2024 Feature Story

Jim Hayhurst on redefining ‘quality of life’ for future generations

Imagining a Greater Victoria where the future can thrive starts with understanding what today’s young people value, says local impact advisor.

Jim Hayhurst says there’s no greater pat on the back for him and his wife, Beth, than to have their three adult children settle on the island where they grew up, after each of the kids went to university out east.

“They love it here,” says Hayhurst. “They came back and said, ‘why would we want to live anywhere else?’”

Hayhurst, a longtime tech sector leader, social impact and philanthropy champion, and now advisor to a private family office, describes a distinctive allure that’s cherished by many who live in Greater Victoria: the temperate climate, easy access to outdoors, the ‘small community’ feel of this mid-sized city rich with history and a natural oceanside beauty.

And even as the world faces challenges like high costs of living and climate change, it’s no coincidence the region endures as an attractive place to live, especially for the up-and-coming generation.

Hayhurst knows it’s because community members here don’t take it for granted. There’s an unmistakable culture of support, innovation, and of “giving back” that breathes magic into south island livability, he says, drawing on his decades of community work.

Hayhurst says he was born into a family where there was no distinction between being part of a community and giving back to it. “We only get to be here because of what we contribute,” he explains. “Now, our responsibility for the future is to ensure that we continue taking care of these natural assets and solving for the problems that exist.”

He says that to ensure Greater Victoria stays prosperous for our grandchildren and future generations starts with optimism, curiosity, and embracing new values that today’s youth are discovering on how to live a quality life.

A future that thrives on green innovation and Indigenous knowledge

There’s an infectious positivity to the way Hayhurst predicts how Greater Victoria will grow in the coming years as new residents move to a lusher environment, amid a changing climate.

Hayhurst works with local non-profits, businesses, and families to create social impact strategies, so he intimately understands the region’s blooming tech and innovation sectors. He says great organizations will focus even more on social change in their operations, actively solving whatever challenges the world launches.

“We’ll have climate solutions through our flourishing ocean-tech sector,” he specifies. “We’re a resource-based economy in BC, so we’ve got lots of exposure to new ideas about that.”

He says the greatest opportunity for Victoria will be the Indigenous lens the community places on problem solving, through collaborating with local First Nations for their perspectives on community decisions, especially top-level.

This collaborative problem solving, rooted in generations of knowledge and respect for the earth, is paramount to setting our future generations up for success because it expands our repertoire of what’s possible in building thriving communities.

Our region’s diversity is helping bring everyone together, placing us in good stead to face whatever changes come down the pipes for our children, grandchildren, and beyond.

Redefining ‘quality of life’

But Hayhurst sees first-hand how life is rapidly becoming more uncertain for everyone today, especially young people like his and Beth’s three adult children. As homeownership and even food costs skyrocket, traditional notions of ‘affordability’ and what makes for a ‘quality life’ are often not matching up.

Hayhurst says that when a detached single-family home costs $1.2 million dollars, it’s time to open our ears and our minds. It means learning to approach up-and-coming generations with curiosity and a willingness to embrace their values on quality living.

“We can talk about reducing the cost of living, or we can talk about redefining what living looks like,” he said, “and I think it starts with listening to those that will inherit this world we’ve created.”

In 1992, when he co-founded Trails Youth Initiatives, a non-profit that empowers inner city Ontario kids through connecting with nature, Hayhurst says its programs were shaped by the personal experiences of the young people they served.

“It’s incumbent upon us as non-profit, corporate, and civic leaders, to ask, ‘what is it you truly value?’”

Reshaping ‘community building’

This extends to ideas of building community in a digital age of heightened anxiety and isolation.

Hayhurst feels society at-large seems to really “underestimate how much value young people do put on community” while scrolling on their screens. Community has actually taken many more forms.

While one of his sons was eager to work in-person after the COVID-19 pandemic (like many youth), the other has been connecting with an online community, actively building social and leadership skills his own way.

“I think the notions of community that continue to be provided to young people are just not attractive or realistic,” said Hayhurst, adding that solutions begin by asking youth, “what is community to you? And how do you see yourself giving back?” It’s important to invite them to co-create what a community looks like.

Hayhurst, who led a Victoria Foundation screening of the film UnCharitable earlier this year, said this film, in particular, shows an exciting time for philanthropy and community building, especially for youth. New ideas and tools for “social profit” are coming into play that will help shape how future generations perceive their communities and the support they need.

He also says more CEOs, leaders, and residents are realizing the importance of giving back, of embracing different forms of community, and strategizing early for social impact, no matter the sector.

Searching your core values for a quality life

For young people seeking a high quality of life, Hayhurst says there are many options post-pandemic that don’t have to look like a 4-year degree or a detached house, or even a picket fence.

It starts by drowning out the noise of society telling you to follow certain paths, and by digging deep within yourself to ask: ‘what are truly my core values?’

Hayhurst says altruism can be a perfect place to find those values, be it through a local charity, community association, the Victoria Foundation, or the like. By engaging selflessly to enrich the lives around you, you can build skills and enhance your health. You can make connections and discover what’s important to you.

In the end, he and Beth are proud their own children have turned back to Greater Victoria after seeing other parts of the world; that they’ve chosen to live purposefully in a community that gives more than it takes.

In doing so, he hopes they’re realizing the south island’s allure can’t be taken for granted; that the community is finding ways to empower them to ensure future generations can keep the magic alive.

“With great privilege comes great responsibility,” Hayhurst says, “and we’re very privileged to live here.”