As a young person, it would be difficult to have never heard the mantra “Youth is the future”. In terms of education, politics, economy, justice— this phrase is widely applicable and, subsequently, often applied. But is youth the future of our city, Calgary? Are young people planning on staying in Alberta?
No city is perfect, of course— especially in today’s social and economic climate. However, as a young person, I believe wholeheartedly that the city of Calgary is worth living in. If we are to speak about the practicality and draw of building a life, Calgary clearly has some great selling points.
First of all, comparatively speaking, housing in Calgary is more affordable. While Calgary's cost of living has increased, renting or buying here can certainly still be more attainable than in other major Canadian cities, such as Toronto or Vancouver. Additionally, Alberta has no provincial sales tax.
In comparison with other major Canadian cities, Calgary also has the lowest cost of groceries.
As a fervent FreshCo enjoyer, this is a facet of daily life I enjoy deeply.
For young people trying to become financially independent, these advantages do matter.
Calgary also has much to offer in terms of fun activities and events. The Calgary Stampede, for example, brings concerts, rides and outrageous, exciting food to town. The city has diverse restaurant options, festivals, live music and a cultural scene that continues to grow.
When city life gets overwhelming, the mountains are never far. The Rocky Mountains sit in what is virtually our geographical backyard. Alberta houses beautiful blue lakes, an array of hiking trails and a myriad of skiing spots, all within reasonable distance from the capital city.
Calgary offers a major Canadian university (Go Dinos!) and a growing and diverse city population. In 2025, Calgary elected Jeromy Farkas as mayor, bringing a new face and new perspective to lead. Farkas is young and vehemently Canada-first. As is apparent, even the city’s municipal politics has something to offer.
Clearly, on paper, Calgary is a great place for young people to live. It offers natural beauty, recreation, diversity, education and financial room to begin building a life.
So why, when I speak to my friends or chat with my seatmate in class, do they all tell me that they have no intention of staying in Calgary?
If Calgary has so much to offer, why are so many of us planning our exits?
The Alberta United Conservative Party (UCP) is not naive to the importance of keeping young people in Calgary, and, of course, in the province in general. They have implemented many youth-outreach programs to both garner young voters as well as create a province in which young people want to live long-term. For example, Education and Career Training for high schools students to help prepare for their futures in the provincial job market.
If reelected, the party promises to implement other measures for the solidification of young futures: to develop and promote career education scholarships, to provide new funding to support mobile CTS and CTF labs, to enhance the Dual Credit Grant Program, to make more funding available for such and more.
Additionally, the UCP Youth Committee is the official youth wing of the Alberta UCP, and exists to engage young people with conservative politics via events, seminars, conventions, etc.
However, all this effort from the UCP to help the youth population of Calgary, is largely negated by many of their political decisions.
Under the UCP, Alberta has become a place of increasingly contentious political battles.
Take the province's school-library restrictions, for instance. In a province with a major university and a population that prides itself on innovation and independence, it's worth asking why the government is so heavily involved in deciding what students can access. This is an action which brings into question censorship, educational autonomy and freedom as a whole.
The government’s policies that affect transgender youth raise similarly important questions. For transgender people residing within the province, these policies have direct consequences. For others, they raise broader questions about what kind of society Alberta wants to be.
Now, raising these two issues as examples is not meant to place young people in Calgary under a monolithic lens. Young people obviously do not share the same political views, and we do not agree on every policy. That being said, no matter where you lie on the political spectrum, political activities like those previously mentioned create an air of instability. And that is the last thing that young people want to feel today.
Then, there is the question of priorities. Alberta’s October 2026 referendum brought questions about immigration, constitutional topics and provincial separation to the forefront. Democratic participation is important, but major political initiatives require things such as public money and broad-reaching political attention. The referendum cost $130 million dollars to undergo— what else could those resources have supported? What do these political battles accomplish for a young person trying to afford their first apartment?
At a time when young Albertans are worrying about issues including housing, tuition, employment and healthcare, it's fair to ask whether the government’s priorities reflect the concerns of those who will inherit the province’s future.
Young Canadians have very little reason to feel reassured by a political climate that makes Canada’s future seem increasingly uncertain. Alberta's government should be advocating for the province's interests while recognizing that its future is tied to Canada's broader economic and political stability. Young people need to know that their government is focused on protecting their opportunities as opposed to pursuing trivial matters or ideological alignment.
None of this is to say that the UCP is solely responsible for young people wanting to leave Calgary. However, political instability is a definitive push. Policies affect people's sense of security and belonging in their home.
This brings me back to my friends and university peers. When asked why they plan to leave Calgary after they graduate from U of C, they all cite the political climate as their most defining reason. Affordable groceries and pretty mountains are compelling reasons to live here. They are less convincing, however, if you feel a disconnect with the province’s overall political agenda.
The Alberta UCP must remind itself that governing means thinking beyond the next political fight, and that they must consider the kind of province that the next generation will inherit. If the province wants young people to stay, its government must exemplify that young futures matter more than ideological battles. Calgary has plenty of reasons to keep us, but the UCP must be careful not to give us more reasons to leave.
