Growing demand for both energy and a clean environment might appear irreconcilable, the former cabinet minister told about three dozen students at a lunchtime forum at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management.

But with steep tax cuts and the right investment atmosphere, he said, Canada is uniquely positioned to lead the world in the research, development, commercialization and export of clean energy technologies.

"The global challenge of the 21st century will be how do you meet mammoth, unprecedented energy demands and, at the same time, tackle climate change," he said.

"It's a huge opportunity for us."

Brison, a former Conservative who was public works minister in Paul Martin's Liberal government, has nine rivals in a race that culminates in a Dec. 2 leadership vote in Montreal.

In his speech, he summed up the main planks of his economic platform in advance of the party's fourth all-candidates debate, which takes place on Sunday in Vancouver, beginning at 6 p.m. EDT.

"I will dramatically reduce business taxes, and all forms of taxes on capital and investment," Brison said of his top priority.

"Canada still has one of the highest tax burdens in the world."

He would also revamp the employment insurance program to target underemployment, he said. And he would create a tax credit system for young full-time workers, making their first $25,000 of income tax-free for 12 years.

"This would be a huge break for young Canadians as they pay off student debt, and start their careers and families," the candidate said.

To create economic opportunities for aboriginal peoples, Brison said he would create "urban aboriginal enterprise zones," taking advantage of the tax-free status of existing urban reserves.

An experiment using the idea is already successfully underway in Saskatoon, he said.

Multiculturalism policies could be harnessed economically if the government supported natural business ties between new Canadians and their countries of origin, he said.

Brison, who represents the rural Nova Scotia riding of Kings-Hants, also spoke of his vision for the proposed trading bloc "Atlantica," encompassing the Atlantic provinces, eastern Quebec and the northeastern United States.

He called the zone "our greatest economic opportunity since the age of sail."

Government and private investment in railways, roads and telecommunications infrastructure, he said, would transform the region into an economic gateway between the European Union and the United States, serving a combined population in those two unions of 760 million people.