Vancouver is an ethnically diverse city.
About 50 percent of the city of Vancouver’s residents and about 44 percent of Metropolitan (Greater) Vancouver’s residents don’t speak English as their first language.
Vancouver takes pride in its status as one of the world’s best cities to live in; it consistently ranks in the top three of the world’s most livable cities.
The city is renowned for its innovative programs in the areas of environmental sustainability, accessibility and inclusivity.
The city’s people are friendly and polite, but a number of newcomers have found that Vancouverites are rather reserved and difficult to become good friends with.
According to Forbes, Vancouver is the 10th cleanest city in the world.
Comparisons are often made between Vancouver and Toronto. In general, Vancouver comes across as less hectic than Toronto, with a more relaxed feel.
Commercially it also has a more white-collar, service-oriented, less industrial feel than Toronto.
Gang violence – usually drug related – has been a concern in Vancouver. The number of violent crimes has been high compared with other Canadian cities. Crimes involving firearms have been among Canada’s highest – these are usually gang-on-gang offences – and burglary rates are also high.
Vancouver’s police have been targeting violent gangs and, as a result, say that since 2010 shootings have dropped drastically and the murder rate has plummeted.