Superdiverse Cities

Some global cities now contain people from almost every country on Earth. In 2007 anthropologist Steven Vertovec coined the term superdiversity to describe places like London, where diversity is not just about a few large immigrant groups but many small groups with different legal statuses, languages, religions and reasons for migrating. In Toronto, the 2016 census found that 46 percent of residents of the metropolitan area were born outside Canada.

Superdiversity creates new challenges for schools, health services and local governments, which must communicate in dozens of languages and serve communities with varied needs. It also creates opportunities: neighbourhoods develop hybrid foods, music scenes and businesses, and young people grow up with multiple identities. Researchers debate whether such cities produce greater tolerance through daily contact or new forms of separation. Studying them helps us see globalization at street level.