Research Commons
      • Browse 
        • Communities & Collections
        • Titles
        • Authors
        • By Issue Date
        • Subjects
        • Types
        • Series
      • Help 
        • About
        • Collection Policy
        • OA Mandate Guidelines
        • Guidelines FAQ
        • Contact Us
      • My Account 
        • Sign In
        • Register
      View Item 
      •   Research Commons
      • University of Waikato Research
      • Arts and Social Sciences
      • Arts and Social Sciences Papers
      • View Item
      •   Research Commons
      • University of Waikato Research
      • Arts and Social Sciences
      • Arts and Social Sciences Papers
      • View Item
      JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

      Islandness: Vulnerability and resilience in Oceania

      Campbell, John
      Thumbnail
      Files
      Islandness.pdf
      435.4Kb
      Link
       shimajournal.org
      Citation
      Export citation
      Campbell, J. (2009). Islandness: Vulnerability and resilience in Oceania. Shima: The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures, 3, 85-97.
      Permanent Research Commons link: https://hdl.handle.net/10289/2898
      Abstract
      Pacific and other islands have long been represented as sites of vulnerability. Despite this, communities on many Pacific islands survived for millennia prior to the intrusion of people from Europe into their realm. An examination of traditional disaster reduction measures indicates that traditional Pacific island communities coped with many of the effects of extreme events that today give rise to relief and rehabilitation programmes. Key elements of traditional disaster reduction were built around food security (production of surpluses, storage and preservation, agro-ecological biodiversity, famine foods and land fragmentation), settlement security (elevated sites and resilient structures) and inter- and intra-community cooperation (inter-island exchange, ceremony and consumption control). Many of these practices have been lost or are no longer employed, while other changes in the social and economic life of Pacific island communities are increasing the level of exposure to natural extremes. Pacific islands, and their inhabitants, are not essentially or inherently vulnerable. They were traditionally sites of resilience. Colonialism, development and globalisation have set in place processes by which the resilience has been reduced and exposure increased.
      Date
      2009
      Type
      Journal Article
      Publisher
      Macquarie University, Australia
      Rights
      This is the published version of an article published in the journal: Shima: The International Journal of Research into Island Cultures. Used with permission.
      Collections
      • Arts and Social Sciences Papers [1405]
      Show full item record  

      Usage

      Downloads, last 12 months
      295
       
       

      Usage Statistics

      For this itemFor all of Research Commons

      The University of Waikato - Te Whare Wānanga o WaikatoFeedback and RequestsCopyright and Legal Statement