THE HOUSE
Sat Aug 15 2009, 9:10am ET
Byline: RITA CELLI
RITA CELLI (HOST):
Stephen Harper is packing his bags again this weekend. On Monday, he heads north for what is becoming an annual summer trip to the Arctic. Over the next week, he will visit all three territories, hold a cabinet meeting in Iqaluit, and he’ll get an up-close look at part of the Canadian military’s sovereignty exercise Operation Nanook. Just a few weeks ago, the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development Chuck Strahl officially revealed the government’s northern strategy.
CHUCK STRAHL (MINISTER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS AND NORTHERN DEVELOPMENT):
Canada is a northern nation, an arctic nation. The North is a fundamental part of our Canadian heritage and our sense of who we are. My colleagues and I recognize the tremendous opportunities and the challenges that are present in the North today. Now more than ever, we see the potential of the North.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
France St-Hilaire also sees that potential. She’s co-editor of the book “Northern Exposure: Peoples, Powers and Prospects in Canada’s North” France St- Hilaire is joining us from Montreal. Welcome to The House.
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
Thank you. Thanks for inviting me.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
They say in your book that the North has long held a special place in our country’s narrative. What does it mean to you?
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
Well, you know, when we grow up as children, we’re often told about the North Pole and Santa and we have also in our imagination these wonderful, beautiful, white landscapes, et cætera. And I think most Canadians think of themselves as, you know, living in a northern country but, you know, when you examine it more closely, I mean, most of us live on the southern border of the country and we know that there are people up there but we’re not very familiar with both the living conditions and the actual reality of the North and also, some of the tremendous change that is occurring up north as a result of things like climate change, the sovereignty issues that have been raised in the last few years as melting ice opens up new access to these northern regions and it’s a global phenomena. We also know that there are vast reserves of natural resources up north so all of these forces of kind of converging on our northern regions and, you know, one of the reasons we undertook this project was to take a closer look at how these changes are affecting northerners, those who live there and who, depending on how we manage this change, the decisions that are made in the future, whether it’s for economic development or sovereignty reasons, will have the most profound impact on their daily lives.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
So what you are saying now, we have a Conservative government that is paying a lot more attention to the Arctic. It unveiled a northern strategy in July. The prime minister is taking another trip. What do you make of all that interest?
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
Well, I think, I mean, it is quite commendable that the government has identified the North as a priority for Canada because it is definitely one of the defining issues for the country in years to come and the document that was released a few weeks ago articulates the government’s vision, what it sees as the future of the North and what its approach to this is going to be. So from that perspective, I think that it is quite positive. When we look at the actual announcements and budget commitments and initiatives of the government so far, because there have been many in the last two years, we feel in our analysis, I mean there a lot of important and positive things, but the balance among the four pillars and I’ll just mention them very quickly, you know, 1)to establish our sovereignty or exercise our sovereignty in the North, 2)to protect the environment, 3)to promote economic and social developments and 4)to improve and evolve northern governance, those are the four pillars; the activity on these four fronts has not been equal and the evidence is mixed so far, so I think, you know, there’s still a lot more work to do.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
Well, it’s not just Canada rediscovering the North; it is a goldmine, so to speak, very rich in natural resources discovered and undiscovered. Many countries would like a piece of it. I wonder if you could offer your perspective on how the Canadian government should deal with, well, the increased activity, steamer ships, mining claims perhaps, and still maintaining our own stake in the region.
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
It should be said that, you know, we have this impression there’s this international race for the Arctic and northern resources but there are international processes in place and all this is taking place in very orderly fashion so, in that sense, all the right things are being done but it’s important to look at the other aspects, you know. We know that climate change, the impact of climate change is manifesting itself much more rapidly and much more strongly in the North.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
You have a… You make a strong case for the role of the local people, what they should play in terms of the development of the North.
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
Absolutely. In fact, in the government documents, you’ll see that the first statement, in terms of the northern vision, the government states that its objective, its goal is to ensure that Northerners have more control over their destinies and when we undertook this project, it was also our sense that because Northerners will be affected first and foremost by many of the decisions that will be made in the future on all of these fronts, that they should have a seat at the table and be able to have a say and be able to make decisions that will allow then to sort of define what their future is going to be, what their economy is going to look like and also, to be able to benefit from any prosperity that might come from that and also be able to preserve their ways of life, their cultures and traditions.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
Now, you’ve actually set out there quite ambitious goals in one sense for the local people. The government itself also has big goals for that part of the country and it’s massive, right? A few people, reasonable people, would dispute that the local people there should obviously play a key role but I want to hear your reflections on this point too because on the other hand, there are just more than what, like 100 000 people spread out over this incredible distance? Is it realistic that they’re going to have all the answers?
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
No, not all the answers and you’re absolutely right to point that out. I mean, that was one of the first things that you learn when you start studying the North, it’s how vast, you know, it’s almost 40 percent of Canada’s landmass and we’re talking about 115 000 population which is less than the population of Prince Edward Island but, you know, some of the tremendous changes that have been occurring in the last few decades are land claims agreement and treaties that have been negotiated with aboriginal people and this has been, you know, it’s not recognized how innovative, creative and important progress this has brought in terms of ensuring that Northerners and aboriginal people in particular will be able to play a role and to, at least influence, their future.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
Well, you’ve certainly given us something to think about as the prime minister and his cabinet head up to the Arctic. Thank you for your time.
FRANCE ST-HILAIRE (CO-EDITOR, “NORTHERN EXPOSURE: PEOPLES, POWERS AND PROSPECTS IN CANADA’S NORTH”):
You’re quite welcome.
RITA CELLI (HOST):
France St-Hilaire is vice-president in charge of research at the Institute for Research and Public Policy. She’s co-editor of a new book “Northern Exposure: Peoples, Powers and Prospects in Canada’s North”.
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