Guest editor's introduction to Volume 5, Issue 1

The study of rural crime – and contributions to the rapidly growing field of rural criminology – is proceeding in leaps and bounds. Since November 2018, there has been three critical developments in the rural criminology field. First was the launch of the American Society of Criminology’s Division of Rural Criminology at the 2018 annual meeting in Atlanta, and the Division has successfully held its first elections and may we wish those elected as office bearers every good wish for their term. Second was the creation in mid-2019 of the International Society for the Study of Rural Crime Inc (www.issrc.net) which serves to provide its membership with opportunities to share, collaborate and learn. Third was the launch in Armidale, New South Wales, in September 2019 of the revitalised Centre for Rural Criminology hosted by the University of New England.