COMPREHENSIVE WEALTH IN CANADA - MEASURING WHAT MATTERS IN THE LONG RUN

This executive summary argues that Canada's reliance on GDP masks a lack of long-term sustainability in its comprehensive wealth portfolio. Between 1980 and 2013, real per capita comprehensive wealth grew by only 7%, while individual consumption grew by 54%. This divergence was driven by a 25% decline in market natural capital and stagnant human capital, with produced capital growth heavily concentrated in housing and oil and gas extraction. The report recommends that the federal government fund Statistics Canada to regularly measure comprehensive wealth, with a priority on human, social, and non-market natural capital, to guide a transition toward a diversified, low-carbon economy.

• Canada's comprehensive wealth grew by only 7% in real per capita terms between 1980 and 2013, representing a low annualized growth rate of 0.19%. This growth lagged significantly behind average individual consumption, which increased by 54% (1.36% per year) over the same period.
• Market natural capital per person declined by 25% from 1980 to 2013 due to physical depletion and market changes. Non-monetary indicators further suggest declines in non-market natural capital, including forest area, wetland area, and glacier mass, as well as a decline in sea ice extent.
• Human capital, which constitutes 80% of Canada's comprehensive wealth, showed 0% growth between 1980 and 2013. This stagnation occurred despite an increase in the number of Canadians graduating with diplomas, suggesting that the average worker's lifetime earning potential remained unchanged.
• Produced capital grew by 73% per person (1.68% annually), but this growth was highly concentrated. Approximately 70% of the total growth in produced capital was driven by the housing sector and the oil and gas extraction industry.
• While Canada has the highest level of comprehensive wealth per capita among G7 nations due to its natural capital reserves, it ranked last among G7 members for the growth rate of that wealth between 1990 and 2010.
• Social capital appears to be stable but not growing, based on non-monetary indicators. Only 'Diversity in Social Networks' showed a strong upward trend between 2003 and 2013, while trust and cooperative norms showed no consistent upward trend.
• Canada's environmental performance relative to other OECD states is weak in certain areas: in 2013, Canada ranked 31st out of 34 OECD members in greenhouse gas productivity and second to last in environmental taxes.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2016). COMPREHENSIVE WEALTH IN CANADA - MEASURING WHAT MATTERS IN THE LONG RUN. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/comprehensive-wealth-executive-summary.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. COMPREHENSIVE WEALTH IN CANADA - MEASURING WHAT MATTERS IN THE LONG RUN. 2016. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/comprehensive-wealth-executive-summary.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=COMPREHENSIVE WEALTH IN CANADA - MEASURING WHAT MATTERS IN THE LONG RUN |date=December 2016 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/comprehensive-wealth-executive-summary.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2016comprehensive, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{COMPREHENSIVE WEALTH IN CANADA - MEASURING WHAT MATTERS IN THE LONG RUN}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2016}, month = dec, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/comprehensive-wealth-executive-summary.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }