Vancouver – Diversity Defined

June 9th, 2011 admin

Vancouver is located in the province of British Columbia in Canada along the west coast. Vancouver derives its name from a British explorer ‘George Vancouver’ who arrived in the area during the 1790s. The name comes from the Dutch ‘van Coevorden’ referring to someone who was from Coevorden in the Netherlands.

Vancouver is the third largest city in Canada with the largest Metropolitan area in Western Canada with a core population of 578,000 and a metro population in excess of 2.1 million.

The city began to develop after sawmills were established in 1867. The downtown area known as Gastown was the center of the town from which the city grew. The city was officially incorporated in 1886 and began to expand rapidly with the transcontinental railway being built to link with the seaport. The seaport became an essential part of trade as it provides routes between Eastern Canada, London and the Orient. Currently, the port is the busiest and largest in Canada.

The city is known for its diverse ethnic culture, its urban culture and the film production industry and is appropriately nicknamed ‘Hollywood North’. Vancouver has also played host to many events and festivals including the 1954 Commonwealth Games, 1976 United Nations Conference, 1986 Word Exposition and most recently, the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.

Geography

Vancouver lies on the Burrard Peninsula and the Fraser River. The city consists of hilly and flat ground areas with an area of 114 square km or 44 square miles. Bowen Island west of the city and Vancouver Island west and southwest of the city are visible from various points in the city as well as the Northshore Mountains. Mount Baker, a snow-capped volcano, located in Washington State can be seen on clear days to the southeast. Vancouver is adjacent to the Strait of Georgia and the Pacific Ocean.

Another geographic feature of the city is Stanley Park which stretches 404.9 hectares (1001 acres). The park is one of the largest in North America complete with attractions, the Seawall, recreational space and events held daily in the forested area.

Due to the moderate climate in Vancouver and area, various tropical types of vegetation grow as well as conifer species of trees that cannot survive in other parts of Canada. Maples, Douglas fir, Alders, exotic plants and tree species such as the monkey puzzle tree, and cedars are among the most widespread types of vegetation that is seen throughout the city often growing to large sizes.

Climate

Vancouver’s climate is Oceanic and temperate. During the summer, the city experiences moderate temperatures averaging around 22 degrees C (72 F) with little precipitation-almost semi-drought conditions. During the winter months the weather is rainy with average precipitation of 1,199 millimetres (47.2 in) annually of rainfall and an average snowfall of 48.2 centimetres (19.0 in) that typically does not remain intact. Typically, Vancouver only experiences a few days a year where temperatures reach below freezing and rarely reach lower than −10 C (14.0 F).

Demographics

Vancouver is comprised of many different people groups. The city has been called a ‘city of neighbourhoods’ as it consists of areas such as Chinatown, Little Italy and Greektown. Vancouver is also home to a large gay community in the downtown core. The 2006 census reported 52% of the population cite other languages other than English as their first language. One third of Vancouver’s people are of Chinese origin with the rest of the population being comprised of people groups from around the world. People of British, Irish and German descent are still some of the largest groups; however, Asian immigrants from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Philippines and other countries in that area have increased rapidly in the last few decades. The city’s largest age bracket is shared by people aged 20-39 and aged 40-64 at 34.5% each respectively. The smallest age demographic is made up of people aged 65 and older at 13.1% of the population. Roughly 51% of the population is comprised of a visible minority people group.




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