Organizing polar science: Canada’s attempt at developing a national Antarctic programme

Abstract

As the last Arctic state to accede to the Antarctic Treaty after 27 years of its enforcement, Canada is a major Arctic country that operates as a non-consultative party member outside the decision-making machinery of the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS). Canada has no national polar research organization or a coordinated polar research strategy or polar science policy (unlike most other Arctic states). The absence of these hinders the development of a national Antarctic research programme, let alone a national Arctic research plan. Has the lack of a coordinated Canadian approach to science in the Arctic affected the development of a long-term Canadian Antarctic research programme? While the recently proposed Canadian High Arctic Research Station may be seen as filling the gap of a national Arctic research centre, its mandate, however, is focused on the development of Canada’s Arctic science and technology priorities in which Antarctica does not feature. More than a decade has passed, but a fully fledged Canadian Antarctic Research Program (CARP) has yet to be realized. Antarctica has failed to attract enough interest to warrant federal dollars to support a long-term Canadian research programme in Antarctica. The article traces the origins and development of Canada’s Antarctic interests, and examines how the federal government responded in organizational terms to the political challenges and the scientific opportunities of Antarctica.