Exploring the LIFE program: collaboration in the Greater Victoria area

Abstract

Leisure economic accessibility policies are common practice in many Canadian municipalities. Little research has been done on the implementation of these policies and even less research has been done on municipal collaboration to successfully implement these policies. This study explores the LIFE program in the Greater Victoria Area using the Local Leisure Policy Analysis Framework. The LIFE program is a collaborative governance mechanism used in the Greater Victoria Area to implement leisure economic accessibility policies. Recreation managers in the Greater Victoria Area were interviewed and these interviews were analyzed using the Lavigne’s (2014) Local Leisure Policy Analysis Framework. This study found that for municipalities to successfully collaborate they had to exchange resources. These resources include: social capital, financial capital, human capital, intellectual capital, and legitimacy capital. It was also found that this collaboration contributed to sustainable development in the Greater Victoria Region.