The key to creating greater diversity in the economy and thereby greater employment opportunity was localisation.
As the years progressed, the idea of travelling to Coffs Harbour to work and shop became less socially appealing.
Those people working in Coffs Harbour and other areas but living in Bellingen because of the lifestyle realised that a simpler life, less work and commuting could offset any loss of income.
Changes to land allocation and down sizing in sizes of houses , dealt with in another section explains how this happened.
The completion of fast broadband in the National Broad Band Network opened up the range of income earning activities. Anything that could be done in a city could be carried out in the surrounds of Bellingen.
Hemp and bamboo became important agricultural resources as well as horticulture to feed the local people.
Hemp provided the raw materials for many local activities from food, to fabric and construction materials. Fortunately much knowledge could be drawn from the past as hemp was a major resource for the world until the 1930s.
Hemp is used for the panels and skirts of the jem-mobile hovercraft which are fabricated in Bellingen.
Bamboo provided local resources for building, fabric weaving and for structures of geodesic shading to protect plants from rising temperatures.