How does one transform small size and relative isolation into a powerful combination for sustainable growth and prosperity?

Some islands and rural regions have already done so. Winning tools and strategies deployed by these middle-level governance structures include: 'scaling up' of municipal units; developing tourist and computer-driven industries; engaging strategically with their diaspora; branding niche products and services; facilitating 'boutique', small-scale manufacturing; limiting local firm rivalry; and, overall, deploying a creative 'resourcefulness of jurisdiction'.

The papers in this collection flesh out these tools and strategies. They do so by unpacking and challenging received wisdom; charting out the parameters of effective government; teasing in the critical role of empowered local communities and the engagement of civil society with the multiple levels of decision-making of the state.

The book's message emphasizes a proactive, creative, and assertive approach to governance; one that aims to instill a sense of efficacy to achieve remote control.

Godfrey Baldacchino is Canada Research Chair in Island Studies at the University of Prince Edward Island and executive editor of Island Studies Journal. He has authored and edited two dozen books and monographs, as well as more than 50 journal articles, many of which explore issues specific to island communities. His most recent book is Bridging Islands: The Impact of Fixed Links.

Godfrey Baldacchino's profile page

Rob Greenwood is Director of the Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development at Memorial University of Newfoudnland, Canada.

Rob Greenwood's profile page

Lawrence Felt is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at Memorial University. He earned a doctorate in Sociology and Health Policy from Northwestern University. During this career he has researched issues of development and change in rural Newfoundland, Iceland, and other North Atlantic Societies. Along with Dr. Barbara Neis he has completed a study of fishery workers' ecological knowledge and its relationship to fisheries science (funded by the Tri-Council and SSHRC). 

Lawrence Felt's profile page

"Remote Control is an interesting compendium of current research on topics related to governance for small, insular and remote regions. Those who spend a career studying these matters... will find much here to stimulate their thoughts on the subject."

Jean-Paul Arsenault, Commission on Land and Rural Governance, Province of Prince Edward Island, Canada