The Vitality of the Communities
Page 16 of 36
Economic Dimension
Lastly, economic capital is an issue of prime importance for some communities, even though it plays a background role in others that are more amply endowed. Communities in the most economically disadvantaged regions (e.g. northern Ontario, North Shore and eastern Quebec, and the Acadian Peninsula in New Brunswick) regard it as central to their vitality. Those regions that are paying the price for the profound changes occurring within the economy and for the depletion of natural resources rely on a variety of mechanisms such as the promotion of entrepreneurial skills, the diversification of economic sectors, innovation, human resources development, the mobilization of financial resources and the linkages present in a social economy, in community economic development or in cooperatives. The dimension of sustainable development also provides an incentive to take into account natural capital, which is made up of natural heritage resources, the beauty of the landscape and the preservation of ecosystems, while not forgetting the historical heritage resources discussed earlier (Bellagio Principles, 1996; Hart 1999; UN Division for Sustainable Development, 2001).
Research revealed early on the economic disparities that exist among the linguistic communities in Canada (Canada, Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism, 1969). The economic profiles produced for the National Committee for Canadian Francophonie Human Resources Development have continued to reveal the discrepancy in economic conditions between OLMCs and even within OLMCs, especially between the major regions and between the centre and the periphery within individual regions (Beaudin and Boudreau, 1994; Beaudin, 1999).
Although the regional economies have differing circumstances, they are all vulnerable to the consequences of economic change at the local, regional and global levels (Beaudin, Boudreau and DeBenedetti, 1997; Gilbert, 2002; Magord, Allard and Landry, 2002). The consequences are internal migrations to urban centres, the aging and non-renewal of the population due to the exodus of young people, a drop in the birth rate, and the return of retirees to the regions. Also sometimes seen are losses of human resources caused by plant closures or the amalgamation of service centres such as schools and hospitals in geographical areas that have hitherto constituted significant pools of minority population, as in the Gaspé Peninsula, Prince Edward Island, northern Ontario and the Acadian Peninsula.
What are the factors that can contribute to reinforcing the economic vitality of communities located in the regions? Qualitative case studies compiled in the Evangeline region of Prince Edward Island and the Bonaventure region in the Gaspé Peninsula have revealed the importance of a number of cultural, political and social factors: volunteer participation in associations and the involvement of individuals in community organizations, accessibility and the acquisition of appropriate training, control of local information, capabilities and skills in the areas of innovation and leadership, networking, consultation and local and regional cooperation, access to government jobs, and access to outside resources for financial and technical support (Beaudin, Boudreau and DeBenedetti, 1997).
The experience of community economic development and a cooperative economy in the Evangeline region of Prince Edward Island has also been examined in minute detail by a research team at the Centre for the Study of Co-operatives of the University of Saskatchewan. From their study, they derived a model of community economic development comprising three interdependent causal factors (Wilkinson and Quarter, 1996):
- Community awareness is based in favourable structural factors:
- common culture, belonging to the community, feeling of trust
- critical awareness of collective difference
- the welfare of the community takes precedence over private interests
- Empowering reflects the intentions of residents in defining their future:
- a strategy of involvement and mobilization
- strategies of autonomy and self-management
- acknowledgment of training and learning needs
- The structure of external support, both governmental and cooperative, is a control structure as much as it is a support structure:
- authority over outside resources
- allocation of the financial, human and technical resources required for take-off
OLMCs also have their success stories, such as in Moncton and southeastern New Brunswick. Francophone business people in this region have seized the opportunities offered by new markets and new technologies, a skilled bilingual workforce, a positive and cooperative atmosphere between the two linguistic communities, a network of economic associations that support and promote entrepreneurship, an economic development strategy for Greater Moncton and favourable provincial government policies, and a central geographic position in the Maritime Provinces (Beaudin, 1998; Desjardins, 2002; Polèse et al., 2002).
The most recent data seem to reveal a change in the interpretation of observations regarding economic vitality, at least when the data are examined on a regional scale. A comparative study of OLMCs at the regional level across Canada (the West, the Atlantic, Quebec) acknowledges that minority populations participate in the dominant economic trends in their region in terms of jobs and dependents, income levels, education levels and government transfers (Aunger, 2005). For example, "Franco-Ontarians have the highest incomes, with an average of $32,300; Western Francophones and Quebec Anglophones follow at $29,700 and $28,900, respectively; whereas Acadians are a somewhat distant fourth at $23,000" (Aunger, 2005: 13).
Aunger notes that at the time of the 1996 Census, Francophone minorities enjoyed socio-economic conditions that were at least equal to those of Quebec Francophones, albeit in some cases below the Canadian average. "Among the minorities," he writes, "there are proportionately fewer poor people, but also fewer rich people" (Aunger, 2002). Divergences from the notion of generalized poverty among Francophone minorities are also observed in recent profiles from the Réseaux de développement économique et d'employabilité (RDÉE, 2005).
As far as individuals of English mother tongue in Quebec are concerned, significant variations have been observed among the regions. "The median individual income of Quebec Anglophones is slightly ahead of that of mother-tongue Francophones, but in most parts of the province their income is less than the regional average" (Jedwab, 2004: 24). In fact, "Regional economies have a profound impact on both employment and income [...] In 2001, the unemployment rate for mother-tongue Anglophones was above the average in nearly every major region in the province with the exception of Montréal" (Ibid.: 25). The observations also reveal significant income differences based on the criteria of English-French bilingualism and education level.
Interregional geographic mobility and the growing urbanization of official language minority populations are of the greatest interest to OLMC stakeholders as well as to researchers because of the potential impact on the vitality of some regions. In particular, what will happen to the "traditional old-stock regions that are more concentrated and more stable in linguistic terms, but disadvantaged in economic terms" relative to "the heterogeneous, dispersed communities which are more in a minority situation in terms of language and culture, but are economically more comfortable" (Landry and Rousselle, 2003)?
In the Francophone OLMCs, the Réseaux de développement économique et d'employabilité are primary players in terms of economic vitality. Supported by federal funding and governed by a parity structure, they attempt to rally the vibrant forces in the communities, to strengthen their capabilities and to instill approaches based on community economic development and a social economy. To better understand the challenges, they develop regional socio-economic profiles (RDÉE, 2005). In Quebec, the Community Economic Development and Employability Committees (CEDECs) pursue similar objectives, namely strengthening community capabilities, job creation and economic diversification, disseminating information and staunching the exodus of young people (National Human Resources Development Committee for the English Linguistic Minority, 2005).
The contribution of the community associations is also a part of the economy of OLMCs. Economic cost/benefit models able to take into account the existence and operations of community associations have recently been created (Corno, 2004a, 2004b, 2004c; Zanasi et al., 2004). This work could be useful in developing evaluation frameworks for community actions in order to bring their contribution to local and regional economies to the attention of minorities and majorities, funders and sponsors.
High-profile economists had earlier been invited by Canadian Heritage to explore and discuss the economic costs and benefits of knowledge of the official languages in Canada in the context of globalization (A. Breton, 1998; Chorney, 1998; Grenier, 1989; Grin, 1999; Harris, 1998; Helliwell, 1999; Vaillancourt, 1989). These academic observations and reflections do not, however, appear to be filtering down to the minority and majority populations, particularly to the parents who have to make decisions regarding the language in which their children will be educated, beginning in kindergarten. Education rights holders are in this regard the prime audience for demonstrating the value of learning both official languages in terms of human capital and access to economic opportunities (Landry, Allard and Deveau, 2006; Martel, 1999; Stebbins, 2000; Jedwab, 2002b).
The factors of vitality as used by different researchers and bearing on a variety of contexts may seem like an endless list. Taken together, however, they do provide a complex portrait of the resources that could contribute to vitality. Of course, the list does not cover all the sectors of activity (e.g. arts and culture, health, media, education, etc.) to be found in the OLMCs' overall plans or community development plans. The conjunctural and operational nature of these sectors could make the process of enumeration even lengthier. It goes without saying that they should undergo detailed observation in a more substantial process of research and evaluation.
