The area of rural sustainability is being developed as a new area of research at Otago University, in which Social Anthropology is closely involved.
Rural sustainability refers to the long term preservation or development of viable rural regions.
Research into sustainability is often conducted within separate environmental, economic and social disciplines. However, research into rural sustainability at Otago University is attempting a more integrated collaborative approach to research in order to provide a more coherent understanding of sustainability in New Zealand's changing rural regions.