(Bloomberg) -- Former BlackBerry chief executive Jim Balsillie called on Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to establish a comprehensive national strategy for the Arctic — and his research organization has even written up a draft version.

Balsillie, founder of the Arctic Research Foundation, said Wednesday he takes issue with the government’s “inattention” to a national strategy for the region. One is needed to address the Arctic’s issues, including security, climate change and economic growth, he explained.

“They say we have a strategy, but there is no document,” he said during a discussion with former politician Erin O’Toole at the Arctic360 conference in Toronto. “It’s a one-page framework document.”

The Trudeau government’s Arctic and Northern Policy Framework, released in 2019, numbers a few dozen pages but has been criticized for offering lofty goals without a concrete plan to achieve them. It lays out eight broad objectives, including reconciliation with Indigenous people, security for Arctic residents and sustainable local economies.

Balsillie, whose curiosity about the Arctic led him to spearhead the 2016 discovery of the long-lost ship of British polar explorer Sir John Franklin, said current geopolitical upheaval and the threats Russia and China pose in the region make a national strategy essential.

So his Arctic Research Foundation, working with Canadian senators and Indigenous communities in the region, developed what it’s calling the Arctic National Strategy. The document has been delivered to members of Trudeau’s government.

“It outlines a clear operational path forward for the Arctic through shovel-ready projects and common-sense policy recommendations,” said Balsillie, who served as co-chief executive officer of Research in Motion, since renamed BlackBerry. 

The strategy lays out four pillars — reconciliation, protecting the environment, economic development and Arctic data management — with policy priorities within those categories. Some of the priorities include:

  • Establishing ethical and equitable research projects
  • Building hydroelectric, solar, wind and other green-energy systems
  • Delivering fast, reliable internet
  • Improving Arctic data management

Yvonne Jones, parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs, defended the government’s investments in the Arctic in a separate panel at the conference. But she said it was clear-eyed about the potential threat from China in the region. 

“We’re always suspicious,” she said. “We’re always monitoring.”

Balsillie also said Canada could encourage more investment in critical infrastructure projects through tools that already exist. He said it’s “not an absurd idea” to give some public pension funds a double mandate — making them responsible for earning returns as well as promoting economic development

“Our pension funds invest a lot in infrastructure and a lot in tech — we just don’t do it domestically,” he said.

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