Century Initiative

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The Century Initiative (French: Initiative du Siècle) is a Canadian charity that aims to increase Canada's population to 100 million by 2100.^[2] This would include increasing the population of "Mega-regions", such as the Greater Toronto Area, from 8.8 to 33.5 million, the Greater Vancouver region, from 3.3 to 11.9 million, and the National Capital Region, from 1.4 to 4.8 million.^[2] Century Initiative forecasts predict that without changes to Canadian immigration policy, the population of Canada will increase to only 53 million people by the end of the century.^[3] The Century Initiative intends to reach its population goal by lobbying for what the Calgary Foundation describes as a massive increase in immigration.^[4]

The Century Initiative was co-founded by Canadian Ambassador to China Dominic Barton,^[5] who also led the Trudeau government’s Advisory Council on Economic Growth.^[6] The Initiative is supported by former Conservative Prime Minister Brian Mulroney^[7] and by influential Liberal Party advisors and ministers including former Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Navdeep Bains and former Minister of Finance Bill Morneau.^[3][8]

In March 2021, The Globe and Mail hosted a virtual event in partnership with the Century Initiative examining key indicators of the Century Initiative’s progress towards growing Canada’s population to 100 million by the year 2100.^[9][10] The Century Initiative is supported by career columnists including Andrew Coyne,^[11] Terence Corcoran,^[12] and Doug Saunders, who subsequently authored the book Maximum Canada: Why 35 Million Canadians Are Not Enough.^[13]

Formation[]

The inspiration for the Century Initiative arose from discussions during a 2011 weekend gathering of friends at Dominic Barton’s Lake of Bays cottage in the Muskokas.^[14] At the time, Mr. Barton was Global Managing Director of the American consulting firm McKinsey & Company, and divided his time between his Shanghai, London, Singapore, and Muskoka residences.^[15][16]

Leadership[]

The Century Initiative Board of Directors is chaired by Mark Wiseman, who previously ran BlackRock's Alternative Investment division before being fired for violating the company’s “relationship at work” policy.^[17] BlackRock's Alternative Investment division includes the firm's international real estate investment portfolio^[18] and is reported to be actively purchasing single family homes.^[19]

Mega-regions[]

The Century Initiative envisions the Canada of 2100 as a nation of mega-regions, which it defines interlocking areas with more than one city centre and a typical population of 5 million or more.^[2]

References[]