Canada and the Global Economy

A collection of essays by 23 prominent Canadian economic geographers, this text is a detailed study of the evolving economic and geographic patterns of Canadian development. It is published at the time of Canada's entry into NAFTA (North American Free Trade Association). The work's contributors explore four central themes: the locational impacts of the openness of the Canadian economy; Canada's relatively simple economic geography in terms of regional variations in resources and urban development; the problems of keeping pace with rapid advances in technology; and the role of the government in maintaining a national market and assisting economic development. The text outlines the essential elements of Canada's contemporary economic geography, highlights the origins and spatial imprint of change in the Canadian economy, and provides an assessment of Canada's participation in significant international patterns of economic change. It is concerned not only with the economic size and location of consumption and production but also with institutional changes and shifts in employment, the sectoral composition of economic activity, and the organizational structure and locational behaviour of particular industries and firms. Particular attention is given to the technological development of both established industries and new service and manufacturing activities. The text provides a geographic perspective on significant changes in jobs and types of work that result from the transformation of economic activities.