A shift towards collaboration: Examining practitioner's economic development practices in Ontario during the COVID-19 pandemic

Regional collaboration has been suggested as a more effective way to promote economic development than competitive approaches. In Ontario, despite attempts by the provincial government to encourage regional collaboration, research finds that municipalities are still engaging in inter-territorial competition. In this article, we conducted interviews with thirty-seven practitioners to determine if economic development practices in Ontario have shifted towards more collaborative approaches during the COVID-19 pandemic. The article finds that regional collaboration, as an economic development practice, has intensified in the province during the recent pandemic. Practitioners noted three reasons for engaging in regional collaboration: pool resources, reduce duplication, and complete regionally task-oriented goals.