ABSTRACT
This chapter assesses the nature of the Arctic environmental relationship between Canada and the United States. It examines the historical development of the relationship – strategic and economic; the internationalization of the relationship; and current and ongoing issues. During the Cold War, both Canada and the United States explored means of exploiting new energy sources from the north. These explorations had a profound environmental effect on the North American Arctic and on the relationship between Canada and the United States. The end of the Cold War ushered in a new era of cooperation in the arctic region that had a profound impact on the environmental relationship between Canada and the United States. In cooperation with Canadian officials, Finnish officials launched an initiative that became the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy. The desire to create a politically significant arctic multilateral organization has been a topic of consideration among Canadian academics and Non-Governmental Organizations prior to the end of the Cold War.
