Island Sustainability (Wit Transactions on Ecology and the Enviromnment)

This book contains the papers presented at the First International Conference on Island Sustainability, held on the island of Brac, Republic of Croatia, April 19-21, 2010. The conference organizers aim to encourage the sustainable development of islands, in a way that is compatible with their natural environment and their cultural and historic traditions. Many islands depend on tourism for their economic survival. Most of them, however, cannot provide all the resources required to support a large seasonal population and in many cases basic necessities such as water and energy, as well as agricultural produce, must be imported. Developing year-round economic activity is thus important to the sustainability of development efforts. While problems and conditions vary from island to island, much can be learned by sharing their experiences. Also, the experiences of more developed islands can serve as lessons for less-developed islands.