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Australia’s approach to managing and conserving its offshore islands as important national assets warrants urgent review. There is a growing realisation that the current trajectory of loss of natural heritage on islands must be reversed, particularly in an era of increasing climate change. We propose a role description and an organisational model for a national Australian Islands Alliance that champions conservation action, prioritises investments aligned to risks, and that connects partners at a strategic national level. A national alliance offers important opportunity to assess threats and report on condition. Four key foundations underpin a national alliance dedicated to championing island care and expert management: (1) management informed by evidence; (2) sound return on investment; (3) national coordination in partnership with States and Territories; and (4) community participation inclusive of Aboriginal peoples’ and Torres Strait Islanders’ custodial rights and interests. The message from experiences shared across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific region is that traditional island custodians and stakeholders are vital partners to restoration efforts. These shared learnings collectively demonstrate the time is now for Australia to move forward with a respectful and unified direction to progress successful and sustainable island conservation and restoration.

Conservation entrepreneurship is based on the notion that it is possible to build a business system around a conservation challenge, and in doing so, create a targeted and adequate resourcing mechanism to support interventions, over adequate time frames. Constructing business models is not something that is usually at the forefront of a conservation practitioner’s agenda, nor often within their capacity. This paper takes the reader through the process of building such models, within the context of offshore islands in the Australian region, and using structures and terminologies that are commonplace in the business world, but perhaps not so much so in the conservation sector. In addition, this business model approach is presented in context of the ‘collective impact’ framework, which involves centralised infrastructure, dedicated management, and a structure ensuring development of a common agenda, shared measurement systems (i.e. of what success looks like), continuous communication, and mutually reinforcing activities amongst all those involved.

Australia needs a new shared vision that the current trajectory of loss of natural heritage on its offshore islands is not acceptable and needs to change. This Special Issue brings together seven papers from leaders and practitioners with experience in offshore islands across the Australian and New Zealand context. The fundamentals for each paper are to suggest potential solutions or scenarios to move forward with island policy, and management.