From cco at web.ca Thu May 1 00:45:06 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:11 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] Revitalizing the conservation movement Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20030501001125.00a64320@pop.web.ca> To: The Green On, e-news list and friends of Green Ontario. From: Lois Corbett, President, The Conservation Council of Ontario Date: April 30, 2003 Re: Restoring Ontario's commitment to conservation Dear friends, I would like to thank all of you who have helped us out over the past year by responding to our surveys and participating at our 2002 Eco Summit. The Board of Directors at CCO have responded to your suggestions, and share your concerns about how to best to support the important role of the non-governmental sector in promoting conservation and a healthy environment. Following on the 2002 Eco Summit and the two surveys of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) we conducted last year, the Conservation Council has developed two documents that will help lay out a path for revitalizing the NGO role in promoting conservation and a healthy environment. You'll find them both on the Green Ontario website, http://www.greenontario.org The first report is called "Green Ontario: an NGO Strategy for Conservation and a Healthy Environment". The goal is "to enhance the capacity of Ontario's non-governmental organizations to promote a conserver society and deliver environmental solutions". I think you'll find that many of the issues and organization needs identified at the Eco Summit are covered in the strategy. The second report is the Conservation Council's "Strategic Directions and Business Plan 2003". It proposes a new mission for the Council (to make Ontario a conserver society) and outlines our role in developing a province-wide commitment to conservation: We will remain focused on the goal of a conserver society for Ontario. We will acknowledge and support the contributions and areas of expertise of other organizations in promoting conservation and environmental solutions. We will help increase the capacity of organizations to address conservation and environmental priorities. We will build partnerships and campaigns to address priority issues for conservation and a healthy environment. We will raise public commitment to adopt conservation solutions and help connect individuals with support services and educational material. In so doing, we will build a strong and long-lasting commitment to conservation in Ontario, as well as achieve tangible results in Ontario's communities and homes. There is a tremendous need to restore conservation values to Ontario's society and economy. This challenge is bigger than any one organization -- it requires a coordinated and cooperative approach. I'm hoping we can count on your continued support. Both reports are "drafts", which means we'd like to hear from you if we are on the right track. Please download them at www.greenontario.org and send your comments to me and our Executive Director, Chris Winter. Here's our addresses to cut and paste into an e-mail: "Lois Corbett" , "Chris Winter" With thanks, Lois Corbett President The Conservation Council of Ontario p.s: If you think we're on the right track, now would be an excellent time to help out with a donation to the Council. Please mail a cheque to: The Conservation Council of Ontario, 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8. *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director Lois Corbett, President -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.web.net/archives/greenon-l/attachments/20030501/0e9ca6de/attachment.html From cco at web.ca Thu May 1 09:19:04 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:11 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] E-mail address correction Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20030501090149.00aa8ac0@pop.web.ca> Re: Green Ontario strategy and CCO business plan There was an error in the contact information for Lois Corbett in our previous e-mail. Please use the following contact information for comments on the Green Ontario strategy and the Conservation Council's business plan: "Lois Corbett" , "Chris Winter" With apologies, Chris Winter *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director Lois Corbett, President From cco at web.ca Tue Aug 19 09:19:07 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:12 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] After the Blackout -- Conservation Priorities Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20030819162109.00b13c40@pop.web.ca> After the Blackout: Emergency conservation and A 20% Conservation Action Plan A special edition of the Conservation Council of Ontario's e-newsletter Please forward to your friends. August 19, 2003 Chris Winter, Executive Director If there is a bright side to the blackout, it is that in the past few days alone we have heard politicians use the word "conservation" more times than they have over the entire past decade. I wish the circumstances had been better, but it's good to have them back! Ontario now faces two conservation challenges. The first is to weather the immediate power crisis through emergency conservation measures. The second is to re-build Ontario's capacity for conservation. In this issue, we address both the immediate and long-term conservation needs: 1. Please join us in the Two Fan Challenge -- a challenge to all homeowners to surf the next heat wave with two fans and a ten minute daily conservation routine. 2. Support our Four Point Action Plan for Energy Conservation -- a 0.7 cent per KWh staggered surcharge on electricity, a $1 billion green energy and conservation fund, support for community-based outreach, and regulatory and infrastructure changes to create a more energy-efficient economy and society. The Two Fan Challenge See http://www.greenontario.org/solutions/twofans.html On behalf of the Conservation Council of Ontario, I'm challenging Ontarians to meet the next heat wave head on with two fans and a ten-minute daily conservation routine. Most homes can be kept cool for days with just two fans if you follow these simple steps. Start this routine on the cooler days before a predicted heat wave 1. Trap the cool air in each morning. Close all windows Close the blinds and drapes except where needed for natural light. Conserve energy to minimize the heat generated by lights and appliances. 2. Let the cool air in each evening. Open all drapes and windows If there's no breeze, use one window fan to bring air in or expel warm air Use a floor fan to keep the air moving through the house, or blow cooler air up from the basement We've used this method for years in our family, and it's kept our two storey, semi-detached house cool for at least two to three days into a heat wave. Conservation was never about freezing in the dark, and it isn't about sweating in the heat either. It's about eliminating the wasteful ways and living a comfortable, efficient lifestyle. Ours is a typical urban home. There's nothing we are doing that cannot be done by nearly every homeowner in Ontario. I'll be monitoring the outdoor, top floor and basement temperature during heat waves for as long as the Ontario is experiencing a power crisis and in need of emergency conservation measures. A Four Point Action Plan for Energy Conservation See http://www.greenontario.org/solutions/energyplan.html The public has done its part admirably by voluntarily cutting back on electricity consumption. Now it's time for provincial leadership in implementing an aggressive long-term energy conservation plan that will reduce our overall electrical power consumption by at least 4,000 Megawatts, or twenty percent of the current average demand. The key step is to re-establish the provincial role in promoting energy conservation. Provincial funding for conservation was an early casualty of the Common Sense Revolution in 1996. Not surprisingly, electricity consumption in Ontario grew about 8% between 1995 and 2000. Only with the recent crises over electricity prices and supply shortages has the provincial government come up with a conservation "action plan" of voluntary actions and a provincial tax rebate on energy efficient appliances. The Province's action plan does not involve Ontario's any conservation organizations, nor does it include any long-term commitment to restoring a conservation ethic in Ontario's society. Our Action Plan for Energy Conservation The Conservation Council of Ontario is a fifty-year-old association of provincial organizations and individual conservation leaders. We have long espoused a strategic approach to conservation issues that combines regulatory, economic and voluntary measures to achieve our common goals. For energy conservation (both electricity and other forms of energy), these are the four key elements of our conservation action plan: 1. Price energy to promote conservation 2. Create an Ontario Green Energy and Conservation Fund 3. Support community-based conservation outreach and education campaigns. 4. Plan for long-term energy efficiency. Price energy to promote conservation Should energy prices rise to reflect the true cost of production? Absolutely, but even more important is to make conservation an economically-viable alternative. Any increase on the base 4.3 cents per kilowatt hour for electricity should be directly earmarked for conservation and alternative energy. We estimate that each 0.1 cent per kilowatt hour would result in $150 million per year for conservation incentives and support programs. A 0.7 cent per KWh surcharge would generate in excess of $1 billion annually for conservation and alternative energy incentive programs. There is already a surcharge to retire Ontario Hydro's stranded debt, so the concept is already in practice. Further, the surcharge could be structured to exempt a base consumption rate in order to promote conservation, avoid adding to the energy costs of low-income families, and allow the government to maintain its commitment to capping basic electricity rates. Create an Ontario Green Energy and Conservation Fund The federal government, under the Climate Change Strategy, recently announced a $1 billion program to promote greenhouse gas reductions, including energy conservation. The Toronto Atmospheric Fund (established by the City of Toronto to fight smog and climate change) uses its $25 million fund for low-cost energy efficiency loans and outreach projects. It's time Ontario stepped up to the plate and use a conservation surcharge on electricity to establish its own $1 billion green energy and conservation fund. Through an Ontario fund, municipalities would be able to finance programs for building and street-lighting efficiency, wind and solar power could be subsidized, and homeowners would be eligible for subsidies for energy-efficiency renovations and rooftop solar units. It would stimulate investment and improve Ontario's long-term energy security. Support conservation outreach Government advertising alone won't create a conservation ethic in society. We need to involve as many community groups, schools, cultural and faith associations, and provincial organizations as possible in promoting conservation. Media advertising needs to be supported by community workshops, door-to-door marketing by community groups, incentives (such as low-cost efficient lightbulbs), homeowner support services (like the Green Communities home energy audits) and other services such as green power cooperatives and car-sharing. There are tremendous resources available in the non-government organizations that can help turn conservation values into action. It's time we put them to work. Plan for long-term efficiency We need to increase energy efficiency in appliances, our homes, automobiles, and in urban design. Regulatory instruments such as the Ontario Energy Efficiency Act and the Ontario Building Code can strengthen minimum performance standards, and the provincial government needs to rethink its "smart growth" initiative to turn away from highways in favour of compact, energy efficient urban design. Ontario and North America lag far behind Europe in energy efficiency. We need to become leaders in conservation technology and urban design. All in all, it's not that difficult to create a conserver society in Ontario. We estimate that if people contributed even one percent of their gross income and one percent of their time to conservation measures, we can achieve tremendous results. It sounds like the public is ready to make that commitment. We're just waiting for the right economic incentives and leadership from the provincial government to make it happen. A Special Appeal -- Support Conservation Now! Like most charitable organizations, the Conservation Council of Ontario lost its provincial funding in 1996, and we've been living on a shoe-string ever since. We depend on member and public donations to cover our minimal core operating expenses and my salary. Right now, our bank account is dangerously low. We need your contributions, or the Conservation Council of Ontario faces the very real prospect of having to fold at the very time when we are needed the most. Please send a cheque payable to "The Conservation Council of Ontario", 43 Sorauren Avenue. You can also make a secure online donation through the services of CanadaHelps.org, a registered Canadian charity. Simply go to www.greenontario.org and follow the link at the top left corner. It will take you to our donations page on CanadaHelps.org. All contributions, no matter how small, will help. Many thanks. Funding Matters Go to: http://www.ccsd.ca/pubs/2003/fm/ While on the subject of fundraising, there's an excellent report you should read by Katherine Scott of the Canadian Council on Social Development. It's called "Funding Matters: the Impact of Canada's New Funding Regime on Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations" It documents the dramatic changes in financial support for charities over the past decade, including the shift from core funding to project funding and sponsorships and the desire for a significant return by way of recognition. The consequences of these changes have included volatility in funding sources, a tendency to "mission drift" in order to secure funds, a loss of core infrastructure, reporting overload, collapse of related funding sources (the house of cards), advocacy chill, and human resource fatigue. I found it strangely reassuring to find there are so many other organizations experiencing the same woes. Stay cool. ____________________________________________ Green On. News is an online newsletter, published periodically with an e-mail prompt. If you wish to unsubscribe from this service, you can do so on the Green Ontario home page, http://www.greenontario.org *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director Lois Corbett, President -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.web.net/archives/greenon-l/attachments/20030819/e604c669/attachment.html From cco at web.ca Fri Aug 29 01:37:25 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:12 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] An Open Letter on Energy Conservation Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20030829094035.00aea5d0@pop.web.ca> AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF ONTARIO Please Sign our Petition for an Ontario Energy Conservation Action Plan Dear Friends, Do you think conservation and renewable power should cost less than electricity from coal and nuclear? Would you like better advice and support services to help you save energy in your home or workplace? If you agree, then please take a moment to sign our online petition at http://www.petitiononline.com/conserve/petition.html. The August 14th blackout made everyone realize how important conservation is. 84 percent of the Ontario public now wants to save electricity in their homes (according to an Ipsos Reid survey). If we don't take action immediately, Ontario will soon return to its old, inefficient habits. We will have missed a singular opportunity to make our province cleaner, healthier, and more resilient. Responding to the emergency, Ontarians cut their electricity use by up to 25 per cent. This was "conservation by sacrifice" -- turning off lights and air conditioners and cooking by barbecue. Now that the immediate crisis is over, we need to promote "conservation by design" -- simple changes in lifestyle and substantial improvements in efficiency that will achieve the same conservation result without any pain. Why is conservation important? Conservation will save money. As taxpayers, we are all footing the bill for the cap on electricity prices at 4.3 cents a kilowatt hour (kwh). Conservation will eliminate the current spikes in price during peak demand, when the price Ontario pays for electricity can rise as high as 90 cents per kwh. Conservation will reduce the need for system upgrades. Increasing Ontario's generating and transmission capacity will cost billions of dollars. Conservation is a far cheaper alternative. Conservation will help clear the air. Electricity from coal fired generators are a major cause of Ontario's smog. This year, Ontario suffered through 28 smog alert days. Conservation will facilitate the early phase-out of Ontario's coal-fired electricity plants. Conservation will save you money. The cap on electricity prices is going to come off sometime within the next two years. Will you be ready? The Conservation Council of Ontario is a fifty-year old association of 22 provincial organizations and 50 individual conservation leaders. We are proposing a four point action plan for energy conservation in Ontario. It will save up to 4,000 megawatts of electrical power, or about 20 per cent of our consumption. The plan calls for a surcharge on the overconsumption of electricity, with the revenue used to set up a $1 billion conservation and green energy fund. It also calls for community-based education and support services to assist people with conservation, and improved efficiency standards for appliances, homes, workplaces, and urban design. You can read more about the plan at http://www.greenontario.org. I believe Ontario can be a North American leader in conservation. I hope you agree. Please take five minutes to sign our petition. Go to http://www.petitiononline.com/conserve/petition.html. With thanks, Chris Winter Executive Director The Conservation Council of Ontario. (Please forward this request to your family, friends and colleagues. This simple act will help shape the future of energy use in Ontario.) *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director Lois Corbett, President From cco at web.ca Fri Oct 3 03:54:03 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:12 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] A Liberal Majority and the Environment Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20031003022239.00b253a0@pop.web.ca> Green On. The Online Newsletter of the Conservation Council of Ontario Green Challenges for a Liberal Majority And the Opportunities They Present for Environmental and Conservation Groups A special edition of the Conservation Council of Ontario's e-newsletter October 3, 2003 Chris Winter, Executive Director After eight years, three months and twenty-four days, the Common Sense Revolution is history. With last night's election of a majority Liberal government, the priorities of the Ontario electorate have taken a dramatic swing away from personal gain back towards the common good. The promise of tax cuts came a distant second to public education, health care and the environment. In his acceptance speech, Premier designate Dalton McGuinty referred to clean air and clean water as two of his government's priorities. The work begins tomorrow, he said. With that in mind, here are some thoughts on the environmental challenges for the government, the ongoing fiscal constraints, and the opportunities for some creative approaches. The Issues Mark Winfield and Environmental Communication Options produced an excellent compendium of issues and needs for the election. It's available at http://www.ontarioelectionenvironment.com Here are five key issues. 1. Enforcement: Restore the monitoring and enforcement capacity of the Ministry of the Environment for air quality, water quality and quantity, and for hazardous emissions. 2. Energy: Phase out coal-fired electricity by 2007, reduce Ontario's energy demand, and implement renewable portfolio standards for green power. 3. Solid Waste: Find a long-term solution for garbage, including aggressive waste reduction targets and disposal options. 4. Sprawl: Stop urban sprawl and fund the infrastructure for compact, livable communities. 5. Natural Areas: Protect Ontario's parks, forests and other natural areas from overdevelopment and unsustainable resource management. What will change? Two things will change, and one will not. No New Money. With no new taxes, there will be few significant increases in the ministry budgets for environmental programs, and therefore there will likely be no immediate influx of ministry funding for environmental projects. Openness. After eight years of being labeled "special interests", the government now shares many of our goals. We should see a return to consultation with major stakeholders around government policy. We may not see a return to the Round Table on Environment and Economy, or a Premier's Council, but I would expect to see a new ministerial advisory committees and public consultation on policy directions. Partnerships Beyond consultation, there is a clear need to develop active partnerships with the non-government sector to deliver environmental solutions. These partnerships exist throughout the social and health sectors, but only to a small degree in the environmental sector. If we are to succeed in achieving aggressive targets for energy conservation and waste reduction, then NGO programs for public education and support services need to be a key part of the solution. For more ideas on the NGO role, see "Greening Ontario", the Conservation Council's strategy paper on revitalizing the role of non-governmental organizations. http://www.greenontario.org/greenstrat.html Where will the money come from? This was Howard Hampton's question in the Leader's Debate. I can't answer for education and health, but here are two ways to generate funds for environmental projects and campaigns: 1. Develop new sources of funds. In the case of energy conservation, the Liberals adopted a position similar to one recommended by the Conservation Council: a surcharge on the overconsumption of electricity. The surcharge could generate between $250 million and $500 million per year, which could be used to offset incentives for conservation and green power. 2. Re-focus existing sources. The government has significant resources at its disposal that can be re-focused to support action-oriented partnerships between the government and NGOs. For example, McGuinty promised to put an end to partisan government advertising such as the energy conservation ads that preceded the election. A better solution would be to divert advertising funds to support partnership campaigns, such as the Ontario Energy Conservation Campaign currently being proposed by the Conservation Council (Item 3. of our four point energy conservation action plan) www.greenontario.org.solutions/energy.html. Similarly, the Ontario Trillium Foundation has an annual budget of $100 million (a fraction of the gaming revenue). Improvements can be made in the foundation's environmental strategic planning and programs to encourage projects and partnership campaigns that will assist in meeting current environmental priorities. (The federal government, for example, recently announced that the next round of it's EcoAction program would be focused entirely on projects that support the national Climate Change Strategy.) Our Challenge -- Work Together "Together we are stronger", Dalton McGuinty said time and again during the campaign. The same can be said of the NGO community. We need to develop campaigns and alliances that will work with the government to achieve common goals -- such as a 50% waste diversion target and a 20% energy conservation and renewable energy target. Ontario's new Smart Growth Network is a good example, bringing together environmental, housing, transportation, and neighbourhood groups to work on the challenges of stopping sprawl and promoting compact, healthy communities. http://www.greenontario.org/smartgrowth/osgn.html There are tremendous resources resources and skills available within Ontario's non-governmental organizations. Yet too often we work independently of each other when we should be working together. More importantly, we need to be able to present municipalities and communities with one-window access to a full range of support services for public outreach and environmental solutions. The next few years will be difficult ones for both the provincial government and for the environmental community. We are facing many challenges. But we also have a unique opportunity to forge new partnerships and achieve tangible and significant results. Let's take up the challenge. *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director Lois Corbett, President -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.web.net/archives/greenon-l/attachments/20031003/fcde3217/attachment.html From cco at web.ca Thu Nov 20 15:48:04 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:12 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] Restoring Ontario's Commitment to Conservation Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20031120152721.00b5c430@pop.web.ca> Restoring Ontario's Commitment to Conservation The newsletter of the Conservation Council of Ontario's e-newsletter Please forward to your friends. November 20, 2003 Chris Winter, Executive Director In This Issue The Big Picture: restoring Ontario?s commitment to conservation. Three Conservation Priorities: energy, garbage and sprawl The NGO and Community role: public outreach and support services Finding the Funds: Raising $20 - 40 million for conservation The Big Picture: Restoring Ontario?s Commitment to Conservation. After a decade of tax breaks and cuts in environmental funding, we are presented with an opportunity unlike any that we have seen over the past two decades. Like the three curves of a ?biorhythm? chart, all three levels of government are currently at a high level of environmental awareness and commitment. Federally, the passion is climate change, and the need to convince people to conserve energy. Provincially, the environment is one of the top five priorities for the new Liberal government. Municipally, urban sprawl was a major concern and in some municipalities (such as Oakville) we saw smart growth activists elected to council. All three levels of government see the need to engage the public in conservation solutions. All three levels of government are prepared to devote funding to the solutions, even in a time of fiscal restraint. The municipal and provincial governments are brand new, and the federal government has a new leader, so all three levels are developing new initiatives. And for the first time in ages, they are also talking of cooperation. Now is not the time for complacency or even celebration. On the contrary, now the real work must begins. We have a very narrow window of opportunity to convince our governments that Ontario?s non-governmental organizations and community groups can help deliver conservation solutions to the public. We have a narrow window to build an effective and united solutions-oriented conservation movement in Ontario. Why We Need Conservation: Three Conservation Priorities Over the next four years, Ontario faces formidable environmental challenges, not the least of which are: 1. Energy: develop a secure, environmentally-sound and affordable electricity system (including the phase-out of coal-fired generation). 2. Garbage: find viable solutions for garbage (including waste reduction and disposal). 3. Sprawl: replace urban sprawl with compact, livable communities (including natural areas and farmland protection, and accessible and affordable public transit). Conservation be it energy conservation, transportation alternatives, waste reduction, or natural areas and farmland stewardship is an important part of the solution. Conservation strategies that combine aggressive standards, economic instruments, and public outreach and support programs can assist Ontario in achieving up to a 20% reduction in energy consumption and over 50% in waste reduction. Key to achieving these results is public outreach and support services, areas where Ontario?s non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and community groups excel. We can play a vital and cost-efficient role in raising public awareness, encouraging conservation, and providing support services. Three things need to happen: 1. Organize Ontario?s communities 2. Strengthen NGO expertise and outreach services 3. Implement provincial campaigns on energy conservation and waste reduction Currently, Ontario?s NGOs are chronically underfunded and lack the capacity to deliver major programs. Similarly, few of Ontario?s communities (including municipalities) are sufficiently organized to coordinate a community-level conservation campaign. Our current estimate of the cost of implementing an effective conservation movement in Ontario is approximately $20 - 40 million per year. This includes the cost of organizing Ontario?s communities to be able to deliver outreach and support programs as well as developing coordinated outreach campaigns involving NGOs, corporate leaders, and governments. Ontario?s 446 municipalities as well as the major cultural communities need a little help in organizing if we are going to ask them to be part of a major public outreach campaign. Matching grants of up to $100,000 for municipalities and cultural communities will allow them to organize community networks, identify local funding partners, and develop action plans to reflect local needs and priorities. The Conservation Council of Ontario has developed a low-cost model for community organizing (available at http://www.greenontario.org/caction/comman.html). Also see the Ontario Healthy Communities Association http://www.healthycommunities.on.ca/ohcc.htm and the Green Communities Association http://www.gca.ca. About $10 - 15 million is required annually for the development and execution of conservation outreach campaigns. These campaigns will draw on and unite the efforts of the major environmental groups in Ontario. There are already over a dozen organizations in Ontario that offer programs and services in energy conservation and transportation alternatives. $2 - 5 million would unite the best projects, ideas and services in a single outreach campaign and templates for community-based outreach projects. An additional $10 million per year would support the implementation of these projects throughout Ontario?s municipal and cultural communities. The result will be a vibrant conservation and environmental movement that will be engaged in community planning and that will contribute to meeting provincial conservation and waste reduction targets within four years. Funding Conservation: With a $5.6 billion deficit in Ontario, where will the money come from? The $20 - 40 million per year to carry out this program is well in excess of available ministry budgets from the Ministries of Energy and Environment. Innovative funding solutions will need to be developed. Two areas that need to be investigated are economic surcharges and cooperative funding. Economic surcharges we need to price key goods and services to promote conservation. The electricity market is a prime example. The Conservation Council recommends that a higher price be charged on electricity over a base conservation rate of consumption, and that these funds be earmarked for a provincial conservation and green energy fund. About $500 million would be generated each year, more than enough to make conservation and alternative energy projects economically viable. For details see http://www.greenontario.org/solutions/energyplan.html. Similar pricing mechanisms can be established for waste reduction (through packaging charges and deposits), public transit (via the gas tax) and smart growth (through development charges). Cooperative Funding we believe the funding is out there, but it is spread thin in many sources each with its own criteria, process and requirements for profiling the granting agency. Funding sources for conservation initiatives are possibly even more fractured than the organizations applying for grants. We need better coordination and cooperation between the many government, foundation and corporate sources, in particular for key issues where cooperation is vital such as energy conservation and waste reduction. For further insight into recent trends in funding for the charitable sector, see Funding Matters by the Canadian Council on Social Development http://www.ccsd.ca/pubs/2003/fm/ Next Issue The Local Picture rebuilding the Conservation Council of Ontario. *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.web.net/archives/greenon-l/attachments/20031120/a6672f44/attachment.html From cco at web.ca Fri Nov 21 18:43:05 2003 From: cco at web.ca (Conservation Council of Ontario) Date: Thu Nov 25 17:30:12 2004 Subject: [greenon-l] Join the CCO Message-ID: <4.2.0.58.20031121175739.00b12c70@pop.web.ca> Green On. The Conservation Council of Ontario's e-newsletter Please forward to your friends. November 21, 2003 An invitation to join the Conservation Council of Ontario In This Issue The Movement for Conservation: New Directions for the Conservation Council of Ontario A Call for New Individual Members and Member Organizations Come to our Annual Meeting Monday December 1, 2003 9:00am to 11:30am Room 313, Metro Hall 55 John Street, Toronto The Movement for Conservation: New Directions for the Conservation Council of Ontario Welcome to the Conservation Council of Ontario: fifty years old and with a rejuvenated mission: We want to make Ontario a conserver society. This is a big challenge, far bigger than any one organization can accomplish alone. It can only be achieved through a united effort, where each participating organization contributes its own particular expertise and programs, and where we recognize and support each other?s contributions. Last year, over a hundred groups participated in our Green Ontario survey and an Eco Summit conference. The message was clear -- Ontario needs a strong conservation movement. Based on the comments and suggestions received, we produced ?Greening Ontario?, a strategy for rebuilding Ontario?s conservation and environmental movement. We?ve now developed our own strategic directions for the Conservation Council that are designed to rebuild the organization, provide support services to communities and to a wide range of organizations involved in conservation efforts. The Conservation Council of Ontario will: 1. be a strong voice for conservation and the role of non-governmental organizations in providing public outreach and support services for conservation. 2. support community-based networking, planning, and training for conservation outreach 3. support organizations in their areas of conservation expertise, and 4. develop partnerships and campaigns to promote conservation solutions We believe Ontario needs a strong solutions-oriented conservation movement. We hope you agree. To download a copy of the Greening Ontario strategy paper, or ?The Movement for Conservation? (the Conservation Council?s strategic directions) please go to http://www.greenontario.org/conserve.html Get Involved: A Call for New Individual Members and Member Organizations Wanted: conservation leaders to help build a movement. Apply within. If you can help build Ontario?s conservation movement, or if your organization can deliver conservation programs, then please join the Conservation Council of Ontario. We offer two types of membership designed to bring together the organizations and individuals who are actively working to develop and implement conservation solutions Member Organization: open to Ontario non-governmental organizations and subject to approval by the existing membership. We are looking for groups that can contribute skills, resources and services in support of conservation, including research, support services, and public and/or member outreach programs. Annual membership fees are $150, negotiable according to the group?s budget. Individual Members: open to individual conservation leaders in Ontario who can contribute their expertise and energy to support conservation projects. Individual Members are elected annually and new members are proposed by the Nominating Committee of the Board of Directors. There is no membership fee, just a commitment to contribute time and services to Council projects and meetings. To view our existing membership, go to http://www.greenontario.org/cco/members.html If you are interested in becoming a member, please contact our Executive Director, Chris Winter, at (416) 533-1635, or by e-mail at cco@web.ca. Please note: we also expect to be offering a public membership category in the near future. Come to our Annual Meeting We?re holding our annual meeting on December 1st, where we?ll be reviewing the strategic directions and developing plans for building Ontario?s conservation movement. All are welcome. Monday December 1, 2003 9:00am to 11:30am Room 313, Metro Hall 55 John Street, Toronto Please RSVP to cco@web.ca if you are going to attend. Copies of the Greening Ontario strategy paper will be available at the meeting. *************************** Promoting conservation leadership, cooperation, and action for over 50 years The Conservation Council of Ontario 43 Sorauren Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M6R 2C8 (416) 533-1635 www.greenontario.org Chris Winter, Executive Director -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://list.web.net/archives/greenon-l/attachments/20031121/74cfcdb9/attachment.html