The distinctive nature of spatial development on small islands

This paper presents a critical literature review of spatial development perspectives in small island contexts. Despite the great diversity of island situations that can be found in the world, the main goal is to understand the extent to which the special status enjoyed by small islands with regard to development can be extended to include a more spatially based perspective of development. More specifically, by reviewing the scarce information available in the literature on the patterns and challenges of spatial development in small islands, the paper analyses whether the distinctiveness of islands – a condition that usually appears in the literature under the concept of islandness – translates into distinctive patterns of spatial development. Despite the sociocultural and political resilience of islands, the main theoretical findings of the paper suggest that the distinctive meaning of spatial development in small islands appears to be determined by a number of interrelated vulnerabilities, notably the scarcity of land-based resources, the ecological fragility of the natural environments, the smallness of the domestic market, or the need to surmount a water barrier in order to achieve access to the rest of the world.