Demography: Toulouse or the promise of eternal youth
The Toulouse metropolis is the youngest of the French metropolises with 18% of its population between 16 and 25 years old. An exceptional demographic dynamic.
Bubbling and youthful… When it comes to newcomers or tourists defining the image of the Pink City, the first qualifiers usually praise the energy and sense of celebration of a city where “the “Spain pushes its horn a little”. And it’s not just an impression. According to a study by the urban planning agency of the Toulouse conurbation (AUAT), our metropolis is the youngest in France if we consider the proportion of 16-25 year olds who live there. That is 141,300 young adults representing 18% of the total population which has reached almost 800,000 inhabitants. Toulouse is in the lead ahead of Bordeaux (17%) and Lyon (16%). If we take the criterion of those under 26, we even reach 277,800 young people (35%), including 186,300 young people in the municipality of Toulouse alone (38%). That is to say more than one inhabitant out of three! Only the Lille metropolitan area (37%) does better. In an urban area with very dynamic demographics, which welcomes more than 15,000 newcomers each year, 60% of these newcomers over less than 25 years. Obviously this contingent has a majority of students in the first university “city” in France after Paris, where there are nearly 97,000 students in this age group (69% of 16-25 year olds). While young workers represent “only” 29,900 people (21%). When the number of young people without a diploma or profession, overrepresented in working-class neighborhoods, reaches 14,500 inhabitants (10%).
Youth is an asset for Toulouse and its Achilles heel…
But if youth is an asset for our territory, it is also an Achilles’ heel, as the precariousness of this age group is worrying. Still according to the study by the urban planning agency of the Toulouse conurbation, young adults in the metropolis experience heterogeneous situations with regard to employment, housing and health. And the health crisis has not helped matters (read opposite). She especially put a spotlight on the situations of ill-being and the problems sometimes specific to young people. Whether it’s eco-anxiety linked to climate change or the pitfalls of schooling that weigh on confidence in the future. “I had a scholarship to go to Berkeley in California to finish my thesis and everything collapsed with the Covid”, says this law student, who has since abandoned his course. Some reorientations have been heartbreaking… The youth mission of Toulouse Métropole has clearly identified the malaise and is working on the implementation of specific actions. “The response to these vulnerabilities is an opportunity for the institutions to re-establish bonds of trust with this young population, which is a source of wealth for us, but which remains globally still rather poorly known”, we explain to the community. With in the viewfinder, a particular attention to the problems of food and particularly significant health. Youth should not be a shipwreck.
The big housing puzzle
In the survey conducted as part of the Toulouse Academy’s Student Life Improvement Plan, the two main difficulties raised by students when looking for accommodation are the price for 54.3% and the limited choice pay 47%. Housing dedicated to students (residences, boarding school, etc.) represents around 25,500 places in Toulouse Métropole. However, the number of students coming from outside the Metropolis was 63,400 in 2018. With monthly financial resources of less than €600 per month for more than half of the academy’s students, financing housing can turns out to be very difficult. The cost of accommodation in a Crous residence in Toulouse Métropole is on average between €290 and €365 per month. In serviced residences (28% of places), the average minimum amount is €500. We understand better the explosion of the phenomenon of colocation…