Sustaining arctic/subarctic ecosystems and the livelihoods of northern Indigenous peoples is an immense challenge amid increasing resource development. The paper describes a “tragedy of open access” occurring in Canada’s north as governments open up new areas of sensitive barren-ground caribou habitat to mineral resource development. Once numbering in the millions, barren-ground caribou populations (Rangifer tarandus groenlandicus/Rangifer tarandus granti) have declined over 70% in northern Canada over the last two decades in a cycle well understood by northern Indigenous peoples and scientists. However, as some herds reach critically low population levels, the impacts of human disturbance have become a major focus of debate in the north and elsewhere. A growing body of science and traditional knowledge research points to the adverse impacts of resource development; however, management efforts have been almost exclusively focused on controlling the subsistence harvest of northern Indigenous peoples. These efforts to control Indigenous harvesting parallel management practices during previous periods of caribou population decline (for example, 1950s) during which time governments also lacked evidence and appeared motivated by other values and interests in northern lands and resources. As mineral resource development advances in northern Canada and elsewhere, addressing this “science-policy gap” problem is critical to the sustainability of both caribou and people.

The four decades since the Berger Inquiry have produced a large body of research demonstrating the positive and negative impacts of resource development on northern communities. However, little independent research has aimed to yield an understanding of how best to manage the impacts of resource development and to harness its benefits in ways that can promote long-term sustainable development. This question was the impetus for the Resources and Sustainable Development in the Arctic (ReSDA) research project funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada in 2011. Representing a network of researchers, community members and organizations, ReSDA researchers conducted a series of analyses that focused on what was needed to ensure that northern communities received more benefits from resource development and potential negative impacts were mitigated. Overall, the analyses highlight the serious gaps that remain in our ability to ensure that resource development projects improve the sustainability of Arctic communities. These gaps include a proper understanding of cumulative impacts, the ability of communities to adequately participate in new regulatory processes, the non-economic aspects of well-being, the effects of impact and benefit agreements and new financial benefits, and new mitigation activities.

Considerable advancements are being made in containerized agricultural systems in the northern Canada. These systems are proving successful at overcoming the environmental constraints associated with cold climate food production and hold great promise for remote communities that suffer from high rates of food insecurity. However, if new technologies are to provide lasting and meaningful change for northern communities, critical attention needs to be directed to the variable and complex constraints that may limit their adoption and scalable success. To evaluate the potential uptake and use of containerized agriculture in northern Canada we employed the Adoption and Diffusion Outcome Prediction Tool. Twenty-two variables were ranked according to their influence on adoption. Six variables were then identified as being most constraining to the adoption of containerized agricultural systems, including upfront costs, expected profits, environmental impacts, complexity of the technology, trialability, and reversibility. We believe this type of pre-assessment is a critical, yet often over-looked step in technology transfer, and a necessary stage in assessing the scaling out potential for new food production technologies. This is particularly important for new food production technologies that demand significant financial investments that are wholly or partially irreversible.