Book excerpt: This book examines the mechanisms and strategies farmers in North Australia adopt to manage the setbacks and challenges they face. This social research is based on farmers’ experiences, but also draws on the author’s own experience after his tropical fruit farm was destroyed by two Category 5 cyclones in five years. Through historical analysis, the book compares historic and contemporary aspirations for northern development, and discusses the influence of the built environment on individuals as well as access to health and other social services. Exploring the implications of individual resilience strategies for policy development within the broader context of northern development and evolving environmental governance, the book also highlights the fact that this is occurring in a new geological epoch – the Anthropocene. The book will provide a unique perspective and understanding to government, individuals and industries interested in northern Australia and its relationship to the world