Business Chief North America June 2020

CITY FOCUS | VANCOUVER
72
It has been estimated that, prior to
European settlement, Canadian Aboriginal
peoples occupied the area now known
as Vancouver for close to 10,000 years.
Following its exploration by Spanish naval
officer José María Narváez in 1791, it was
later toured by George Vancouver in 1792,
after whom the city was eventually named.
Despite being founded in the late 18th century,
Vancouver was finally incorporated in
1886. Growing from roughly 1,000 people
to 100,000 by 1911, the city has continued to
grow ever since, and over 2.5 million citizens
now call the Greater Vancouver area their
home. The place of origin for Botox treatments,
Greenpeace and California roll sushi,
Vancouver’s history is written by the creativity
and success of its people — Ryan Reynolds,
Seth Rogan and Michael Bublé were born
and raised there, amongst many others.
© Greenpeace
ECONOMY
Formerly reliant on resources (oil, gas, gold,
etc) and shipping, Vancouver’s economy has
successfully transitioned to include technology,
media, tourism, finance, aviation and
myriad service-based companies. The Port
of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and
third-largest in North America by volume
JUNE 2020