LILA (Living Independently in Los Angeles) is a unique web-based online resource that uses Independent Living philosophies to benefits millions of people living with disabilities in Los Angeles County or working in the disability community. LILA, which launched in March, 2001, is a regional attempt to make the World Wide Web narrower and a lot deeper in focus. LILA allows all of its users to become "webmasters" by giving them the means to not only learn about useful grassroots knowledge and government databases, but also to teach others what they know. LILA’s most valuable community assets are the users themselves. Since its launch over 25,000 user sessions have been logged on LILA.

LILA is the culmination of a unique public-private-academic partnership between the Westside Center for Independent Living (WCIL), one of Southern California s leading Independent Living Centers, and the Advanced Policy Institute (API) of the UCLA School of Public Policy and Social Research, in collaboration with the City and County of Los Angeles. The California Endowment, Microsoft Corporation, the Community Technology Foundation of California, GTE Foundation and UCLA have all provided funding and support for the creation and development of LILA.

LILA is designed to bridge the digital divide for people with disabilities by making useful information much easier to obtain...and to share. Some of the web site’s features include

• Hundreds of Community Assets - LILA is a one-stop resource center for people with disabilities to learn about and find resources, services, community agencies, and other disability-related needs in their own neighborhoods. There are hundreds of links to local agencies and access information.
  
• A Virtual Community - LILA creates a virtual community for people with disabilities through an online community forum. The forum also features a community events bulletin board and the ability to share knowledge, experiences, jobs, classified ads and advocacy initiatives.
  
• An Interactive Map Room - LILA uses GIS mapping software to show users where the disability-related resources are in their area. People can use the mapping function to find information such as the locations of wheelchair repair shops, accessible housing and accessible recreational resources. The maps cover the entire county of Los Angeles.
  
• Government Data - The site will soon include city and county of Los Angeles databases, providing information on government services and programs, as well as the locations of curb cuts, blue curbs, accessible entrances locations of public buildings and a lot more. Users will be able to obtain and use this information through LILA.
  
• LILA is Dynamic. Users can easily upload their own knowledge and expertise about disability-related services or other information in their neighborhoods by filling in simple forms. These are then mapped and turned into "asset" pages by LILA

printer friendly format