About the Show
“Eighty per cent of Canadians live in urban regions, and unless we recognize that the health of a city, its well being, is vital to our way of life, Canada will never realize its full potential.” - Christopher Hume
What's wrong with Canada's cities? What's right? Award-winning urban affairs columnist Christopher Hume takes a cross-country journey to explore the sustainability, viability and liveability of Canada's population centres.
Hume, a provocative urban critic and columnist for the Toronto Star, highlights the projects and passionate people who will shape urban life in Canada in the coming decade. But, travelling by train from Halifax to Vancouver, Hume also gives the viewer a firsthand look at what's wrong Canada's aging infrastructure, failing mass transportation and overall lack of political will.
Living City - a Critical Guide is produced and directed by Hadley Obodiac, executive produced by Michael
Allder.
Purchase this program as part of the Visions of Future DVD set.
CHRISTOPHER HUME STATEMENT
Unbeknownst to the vast majority of Canadians, Canada has turned urban, emphatically and overwhelmingly urban. More than 80 percent of us now live in towns and cities. And yet we still like to think of ourselves as a people defined by the landscape, the great white north.
Despite this, perhaps because of it, Canadian cities struggle to provide the services expected of them, whether that means collecting garbage and fixing potholes or running schools and public transit systems. Politically weak and economically starved, they must operate within a culture of civic impoverishment.
In our system, cities are creatures of the provinces, often unable to enact necessary measures without their approval. This no longer makes sense, if it ever did. The City of Toronto, for example, has a budget bigger than all but four provinces.
Are our cities prepared for the harsh new realities of the 21st century? Some will fare better than others, but there's much to be done.