A new Ipsos Canada poll reveals that 64% of Canadians believe their federal government should block the sale of national resource companies in oil and gas, forestry, and mining to foreign buyers. The results signal a surge in global resource nationalism and growing public sentiment toward reclaiming sovereignty over mineral wealth. According to Darrel Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Global Public Affairs, "If globalization is being challenged, particularly by our southern neighbour, then we have to protect our key assets, and our key assets are natural resources."
The poll reflects broader global awareness that control of critical minerals is linked to national identity, climate transition, and community justice. This sentiment is evident in Indigenous opposition to major mining mergers, such as the Osoyoos Indian Band of British Columbia's public opposition to the proposed $53-billion merger between Teck Resources and Anglo American. Chief Clarence Louie of the Osoyoos Indian Band stated, "Deals of this scale have the possibility of significant impacts on Indigenous Nations and our people. These deals cannot be completed without the title-holders on whose lands these mines and smelters are situated being included."
The Band, part of the Syilx Nation, described Teck's century-old smelter at Trail as a symbol of extraction without benefit, noting that new expansion plans worth CAD$750 million were being negotiated without consultation. These grievances mirror those of many South African mining communities affected by Anglo American's operations. South Africa's Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act declares minerals to be the "common heritage of all the people," yet communities note exclusion from decision-making and benefit-sharing, foreign-capital dependence eroding sovereignty, and lagging downstream beneficiation in platinum-group metals, rare earths, and titanium.
The Ipsos poll provides empirical evidence that ordinary citizens no longer support unchecked consolidation of natural resources. The proposed Anglo–Teck merger represents the type of geo-economic manoeuvre citizens warn against, shifting control of critical-mineral supply chains from the public to global financial centres. While Canadians demand government action to protect domestic resource companies, such mergers appear to advance in the Global South with minimal public scrutiny. With South Africa's Public Investment Corporation, a custodian of millions of workers' pensions, among Anglo's largest shareholders, proposed deals risk reinforcing economic dependency and potential state capture.
This trend underscores the importance of the United Nations International observation for Preventing the Exploitation of the Environment, reminding that environmental exploitation undermines peace, equity, and humanity. Evidence from research organizations like Ipsos and reports from outlets such as Mining Weekly Canada highlight a global movement where citizens assert rights to equitable development and sustainable management of natural endowments, challenging corporate mergers that deepen divides between extractors and affected communities.
