ANNOUNCEMENTS
• These announcements will occur on Avenue
as well
• Watch the introduction videos on Avenue.
They will explain course structure, the
assessments and MSAF information
• Complete the Student information quiz
• This lecture is really an outline. Ideas will be
looked at in more detail as the course unfolds
Regions of
Canada
Introduction
• Geography helps us understand Canada
• Canada is best understood from a regional
perspective
– Concept of “a country of regions” as part of national
psyche
• Canada consists of six regions
– Each has a strong sense of regional identity and
unique sense of place
– Occasionally tensions arise between regional and
federal interests
– Each region has its own political agenda and
economic goals
• Compromise is required to retain national unity
Canada’s Geographic Regions
• Regions are designated by “core” physical and
human characteristics that divide a large
spatial unit into a series of regions
• Each region is distinguished from adjacent
ones, although at the margins, its core
characteristics merge with those of
neighbouring regions
– Boundaries of each region are transition zones
• Each region has its own distinctive regional
identity
Canada’s Geographic Regions, cont’d
• Six geographic regions
of Canada:
1. Atlantic Canada
2. Quebec
3. Ontario
4. Western Canada
5. British Columbia
6. Territorial North
FIGURE 1.2 The six geographic regions of Canada
Five of Canada’s six regions touch the border with the United States. This
fact reflects the concentration of the nation’s population close to the US
border. As for Canada’s ocean boundaries, they are recognized by other
nations with the exception of the “sector” boundary in arctic waters north of
Alaska/Yukon.
Canada’s Geographic Regions, cont’d
• Why these six regions?
– Manageable number, balanced territorial/population size,
and economic importance
• Although internal sub-regions do exist as in the case of Ontario and
Quebec
– Reflect distinctive physical features, natural resources, and
economic activities
– Reflect political structure of Canada
– Facilitate use of statistical data
– Linked to regional identity
– Associated with reoccurring regional disputes
– Reveal regional economic strengths and cultural presence
Canada’s Geographic Regions, cont’d
• What distinguishes each region?
– Geographic location
– Regional consciousness
– Historical development
– Population size
– Economic strength
• The economy of each region revolves around a specific
economic anchor
Faultlines within Canada
• Faultlines: a geological metaphor applied to
economic, social, and political cracks that
divide regions and threaten to destabilize
Canada’s integrity as a nation
• Columnist Jeffrey Simpson was the first to
apply the term to Canada in 1993
• Faultlines might remain dormant for long
periods of time and then suddenly erupt to
divide the country
Faultlines within Canada , cont’d
• Four principal faultlines are identified in
Canada:
1. Regional faultline
2. Quebec faultline
3. Indigenous minority faultline
4. Immigration faultline
• Each of these faultlines has played a
fundamental role in the country’s historical
evolution and remains important today
Faultlines within Canada, cont’d
• These four faultlines have at times threatened
the unity of the country
• Compromise has been crucial in overcoming
division and guaranteeing Canada’s survival
• Because of its ability to compromise, Canada
is considered a “soft” country as opposed to
the United States that is instead considered a
“hard” country
Regional Faultline
• This faultline leans most
heavily on Canada’s geography
and political system
– Regional control over natural
resources is a particularly
contentious issue (i.e. fossil fuel
in Alberta)
• Federal–provincial feuds
• Central Canada as representing
the “national interest”
– Western alienation
• Disputes between provinces
The Quebec Faultline
• Proportion of French-speaking Canadians has declined
– Highly concentrated in Québec
• Language remains a sensitive issue
– The Official Language Act (1974)
• Some francophone leaders feel Québécois way of life is
slipping away
– Bill 21 (2019)
• Quebec has taken a strong position on the climate
crisis to reduce carbon emissions
– This is made possible by the vast hydroelectric resources in
the province
Indigenous Minority
• Canada as a settler state has stripped Indigenous
peoples of their land and resources
• Indigenous peoples remain on the margins of Canadian
society
• Economic and social opportunities started becoming
available only in the late 20th century as:
– Indigenous peoples started to break out of the constraints
of the Indian Act
– The number of Indigenous peoples with an education
increased
• Little opportunities exist for Indigenous peoples
located in geographically isolated and marginalized
communities
Indigenous Minority, cont’d
• Towards the second half of the twentieth century,
pivotal events saw
– Changes to the Indian Act
– End of residential school system
– Rise of political activism
• The twenty-first century witnessed the beginning
of a push towards reconciliation rather than
assimilation
– Reconciliation as an opportunity to create a more
inclusive society
Immigration
• Canada is often considered a land of immigrants
• The current Liberal government has raised the
number of new immigrants welcomed into Canada
– 2020 is the exception because of travel restrictions due to
the COVID-19 pandemic
• Continuous waves of newcomers are bringing their
own set of cultures, languages, and religions
– Canadians are generally welcoming but remain uncertain
of how to accommodate different customs and religions
– Quebec’s uneasiness with immigrants and Bill 21 (2019)
Immigration, cont’d
• Benefits of immigration to Canada:
– Increase to population size
– Increase to our cultural diversity
– Growth of the Canadian economy
• Challenges presented by immigration to Canada:
– Disagreement over which level of government should
bear the costs of settlement
– Balancing the number of immigrants’ arrivals with the
country’s capacity for absorption
– Need to find compromises among different cultural
groups and their traditions
The Core/Periphery Theory and Beyond
• Friedmann’s 1966 adaptation of the
core/periphery model to Venezuela
• Core/periphery model: capitalist economics
results in regionally uneven development
(Friedmann)
• Friedmann’s adaptation can successfully be
applied to Canada
[Link]
The Core/Periphery Theory and Beyond,
cont’d
• Canada’s regions: one core and three
peripheries
– Core region—manufacturing (Ontario and
Quebec)
– Rapidly growing region—expanding resource base
(British Columbia and Western Canada)
– Slow growing region—declining resource base
(Atlantic Canada)
– Resource frontier—many resources exist but few
are viable (Territorial North)
The Core/Periphery Theory and Beyond,
cont’d
• The core/periphery model has limits (as all
models do)
– Broad-brush interpretation of spatial nature of
economy
– Does not address political and societal problems
– Does not take into account dynamic nature of
Canadian regions
– Potential oversimplification of economic regions
• E.g. Southern Ontario has manufacturing (core region) while
Northern Ontario is resource based (periphery region)
Canada’s Place in the World
• Canada is a trading nation
– Its small domestic market makes it necessary to
search for foreign markets
• The US has always been our major trading
partner
– Efforts to diversify have shown both challenges and
opportunities
– Continentalism is the term used to describe
Canada’s close trade relationship with the US
• Canada’s trading relationship with the US
– Access to the richest market in the world
– Vulnerability of relying on a single partner
Summary
• Canada’s six regions provide a vehicle to explore
the geographic essence of Canada
• Within Canada and its regions, four different
faultlines exist
• Compromise has been and continues to be
essential to overcoming these faultlines and keep
the country united
• What does the future hold for Canada and its
regions?
– A shift to a knowledge-based economy?
– A revival of the resource economy?
• How can Canada best respond to a rapidly
evolving world?