Hello all! I had recently done some research into Australia's colonization period for s**ts and giggles, and noticed that even today the number of Aussies are rather anemic for the landmass they live in (and yes, I'm aware of the issues they face such as water supplies, arable land, hostile wildlife, etc.). That being said, is there any way for a unified, continent-spanning Australia to reach a population by modern day of, say, 50 million or more? Here are the scenarios for said discussion:
1) Same sources of immigration as OTL (i.e. "White Australia" policy), and same timeframe,
2) Less/no restrictions on the source of immigrants, but same timeframe as OTL, and
3) Similar restrictions on immigration sources, but done earlier than OTL (e.g. immigration picks up in the 17th. or 18th. Century, not 19th.).
I'm also curious whether tightening up levels of urbanization would be of use, or if it would be possible to have an equal-or-greater than OTL population with more rural habitations and settlements, ones that grow into towns and/or cities. Thoughts/comments/gripes?