Stories about community, loneliness, and belonging in Canada
In 1986, nearly half of Canadians saw a friend on any given day. By 2022, that number had collapsed to one in five. The decline did not happen suddenly. It crept in, one small optimization at a...
Thirty-seven percent of Torontonians report feeling lonely at least three days a week. Forty-three percent say they never interact with their neighbours. Inside Canada's loneliest city.
Half of Vancouver residents say it is difficult to make friends. The phenomenon has a name, a reputation, and now a growing body of research behind it.
Run clubs grew 59% in a single year. Gen Z is four times more likely to meet people through exercise than at a bar. Something is shifting.
Nearly half a million people arrive in Canada each year. 57% of immigrants report being lonely. Settlement services focus on employment and documents, not friendship.
The U.S. Surgeon General compared the health effects of chronic loneliness to smoking fifteen cigarettes a day. In Canada, the hidden cost may exceed $15 billion.
One-third of Canada's 27,000 faith buildings are expected to close within a decade. With them goes the community infrastructure that held neighbourhoods together.
1.54 million Canadians play monthly. 340% growth in five years. The fastest-growing sport in Canadian history is not really about the sport at all.
Six in ten Canadians feel disconnected from their community. Sixteen percent say they never feel a sense of belonging at all. The numbers paint a stark picture.
Friendship coaching, curated dinners for strangers, personality-matched group meetups. Toronto's pay-for-friends economy is booming, and it says something about all of us.
Churches closing. Offices empty. Malls dying. The spaces where Canadians used to gather are disappearing. What replaces the infrastructure of belonging?
Working-age Canadians are two-thirds less likely to see a friend on any given day than they were in 1986. We optimized for everything except each other.
One in four young Canadians are always or often lonely. But they might also be the first generation to actually do something about it.