British Columbia

British Columbia (BC) is the most western province in Canada, with the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains on its western border. It has a population of around 5.016 million residents and is the third largest province in terms of population, in Canada. The capital city in BC is Victoria, while Vancouver is another prominent city which is larger in population. The cost of living in BC is slightly higher than in other areas in Canada, with the average home price being around $730,000.

Victoria, the province’s capital, is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, just off of Canada’s Pacific Coast. It has a population of just over 85,000 people in the core area, and in the greater metropolitan area, there are over 365,000 people. Victoria is also known as “The Garden City” and is a major tourist destination due to its natural beauty. It has a thriving technology sector, which has become its most revenue driving private industry sector. It’s home to many non-local students who move there for post-secondary education and has been named in the Top 20 World Cities for Quality of Life by Numbeo.

Vancouver is home to about 630,000 people and has the highest population density in all of Canada with over 5400 people per square kilometre. It’s consistently named as one of the top five worldwide cities for livability despite the cost of living being one of the most expensive in the country (the average price of a home is $1.5 million). Vancouver has hosted many different international conferences and events annually, including the TED conference, the 2010 Winer Olympics, and even several matches of the 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Of all the Canadian provinces, BC has the highest proportion of visible minorities, making up 27% of its total population. Along with a diverse community, the economy in BC is also diverse. The most considerable makeup of GDP comes from service-producing industries. Agriculture is also a significant sector in BC because the weather there is a lot nicer than the rest of Canada. BC has historically been a resource dominated economy primarily dominated by forestry with parts of it being from mining.

The weather tends to be a lot warmer, with January temperatures on average being above the freezing point! The climate there also encourages a lot of outdoor activity and tourism, with people visiting to go skiing and snowboarding, hiking, boating and whale watching. Many sports are played in BC thanks to the various natural elements it possesses. Mountain climbing, white water rafting, all kinds of different water sports and even areas to go running and cycling are what makes this province so attractive to active individuals.

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