Legacy Governance – Vancouver

Legacy is…

“Harnessing the opportunity as a catalyst to create lasting social and economic impact that will change a community and a nation forever.”

What’s next?

Moving beyond the 2010 Winter Games, the organisation is embracing the spirit, drive and dedication of the world’s athletes to ensure that the work leading up to the Games continues. Many programmes were strategically transferred to partners who continue today to carry them forward as they continue to create lasting community benefits. As part of the transition, two new agencies were established.

Building on its international reputation as a leader in social innovation, the business model has evolved to further the work in creating positive and lasting social change.

In 2011, LIFT was set up to replace 2010 Legacies Now. LIFT aims to be a leader in advancing positive and lasting social change. It strengthens social purpose organisations to make them sustainable and effective at delivering social impact that improves the health and productivity of Canadians.

LIFT focuses on 3 areas: health, education and skills development leading to employment

Promote a healthy and active lifestyle

Attention was focused on three areas: sport development, community capacity building and province-wide community outreach. The primary commitment, however, was to fund and promote sport development programmes to take athletes from the playground to the podium. Aimed to introduce youth and communities to the joy of sport and provide promising young athletes with support to excel.

Over time, efforts led to increased participation in sport, greater athletic excellence, and active and healthier communities.

Develop human capital and generate social cohesion

The second objective is intrinsically linked to the first one as 2010 Legacies Now aimed to strengthen sport and recreation, healthy living, literacy, accessibility and volunteerism, using an inclusive approach. Indeed, social cohesion and BC communities are at the heart of the whole legacy project. 2010 Legacies Now found innovative ways to work with over 4,000 organisations and groups across the province in the quest to see BC communities discovering and creating lasting legacies leading up to 2010 and beyond.

2010 Legacies Now was deeply anchored into the communities of British Columbia and carried by a strong involvement in supporting all communities including children, youth, families, Aboriginal communities, etc.

2010 Legacies Now took an innovative approach to leveraging the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games into local, tangible legacies in over 400 neighbourhoods and communities throughout British Columbia. The organisation strategically invested in programmes, organisations and communities to create legacies which would continue to live for many years.

2010 Legacies Now worked with many universities to evaluate and measure the impact of some of their programmes and initiatives. Several KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) were established with the support of an accounting services organisation.

During actual Games-time, 2010 Legacies Now focused on information sharing about its delivery model, best practices and achievements’ measurements.

2010 Legacies Now is recognised internationally as a leader and innovator in community legacy development. Read the two case studies of 2010 Legacies Now that were commissioned by the International Olympic Committee:

• Catalyst, Collaborator, Connector: The Social Innovation Model of 2010 Legacies Now, Mr. Joseph Weiler and Mr. Arun Mohan, 2009
• The Evolution of 2010 Legacies Now – A Continuing Legacy of the Games through Venture Philanthropy, Mr. Joseph Weiler, 2011

The establishment of a new entity

It was the first time an independent legacy organisation was established at the bid stage. Being a “first of” comes with many challenges and opportunities. Due to the fact that 2010 Legacies Now was set up to support the bid, its vision and mandate aligned with the Games. The initial challenge was to clearly establish where the organisation fit as part of the Olympics as it relates to hosting the Games, how to compliment and add value to established organisations who play a key role. Plus establishing and creating meaningful partnerships with community organisations and sector associations. The challenge was overcome by face-to-face meetings, planning and setting an environment for collaboration based on respect as well as a common vision. Becoming a trusted partner by delivering what was promised played a vital role in the organisation success. It was also important for 2010 Legacies Now to have its own funding in place so it could invest strategically and play a convening role when needed. As the partnerships grew, more opportunities evolved.

Legacies beyond Bricks and Mortar – Getting people to understand social legacies

When people thought of legacies related to major events and, in particular, the Olympics they thought of new stadiums and infrastructure left post Games. No Games had a vision on creating social legacies to the extent of the Vancouver Games and in particular on creating legacies leading up to during and beyond the Games. It took a lot of education and communications to explain and get people to understand the concept of social legacies. This was particularly true with anything beyond sport. There was also the task of showing how many of the social legacies impacted or contributed to economic benefits. It was important to communicate along with the partners the successes and impacts along the way to make things more tangible.

Mobilising and sustaining engagement throughout the whole Games’ cycle

Due to the financial commitments of the provincial (state) government in the overall Games is was critical to have legacies across the province of British Columbia not just in the host city of Vancouver and mountain venue of Whistler. Mobilisation and engagement started during the international bidding phase, prior to being awarded the Games, as the Vancouver 2010 bid promised a legacy win or lose. 2010 Legacies Now was an important factor in generating the support of the BC sport community in the Bid to host the 2010 Winter Games. In the months leading up to the OCOG being established and in the early years of the OCOG, 2010 Legacies Now and its partners played a critical role keeping the momentum and engagement throughout the province. The plans were designed to allow for certain programmes to be ramped up closer to Games time, plus activities and the focus could shift depending on the type of social or economic legacy. Programmes and initiatives needed to be rolled out strategically to ensure sustained engagement and momentum.

Have legacy front and centre

From the beginning of the bid stage, it is critical to build your vision of hosting the Games with Legacy in mind. Hosting the Games requires much more than the actual sport competition. You need to have the perspective of what hosting the Games can do for the city, region and country. Clearly articulating the legacy vision and objectives are an integral element to securing and building meaningful partnerships. The community needs to understand the legacy vision and see the value in it. Legacies need to be relevant to the local citizens from grassroots communities to elite athletes. It is critical to involve community organisations in the planning and delivery. Engaging community organisations creates a more inclusive approach and authentic programming and delivery.

Value added through entrepreneurial methods and collaboration

As 2010 Legacies Now evolved, the organisation increasingly embraced the use of entrepreneurial methods and approaches in the pursuit of the organisation’s mandate. Deployed a wide range of entrepreneurial tools to elevate programmes’ impact to a higher level including: Connecting programmes to the 2010 Legacies Now network and helping them obtain credible media attention; Acting as an advisor and coach on strategy, planning and other operational matters; Identifying new revenue streams for programmes; and Guiding groups through the institutional landscape and helping to design ‘cross silo’ solutions that eliminate barriers to elevated impacts.
The entrepreneurial approach was enhanced by collaborations which were a key feature of the 2010 Legacies Now model. Placing emphasis on a collaborative approach and the creation of collaborations to yield increased benefits. Collaborations were pursued in several ways. In some cases, the 2010 Legacies Now role was to introduce new partners or combine partners who do not ordinarily work together. In other situations, the 2010 Legacies Now contribution was to create a productive and trusting environment for partnering, focused on a single agenda – heightened programme impact. 2010 Legacies Now played many roles in creating this productive setting, acting as a mediator or referee, finding common ground and purpose amongst many different views.

Ten strategies for social legacies

Start planning early; develop a multi-year plan
Offer strategic funding for capacity-building, partnership development and sustainability
Provide a variety of resources, including expertise, guidance and management support
Implement measurement process to demonstrate return on investment
Begin planning for post-event operations 18-24 months prior to the event
Recognise the power of the event (brand) and capitalise
Use the closing of the event to launch the next phase of work
Harness lessons and expertise of partners to ensure long-term success
Create a continuum of learning to improve operations and impact
Share successes and impact in both hard numbers and softer stories