The Role of Internet Connectivity in Inward and Outward Migration of Rural and Remote Australia
Harrington, William, and Hay, Rachel (2026) The Role of Internet Connectivity in Inward and Outward Migration of Rural and Remote Australia. In: Samad, Ataus, Georgeou, Nichole, and Hebbani, Aparna, (eds.) Beyond the Cities: The Dynamics of Migrant Settlement in Regional Australia. Sustainable Development Goals Series . Springer Nature, Singapore, pp. 179-187.
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Abstract
Equitable access to high-speed internet connectivity is critical to participation in modern society regardless of your physical location. As services such as banking, health, shopping, education and participation in political discourse increasingly move online and away from a physical presence, individuals with poor or inadequate internet connectivity are unfairly affected. This digital divide not only exacerbates existing inequalities but also limits opportunities for economic growth and social mobility, making it essential for policymakers to prioritise infrastructure development in underserved areas. Since the United Nations (UN) declared access to the internet a basic human right in 2003, improvements to internet connectivity that is available to residents and businesses in rural, regional and remote (RRR) areas of Australia have been made. However, these improvements have typically focused on the availability of an internet connection, rather than its adequacy. As a result, whilst the residents of RRR areas in Australia have guaranteed access to internet connectivity, this access is not equitable when compared to their urban counterparts. In addition, the tyranny of distance and isolation experienced by the residents of rural and remote Australia make face to face social interactions particularly difficult, especially for minorities. These feelings of isolation are exacerbated for new residents including urban Australians and migrants. This chapter examines the role of internet connectivity in the phenomenon of outwards migration from rural and regional areas and the role of improved internet connectivity in attracting and retaining residents including migrants into regional and remote Australia.
| Item ID: | 90787 |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Book Chapter (Research - B1) |
| ISBN: | 978-981-95-1986-6 |
| ISSN: | 2523-3092 |
| Keywords: | Adequacy, Broadband, Connectivity, Infrastructure, Migration, Rural, Technology, Telecommunications |
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| Copyright Information: | Open Access. This book is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/ by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this license to share adapted material derived from this book or parts of it. |
| Date Deposited: | 20 May 2026 00:39 |
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