A Broken Frontier: Ecological Imperialism in the Canadian North

Ecological imperialism is one of the most enduring models of past global environmental change. This essay argues that the application of ecological imperialism as an explanation for New World environmental change should not be limited to temperate regions where the process was so spectacularly successful. Using the Canadian North as a broad regional template, our analysis suggests that consideration of both the failures and the limited successes of ecological imperialism are critical to a more complete understanding of global colonialism. Although the Canadian North was never subject to the broad ecological transformation that occurred further to the south, attempts to colonize particular regions did occur in tandem with the successful introduction of alien species. Ecological imperialism need not be conceptualized solely as an all-encompassing process of biological transformation. Instead, efforts to colonize peripheral nontemperate regions can be understood as a product of a limited application of ecological imperialism in a New World environment.