Applications for the 2025 cohort of Neighbourhood Climate Action Champions are now open. Apply by December 23, 2024.
The City of Toronto invites residents and community leaders to engage with their neighbours on environmental issues and inspire climate action. Neighbourhood Climate Action Champions will inspire, motivate, and encourage other residents to undertake community-focused actions to support the City’s TransformTO climate action strategy and reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.
Applications from community leaders and residents from communities experiencing social, economic and other barriers, including people of colour, newcomers, 2SLGBTQ+ persons, women, Indigenous peoples, and persons with disabilities / disabled will be given priority.
Participants will receive training on climate change science, communications, and climate action in Toronto. After the training, participants will engage with their neighbours in discussions about climate change and develop innovative neighbourhood-focused climate action projects. With the help of a toolkit, participants will identify specific greenhouse gas reduction goals for the neighbourhood and develop a plan to reach these goals within the community.
Climate Action Champions are required to commit at least 50 hours per year (4-5 hrs per month) toward climate outreach and project development and execution.
Participants will meet with City staff on a monthly basis to discuss their neighbourhood projects and receive feedback and support, and will receive an honorarium of $500. Participants may also be eligible to receive additional funding to support the implementation of their climate action projects.
As a Neighbourhood Climate Action Champion you will:
Applications from community leaders and residents from communities experiencing social, economic and other barriers, including people of colour, newcomers, 2SLGBTQ+ persons, women, Indigenous peoples, and persons with disabilities / disabled will be given priority.
The following individuals are not eligible to apply:
Key dates subject to change.
Below are some past projects Climate Action Champions have implemented in their communities.
This project aimed to increase climate change awareness among residents in the Scarborough-Agincourt area and encouraged them to cycle more to help reduce emissions in the city. Residents were offered education workshops and a series of cycling-related events. Topics and events included: safe cycling 101, road rules and responsibilities, family biking, bike route planning, in-person cycling instruction, and bike repair hubs. Learn more!
The Home Retrofit Forum is a peer support group for homeowners who want to retrofit their homes to increase their energy efficiency and reduce or eliminate their emissions while making their homes more comfortable and potentially less expensive to operate. Group members are invited to ask questions, offer advice based on their personal experience or knowledge, and share the details of their home retrofit journey. Learn more!
The project invited the community to come out to the park and paint on asphalt using eco-paint and learn about environmental stewardship. Community members were required to complete several climate action challenges and attend workshops in order to get more paint privileges and prizes. Residents have cultivated team spirit by working together on the challenges and by creating their art. The project aimed to create a more sustainable and connected community. Overall, we want climate action to be a fun endeavour for our community and to involve everyone regardless of age, gender, socio-economic status, and ethno-cultural background. Learn more!
The project has set up a sharing equipment library of outreach equipment for resident grassroots leaders to use in their outdoor community events. Prior to borrowing equipment, resident/community leaders must attend one virtual orientation session that will introduce Transform TO goals, climate action concepts, and give examples on how to incorporate a climate action lens in community engagement activities. The project engages people not normally involved in climate action conversations and aims to cultivate community leaders to become climate action champions and re-model how they do their community events using a climate action lens.
The project involved both the creation of an example pollinator garden and educational how to and awareness events to encourage our community to create their own pollinator gardens. We want to increase the number of pollinator gardens in our community and increase the knowledge of the benefits of pollinators and how they can contribute to lowering carbon emissions. We hope to support and grow an increasing network of individuals, businesses, and community organizations to connect together and create a platform for additional climate action projects and programs.
The project celebrated the local harvest by hosting events in parks within the Davenport area. Community residents were invited to attend for free soup and information about individual ways that we can help slow down/stop climate change. The project aimed to highlight how soups can be made from leftovers to reduce food waste and how growing your own vegetables can reduce “food miles”.
The project organized a clothing swap event in the York South-Weston neighbourhood to promote sustainable fashion, foster community engagement, and encourage clothing reuse and recycling. A clothing swap is a community gathering where participants bring their gently used clothing items to exchange with others. The event provided an opportunity for individuals to refresh their wardrobes without any financial burden, while also promoting sustainable fashion practices. The event created a space for community members to connect while looking through clothes and provide a welcoming environment for people to learn about the importance of reducing/reusing and recycling. The project was able to reduce textile waste and promote the concept of extending the lifespan of garments.
The project provided a group of newcomer youth with education and skills training on solar energy to prepare them for jobs in green energy sector. Participants worked with a mentor in the green energy /green building sector to model and showcase the potential impact of a solar project within the community. Youth also gained hands-on experience by learning to develop solar equipment prototypes that represent larger scale solar energy systems. A final meeting brought the youth and the community together to present the project and provide education on ways to reduce community-wide greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions together.
