MAKING A LIVING ON CORAL ATOLL: CHANGING STRATEGIES AMONG MILLENNIALS ON BALOBALOANG ISLAND, SOUTH SULAWESI, INDONESIA

Abstract

Beginning around 2014, some significant changes in the livelihoods among many younger men from the Island of Balobaloang, South Sulawesi, Indonesia, emerged. This study describes and explains how it is that approximately 50 working-age adult men (out of a total population of about 900) have turned away from interisland shipping and trade and artisanal fishing and toward wage employment aboard tourist ships, working out of distant ports in Indonesia. This case study uses a qualitative approach to explore and describe the socio-economic life of community members on the island village of Greater Balobaloang as they continue to be affected by economic and environmental changes. Field data collection was carried out through observation, government documents, and in-depth interviews with respondents. In particular, this study focuses on the adaptive strategies of younger men as opportunities for making a living have shifted in recent years away from artisanal fishing and interisland shipping and trade to adventure travel aboard modified traditional sailing ships. It contributes to discussions of internal skilled migration, social mobility and adaptation to the domestic and international tourist industry.

Keywords

• social economic change
• migration
• tourism
• fishing
• shipping and trade