Development of resources often leads to conflict about land access and use. Increasingly, however, negotiation is replacing conflict, with resulting benefits to developers, indigenous peoples and the Australian economy. Generally speaking, Australia is unproductive, and, when good times do come, they're sure to be followed by bad. As people adapt to these conditions, they realise that the main defence they have against these difficulties is each other. Despite the fact that adversity can bring people together, the very difficulty of the land can, at times, also drive people apart.
More people live in cities in Australia, as opposed to the countryside, than in any other nation.
That is, I think, because it's bloody hard to make a living off the land. There is lots of poverty in rural Australia. It's galling to many, for they are hard-working, honest people, yet they still can't afford to give their kids decent schooling or get out of debt. Aboriginal people have long been relegated to the bottom of the heap as far as resources go. This, I hardly need remind you, is the social situation we all face today.