Small Island Setting Research Articles

Sacred Isles: Islands as Sites of Religious, Spiritual or Supernatural Exception

The articles in this inaugural publication of the periodic section on ‘Sacred isles: Islands as sites of religious, spiritual or supernatural exception’ in Folk, Knowledge, Place examines the complex interplay between sacred isles, geography and human experience. Through empirical research, theoretical analysis and comparative studies, the papers contribute to island studies by revealing the layers of meaning embedded in island landscapes and their roles in spiritual and cultural life. The three articles in the present issue discuss diverse locations, covering distinct small island settings with sacred connections in England (St Michael’s Mount), Guernsey (Lihou) and the river islands of Guangzhou in China. Drawing from a rich body of scholarly work across island studies, folklore studies, religious studies and geography, this periodic section foregrounds how the inherent spatial characteristics of islands—such as isolation, defined coastlines and unique environmental conditions—imbue them with mystique and sanctity. Such attributes foster a heightened sense of space and intimacy with the environment and enhance their appeal as sacred sites. While highlighting how islands can embody cultural heritage and religious devotion, the articles also explain some of the ways sacred isles can transcend island space, moving between and across islands and related revered settings where a consideration of sacred interconnections becomes necessary for comprehending islands on their own terms.

Managed aquifer recharge in island aquifer under thermal influences on the fresh-saline water interface

Storing and utilizing freshwater in coastal aquifers with managed aquifer recharge (MAR) presents significant challenges, particularly in small island settings where seawater intrusion is a major source of groundwater salinization. Existing studies usually evaluate density-dependent flow under isothermal condition, which neglects the potential impact of temperature on fluid density. To fill the knowledge gap, we performed both laboratory experiments and numerical modeling to investigate the impact of warmer water injection on freshwater storage and extracted water quality for island aquifer. It is found that warmer water (70 °C) injection compromise the “barrier effect” achieved by normal water injection, resulting in a reduced ability to prevent coastal seawater intrusion by, creating an upward hydraulic gradient beneath the injection well. In addition, warm water injection result in a 5 % decrease in freshwater storage capacity for island aquifer. However, by employing a combination of receding tide cycles and intermittent injection-extraction operations, the duration of lowered saline concentration within the extracted water can be extended by approximately 10 % with an 11 % reduction in the overall extracted saline concentration. This study provides valuable insights into the influence of warmer water injection on coastal aquifer quality. The findings from both the laboratory experiments and numerical simulations enhance the understanding of thermal density-dependent dynamics of coastal aquifers, offering valuable guidance for effective freshwater storage and usage in island settings.

Pathways to sustain atolls under rising sea levels through land claim and island raising

Low-lying atoll nations (e.g. the Maldives, Kiribati, Tuvalu, Marshall Islands) are highly vulnerable to climate change, especially sea-level rise (SLR). Stringent climate change mitigation will slow but not stop SLR, which will continue for centuries, mandating additional long-term adaptation. At the same time, urbanisation is concentrating population in a few centres, especially around capital islands which creates additional pressure as most atoll nations are ‘land-poor’. This paper demonstrates how structural adaptation using land claim and island raising can be utilised within an adaptation pathway approach to sustain enough islands and land area above rising sea levels to satisfy societal and economic needs over multiple centuries.This approach is illustrated using the Maldives, especially around the capital and its environs (Greater Malé). Raising, expanding and connecting ‘urban’ islands can provide multiple benefits. Significant developments have already occurred in Greater Malé and further developments there and for other urban centres in the Maldives are expected. Migration to urban centres, especially Malé, is widespread and this adaptation approach assumes this trend continues, implying many other islands are depopulated or abandoned. Tourism is core to the Maldives economy and tourist islands require a different ambience to urban islands. They could be sustained with sympathetic soft engineering reinforcing the natural processes that produce atolls. While land advance and island raising provides a technical solution for SLR, any application must also address the additional policy, human, physical, engineering and economic/financial challenges that are raised. Nonetheless, by aligning adaptation through land advance/raising with existing development trends, atoll nations have the potential to persist and prosper for many centuries even as sea levels inevitably rise. This provides a realistic alternative to widespread assumptions about forced migration and ultimate national abandonment. The lessons here may find wider application to other small island settings and even mainland coasts.

The future is now: Climate displacement and human rights obligations—a note on recent developments in the UN Human Rights Committee

Although climate litigation—or the pursuit of legal resolve of matters stemming from anthropogenic climate change—has been growing around the world, climate mobility is seldom at the heart of relevant case law. It is human rights law bodies, in particular, which have nevertheless begun to progress legal developments in the sphere of climate mobility. This note looks at a 2022 determination by the UN Human Rights Committee concerning the habitability of a small island setting—Australia's Torres Strait Islands—under climate change conditions and the legal responsibilities of nation states to abide by their international human rights obligations in implementing timely adaptation measures now which could help to ensure continued habitation.

Island settings and their influence on geographical research methods

AbstractThis study presents lessons learned from the application of mixed methods during three field visits to central Mediterranean islands over an eight‐year period to learn about and from visitors who voluntarily paid to experience ecotourism. The study outlines various challenges encountered in research in small island settings. Such challenges include logistical difficulties to reach islands, including those originating from weather conditions, difficulty in practising observation in small communities, sampling dilemmas, different levels of trust and willingness to disclose views among interview participants, lack of standardised data, language barriers that may limit who conducts research on specific islands, and substantial fluctuations in population size throughout the year. Findings show that the choice and application of methods for island research need to be informed by island dynamics; this entails adapting methods and using different data collection techniques to mitigate challenges arising from island settings. The study also outlines the need of more research in the application of mixed methods when studying islands.

Managing the Mental Health of Healthcare Professionals in Times of Crisis: The Aruban COVID-19 Experience.

: PurposeHospital workers in Aruba have been facing an increased demand for healthcare in the unique setting of a Small Island Developing State (SIDS). This study assessed the impact of the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on the mental health of staff at the major hospital in Aruba, examining the differences between employee groups, with the goal of providing recommendations for targeted support and coping strategies in future crises in a small island setting. Patients and methods: In a mixed-method cohort design, Dr. Horacio E. Oduber Hospital staff were asked to complete a 25-item questionnaire about their concerns and worries, organization of work, and general wellbeing; 24% of the hospital staff filled in the questionnaire (mean age 41 ± 11 years, 79% female). Alongside the needs assessment questionnaire, six focus groups were established to explore staff feelings on specific measures taken by hospital management during the COVID-19 crisis. Results: Questionnaire analysis (n = 231) revealed employees’ concerns about infecting their relatives and their financial stability. In particular, nurses were significantly more concerned than other staff groups. In the wellbeing section of the questionnaire, items regarding future security scored poorest, alongside increased levels of tiredness and nervousness. Focus groups discussions revealed frustrations of the hospital staff with the foreign staff brought in to help during the crisis and a need for better leadership and communication practices from hospital management. Conclusions: Comprehensive and holistic approaches should be implemented by the hospital management to prevent occupational burnout and demoralized work ethics and further emotional exhaustion.

The Household Food Insecurity Amidst the Covid-19 Pandemic in Indonesia

The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic creates both the demand and supply shocks problem that may affect the households’ food insecurity. Among mechanisms, it ranges from the limited physical access to food due to social distancing to the drop in economic access to food due to (partial) lockdown. This study aims to lay out an early warning assessment of the food security situation in Indonesia amidst the Covid-19 outbreak. We use the cartogram analysis which visualize the geographical features throughout the Indonesia archipelago, both in the small and big island setting. The analysis involves the use of both the simple score and latent measurement-based scale of the Rasch model for the food insecurity based on the Susenas data from 2017-2019. The finding reveals that there existed a variation of the household proportion that suffers from severe food insecurity across the Indonesia archipelago. The more eastern the island, the worse the measure is. Papua and Maluku suffer more from such condition compared to the other big islands. As the government has applied any containment measures, the surge in Covid-19 cases may potentially worsen both the existing households under severe food insecurity and even create new households under such conditions.

The role of migration and demographic change in small island futures

Low-lying atoll islands are especially threatened by anticipated sea-level rise, and migration is often mentioned as a potential response of these island societies. Further, small island states are developing population, economic and adaptation policies to plan the future. Policies, such as raising of islands or land reclamation, require a long-term vision on populations and migration. However, population and migration systems in small island settings are poorly understood. To address this deficiency requires an approach that considers changing environmental and socio-economic factors and individual migration decision-making. This article introduces the conceptual model of migration and explores migration within one small island nation, the Maldives, as an example. Agent-based simulations of internal migration from 1985–2014 are used as a basis to explore a range of potential demographic futures up to 2050. The simulations consider a set of consistent demographic, environmental, policy and international migration narratives, which describe a range of key uncertainties. The capital island Malé has experienced significant population growth over the last decades, growing from around 67,000 to 153,000 inhabitants from 2000 to 2014, and comprising about 38 percent of the national population in 2014. In all future narratives, which consider possible demographic, governance, environmental and globalization changes, the growth of Malé continues while many other islands are effectively abandoned. The analysis suggests that migration in the Maldives has a strong inertia, and radical change to the environmental and/or socio-economic drivers would be needed for existing trends to change. Findings from this study may have implications for national development and planning for climate change more widely in island nations.

Resilient Caribbean Communities: A Long-Term Perspective on Sustainability and Social Adaptability to Natural Hazards in the Lesser Antilles

Caribbean islands, like other Small Island Developing States (SIDS), are at the center of the vulnerability debate as current climatic trends predict elevated sea levels and increased frequency of storms, leading to significant challenges for local communities. Caribbean islanders have been exposed to climatic challenges since the initial occupation of the archipelago between five to eight thousand years ago. They have been continually confronted with severe droughts, tropical cyclones, extreme wave events, sea-level changes, and the accompanying impacts. The various phenomena have stimulated island residents both to anticipate and respond to such events, adapting their lifestyles and socio-cultural and political structures and ties across the region over time. In this article, we innovatively combine archaeological and palaeoenvironmental data with longitudinal coastal-erosion data and ethnographic data to further develop and promote sustainable local strategies to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change and increasingly frequent and violent weather events on small-island settings. To find proxies, we first look into the region’s pre-colonial archaeological record. Second, we delve into predictive modeling and the current and future climatic challenges for heritage sites and local coastal communities, as well as related collaborative heritage mitigation efforts. Third, we discuss the contribution of traditional knowledge practices to climate change adaptation. The results show how the long-term perspective and multidisciplinary approach adopted here may lead to realistic solutions to seemingly intractable problems. They also reveal how collaborative projects involving all stakeholders on an equal basis in all phases of research have become a top priority in climate change mitigation and heritage safeguarding.

Barriers and Facilitators in Perioperative Antibiotic Prophylaxis: A Mixed-Methods Study in a Small Island Setting.

Few studies have addressed antibiotic guideline adherence in small island settings, such as Aruba. This study aimed to evaluate the appropriateness of perioperative antibiotic prophylaxis (PAP) and identify barriers for PAP guideline adherence. A mixed-methods study was carried out at the operating theatre (OT) in the Dr. Horacio E. Oduber Hospital (HOH) in Aruba. First, a prospective audit was performed on the appropriateness of guideline-derived quality indicators (QIs). Then, interviews based on the Flottorp framework were conducted to identify barriers for guideline adherence. Finally, a survey was distributed to verify the outcomes of the interviews. The appropriateness of QIs was measured: correct indication (50.6%); antimicrobial agent (30.8%); dose (94.4%); timing (55.0%); route of administration (100%); duration (89.5%); and redosing (95.7%). The overall appropriateness was 34.9%. The main barriers discovered were poor knowledge about PAP and the guidelines and professional interactions regarding PAP, specifically poor communication and lack of clarity about responsibilities regarding PAP. This study was the first to evaluate the appropriateness and to identify barriers for PAP guideline adherence in a small island hospital. The overall appropriateness of PAP was poor with just 34.9%. Future interventions should be focused on communication, education and awareness of the possibility to consult an ID physician or microbiologist.

Beyond the Mainland: Okinawa, Palimpsestic Geography and Octogenarian Island Idols

ABSTRACT This article explores some features of popular music production by uncovering the palimpsestic geography of Okinawa, and in particular the octogenarian island idols of Kohama that have achieved stardom at home and outside their small island setting. As an island Other on multiple levels of separation beyond the mainland, and imagined in terms of geographic and cultural difference within archipelagic, prefectural, and national imaginaries, the assemblage of identity that embodies locality through the sonic discourse of popular music performance reveals pop simulacra on the one hand yet creative and distinct representation of island identity on the other.

Host-Guest Expectations of Service Quality at Small Island Settings: A Cross-Cultural Approach

One of the important issues for sustainable island tourism is knowledge about the needs of the host and tourist. As tourism is now becoming a global issue, there is also a need to examine this issue from the context of a cross-culture. A better understanding of cultural dissimilarities between hosts and guests at certain areas of destinations could improve tailored services and increase satisfaction for both the host and tourists. Existing studies related to expectation mainly undertaken from the tourist view. However, this study takes into consideration the expectation of service quality from tourists’ perspectives as well as host community. This study aims to gain some understanding about the impacts of cross-cultural dissimilarities between hosts and tourists by measuring their mutual expectations. Survey data is collected from Perhentian and Redang Islands, Malaysia. Two sample groups were involved in the study: host and tourists (Malay, Chinese, English and European). This study adopted two methods - the Mann-Whitney U-test and the Principal Components Analysis (PCA). The findings of this study demonstrate that mutual expectations between hosts and guests diverge across the cultural groups. This study contributes to the existing literatures related to service quality and highlights the importance of cultural differences in providing better quality tourism services particularly to island tourists in Malaysia and elsewhere. .

Host-Guest Expectations of Service Quality at Small Island Settings: A Cross-Cultural Approach

One of the important issues for sustainable island tourism is knowledge about the needs of the host and tourist. As tourism is now becoming a global issue, there is also a need to examine this issue from the context of a cross-culture. A better understanding of cultural dissimilarities between hosts and guests at certain areas of destinations could improve tailored services and increase satisfaction for both the host and tourists. Existing studies related to expectation mainly undertaken from the tourist view. However, this study takes into consideration the expectation of service quality from tourists’ perspectives as well as host community. This study aims to gain some understanding about the impacts of cross-cultural dissimilarities between hosts and tourists by measuring their mutual expectations. Survey data is collected from Perhentian and Redang Islands, Malaysia. Two sample groups were involved in the study: host and tourists (Malay, Chinese, English and European). This study adopted two methods - the Mann-Whitney U-test and the Principal Components Analysis (PCA). The findings of this study demonstrate that mutual expectations between hosts and guests diverge across the cultural groups. This study contributes to the existing literatures related to service quality and highlights the importance of cultural differences in providing better quality tourism services particularly to island tourists in Malaysia and elsewhere.

Food Choice Determinants of Island Tourists: an Implication Towards Sustainable Island Tourism

This study aims to investigate factors that influence food choice of international tourists at small island settings. In this study, Perhentian Island was selected as a representative of small islands as the island received the largest number of international tourists, particularly in the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. A close-ended questionnaire survey was conducted at various tourism spots in Perhentian Island and a total of 173 international tourists were interviewed in this study. Descriptive analysis was applied to summarize the tourists profile and travel pattern. Satisfaction gap analysis generated important factors that influence food choice among island visitors. As the majority of the international tourists to island destinations in Malaysia were on a multi-destination vacation, the results of the study could be crucial to the real needs and expectations of island tourists in Malaysia. Finally, effective development and marketing strategies could be devised to enhance the growth of food tourism, targeting remote island destinations in Malaysia.

The 1902–3 eruptions of the Soufrière, St Vincent: Impacts, relief and response

Retrospective analysis of the contemporary colonial and scientific records of a major explosive eruption of the Soufrière of St Vincent from 1902 to 1903 reveals how this significant and prolonged event presented challenges to the authorities charged with managing the crisis and its aftermath. In a small-island setting vulnerable to multiple hazards, the spatial footprint of the volcanic hazard and the nature and intensity of the hazard effects were rather different to those of other recurrent hazards such as hurricanes. The eruption affected the same parts of the island that had been impacted by prior explosive eruptions in 1718 and 1812, and hurricanes in 1831 and 1898, with consequences that disproportionately affected those working in and around the large sugar estates. The official response to the eruption, both in terms of short-term relief and remediation, was significantly accelerated by the existence of mature plans for land-reform following the collapse of the sugar market, and ongoing plans for rebuilding in the aftermath of the destructive hurricane of 1898. The picture that this analysis helps to illuminate provides insights both into the nature of the particular eruptive episode, and the human and social response to that episode. This not only informs discussion and planning for future explosive eruptions on St Vincent, but provides important empirical evidence for building effective responses in similar multihazard contexts.

Testing the dependency theory on small island economies: The case of Cyprus

This paper empirically tests the validity of dependency theory in the small island setting of Cyprus, to establish whether a periphery/patron relationship exists between each of the island's two economies and their respective mainland partners of Greece and Turkey. Using data for the 1978–2013 period, we first test for the necessary condition, i.e. whether there is a long-run cointegrating relationship in the economic development of the Republic of Cyprus (RC) and Greece, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and Turkey. We then test for the sufficient condition, i.e. whether periphery-economy per capita income series to be weakly endogenous, while those of patron economies are weakly exogenous. Our results indicate strong dependency within the periphery/patron economy pairs of the RC/Greece and the TRNC/Turkey. Further, we show that economic growth in the periphery economies is largely driven by that of the patron economies. Using a Markov-switching vector autoregressive (MS-VAR) model of the short-run business cycle, we demonstrate that the RC/Greece and the TRNC/Turkey co-move in the short-run, and that business cycles with each pair are synchronized. The policy implications of these findings are then discussed.

Capacity building for tourism development in a nested social–ecological system—A case study of the South Penghu Archipelago Marine National Park, Taiwan

In subnational small-island settings with a relatively undisturbed natural environment and an outmigration population, tourism development is often used as an alternative development strategy for economic and social regeneration. When such tourism development entails place-based management, such as in a marine protected area (MPA), tourism development can also be used as a strategy for alleviating the conflict between conservation and development as well as for increasing community participation. Local support and capacity building prior to tourism development are essential for involving local communities. Local communities are often complex and heterogeneous, and tourism development must be tailored to match their diverse needs. In this case study, three communities within the South Penghu Archipelago, where a marine national park and development of the tourism industry has been proposed, were investigated. This study assessed the perception of tourism development among community actors and the demands for capacity building to cope with future changes by conducting a social–ecological system (SES) analysis wherein the South Penghu MPA was considered a nested SES composed of subsystems. The subsystems focused on in this study were fishermen and nonfishermen at the functional scale and individual communities at the spatial scale. The results showed that the perceptions on tourism development varied substantially among the community actors and the different sub-SESs because of their different experiences in social–ecological interactions. Therefore, tourism development in a regional place-based management, such as in a MPA, must consider the various perceptions of such subsystems on tourism development. Rather than considering all local communities as a general unit, capacity building should be tailored to the needs of the community actors from the various sub-SESs. In addition, support from governmental agencies is essential for the success of community-based MPA policies.

Tourism stakeholder exclusion and conflict in a small island

Research in the Isle of Man, British Isles, reveals limited and dysfunctional collaboration between stakeholders, and in particular between public and private sector actors. Power and influence over tourism decision-making is generally felt to be restricted to a small and opaque network. Moreover, different levels of interest in and support for tourism further divide stakeholders. Various negative consequences are shown to arise from this absence of collaboration, including a lack of shared vision or future strategy for local tourism, and high levels of mutual mistrust between stakeholders. Resulting conflict, wasted resources, lost enthusiasm and lack of strategic direction appear to undermine the current and future management of island tourism. Emphasised by research is the importance of stakeholder collaboration to sustainable tourism management and underlying factors which may enhance or undermine. Focus on describing dysfunctional collaboration within an untypical small island setting makes a unique contribution to the existing literature.

Encountering Urbanization on Jersey: Development, Sustainability, and Spatiality in a Small Island Setting

Encountering Urbanization on Jersey: Development, Sustainability, and Spatiality in a Small Island Setting

Effects of Label on Consumer Preferences: Focus on Hawaiian Avocado Industry

This study examines market challenges facing a local agriculture industry in a small island setting. Examination of the Hawai‘i local avocado industry indicates labeling can address the product information gap between consumers and producers, improve market share, and increase import substitution by local products. Currently, local avocados occupy only 33% of market share, compared with 67% captured by imports. Consumer preferences among local labeled, local unlabeled, and imported avocados were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. Statistical results showed that labels influence consumers’ decisions to buy local or imported avocados, and their preferences were also influenced by sociodemographic variables, avocado characteristics, and purchasing behavior. Key market segments to target and policy implications are also discussed.