Universities, Politics and Development in Northern Ontario and Northern Sweden - A Comparative Analysis

Oct 15, 2026

Universities, politics and development in northern Ontario and northern Sweden are examined through a comparative politics “most similar systems” approach. Both regions established higher education institutions in the nineteen sixties, yet they differed in founding rationales: northern Ontario emphasized regional access while northern Sweden emphasized regional service. The analysis reviews academic, financial, and geographic problems after establishment, evaluates successes and failures, and argues that some convergence occurred though the Swedish model proved more successful.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages22

Reading Time55 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Introduction

The Regions Compared

# Universities,Politics and Development inNorthern Ontario and Northern Sweden:AComparative Analysis GEOFFREY R.WELLER*and ROBERT G.ROSEHART** ## ABSTRACT Both Ontario and Sweden established universities in their northern regions in thenineteen sixties.This article begins by noting that the two regions are similar invery many ways and that the pressures exerted in both for the establishmentof postsecondary educational institutions were much the same.The articlecontinues by comparing the rationales and principles upon which the two sets ofuniversities were founded.It is indicated that while the principle of regionalaccess dominated in northern Ontario the principle of regional service dominatedin northern Sweden.Thus the northern Ontario universities began as small,basically undergraduate Arts and Science institutions while the universities innorthern Sweden began as specialized professional institutes intended to solvespecific regional problems and disparities.The article goes on to analyse theacademic,financial and geographic problems faced by the two sets of northernuniversities since they were founded and the developments that have taken place.An assessment is then made of the successes andfailures ofthe two systems and it isargued that although some convergence has takenplace the Swedish approach hasbeen the more successful of the two. ## RÉSUMÉ L'Ontario et la Suède ont,parallelement,créé des universités dans leurs régionsdu nord au cours des années soixante.Le présent article commence enmentionnant la similitude des deux régions,sous bien des aspects,tout commecelle des pressions exercées dans les deux cas,au sujet de la création d'institutsuniversitaires.Cet article se poursuit avec une comparaison entre les raisonne-ments et les principes sur lesquels les deux établissements universitaires furentfondés.Ilest précisé que dans le nord del'Ontario le principe prédominant était ladificulté d'accès au point de vue régional,alors que dans le nord de la Suede c'était le principe du service régional qui prédominait.C'est pourquoi lesuniversités du nord de P'Ontario furent au début de petites institutions,préparantprincipalement àla licence d'arts et de sciences,alors que les universités du nordde la Suede furent dès le départ des établissements professionnels spécialisés,dontle but était de résoudre les problemes et les disparités régionales spécifiques.L'article aborde ensuite I'analyse des problèmes académiques,financiers etgeographiques que rencontrent les deux établissements universitaires depuis leurcreation,ainsi que les aménagements qui y ont été entrepris.Il fait ensuite étatd'une évaluation des succes et des échecs concernant les deux systemes et affirmeque,malgré une certaine convergence,I'approche suédoise a été la plusfructueuse des deux. ## INTRODUCTION Ontario and Sweden are similar in many ways.Their populations are roughly thesame as are the nature of their economies,geography and climate.Moreover,thenorthern regions of Sweden and Ontario are also similar.Both are large geographicareas in relation to the southern parts of their respective political jurisdictions.They have similar economies based upon natural resources.The major industriesare forestry,mining,tourism and power generation.The standard of living as wellas the social and cultural conditions of life are similar and,more importantly,significantly lower in each case than for the southern regions of the two politicalunits.This has produced a similar political culture in which radical politics isparticularly notable and in which there has been a relatively high degree of politicalunrest. Both Sweden and Ontario established institutions of higher education in theirnorthern regions at roughly the same time.Laurentian University was establishedin 1960 and Lakehead university in 1965.Laurentian has several small constituentcolleges located at North Bay(Nippissing College),Hearst(Hearst College)andSault Ste.Marie(Algoma College).A full universit

FAQs

Why were universities established in northern Ontario and northern Sweden during the 1960s?

Both regions faced similar pressures and were broadly comparable in population, economy, geography, and living conditions, leading to roughly parallel timing in establishing higher education institutions.

How did the founding rationale differ between northern Ontario and northern Sweden?

Northern Ontario universities were guided primarily by the goal of regional access, while northern Sweden universities were guided primarily by regional service to address local problems and disparities.

What does the paper conclude about the two systems’ outcomes?

It evaluates successes and failures and argues that although some convergence occurred, the Swedish approach was more successful overall.

Oct 15, 2026

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