The Edmonton Metropolitan Region (EMR), also commonly referred to as Greater Edmonton or Metro Edmonton, is a conglomeration of municipalities centred on Alberta's provincial capital of Edmonton.
While the EMR is not a strictly defined entity, its commonly known boundaries are coincident with those of the Edmonton census metropolitan area (CMA) as delineated by Statistics Canada. However, the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board (EMRB)established by the provincial government to provide a form of regional government, fostering cooperation for regional planning amongst the City of Edmonton and its surrounding municipalitieshas a membership that differs slightly from the CMA.
The EMR is considered a major gateway to northern Alberta and the Canadian North, particularly for many companies, including airlines and oil/natural gas exploration. Located within central Alberta and at the northern end of the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor, the EMR is both the northernmost metropolitan area in Canada and the northernmost metropolitan area in North America with a population of over one million.
Edmonton CMA
As of the 2021 Canadian census, the Edmonton CMA includes the following 34 census subdivisions (municipalities or municipality equivalents): six cities (Beaumont, Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan, Leduc, Spruce Grove and St. Albert); one specialized municipality (Strathcona County, which includes the Sherwood Park urban service area); three municipal districts (Leduc County, Parkland County, and Sturgeon County); ten towns (Bon Accord, Bruderheim, Calmar, Devon, Gibbons, Legal, Morinville, Redwater, Stony Plain and Thorsby); two villages (Spring Lake and Warburg); eight summer villages (Betula Beach, Golden Days, Itaska Beach, Kapasiwin, Lakeview, Point Alison, Seba Beach, and Sundance Beach); and four Indian reserves for three First Nations (Alexander 134 of the Alexander First Nation, Enoch Cree Nation 135 of the Enoch Cree Nation, and Wabamun 133A and 133B of the Paul First Nation).
The Edmonton CMA is the largest of the 41 CMAs in Canada by area, at . In the 2021 Canadian census, it had a population of 1,418,118, making it the sixth largest CMA in Canada by population, with the second largest percentage increase in national CMA population (37.0% versus 37.3% for the Calgary CMA) over the 15 years since the 2006 Canadian census. The Edmonton CMA comprises the majority of Statistics Canada's Division No. 11 in Alberta.
Demographics
In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, the Edmonton metropolitan region recorded a population of 1,418,118 living in 548,624 of its 589,554 total private dwellings, a change of 7.3% from its 2016 population of 1,321,441. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.
Ethnicity
Language
The question on knowledge of languages allows for multiple responses. The following figures are from the 2021 Canadian Census, and lists languages that were selected by at least 1,000 respondents.
Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board
A fragmentation in regional cooperation and partnership has long played a divisive role within the EMR. Particularly, Edmonton was frustrated that its surrounding municipalities were receiving an increased tax base for major industrial development, while not contributing to Edmonton's burden to maintain and build new infrastructure within Edmonton used by the residents and businesses of the surrounding municipalities.
After pulling out of the Alberta Capital Region Alliance (ACRA), Edmonton lobbied the provincial government to establish some form of regional government that would be more effective in fostering regional cooperation between it and its surrounding municipalities. As a result, Premier Ed Stelmach announced in December 2007 that a governing board would be established for Edmonton's Capital Region. Four months later, the Capital Region Board was formed on April 15, 2008 with the passing of the Capital Region Board Regulation by Order in Council 127/2008 under the authority of the Municipal Government Act.
On October 26, 2017, the Capital Region Board (CRB) was renamed to the Edmonton Metropolitan Region Board (EMRB).