The Story Behind Canada’s Collapsing Fertility Rate

Canada’s fertility rate has fallen to just 1.25 children per woman, one of the lowest in the developed world. But what’s actually driving the decline? Are fewer Canadians having children, or are the ones having kids simply choosing to have fewer of them?In this episode of DemograFix, ⁠Mike Moffatt and ⁠Cara Stern break down the data behind Canada’s collapsing birth rate. They explore why more women are remaining childless, why one-child families have become the norm, and how housing costs, delayed parenthood, childcare, culture, and changing lifestyles are reshaping family formation across the country.Topics discussed:Why Vancouver and Victoria have some of the world’s lowest fertility ratesThe surprising link between housing affordability and birth ratesWhy millennials and Gen Z still say they want kidsHow family sizes changed from the 1980s to todayWhether education actually reduces fertilityWhy cities are losing young familiesThe growing gap between the number of children Canadians want and the number they actually haveIf Canada wants higher birth rates, what would it actually take to make raising children affordable again?#Canada #HousingCrisis #FertilityRate #BirthRate #Millennials #GenZ #Economy #Housing #Population #Parenting #Childcare #CanadianPolitics #Demographics #TheMissingMiddleChapters:00:00 Introduction: Canada’s Ultra-Low Fertility Rate01:08 What Fertility Rates Measure — And Why Canada Is Different01:59 Housing Costs, Cities, and Why Young Families Are Leaving03:49 Are Fewer Women Having Children?04:32 Delayed Parenthood and The Rise In Childlessness06:01 Marriage, Religion, Immigration, and Fertility Trends08:03 Does Higher Education Actually Reduce Birth Rates?10:24 From Three-Child Families To One-Child Households12:26 Housing Costs, Bedrooms, and Raising Kids In Canada14:22 Canadians Still Want More Children17:28 From Overpopulation Fears To Population Collapse19:44 The Growing Gap Between Family Goals and Reality20:05 What Governments Could Do To Make Raising Kids EasierResearch/links:Proportion of women aged 20 to 49 without children, by age group and selected sociodemographic characteristics, 2024https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/260126/t001a-eng.htm‘One and Done’ is the new norm: inside Canada’s growing one-child family trendhttps://www.babycenter.ca/a25053886/one-and-done-is-the-new-norm-inside-Canadas-growing-one-child-family-trend Living arrangements of children in Canada: A century of changehttps://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2014/statcan/75-006-x/75-006-2014001-4-eng.pdfFertility in Canada, 1921 to 2022https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/91f0015m/91f0015m2024001-eng.htm Credits:Mike Moffatt https://twitter.com/MikePMoffatthttps://bsky.app/profile/mikepmoffatt.bsky.socialCara Stern https://x.com/carasternhttps://bsky.app/profile/carastern.bsky.socialMeredith Martin  https://twitter.com/meredithmartinhttps://bsky.app/profile/meredithmartin.bsky.socialSean Foreman @seanegertonforemanhttps://bsky.app/profile/seanforeman.bsky.socialUniversity of Ottawa Co-op Student,  Kelly HobanBrought to you by the Missing Middle Initiative https://www.missingmiddleinitiative.ca/Hosted by Mike Moffatt & Cara Stern & Sabrina MaddeauxProduced by Meredith MartinFunded by the Neptis Foundation https://neptis.org/