Looking down the road : En route vers demain : leadership pour les communautés en évolution du Canada

Yet, when we listen to the public discourse in Canada, discussion of communities seems to get lost in the swirl of arguments about the power of markets, the risks and opportunities of globalization and climate change. [...] The overall effect is to break the old career pattern of starting at the bottom of the ladder and working one’s way up to a senior executive role. [...] Living in major cities is expensive because of the high cost of housing and transportation, with the result that the mixed neighbourhoods of the past have been transformed as older housing has been upgraded and many families have moved to the suburbs. [...] The mother’s poverty and lack of access to child care combine to create hardships for the children, who are the ones most at risk of reaching age 6 lacking the mix of cognitive and social skills essential for success in school. [...] The combination of youth moving to cities and the retirement of the baby boomers means that some parts of Canada are aging quickly (Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador, for example).