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Paper Short Abstract:

Living with unbuilt or devastated island infrastructure affects everyday life of islanders and often limits their economic development. Infrastructural projects that have remained unrealized for long create permanent conditions of waiting, suspended present and future.

Paper Abstract:

In this paper, we present ethnographic research on unbuilt and neglected water infrastructure on two Croatian islands: Žirje and Hvar in 2024 to illuminate the changing experience of development in isolated communities. The analysis reveals that the state, as a historical and political authority, has the central role in infrastructural development meeting the needs and cost-effectiveness.

If the state is theorized through roads, the islands are inhabited because of and due to accessible water (Carse and Kneas, 2019). This implies a persistent effort of building and reconstructing infrastructure for otherwise decreasing number local population. Paradoxically, the business aspects of island tourism in the wider context significantly increase the national and local income. In this situation, small islands, as well as the more isolated parts of larger islands, find themselves in a non-sustainable position, relying on small and uncertain initiatives for building infrastructure.

The infrastructure analysis is based on two main approaches illustrating the relationship between the islanders and the state. The first level of analysis encompasses the state's role in constructing infrastructure, while the second level focuses on the islanders' initiatives to bridge the gap between their needs and neglected infrastructure. For islanders, the development of infrastructure is linked to historical significance, pride, cultural development and identity, while for the state, it challenges economic profitability in times of permanent and overlapping crises.