Research Reviews

There has been much debate and discussion about the use of the Internet using broadband connections. A very thoughtful and insightful qualitative research report about using technology in South Australia, one of the driest and most isolated parts of the world, is illuminating. The report was developed after soliciting the stories from people in many locations, talking and walking with people the length and breadth of the State and conducting group discussions in far-flung towns and communities. The anthropological research, in an aptly named and refreshing report, Getting Connected, Staying Connected: Exploring South Australia’s Digital Futures captures the culture of change and community expectations in an exemplary way. The report focuses on transforming the Internet ‘from a destination to an essential service in our homes, offices and schools’ (p. 6) and from a ‘discretionary destination into a meaningful part of our daily lives and ritual’s’ (p. 6). In Australia, ‘technology is critical to any conversation about the drought, the global financial crisis, Aboriginal self-determination, regional identity, educational aspirations, the price of wool, petrol and real estate, families, communities – and even nationhood’ (p. 6)