Destination + Community Work

Place-based experience design rooted in community.

Working With Communities

to Build Experiences That Belong There

Some of the most interesting places to visit in British Columbia aren’t the obvious ones.

They’re smaller communities with distinct character, independent businesses with good stories, and local stakeholders who care deeply about how their place is represented to visitors. What they often lack is someone who can help bring those pieces into alignment and build something that actually works on the ground.

That’s the work I do.

How This Usually Goes

I’ve built culinary visitor experiences in Fort Langley and Chilliwack by working directly with local DMOs, BIAs, and the independent businesses at the centre of each place. That meant recruiting partners, building trust with operators who had never done anything like this before, designing the experience itself, and making sure the tourism bodies and business associations involved were genuinely aligned throughout.

The result in both cases was something that felt like it came from the community, because it did.

After the Fort Langley experience took hold, other destinations started reaching out to build something similar. That’s largely how the Chilliwack experience came together.

Chew On This was selected as a case study by Destination Canada in 2024 for its approach to regenerative, community-rooted culinary tourism. [Read the case study.]

a couple dancing on a bridge

what i can help with

Culinary and place-based experience design
Stakeholder engagement and partner recruitment
Working with independent operators who are new to tourism programming
Destination storytelling rooted in community identity
Strategic advisory for DMOs and BIAs in smaller and mid-sized communities

What Working Together Looks Like

Some engagements are project-based, coming in to design and launch something specific alongside your team. Others are more advisory, thinking through strategy, stakeholder dynamics, or how to develop a concept before committing to a full build.

Both are things I do. Compensation is discussed openly based on scope.

Let’s Talk

If you’re working in a smaller BC community and trying to build something that connects visitors to what’s genuinely there, I’d be glad to have a conversation.

Schedule a call or reach me directly at lise@chewonthistastytours.com