Toward Sustainable Development in the North: Exploring Models of Success in Community-Based Entrepreneurship

Abstract

This article intends to achieve a better understanding of economic and social development in the remote, northern regions in Saskatchewan. The authors reviewed development models that were employed by various communities. By benchmarking the practices documented and reported in the extant literature, the authors discussed the need for comparative empirical research for further development of the theory on northern development. Following a comparative case analysis method, the authors selected cases that were theoretically and empirically comparable to Northern Saskatchewan, re-examined the reported relationships among relevant factors, and categorized the themes regarding developmental strategies and their resulting outcomes. These cases were from communities in Canada, the US, and Northern Scandinavia. While there was general agreement on what constituted “good practices” for regional economic and social development, there was no consensus or panacea for success. Each case was heavily embedded in a set of contextual circumstances. Some communities had undertaken different strategies to achieve the same kind of outcomes, while similar strategies have produced drastically different results in other communities.