Rural Island Communities Research Articles

Development policies, state interventions and struggles for livelihood rights in coastal communities in Kerala, India: A case study of the Cochin clam fishery

One of the major dilemmas of using rural commons for industrial uses in developing countries relates to the failure of the state to evolve consensus on allocating property rights to local communities and modern enterprises in a manner that sustains livelihoods and ecosystems. While traditional coastal communities enforce customary rights for fishing and mineral mining, the state sometimes reallocates traditional fishing territories to commercial mining to facilitate rapid industrialization. Communities oppose such transfers because of the negative impacts of commercial dredging on traditional fishing and ecosystems. Based on detailed field level surveys conducted in 2004, this paper describes how rural island communities along Cochin estuary expressed their opposition to the transfer of clam-mining rights to industries by democratic social mobilization. Counter moves were collectively organized by modern enterprises and trade unions which had the support of the state. However, major political parties retreated from conflict management, leaving the matter in a state of flux. This paper suggests that the state must recognize traditional livelihood rights of communities if it is to resolve conflicts and ensure the sustainable and equitable use of natural resources.

Distance Education Potential For A Canadian Rural Island Community

The purpose of the study was to investigate the potential impact of distance education on a small, rural, Canadian island community. Presently, the population of small, rural island communities on the west coast of Canada are facing numerous challenges to retain and to attract permanent residents and families and to provide support and direction for those residents who wish to pursue K-12 accreditation, post-secondary education, vocational/trades training and up-grading or life-long learning. A unique set of considerations confront many of these isolated communities if they wish to engage in distance education and training. This set ranges from internet access to excessive travel by secondary students to the lack of centralized facility. For this study, a group of 48 participants were interviewed to determine their perceptions of the potential for distance education to impact on the community's educational, both academic and vocational, life-long learning and economic needs. The results indicated that there were four general areas of purported benefit: academic advancement, an improved quality of life, support for young families and a stabilizing affect on the local economy. Suggestions for the implementation of a suitable distance education resource are noted.

‘What’s the Story in Balamory?’: The Impacts of a Children’s TV Programme on Small Tourism Enterprises on the Isle of Mull, Scotland

Film- and television-induced tourism effects have been witnessed in a number of locations world-wide, creating a range of positive and negative impacts for host communities and environments. The children’s television programme Balamory, filmed on the Isle of Mull, Scotland, has created a new tourism phenomenon for the island, leading to concern that Mull’s reputation as a green destination for the discerning might be displaced by a less desirable form of tourism. Through a questionnaire survey of tourism businesses on Mull, this paper explores the perceptions of television-induced tourism and the effect of Balamory on business activity during the 2003 season, exploring customer numbers, spending, turnover and profitability, along with attitudes to the new visitors. The research also explores the implications for sustainable tourism development, particularly recognising the limited life-span of film- and television-induced tourism and issues relating to displacement of traditional markets, with an emphasis on sustaining tourism as a means of generating revenue to support a rural island community.

Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest in a Rural Area: A 16-Year Experience with Lessons Learned and National Comparisons

Study objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of the emergency medical services (EMS) system in a rural island community in resuscitating victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest over the past 16 years. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of all EMS responses to cardiac arrests on San Juan Island, a rural island community of 5,000 people in the Pacific Northwest. Data were collected between January 1977 and July 1994 on the basis of the Utstein criteria. From these data, we calculated survival rates and compared them with published data from other rural and nonrural areas in the United States. Results: During this study, 22% of all the patients who sustained a cardiac arrest of cardiac origin on the island survived to hospital discharge. The survival rate for witnessed cases of ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardia was 43%. Conclusion: The combined paramedic/emergency medical technician system used on San Juan Island has yielded survival rates comparable to those of urban areas. This system may serve as a model for other rural communities, especially those with well-defined geographic areas and established 911 central dispatching. [Killien SY, Geyman JP, Gossom JB, Gimlett D: Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in a rural area: A 16-year experience with lessons learned and national comparisons. Ann Emerg Med September 1996;28:294-300.]

Psychological health and employment status in an island community

This study focuses on the relationship between psychological health and employment status in a rural island community. Comparisons are made between different groups within and between the island population and more urban populations reported in other studies. Within the island differences are reported between men and women. For men psychological health varied, especially between the employed and the unemployed. For women no such comparable differences emerged. Although the differences that were found in the island population were of the same kind as reported from urban populations, they were very much less pronounced. It is argued that the relationship between psychological health and employment status can be modified by and is better understood through reference to the local social and community context.