Canada In 2035
By: Aisha Nadeem
Introduction
Unit 1: Changing Populations
Population Trends
According to Statistics Canada, our current population is approximately 35 million of which 15.7% are age 65 or older. This has continued to grow since the mid-1960's due to lower fertility rates and longer life expectancy. Women now have access to higher education ( birth control) which has resulted in them not having children because they are more focused on building their careers and maintaining their physical health. Another reason to why women have started to have fewer children is financial constraints. New parents have received little to no financial aid from the government and women are only given 55% wage on maternity leave. The low natural increase rate has caused our population to decline over the past few years.
Immigration Trends
Canada is one of the few countries in the world with an active immigration policy. They open their doors for about 300, 000 immigrants each year and in most cities in Canada, every second person is an immigrant. Canada accepts 3 types of immigrants which are economic, family and refugee. To determine who is eligible to immigrate to Canada, the government uses an efficient immigration policy called the Point System. The point system is divided into 6 categories; age, education, language proficiency, work experience, arranged employment and adaptability. There is a minimum number of points that an individual needs to score in each category but overall, they need 67 points in order to be qualified to immigrate.
Aboriginal Trends
The Aboriginal population makes up about 3 % of Canada's population. Currently, there is around 1.4 million people who identified themselves as Aboriginals in which 60.8% are First Nations, 32.3 % are Metis and 4.2 % are Inuit. High fertility rates and the tendency to reveal their identity are some of the factors that have caused the Aboriginal population to accelerate over the past years and it is predicted that it will increase because of the beliefs and culture of Aboriginals. The Aboriginal population is relatively young as 50 % is 24 or older. The majority of the population live in Ontario and the western countries and the rest in all parts of Canada.
Provinces
- 16.6% live in British Columbia
- 15.8% live in Alberta
- 14% live in Manitoba
- 11.3% live in Saskatchewan
- 21.5% live in Ontario
Territories
- 86% of Nunavut population
- 50% of North West Territories population
- 25% of Yukon population
Predictions
How will Canada's population change?
I think Canada's population will decrease as we move to stage 5 on the demographic model. The birth and death rate will be dangerously low as fertility rate continues to decrease due to people having later marriages and the health care improving. It has been predicted that by 2030, the aging population will increase to about 28.5 %. This population decline will have a negative impact on our economy as there will be labour shortage and that will cause economic loss. Also, there might be a decrease in services and resources available for the population because the government will need to double the amount of health care given to the elderly as the dependency load increases.
Who will be immigrating to Canada?
In my opinion, Canada's immigration rate will decrease. As time goes by, the world most notably the developing countries have been advancing in technology and standard of living like China and India. People in China who had planned to immigrate to Canada in the past have changed their minds now because they now have access to more job opportunities than they will have in Canada. Also, if there is a chance skilled workers immigrate to Canada, they might not stay long because Canada has competition now with other countries like the U's as they are also eager to attract the best skilled workers. This will cause labour shortage in professions such as doctors, nurses and engineers due to the fact that the majority of Canada's population are immigrants.
What changes will have taken place in our FNMI population?
I believe in 2035, there will be a decrease in the Aboriginal population. Back in the 1900s when residential schools existed, people strongly believed in religion and families.As urbanization continues to develop, culture and beliefs will disappear which will result in women having fewer children. Even though the Indian Act will be abolished, I still think Aboriginals will not be given all human rights.
The Point System
Labour Shortage
Aboriginal Population In Canada
Unit 2: Interactions in the Physical Environment
Climate and Physical Features of St. Lawrence Lowlands
The St. Lawrence Lowlands is the landform that stretches across southern Ontario and Quebec. The climate in these lowlands are influenced by nearness to water, latitude and wind and air masses. The hot humid weather in the summer is caused by the humidity of the Great Lakes. Also, in the summer, the jet stream moves up north allowing the warm gulf air to come up which gives us the heated temperatures. There is approximately 100cm of rain each year. Winters are unpredictable here as they can turn out cold with sticky snow or lots of precipitation. There is about 80cm of snow each winter and the temperatures can go down to -30 degrees Celsius. The Great Lakes portion is a rolling landscape which was created by glaciation. About 200 years ago, glaciers carried huge amounts of material ( sand, gravel) from the Canadian Shield and dumped them throughout the region. The Lowlands were formed as a rift valley by double faulting. Climate change has affected Ontario's vegetation. Rising temperatures have caused existing forest species to decrease before reproducing. Also, forests are having more frequent extreme storms.
Climate and Physical Features of The Western Cordillera
Western Cordillera is a landform that occupies British Columbia, Yukon and the western edge of NA. The climate there is influenced by ocean currents, latitudes, wind and air masses, near water and elevation. This landform region has a maritime climate meaning their winters are above freezing and summers are cooler. They mostly have mild and moist climate which is influenced by near water. There is a variety of vegetation in the Western Cordillera like Douglas fir, western hemlock and red cedar which grow in wet and moist areas. If you go to the top of the mountains in the cordillera, it will be a tundra because there is no vegetation there due to the cold temperatures. The Western Cordillera consists of 3 sections; Eastern Mountains ( Rocky Mountains, Columbia Mountains) which was created by folding and faulting , Interior Plateaus which was created by volcanic activity and Coast Mountains ( Coast Mountain Range, Island Mountain Range) which was created by convergent plate movement.
Predictions
How will climate change influence our climate and country?
Global warming and pollution are two of the main causes of climate change. The rise in temperatures and humid weather have been overwhelming cities and killing people. Also, pollution is created by toxic metals that are used in factories and coal fire factories are the most often polluters. Clearing out forests has increased carbon dioxide in our atmosphere and since there are no more trees to absorb our carbon dioxide, animals and humans are being harmed and the population is decreasing. I believe this will continue as we continue to advance in technology. We are becoming addicted to our materialistic lifestyle which is unhealthy for us and the environment. This change in our climate will also have a big impact on the growth of our economy because if temperatures continue to rise, there will be less precipitation which will damage the soil. This will cause drought in fields and that will decrease our agriculture which will result in economic and job loss.
St.Lawerence Lowlands
Western Cordillera Climate in Whitehorse, Yukon
Air Pollution
Unit 3: Managing Canada's Resources and Industries
Canada's Current Resources
Canada has 3 main resources: natural, renewable and non-renewable. These resources have played a major role in influencing the growth of our economy because they have provided imports and exports that have increased and started our international trade.
1) Natural Resources
- zinc
- coal
- gold
- copper ore
- lead
- nickel
- diamond
2) Renewable Resources
- fish
- forests
- hydroelectricity
- agriculture
- wind energy
3) Non-renewable Resources
- minerals
- thermoelectricity
- oil
- nuclear power
Where are these resources in Canada?
- Saskatchewan- world's largest producer of potash
- Quebec- largest producer of asbestos
- N.W.T- first diamond mines located here
- British Columbia- forestry
- Alberta- producer of oil sands
- Ontario- minerals
Other resources can be found in most parts of Canada
Sustainable Use of Resources
I believe Canada has not been using their resources sustainably. Over the past years, people have taken fish for granted and have misunderstood the meaning of reproduction. People have made fish a non-renewable resource by fishing over their limit and at a rate faster than they can reproduce. This not only decreased the fish population but impacted our economy as many people lost their jobs which meant less income tax for the government. Agriculture is also one of the renewable resources that have been misused and treated bad which has caused it to be classified as non-renewable. Like agriculture, forestry has been misused and trees are being cut down in order to build more industries despite the fact that trees give us oxygen and absorb the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. If there are no trees, carbon dioxide will be exposed in the air which creates pollution and is harmful for animals and humans.
Canada's Global Connections
Canada's international trade has largely been influenced by our primary industries through extraction of minerals, oil and natural gas. Manufacturing ( secondary industry) provides valuable exports like vehicles, aircrafts and plastics.
Top 4 Trade Partners
- United States- 74.5%
- ROW- 9.74%
- China-4.3%
- UK- 4.1%
Top Export Commodities
- Mineral fuels & oil- 25.5%
- Vehicles & parts- 13.4%
- Mechanical machinery & equipment- 7.2%
NAFTA
NAFTA was a multilateral agreement between Mexico, Canada and U.S signed in 1994. The purpose of this agreement was to eliminate tariffs and to increase trade. This has benefited all economies. Approximately 75.5% of Canada's exports are to NAFTA partners.
Predictions
How will Canada be connected to the world?
I believe Canada will be connected to the world through international trade. Presently, Canada does not have too many international trade partners and it relies heavily on the U.S. However, the current government is now engaging with more countries such as China and the Latin American countries to improve their international trade.
What will be our most valuable resources?
Although the oil sector has played a major role in the Canadian economy as it employed a large amount of people and huge investments were invested, the current slumps in oil prices have exposed the weaknesses of this sector for the economy. The cost of production for our oil source ( oil sands) is considerably higher than other countries and the oil price is 60% lower, therefore the oil sector will not be a reliable source for Canada's economy in the future. I believe minerals will be our most valuable resource in 2035. Currently, the mining industry is one of the most important economic sectors to our economy as it has provided major employment ( approximately 400, 000 people employed) and contributed greatly to our GDP and development of transportation system. Canada is one of the leading mining nations in the world and I believe this progress will continue as we will get more advanced in technology and find sustainable ways to mine with little harm done to the environment so we will have plenty of it left for the future.
How can we manage our resources sustainably?
In order to manage our resources sustainably, I think we should use sustainable yield management and sustainable resource development to ensure that we sustain enough resources for the future generations. I believe we can do that by reducing our use and dependence on non renewable resource ( fossil fuels, oil, etc. ) as well using renewable resources at a certain time and limit so they can replenish and the cycle can continue. This way we will ensure that we are not stopping people globally from meeting their needs.
NAFTA Growth Graph
Natural Resources Graph
Canada's Top 10 Export Destinations Graph
Unit 4: Liveable Communities
What issues are Canadian cities facing today?
The transition of urbanization for Canada has really benefited the economy, provided more services and employment and increased the standard of living. But urbanization has had some disadvantages as well. Some of the issues Canadian cities are facing today are urban sprawl, climate change, pollution and health issues.
Why is urban sprawl an issue for Canadian cities?
Urban sprawl is an issue for Canadian cities because it has had a negative impact on our climate, environment, society and our way of living. Urban sprawl has four main issues: transportation cost, farm land use, health costs and infrastructure needs. Urban sprawl has made people live materialistically and forget the true meaning of life. People have become dependent on things that function on energy like transportation. This has impacted our climate as toxic chemicals have been released into the air and water causing pollution. In 2010, there were approximately 7469 deaths caused by air pollution. Urban sprawl has impacted our health as well. Due to the pollution as well as our way of living, people have developed higher risks of getting diseases ( heart disease, respiratory illness), becoming obese and falling into depression caused by stress and unhappiness.
Predictions
How will Ontario deal with the issue of urban sprawl?
Canada will deal with the issue of urban sprawl by continuing to use the greenbelt and making progress. The greenbelt was built in 2005 to protect rural areas from urban expansion and over the past years, Ontario has done a great job in maintaining this goal. The greenbelt plays an important role in the growth of our economy as it provides Ontario with fresh local food, clean drinking water and recreational activities. The greenbelt has a large quantity of nutritious soil which we can use to develop more local fresh food and ship all across eastern Canada. This also provides more money and jobs for Canada and farmers as well as the fact that it makes around 5.4 billion dollars of economic activity. The greenbelt also provides many recreational activites such as bicycle touring and great scenery which makes it a great tourist site that will attract many people.
How will cities becoming more sustainable in the future?
Cities can become more sustainable in the future by developing and adopting policies that promote the responsible use of resources. This will help prevent waste and over use of resources. Investing in research and development and technology will also improve the sustainability of resources. Fracking is a good example of technological advancement which has resulted in access of new sources of oil and gas reserves. Developing ad implementing policies regarding clean and sustainable environment will also ensure that resources are not lost through pollution.
Conclusion
Citation
https://ss9gepgraphy.wikispaces.com
westerncordillerasummative.blogspot.com