Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Reinventing Rural Places: The Extent And Impact Of Festivals In Rural And Regional Australia, Christopher R. Gibson, Anna Stewart

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Results have been analysed from a three-year Australian Research Council (ARC) Festivals Project, which sought to document the extent and significance of festivals for rural communities and economies. Rural festivals have proliferated and diversified in recent years from the traditional country show to evermore whacky niches -- the Guyra Lamb and Potato Festival, the Wooli Goanna Pulling Festival, the Thoona Latin American and Wheely Bin Festival and Parkes' Elvis impersonators festival. Are such festivals significant for rural communities in contrast to their apparent short-lived nature? The ARC festivals project sought to answer this question. The largest ever database of rural …