The Canadian Arctic cannot be governed effectively without Indigenous leadership—not as stakeholders, but as strategic partners. Inuit, First Nations, and Métis governments are not only rights-holders; they are experts whose knowledge systems have guided northern survival for millennia.
As climate, infrastructure, and sovereignty challenges intensify, co-leadership becomes a strategic imperative. Indigenous governance models provide adaptive decision-making, long-term perspective, and region-specific insights that federal frameworks often overlook.
This editorial argues that the future of the Canadian North depends on power-sharing structures that elevate Indigenous leaders to equal decision-making roles. Co-management boards, impact agreements, and community-driven research systems are early successes—but deeper reform is needed.
True northern leadership starts with recognizing that expertise is already rooted in the land—and the people who have cared for it for generations.
