In July 2019, Vancouver Foundation surveyed 7,980 British Columbians to learn more about the state of community participation across the province. Our goal was to delve deeper into the various ways people are contributing to their communities and what the differences are between generations. How are British Columbians participating in community? Who’s most active and in what ways? What motivates or limits them from doing more?
People are actively involved in communities by participating in a range of ways they believe make an impact. Many of the contributions may seem small, such as making choices about products that align with personal values or wearing a ribbon in support of a cause, but they’re done with a belief in making a difference. In some cases, people may even be contributing more than they think. When we take into account engagement through social media and the workplace, the ways people participate in community broade
Many people experience barriers such as work or school obligations, finances, and health issues that prevent them from doing more in their community but some barriers are experienced more than others depending on stage in life. Lack of time is the most common barrier to participation for all generations. Not knowing how to get more involved was also prevalent, especially amongst iGen, Millennials, and Matures experiencing this slightly more so than others. Lastly, the youngest and oldest generations share s