August 7-9, 2026, in Ottawa, the 21st World Humanist Congress took place with a record crowd of 500+ from over 40 countries.
A sociologist at the University of Waterloo (Canada), Sarah Wilkins-Laflamme, researches growing secularization, social change, and political sociology. As the Saturday morning keynote speaker, Prof Sarah offered the latest data on how many people do not believe in supernatural higher powers and who do not affiliate themselves with any religion. While Wilkins-Laflamme's research is mostly based on Canadian statistics, we were offered details and context with US, European and Asian census data.
The graph below shows an upward trend towards non-belief in all generations. Canadians in the Silent Generation, 80+ years old, are less religious than five to ten years ago. The move away from religion is more pronounced with each younger generation. Three out of ten Baby Boomers, aged 66 to 80, are irreligious; 45% of Gen X, 42 to 61 years old; and over half of all Millennials, 22 to 40 years old.
People don't all like to dutifully fit into labels with agreed-upon definitions. Oh, the serenity to accept the things that people like me, who like tidy demographics, cannot change. Some people who quit organized religions still believe in a higher power. Some people who don't believe in Yahweh are loyal and active members of their place of worship. One initiative featured at the World Humanist Congress 2026 was Humanist Chaplaincy for people who want the rituals of turning points and occasions (marriage, bereavement, childbirth, celebration of life. There are atheists in foxholes. They're easy to identify; they are returning fire while others are on their knees, praying.
How many irreligious people want the rituals without the supernatural intervention? I don't know. People who want it should have it.
Speaking in an interview with Canadian Affairs News, Wilkins-Laflamme makes a good point that today's irreligious aren't the same as people who switch from Christian to Hindu, or the other way around. “'Most [non-religious people] don’t even think about religion all that much and so don’t feel the need to adopt a stronger non-religious identity,' she said."
This podcast is a great discussion on meaningful data from Sarah Wilkins-Laflamme. I could not resist speculating on what changes in demographics could mean. Rebellion Dogs would love to hear/read what you think.
From HumanistCanada.ca
"As Humanists, we believe in a life stance based upon respect for human dignity and the conviction that we are ultimately accountable to ourselves and to society for our actions. Our worldview is deity-free and affirms our ability and responsibility to lead ethical, meaningful lives."
More from Professor Sarah…
https://uwaterloo.ca/st-jeromes/academics/research/institute-religion-culture-and-societal-futures
https://uwaterloo.ca/sociology-and-legal-studies/profiles/sarah-wilkins-laflamme
World Humanist Congress 2026, August 7-9, 2026, in Ottawa, was the 21st, drawing a record crowd of 500+ attendees from over 40 countries.
https://www.humanistcanada.ca/
https://humanists.international/
For more Rebellion Dogs coverage, visit our BLOG page CLICK HERE for more from leading up to and all three days of the Ottawa World Humanist Congress.
Be a fly on the wall… PHOTOS from the 2026 Humanist Congress: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Km4a2pGk8/