The Conseil québécois du loisir (Quebec Leisure Council) and the Association québécoise du loisir municipal (Quebec Municipal Leisure Association), one of the seven partners of the DAFA Program will present different examples of innovative cooperation between social economy organizations and municipalities in terms of the conditions that allowed for their realisation and the challenges faced. Based on a collaborative development and management process and on decentralized functioning, the DAFA Program is recognized by all national leisure organizations. The flexibility granted to the organizations allows them to adapt the program to the needs of each environment. Already more than 22,000 young people are enrolled, and almost 350 municipalities and local organizations offer this training. This standard is implemented, in all the regions in Quebec, in order to ensure the quality and the safety of the activities carried out in leisure infrastructure.

Local Spots for Activity are spaces supported in various ways by local communities and the social and solidarity economy. Residents of Warsaw network there, meet with neighbours, organize debates, meetings and workshops or celebrate holidays. Local Spots for Activity combine vocational and social integration in local communities: organized activities include flea markets, greenery planting, etc. and mini-grants for many other local activities are proposed. As such, these structures also act as incubators for NGOs and social economy initiatives such as food cooperatives or co-working spaces and are able to host policy consultation debates with local authorities. They facilitate networking projects within participatory budgeting and local initiatives of residents cofinanced by the City of Warsaw. The support they provide is always free and almost anyone can establish Local Spots for Activity. However, feedback collected has shown that local centres are not sufficient to provide support necessary to create social innovation through social economy.

The Municipal Partners for Economic Development (MPED) program funded by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) supported the Municipality of Drayton Valley, (Alberta) to work with the City of Matagalpa (Nicaragua) to develop eco-tourism initiatives in El Arenal Natural Park Reserve. This municipal partnership project has enhanced environmental sustainability while generating jobs and strengthening micro-enterprises in the area. Doing so required meeting with all stakeholders to ensure their interest were being met and demonstrating that a change would will bring new positive opportunities. On-going communication and cooperation allowed for farmers to adapt their practices and understand their potential role in agricultural tourism; medicinal plant suppliers and tour operators to see the opportunities of reaching out to new clients; and schools and universities to use a “real live classroom” for their modules on conservation, preservation and sustainability. Important lessons learned include the importance of developing strategic alliances and shared responsibilities that reduce costs, the importance of ensuring open, transparent and on-going communication with all stakeholders to build trust and generate synergies and results, and the vital importance of being able to adapt throughout all stages of a project to ensure its success.

Created in 1963, the International Social Tourism Organisation (ISTO) is a non-profit international association whose mission is to promote access to recreation, vacation and tourism for as many as possible – children, families, seniors and those with disabilities. It also promotes sustainable and solidarity tourism that benefits host communities and respects the natural and cultural heritage.