Sustainable living in remote communities is challenged by issues of education, employment, and chronic illness. Often, only some members of families or communities ‘move’ to accommodate these issues, while others ‘stay’. Both benefits and costs arise for the ‘movers’ and for the ‘stayers’. Drawing on research in New Zealand and in some remote South Australian communities we present some of the tried options for dealing with these challenges and how the issues are viewed by both the movers and the stayers. Suggestions for how remote communities might maintain sustainability despite the challenges will be made.