Larger, richer, more powerful than ever: that’s the forecast for the U.S. as its birth rate exceeds that of any other industrialized nation — and nearly doubles that of Canada.
· illustration by R.O. Jones
With few rivals to challenge the U.S. elsewhere, America will likely remain focused on the Middle East, where the population is expected to double to 649 million by 2050. That growth, Comte would no doubt argue, will ensure America’s strategic interest in the region for years to come.
Canada, too, stands in the shadow of Comte’s dictate. As the nation grows slowly, and the population and economic gaps with the U.S. widen, Canada will find itself defined by its role as a resource supplier to the great demographic outlier to the south.
Tom Fennell is a multiple national magazine award winner and a deputy editor at The Walrus.
Canada & its place in the world. Published by
the non-profit charitable
Walrus Foundation
June 2012
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