White Paper based on 20th Century ideas

T

wentieth Century ideas have been applied to the drawing up of a Federal Government white paper for the development of northern Australia.

Andrew Campbell.

Andrew Campbell writes on The Conversation arguing that the white paper is primarily about “hard infrastructure” saying little about its opposite, “soft infrastructure”.

The essence of the paper also appears to assume that the purported riches of northern Australia can be exploited without any reference to the world’s disrupted climate system.

Campbell, a Friend of The Conversation and the Director of the Research Institute for Environment and Livelihoods at Charles Darwin University, discussed the tensions surrounding development.

He wrote, “The first is the tension between developing a northern economy based primarily on export commodities, versus one based around distinctive environment, demography, knowledge and services

“The second is the perennial struggle associated with trying to achieve long-term objectives with short-term funding and even shorter electoral cycles,” he wrote.

Read his thoughts – “Is the white paper a game-changer for northern Australia?”