Maintaining Sense of Place, Physical and Cultural Identity

Why is This Important?

The Clarenville-Bonavista-Isthmus region boasts a rich cultural heritage and identity. From Cape Bonavista, where John Cabot first landed in 1497, to a thriving  contemporary arts community, to the rugged coastline dotted with traditional outport communities, the region’s heritage is a tremendous asset that is the centrepiece of a strong cultural tourism industry.  However, the challenges of continuing out-migration and an aging population mean that we must find ways to preserve the region’s unique identity and heritage while developing and promoting opportunities that will attract young people to stay in the region through cultural tourism, the arts, and related activities.

Key Indicators and Trends

The project team chose to measure progress towards this priority by examining factors related to the social well-being of communities, demographic sustainability, and the preservation of cultural heritage. These indicators revealed that the region is doing well at promoting active and healthy lifestyles, and residents in general feel a strong sense of belonging to their communities. Demographic stabilization is an ongoing challenge for most communities in the region, which newly released 2016 Census data confirm to be far from reality in many areas, especially small communities. See the gap analysis of data for the Bonavista region for more information.

 

 

The graph on the right shows how sense of belonging and overall life satisfaction has changed in recent years. These findings reveal that both of these factors have dropped somewhat but are still high. Residents also generally feel that their communities are welcoming to newcomers from outside of the region.

The region’s heritage sites are well maintained and linked to a growing tourism industry that sustains many communities, especially in the Bonavista region. This heritage, including both built assets like the Port Union Historic District (pictured left) and more intangible heritage assets, must be promoted and preserved. There are many heritage buildings in the region that are at risk of being demolished due to disrepair, offering an opportunity for communities to find new uses for these buildings that bring benefits to residents.

Overall Status: Good

Overall, the region is doing a good job at preserving its cultural identity and sense of place. This is due in part to the fact that there is so much cultural heritage in the region, most of which is well preserved. In addition, these assets are the foundation of a growing tourism industry that provides more opportunities for place-based development. However, the region still faces challenges to stabilizing its population, especially in smaller communities where aging populations and high out-migration threaten demographic sustainability. Much can be done to enhance the sense of belonging and connection that residents feel towards their communities. However, a major challenge and opportunity for the region is to find new ways to build on heritage assets for new economic development that provide employment opportunities for local job-seekers while encouraging people, especially younger generations, to stay in the region.