Alice Springs is littered with “For Sale” signs as those who can afford it are packing up and leaving. Punitive government curfews made daily life more challenging, and families struggle to see a future for themselves if things continue the way they are. With the Country Liberal Party elected on a promise to be even tougher on crime – and lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 10 years old – more government interventions are on the way.

But there’s also the story of those who stay to help set young people on a different path and reconnect with Country.

In the final instalment of the three part series This is Alice Springs, Daniel James heads to a station in the MacDonnell Ranges that offers an oasis of calm amid the chaos. But even here the cycle of incarceration and violence is never far from children’s lives. 

This series was originally published in October 2024.

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Guest: Hosted and reported by Daniel James 

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