What Google thinks of Vancouverites

Dec 19 2017, 4:46 pm

Everyone loves to Google themselves. But have you checked what Google thinks of Vancouverites lately?

VancouverGoogleSearch

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These were not photoshopped. Try it yourself.

These preview search entries indicate that these are commonly searched terms on Google’s search engine.

We’ve all heard of the complaints by residents, newcomers and visitors that we’re an unfriendly city. It has been debated to death, but for skeptics who argue otherwise there might be some truth to that.

According to the findings of a landmark 2012 study by the Vancouver Foundation:

  • Metro Vancouver can be a hard place to make friends. One-third of the people we surveyed say it is difficult to make new friends here. And one in four say they are alone more often than they would like to be. In both cases, people who experience this also report poorer health, lower trust and a hardening of attitudes toward other community members.
  • Our neighbourhood connections are cordial, but weak. While most of us know the names of at least two of our neighbours, the connections typically stop there. Most of us do not do simple favours for our neighbours (like taking care of their mail when they are away) and fewer have visited a neighbour’s home or invited a neighbour over.
  • The most often-cited reason for not knowing neighbours is that people seldom see each other. However, another significant reason seems to be indifference: we prefer to keep to ourselves, or have little interest in getting to know our neighbours.
  • One-third of the people surveyed do not know if their neighbours trust each other. And barely a majority thinks that the ties in their neighbourhood are growing stronger.
  • It isn’t enough to know your neighbour’s name and say hello. Instead, things like doing small favours for one another and inviting each other over lead to greater trust, greater commitment to community and the willingness to work together in the neighbourhood’s interests.
  • Many people in metro Vancouver are retreating from community life. In the past year, most of us have not participated in neighbourhood and community activities. It isn’t a lack of time that stops people from getting involved. The most often-cited reason for not participating in neighbourhood and community life is a feeling that we have little to offer.
  • There are limits to how people see diversity as an opportunity to forge meaningful connections. Over one-third of us have no close friends outside our own ethnic group. And we generally believe that people prefer to be with others of the same ethnicity.
  • Many people believe all new immigrants and refugees, regardless of where they come from, would be welcome in their neighbourhood. However, some residents rank which groups they believe would be the most and the least welcome.
  • The affordability issue in metro Vancouver is affecting people’s attitudes and beliefs. Most people believe Vancouver is becoming a resort town for the wealthy. These same people also tend to think that there is too much foreign ownership of real estate.
DH Vancouver StaffDH Vancouver Staff

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