By employing southern strategies and preconceptions to develop the north, southern Canadians have complicated northern Canadian development problems. Assuming that the only recognizable work is "paid" work and that welfare recipients do not want to work, southern Canadians have failed to recognize the inherent relationship between northern structural factors and the rate of participation in the work force. Factors contributing to the lack of development in the north include: marginality of the environment, the disruptive effects of southern civilization (traditional sharing patterns have been altered and learning experiences have been changed from a land to an academic orientation); and the lack of paid wage opportunities. Even though the Canadian transportation network cannot yet accommodate integration of the two economies, there are currently noneconomic motives at work to promote such integration. Emphasizing adaptation of established southern patterns to the northern environment, the potentials for northern development might include: increased utilization of existing natural resources; attraction of new industries with concurrent upgrading of local skills (labor intensive industries with a high value-added component); and increased self-sufficiency via alternate energy sources and agriculture geared to the northern environment. (JC)