Comment: Prosperity, security vital to Canada’s North – Times Colonist
The prime minister’s annual northern tour usually generates a national conversation about the future of the Canadian North. Issues from infrastructure and resource development to science and technology and the well-being of northerners are brought up and debated.
Equally, the tour, under way this week, focuses on Canada’s sovereign rights as an Arctic nation and the ability to protect our borders and provide security for the people living in the North. These are noble goals, but they are unattainable if not fuelled by an understanding of what really matters to northerners: a secure livelihood and participation in the local economy, coupled with respect for traditional values.
The classical definition of security involves the ability to defend and enforce borders as well as providing physical security to people and property. From the perspective of a nation, this would probably suffice. However, much of the work the Conference Board of Canada’s Centre for the North has done in the region confirms that we need to take a much broader view of security and sovereignty.
Sustainable communities are what enable us to exercise sovereignty. A key part of northern security is centred on people and their well-being, not just security in the military sense. We need to develop a more holistic concept of northern security that addresses the fundamentals of what people need and want.
