Community belonging

Belonging means feeling welcome, accepted, and included in our community.

wo children swing a skipping rope while a third child jumps over it.
Three older adults sit at a cafe booth and laugh.

Sense of community belonging

Community belonging is supported through mutually respectful and caring relationships with one another. [1]

Most people in our community have a strong or somewhat strong sense of community belonging
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Most people in our community have a strong or somewhat strong sense of community belonging

Having a strong sense of community belonging is connected to our well-being. When we feel like we belong, we tend to have better mental health and feel more hopeful about the future. [2][3] 

An area graph shows the percentage of people age 15 years and older in Guelph, Wellington County, and Dufferin County who had a strong or somewhat strong sense of community belonging from 2015 and 2016 to 2019 and 2020. For a full description of the graph, refer to the “Read graph as text” section.
In Guelph, Wellington County, and Dufferin County, most people age 12 years and older have a strong or somewhat strong sense of community belonging. An area graph shows the percentage of people age 15 years and older in Guelph, Wellington County, and Dufferin County who had a strong or somewhat strong sense of community belonging from 2015 and 2016 to 2019 and 2020. The x-axis shows the years, and the y-axis shows the percent of Canadians with a strong or somewhat strong sense of community belonging. The line is consistently around 75%. Source: Statistics Canada
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References

  1. UNICEF Canada. (2019). Where does Canada stand? The Canadian Index of Child and Youth Well-being 2019 baseline report
  2. Michalski, C. A., Diemert, L. M., Helliwell, J. F., Goel, V., & Rosella, L. C. (2020). Relationship between sense of community belonging and self-rated health across life stages. SSM – Population Health, 12, 100676. 
  3. Statistics Canada. (2022, May 17). Hopefulness is declining across Canada: Having children or strong ties to a local community associated with a more hopeful outlook. The Daily.
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Data sources

Statistics Canada. (2022). Table 13-10-0113-01. Health characteristics, two-year period estimates [Data table]. Retrieved September 10, 2024.

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