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“Make it personal and local.” These five words summarize a best practice for climate-related communications and reaching real people in real communities. Read on for several examples of where CEA staff have fostered in-person engagement in communities around BC, inspiring local participation and showcasing local leadership.
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RECENT ENGAGEMENT - Community engagement and local planning from Atlin, Clearwater and Gibsons
- Fleet Forward Finale
- Regional training for affordable, high-performing homes
NEW RESOURCES - Power to Act: Emerging regulatory pathways for local climate action in BC
- Electrifying multi-unit residential buildings
- Lessons from Township of Langley on builder engagement
UPCOMING EVENTS - Free training for building officials on Building Code requirement for heating and cooling calculations
- Peer Network meetings
| | | | | | | | | | Community engagement and local planning
CEA’s work on community plans related to energy, climate action, and resiliency has recently included a variety of in-person activities designed to foster community participation.
Atlin: School tour of a local energy showpiece
CEA is helping to develop a Community Energy Plan for Atlin that will be the first since its local hydroelectric system was built more than 15 years ago, when it was the first 100% Indigenous-owned renewable energy project in Canada. As part of local outreach to inform the development of the new community plan, CEA organized a tour of the hydro system in September for students at the Atlin School. The tour (in the photograph above) was combined with assignments to help the students identify how they use energy and how they imagine energy in their community in the future.
Clearwater: Using community issues as a conversation starter
The development of a climate action plan for Clearwater has involved a community engagement session to help ensure the plan will reflect local priorities and values, in addition to ideas for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. CEA staff encouraged participants at last month’s event to identify community priorities – examples included local jobs, health and well-being, and affordability – along with their interest in climate-related initiatives related to transportation, buildings, and local food. The input will be used to craft a plan that’s locally meaningful, with actions that can actually be achieved.
| | | | Gibsons: Thriving as the climate changes
What changes will enable the residents of Gibsons to thrive even as climate change brings rising sea levels, more wildfires, and higher temperatures? This was the question posed to residents (photographed above) providing input into a new plan for how Gibsons could be a low-carbon, resilient community. Beyond thinking of ways to reduce emissions, residents contemplated how their community would respond in the face of new or more frequent climate-related hazards. What would those hazards mean for things like transportation, housing, and land use?
The ideas raised by the community will be incorporated into a Low Carbon Resilience Plan for Gibsons, which is being produced in partnership with CEA.
| | | | | | Fleet Forward Finale
A unique series of showcases that were organized and presented by CEA to increase familiarity with zero-emission medium and heavy-duty vehicles has wrapped up. “Fleet Forward” attracted nearly 250 attendees to events in Victoria, Burnaby, Prince George (photographed above), and Kamloops (below). Along with presentations from early adopters, utilities, and solution providers, the events included hands-on exposure to 27 vehicles ranging from an all-electric delivery van to a hydrogen-fuelled transport truck.
Danielle Wiess, CEA Director of Transportation Initiatives: “Wherever we went, there was a real curiosity about the latest vehicles and a genuine interest in learning from peers about early experiences people have had with incorporating electric and other zero-emission technologies into fleets. It was great to have a large group of college and high school students join the session Kamloops and we were blown away by attendees who travelled nearly 800km to attend the session in Prince George.”
| | | | The Fleet Forward events are part of a multi-year CEA project designed to enable greater adoption of zero emission vehicles into fleets. All events are made possible with funding and support from Natural Resources Canada, the Province of British Columbia, and BC Hydro.
| | | | | | Regional training for affordable, high-performing homes
Contractors, housing staff, building officials, and trades apprentices gathered in Terrace last month to learn about the importance of working together to plan new construction and retrofit projects through the lens of an Integrated Design Process (IDP). The course was delivered by CEA in conjunction with the Northern BC Chapter of the Canadian Home Builders Association and is part of a series of in-person IDP training, which included Prince George in September and Williams Lake later this week.
IDP is a foundational approach to home-building that enhances efficiency and cost-effectiveness. The event also featured local contractors who demonstrated best practices for right-sizing HVAC and mechanical systems for cold climates.
| | | | | | | | | | | | Power to Act: Emerging regulatory pathways for local climate action in BC
While higher levels of government are critical to advancing climate policies, many of the impacts of climate change are being felt at the community level. Local governments need ways to start taking action now. Fortunately, some of the most effective climate tools are already available to local governments through their regulatory powers—things like zoning bylaws, development permits, and covenants. These are powerful tools, but underused. A new resource developed by CEA aims to change that. Power to Act offers practical, legally vetted guidance to help municipal staff and elected officials use their underutilized regulatory powers to advance electrification and climate initiatives. Readers can explore pathways for taking action on mobility, new housing and retrofits. Along with plain language explanations, the resource connects readers to a legal review conducted by Lidstone & Company, a BC-based law firm specializing in municipal law. Power to Act is intended to be a continual work in progress, with more content to be added in the future. Start exploring these emerging regulatory pathways for local governments.
| | | | | | | | Electrifying multi-unit residential buildings
Local governments interested in expanding access to EV-charging in existing multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs) can now access a new resource to assist with policy development and local implementation. “Electric Vehicle Charging in Multi-Unit Residential Buildings” compiles practical tools, programs, and regulatory options to help local governments make charging more accessible in MURBs.
| | | | | | | | Lessons from Township of Langley on builder engagement
The Township of Langley has demonstrated that a regular series of builder-education activities – both in-person and online – have been successful in preparing the local construction community for changes related to the Energy Step Code and the Zero Carbon Step Code.
The community’s experience and learnings from its Builder Forum Series are outlined in a new case study produced by CEA and funded by BC Hydro. The Coles notes: If communities want better buildings, talk to builders and invest in their training.
| | | | | | | | | | Free training for building officials on Building Code requirement for heating and cooling calculations
Did you know the BC Building Code requires a heat loss/gain calculation for sizing HVAC equipment for new homes and retrofits?
CSA Group’s F280-12 standard is the recognized method and, increasingly, municipalities are enforcing this code requirement.
That means all building officials (and local builders and contractors) need to know how to collect data for F280-12 calculations and how to interpret the data to choose the optimal heat pump equipment.
RSVP for Part 2 of our free webinar series, so you can learn what you need to know to ensure code compliance.
📅 How to Interpret F280-12 Calculations Nov. 20, 2025
| | | | | | Peer Network Meetings
Building Officials Lunch & Learn Nov. 6, 2025 Discuss strategies to ensure compliance with the BC Building Code's new "protection from overheating" requirements.
Resilience Peer Network Nov. 13, 2025 Learn ways local governments can enhance resiliency by connecting the dots between risk frameworks, land use planning and infrastructure management.
Thompson Okanagan Climate Action Network Nov. 18, 2025
Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities Climate Action Network Nov. 19, 2025
Digital Permitting Peer Network
Nov. 25, 2025
Electric Mobility Peer Network
Nov. 26, 2025
Alberta Climate Leaders: Staff Peer Network
Nov. 27, 2025 Interactive session on effectively communicating local climate action through clear messaging and storytelling.
Lower Mainland Peer Network Dec. 4, 2025
BC Municipal Climate Leadership Council Dec. 8, 2025
| | | | Our Commitment to Truth and Reconciliation
The Community Energy Association commits to the principles of Truth and Reconciliation. As an organization, we support the Calls to Action released by the
Truth and Reconciliation Commision of Canada
and recognize the importance of the self determination of Indigenous Peoples as articulated in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. | | Thank you for subscribing to the CEA Newsletter, our monthly update on local climate and energy initiatives connected to the Community Energy Association. No longer interested? You can easily unsubscribe or update your preferences | | | | | |
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