This policy brief examines how local area municipalities collaborated once Niagara Region was awarded the hosting rights to the 2021 Canada Summer Games (which then became the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games, after being delayed one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
The brief presents a case study of the event through which the authors examine municipal collaboration within the regional hosting model. In our research, we used social network analysis and interviews to understand the structure of the hosting network, as well as municipal actors’ understandings of the relationships, collaborations, and event hosting capacity in the Region.
Recommendations include:
1. Carefully consider and assess the role of existing networks and associations in the region, and how they might be used in a regional hosting model.
2. Regional collaboration begins before event planning starts.
3. To facilitate collaboration within event hosting, specific mechanisms should be implemented to allow municipalities to work together on shared initiatives.
4. Be creative and strategic in planning for and implementing both sport and cultural programs.
Published by: Niagara Community Observatory, Brock University
Publication Date: September, 2023
Click here to access Municipal collaboration in regional event hosting processes: The case of the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games
