Canada -2011 Census: Age and sex

According to data from the 2011 Census of Population, seniors accounted for 14.8% of the population in 2011, up from 13.7% in 2006. However, the proportion of seniors in Canada remained among the lowest of the G8 countries. A full analysis is available in the report, The Canadian Population in 2011: Age and Sex.

In 2011, Canada's lower share of seniors compared with other G8 countries was related to the fact that most of its baby boomers were still part of the working-age population (aged 15 to 64). The baby-boom generation consists of people born between 1946 and 1965 and is the country's largest generation.

As a result, the share of the working-age population in Canada, at 68.5% in 2011, was among the highest of the G8 countries.

The share of children aged 14 and under fell from 17.7% in 2006 to 16.7% in 2011.

As the baby boomers turn 65 in coming years, population aging will accelerate and the share of the working-age population will decrease. The census counted 9.6 million baby boomers, nearly 3 in every 10 people. Additional analysis on the baby-boom generation as well as other generations can be found in the Census in Brief article, "Generations in Canada."

Population of seniors catching up with that of children
The number of seniors aged 65 and over increased 14.1% between 2006 and 2011. This rate of growth was more than double the 5.9% increase for the Canadian population as a whole. It was also higher than the rate of growth of children aged 14 and under (+0.5%) and people aged 15 to 64 (+5.7%).

As a result, the number of seniors has continued to converge with the number of children in Canada between 2006 and 2011. The census counted 5,607,345 children aged 14 and under, compared with 4,945,060 seniors. In the working-age population, the census counted 22,924,300 people.

The main factors behind the aging of Canada's population are the nation's below-replacement-level fertility rate over the last 40 years and an increasing life expectancy.

Working-age population growing older
Canada's working-age population is also growing older. Within the working-age group, 42.4% of people were aged between 45 and 64, a record high proportion. This was well above the proportion of 28.6% in 1991, when the first baby boomers reached age 45.

In 2011, nearly all people aged between 45 and 64 were baby boomers.

For the first time, census data showed that there were more people in the age group 55 to 64, where people typically are about to leave the labour force, than in the age group 15 to 24, where people typically are about to enter it.

The 2011 Census counted 4,393,305 people aged 55 to 64. In contrast, there were 4,365,585 people aged 15 to 24.

In 2001, for every person aged 55 to 64, there were 1.40 people in the age group 15 to 24. By 2011, this ratio had fallen slightly below 1 (0.99) for the first time. This means that for each person leaving the working-age group in 2011, there was about one person entering it.

Highest increase in number of young children since the end of the baby boom
The population of children aged 4 and under increased 11.0% between 2006 and 2011. This was the highest growth rate for this age group since the 1956 to 1961 period, during the baby boom. It was also the highest growth rate of all age groups below age 50 between 2006 and 2011.

Centenarians represent one of the fastest-growing age groups
The 2011 Census counted 5,825 people aged 100 years and older, up from 4,635 in 2006 and 3,795 in 2001.

Between 2006 and 2011, the number of centenarians increased 25.7%, the second-highest growth rate of all age groups, after the age group 60 to 64 (+29.1%). Additional analysis on centenarians can be found in the Census in Brief article, "Centenarians in Canada."

Provinces and territories: Population of seniors
Between 2006 and 2011, the proportion of seniors increased in every province and territory except Saskatchewan. The increase was especially strong in the four Atlantic provinces, where seniors represented more than 16% of the population (above the national average of 14.8%) and in Quebec, where seniors represented 15.9% of the population.

Among the provinces, Alberta (11.1%) had the lowest proportion of seniors. Proportions in the three territories were much lower than the national average. Provincial and territorial differences in the age structure are the result of differences in fertility and immigration, as well as in interprovincial migration.

Provinces and territories: Working-age population
In 2011, the share of the working-age population was higher than the national average in three provinces (Alberta, British Columbia and Newfoundland and Labrador) and in two territories (Yukon and the Northwest Territories).

The working-age group represented 70.1% of Alberta's total population, the highest among the provinces. This situation was mostly the result of the net inflow of working-age people into Alberta from other parts of the country over the years.

Provinces and territories: Children aged 4 and under
For the first time in 50 years, the number of children aged 4 and under increased in all provinces and territories between 2006 and 2011.

The largest increases occurred in Alberta (+20.9%), Saskatchewan (+19.6%), Quebec (+17.5%), Nunavut (+15.7%) and Yukon (+13.8%).

The main factors explaining the growth are increases in the number of women aged 20 to 34 in most provinces and territories, and increases in fertility levels in all provinces and territories.

Census metropolitan areas: Younger populations in Western provinces
In 2011, all census metropolitan areas (CMAs) located west of Ontario had a proportion of people aged 65 and over below the national average of 14.8%, except for Kelowna (19.2%) and Victoria (18.4%), both in British Columbia. In Calgary, the share was 9.8%, the lowest of all CMAs.

In comparison, nearly 1 in 5 people were aged 65 or over in Peterborough (19.5%) and Trois-Rivières (19.4%), the highest of all CMAs.

Additional analysis and maps at the census tract level for the CMAs can be found in the Census in Brief article, "The census: A tool for planning at the local level."

Most municipalities with highest proportion of seniors in British Columbia
In 2011, 7 of the 10 municipalities (census subdivisions) with the highest proportion of seniors were in British Columbia.

Seniors accounted for nearly 1 out of every 2 people (47.2%) in the population of Qualicum Beach, located in the census agglomeration of Parksville, British Columbia.

Canada becoming a "Warrior Nation," new book proclaims Award-winning historian and acclaimed journalist shed light on campaign to change Canada.

Toronto, May 29, 2012 /CNW/ - Adding a bold voice to recent debate over the role, cost, and reach of Canada's military, the new book Warrior Nation: Rebranding Canada in an Age of Anxiety (Between the Lines Books), by Ian McKay and Jamie Swift, provides a critical perspective on both Canada's growing effort to portray itself as a militaristic Warrior Nation and its exploitation of history in achieving this end.

Taking examples from the Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, and Canada's UN peacekeeping missions in Africa, Ian McKay and Jamie Swift consider how Canada's valorization of military history has thrown totemic Canadian ideals of peace, tolerance, and reasoned public debate into question. Replacing these ideals, the authors assert, is a shift in Canadian political culture toward authoritarian leadership and permanent political polarization.

"It's all about how wars are remembered, not whether we remember them," co-author Jamie Swift observed. "Warrior Nation describes the way that government attempts to manipulate and indeed mould public opinion to suit its own agenda."

Historian and co-author Ian McKay added that "many regimes around the world have used the technique of mobilizing fear and drawing us back to cults of blood and death, but very few of those regimes were ever called democracies."

In pages of exhaustive research, Warrior Nation sheds light on the key players and narratives essential to understanding both Canada's past and its current direction. Swashbuckling marauder William Stairs, the Royal Military College graduate who helped make the Congo safe for European pillage. Vimy Ridge veteran and Second World War general Tommy Burns, leader of the UN's first big peacekeeping operation, a soldier who would come to call imperialism "the monster of the age." Governor General John Buchan, a concentration camp developer and race theorist who is exalted in the Harper government's new citizenship guide. And that uniquely Canadian paradox, Lester Pearson.

Ian McKay is a professor of history at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. His previous books include Rebels, Reds, Radicals: Rethinking Canada's Left History, For a Working-Class Culture in Canada, and the award-winning Reasoning Otherwise: Leftists and the People's Enlightenment in Canada, 1890-1920.

Jamie Swift is a winner of the Michener Fellowship for Public Service Journalism. He has authored numerous books, from biography and history to corporate muckraking. His most recent title is Persistent Poverty: Voices From the Margins, co-authored with Brice Balmer and Mira Dineen.

Since 1977 Between the Lines Books has published books that embrace critical perspectives on culture, economics, and society

For further information:
Matthew Adams, Between the Lines Books | 416-535-9914 | publicity@btlbooks.com 

Canada can do more to protect its children from poverty, new UNICEF report

Toronto, May 29, 2012 /CNW/ - A new report released by UNICEF today comparing child poverty in 35 industrialized countries reveals Canada could be doing more to protect its children.

"The face of poverty in Canada is a child's face," says UNICEF Canada's Executive Director David Morley. "This is unacceptable. It is clearly time for Canada to make children a priority when planning budgets and spending our nation's resources, even in tough economic times."

Report Card 10 from UNICEF's Research Office reveals Canada's child poverty rate is higher than Canada's overall national poverty rate. When comparing this gap between child poverty and overall poverty, Canada ranks 18th of the 35 countries measured. Ten of the 35 countries have lower child poverty rates than overall poverty rates, including the Nordic countries, Japan and Australia. Romania is at the bottom of the list with a child poverty rate of 26 per cent - a third higher than its national rate.

When examining the percentage of children living in poverty, Canada is again in the bottom third, with 13 per cent of children living in poverty ranking Canada 24th of 35 countries. Iceland tops the list with the lowest rate of child poverty just below 5 per cent; Romania has the highest.

According to today's Report Card, approximately 30 million children in 35 industrialized countries are growing up poor. It emphasizes child poverty is not inevitable in these countries but significantly affected by government policy. Countries with similar levels of economic development and per capita income have different child poverty rates. For example, Canada's taxes and transfers are more successful at lowering child poverty rate compared to the United States but they are not as successful as the Nordic countries, Ireland or Australia. In general, countries get the child poverty rate they pay for.

"Millions of children are going without in countries that have the resources to protect them, including children here in Canada," says Morley.

How Canada can do better
There are a number of ways Canada can better prioritize children. Child benefits and tax credits could be improved given Canada's moderate level of spending on children compared to similar countries.

Canada should also establish a national poverty reduction strategy, including a focus on children. Since 2002, twelve provinces and territories have set strategies or committed to provincial poverty reduction plans. Quebec was one of the first to set targets and the results have been positive for children.

Canada also lacks an official definition of poverty, making it difficult to understand the severity of the situation, monitor the well-being of children and guide effective investments.

Today's Report Card also demonstrates how two poverty measurements, one based on income and one a new Child Deprivation Index which provides a list of 14 basic items essential to a child's well-being, can provide more information to better guide policy decisions.

Visit www.unicef.ca to read UNICEF's Report Card 10 and see info graphics comparing child poverty rates in Canada and other industrialized countries around the world. Join the conversation on twitter by following UNICEF Canada (@UNICEFLive) using #ReportCard10 #ChildPoverty

UNICEF's Report Card Series
In keeping with UNICEF's mandate to advocate for children in every country, UNICEF's Report Card series focuses on the well-being of children in industrialized countries. Each Report Card includes a league table ranking the countries of the OECD according to their record on the subject under discussion. The Report Cards are designed to appeal to a wide audience while maintaining academic rigour.

About UNICEF
UNICEF is the world's leading child-focused humanitarian and development agency. Through innovative programs and advocacy work, UNICEF saves children's lives and secure their rights in virtually every country. UNICEF's global reach, unparalleled influence on policymakers, and diverse partnerships make it an instrumental force in shaping a world in which no child dies of a preventable cause. UNICEF is entirely supported by voluntary donations and helps all children, regardless of race, religion or politics. For more information about UNICEF, please visit www.unicef.ca.

Dominant East Asians face workplace harassment, says study
http://phys.org/news/2012-05-dominant-east-asians-workplace.html
May 8, 2012
 
When they don't conform to common racial stereotypes, such as being non-dominant, even people of East Asian descent are "unwelcome and unwanted by their co-workers," says a new paper from the University of Toronto's Rotman

They have been stereotyped as a "model minority."

But when they don't conform to common racial stereotypes, such as being non-dominant, even people of East Asian descent are "unwelcome and unwanted by their co-workers," says a new paper from the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management.

The study shows there is a difference between "descriptive" racial stereotypes – what people believe to be true about members of a particular group – and "prescriptive" racial stereotypes – how people want members of a particular group to behave.

One experiment showed that participants held descriptive stereotypes of East Asians as being competent, cold, and non-dominant.

A second showed that the most valued expectation of East Asians was that they "stay in their place," and don't take a dominating role. A third experiment showed that participants preferred a white co-worker over an East Asian co-worker if that co-worker had a dominant personality.

"In general, people don't want dominant co-workers but they really don't want to work with a dominant East-Asian co-worker," says Jennifer Berdahl, a Rotman professor who co-authored the study with graduate student Ji-A Min, after conducting similar research into workplace gender stereotyping.

A fourth study, found that East Asians who exhibited a dominant personality at work reported higher levels of harassment than other workers. Those who "stayed in their place" did not.

Although stereotypes support the interests of the group that dominates in a society, Prof. Berdahl says, "Everyone buys into them to some extent … even the group that they hurt." That may explain why the study's East Asian participants also seemed to hold the same limiting stereotypes about other East Asians.

"If you stay in your place – as a woman or as a minority – the workplace may not be actively hostile to you," says Prof. Berdahl. "But that in itself is a form of social coercion."

"The first step to remedying the bamboo ceiling created by these prescriptive stereotypes of is to be aware of them and how they can lead to backlash against those who defy them," says Prof. Berdahl. "Holding East Asians to different standards than whites – reacting negatively to them when they engage in leadership behaviors – holds them, and all those who might benefit from their leadership, back."

More information: The study is forthcoming in an issue of Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology.

Provided by University of Toronto, Rotman School of Management

Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives (PAMA) to open art gallery, Sept. 30
Source: http://www.bramptonguardian.com/print/1365730
By Ashley Goodfellow | May 31, 2012

It’s not just a renovated building— the new Peel Art Gallery is a spectacularly revamped space boasting the unique and successful marriage of modern, urban and heritage elements.

And, you’ll get to see all 10,000 square feet of the impressive facility yourself, starting Sept. 30.

The Peel Art Gallery, Museum and Archives (PAMA) announced May 30 that the official opening of the Art Gallery— phase one of three— is scheduled for the last Sunday in September. The three-level Art Gallery building (which was originally a 1950s Hydro building, and later a building housing staff from the Region of Peel), is now a light and airy space outfitted with oversized windows, a sleek and modern design, and state-of-the-art fixtures.

The incorporation of so much glass and windows, is a testament to Brampton’s rich history with greenhouses, said Claire Loughheed, manager of PAMA, and the wooden beams are reflective of the area’s agricultural past.

“It is very much a building of contemporary design and yet it speaks to the anecdotes of the community,” she said.

At every turn, there is another impressive space to take in.

It boasts several exhibition spaces, including 2,070 sq. ft. of permanent collection space; 2,580 sq. ft. of temporary collection space; a community gallery of 2,000 sq. ft.; art storage space of 2,500 sq. ft. (able to house the facility’s collection of more than 4,500 pieces of art); and a 542 sq. ft. studio space.

With triple the exhibition space, the Art Gallery will be able to feature works such as that of Lyn Carter— an artist who creates fabric-covered organic forms of tremendous proportions. Carter’s work will be featured in the Art Gallery for the grand opening.

The new facility also features an impressive lobby and greeting area, as well as a spacious reception/cafe area with amazing views from the third floor— quarters for patrons to relax, and perhaps enjoy a snack.

The building will also link to the Museum, Archives and Jailhouse through an underground passage with skylights (also opening as part of phase one), or through the renovated courtyard— an inviting outdoor public space.

Architects and designers of the $13-million restoration and construction project that began in 2010 say they are thrilled with the way the building has come together. Paul Gagné, an architect with Goldsmith Borgal & Company Ltd. Architects, said the completed renovations accurately reflect the initial vision.

“It is remarkably close to the renderings,” he told The Guardian.

Loughheed said PAMA was designed with the community in mind. Inside, the Art Gallery has space for the community to learn and connect with art, including a dry studio, a wet studio and an area where free family programming will take place. The new space will work with families, community groups and schools.

In addition to Carter’s exhibit, Cover, the phase one opening will feature Passages: a photo-based exhibition featuring artists include Sara Angelucci, Greg Staats, William Eakin, Donald Rance and Vid Ingelevics, who have created a special installation based on images from the Region of Peel Archives’ outstanding collection of mid-20th century photography.

Phase two of the opening, which happens Nov. 17 and 18, will include the Museum and Archives. The full site, said Loughheed, will be completely operational on Feb. 18, 2013, in time for Family Day.

Each of the three openings will feature free programs and events for all to enjoy.

“We are thrilled to have the opening dates finalized,” said Loughheed. “Now it’s our job to make PAMA even more exciting and powerful and engaging.”

When it re-opens, PAMA will be one of only three places in Canada that combines an art gallery, museum and archive facility under one roof. This unified space will provide an opportunity to showcase Peel’s history in a connected and integrated way. Programs geared towards every member of the family are currently being developed and will be offered throughout the many spaces within PAMA.

For more, visit PAMA.peelregion.ca.