LIPs Gathering Momentum: Early Successes, Emerging Challenges, and Recommendations for the Future


This report of the start-up phase of the Local Immigration Partnerships (LIPs) has been prepared for the Ontario Region of Citizenship and Immigration Canada by Neil Bradford (Huron College, University of Western Ontario) and Caroline Andrew (University of Ottawa) with research support from Marisa Casagrande and Amy Ratcliffe. The report is divided into three sections; an opening section which situates the LIPs in terms both of Canadian political and policy practice and in terms of emerging trends in international policy analysis. The second section looks at the development of the LIPs through the lens of a number of critical transitions and the final section outlines our recommendations for the future development of the LIPs. Our decision to offer a full discussion of the intellectual and policy contexts informing the LIPs was to highlight the innovative characteristics of this initiative. Viewing the LIPs as a very promising policy initiative, we interpret the LIPs as a social innovation in the making.  As such, it is important to frame a discussion of their emergence and potential in a broader intellectual and policy context. […]