North Stradbroke Island, or ‘Straddie’ as it’s known by many Queenslanders, is moving away from sand mining, which has been the mainstay of its economy since the 1940s. The State Government will give $5 million to support North Stradbroke Island miners as they phase out of the industry. Some doubt that the island can sustain itself on tourism alone. But the traditional owners, the Quandamooka Aboriginal people, hope their connection to the region of more than 20,000 years will now be better recognised, starting a new chapter for the place they have long known as Minjerribah, meaning ‘island in the sun’.
