to a growth in the demand for public participation in environmental policy-making. Focusing on the social and political dimensions of forestry in Western Australia, this paper examines the notion of systemic forest health against the background of changing public perceptions of forests and their management as well as growing demands by the public for its engagement in political decision-making processes affecting forest health. It is argued that public participation is a vital component of forest health and that meaningful public input is therefore required in political processes working towards the systemic health of ecosystems.

This paper explores the connections that are apparent between the concepts of health and sustainability. Our argument is based on the position that a concern for equity in health is the common ground between those agencies and sectors charged with either overseeing human health, or operationalising sustainability. We posit that addressing issues of equity in health will provide cross-sectoral meaning and purpose in regional governance.