Canada and Northern Security: Climate Change, Sovereignty, and Keeping Up with the Neighbours

Canadian government rhetoric surrounding the North has not always been matched by concrete action. Attention to the region has ebbed and flowed over the decades. Despite much talk of the North’s potential, it remains at best an unfinished project. Social and economic development has been slow and uneven, especially compared to the more prosperous South. At the same time, the security of the region has drifted in and out of the government’s sights. After thirty years of relative geostrategic stability following the Cold War, the Arctic is once again demanding attention. The age of Arctic exceptionalism—the notion that the region can somehow remain a sanctuary removed from global tensions—is at an end. Canada will need to re-commit to its northern and Arctic regions and respond to emerging security threats with far more energy and determination than it has demonstrated in recent years. It must do so not only as a matter of national sovereignty, but as an ally of the United States and other Western partners. This government-wide response must also consider broader national security threats, encompassing both human security and public safety challenges that have been exacerbated by climate change.