Small Town Re-Invention
There are currently 1614 country towns in Australia which have a population of less than 5000. 1088 of these towns have less than 1000 people. It is estimated that more than 80% of these small towns in terms of population and business life are either static or dying. Yet these small communities continue to play a significant service centre role in terms of agriculture, mining and tourism, and represent home and community to a population of 1,131,600 persons. Their reinvention is of national significance.
National and international evidence suggest the importance of seven locally driven development actions; namely -
- Continually growing and diversifying local leadership and capacity.
- Fostering a positive and can-do mindset.
- Actively encouraging healthy community behaviours related to inclusion, conversation, engagement and collaboration.
- Encouraging asset, idea and opportunity obsession.
- Developing community 'wow-factor'.
- Enhancing lifestyle options related to recreation, education, health, housing, childcare, retail services and staying local.
- Creating the environment that supports local-based employment, enterprise and economic development.
This section of the BOI Website seeks to share resources (tools, key publications and events) that those who care for the future of small towns may find useful in their efforts to build positive small town futures. It includes links to the 2024 and 2025 Small Town Reinvention Conferences, held in Pickering Brook (WA) and Kapunda (SA) respectively.