| Nature
itself teaches the lesson that diversity is strength. A healthy
fishery is characterized by a high degree of species diversity as
well as robust biomass.
New England’s environment since the departure
of the glaciers, a dynamic blend of forests and fields over the
millennia, demonstrates that the more diverse an ecosystem is, the
healthier and more resilient it is.
To
express this in graphic form, a “community on the move” is like
a bicycle. Everyone who has ridden a bicycle understands
that progress depends on balance. A bicycle that is not moving
is hard to balance. Conversely, a
bicycle that is out of balance is hard to move.
This
principle can be applied to a community as well. A population
that is well balanced in terms of age, income and ethnicity can
be a great asset to a “community on the move” toward economic, environmental
and social sustainability. Such a balance should increasingly
characterize Cape Cod as we strive to be more sustainable.
The
Sustainability Indicators Council Subcommittee on Balanced Demographics
chose three indicators to measure balance. We pose several
questions that community leaders in both the public and private
sectors should keep in mind.
•
Age:
Are all ages represented
in the Cape Cod population in similar percentages to that of
the state and the nation? What is the trend?
•
Race and Ethnicity:
Do we value and respect people of various races and ethnicities?
Are some groups less visible in the public perception
of Cape Cod? Do any groups lack opportunity to
influence community decision-making in this region? What
are the percentages that make up various racial and ethnic groups
on Cape Cod, and are these sufficient to encourage the “critical
mass” necessary to make their unique contributions to the health
of the whole? And how should each group prosper in dynamic
balance with other groups?
•
Income: Are
there any income groups found in America
as a whole and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in particular,
that are conspicuously absent in Barnstable County? What
proportion of the population has sufficient income to be able
to meet their basic human needs? What are the trends?
The
Sustainability lndicators Council
has assembled some data to help address these questions:
Age
Barnstable
County’s population is considerably older than the Commonwealth’s.
The median age of Massachusetts residents is 36.5; in Barnstable
County it is 44.6, ranging from 39.2 in Bourne to 55.5 in Orleans
(US Census Bureau). The County’s 25 to 44 year-old-population
is declining, both in percentages of the whole (from 29% in 1990
to 24% in 2000) and in actual numbers (55,577 in 2000 to 54,820
in 2004). Source: US Census Bureau.
Projected
to 2020, this trend predicts a County with more than 140,000 residents
over age 55, more than 100,000 of whom will be over age 60 (Senior/Elder
Population Projections Indicator). The economic and social
implications of this trend concern us. Who will care for
these elders? Will enough businesses and wage earners remain
to ensure the local tax base to support this care? Will schools
sustain the “critical mass” of students to remain vibrant?
Race
and Ethnicity
A
bright spot is that Barnstable County is becoming more racially
and ethnically diverse. The population self-identifying as
“white” has been greater than 90% of Cape Cod for generations, but
is gradually decreasing (from 95.4% in 1990 to 94.2% in 2000 according
to the US Census). Immigrants from other countries may have
accounted for
the County’s net population growth between 2000 and 2005, as they
did for Massachusetts as a whole. US Census data shows that
130,000 immigrants came to Massachusetts between 2000 and 2004,
while the total increase in the State’s population was only about
60,000.
A
hundred years ago, most immigrants to Cape Cod and Massachusetts
were from Western Europe, including the Azores and the Cape Verde
Islands. The
2000 US Census reports that
Barnstable County’s Hispanic population increased 31% from 1990
to 2000. It is projected to increase 55% from 2000 to 2010
and another 42% from 2010 to 2020 ( http://www.census.gov/population/www/projections/popproj.html
). The
Cape is also home to a substantial African American population,
as well as the Mashpee
Wampanoag Tribe.
Income
While
the median household income climbed from $45,933 in 2001 to $46,218
in 2004, the number of households actually earning this median income
decreased (Monitoring
the Human Condition, 2005 Report). The poverty
rate grew from 5.2% in 2000 to 7.3% in 2002, while the percentage
of the population earning in excess of $150,000 also grew from 3.13%
to 4.39% (source http://www.censusscope.org)
. This data suggest the erosion of the “middle class” and
a decrease in the diversity and balance of income levels that a
sustainable community needs.
Home
rental trends (Workforce
Housing/Development Indicator) suggest that middle-income
renters who are able to leave Cape Cod are leaving; meanwhile, home
ownership is becoming less diverse as the median home price has
risen much faster than the income, documenting that homes are being
purchased with discretionary money, often by second homeowners living
and working off-Cape. Some towns (Wellfleet, for example)
report that more than 2/3 of homes are owned by non-residents.
Barnstable
County is aware of these trends and has taken steps to welcome and
encourage balance and diversity of age, race/ethnicity and income.
The County has
created a Human
Rights Commission to provide mediation for disputes and education
to prevent discrimination. A diverse group of immigrants
have founded the “Cape Cod
Immigrant Center,” welcoming newcomers from dozens of countries.
An annual multi-cultural festival at Cape Cod Community College
now represents more than 40 cultures and attracts thousands of visitors.
A few Cape towns are including balanced demographic goals
and policies in local planning, including land-use. Cape
Cod Community College, Cape Cod Healthcare, and the Area Health
Education Collaborative (AHEC) are working to strengthen health
care career ladders and assure access to housing for health care
workers. The Rhode Island Geriatric Education Center, in
conjunction with the Lower/Outer Cape Community Coalition, sponsors
full-day workshops for elders, caregivers and professionals several
times a year.
A population
that is balanced in terms of age, race/ethnicity and income is imperative
for a sustainable community. Visionary leaders at every level
in the public and private sectors need to help assure a sustainable
future by promoting efforts to build balanced demographics on Cape
Cod. | 