Call for Expressions of Interest: QUEST Canada seeks Ontario Net-Zero Communities Cohort Participants

April 16, 2025 – Ontario, Canada // QUEST Canada invites small and mid-sized municipalities across Ontario to join the new Ontario Net-zero Communities Accelerator (NCA) program.

With an initial call for a cohort of 15 participating Ontario municipalities, eligible applicants include local governments (Indigenous, municipal, regional or a group of small municipalities and/or bands), or organizations applying on behalf of a local government or a group of local governments (e.g. a local energy distributor or not-for-profit organization).

Why participate?

• Get tailored services to help you develop and/or implement a community energy plan or initiative
• Help reduce your GHG emissions – communities directly and indirectly account for 51% of GHG emissions
• For every % of reduction in community energy use, more dollars are kept in your local economy

To-date, 46 municipalities have participated in the program, across Atlantic Canada and the Prairie Provinces.

Services you’ll receive from QUEST Canada

Included in fees:
1 – Net-Zero Community Energy Benchmark Assessment: together we identify strengths and areas for improvement
2 – Community GHG Inventory (optional)
3 – Energy Mapping and CEEP Development Exercises: together we’ll identify opportunities for energy and emissions reduction
Plus:
4 – Regional and specialty webinars and workshops
5 – Opportunity to profile community successes
6 – National and regional newsletters, and more!

Learn More at our NCA Program in Ontario Webinar

QUEST’s team will undertake much of the work involved. Expectations of participating municipal staff include: helping arrange and sharing information about the above; receiving national and regional e-news and program updates; and, participating in virtual and in-person meetings and workshops.

Once participation is confirmed, QUEST will develop an Net-Zero Communities Accelerator Plan tailored to the community, including a description of the services to be provided to the municipality.

Outputs

In return for your participation, each municipality will receive a Benchmark Assessment report, a Community GHG Inventory (if needed), and a moderated Energy Mapping and Action Planning Workshop to create a Community Energy and Emissions Plan (CEEP), which can be implemented to obtain Milestone 3 of the FCM-ICLEI Partners for Climate Protection Program.

Cost to Participate

Communities will confirm their participation in the program by paying a small fee based on population.

Indigenous communities are exempt from paying program fees.

To Apply

If your municipality or group of municipalities is interested in participating in the initial Ontario NCA cohort of 15 communities, please fill in this online form. Gather ahead of time the following information:

1. Municipal name, address, website
2. Main contact, title, division/department
3. Size and population of Municipality(s)
4. Does your community have an integrated Community Energy and Emissions Plan (CEEP)? (If yes, please attach.)
5. Does your community need help to develop a CEEP? (yes/no)
6. If your community already has a CEEP, what are your highest priority projects for which you may need assistance to bring to life?

• • Local government operations
  • Land use, transit, or active transportation
  • Waste and diversion
  • Renewable / low carbon electricity
  • Renewable / low carbon heat
  • Electric vehicles
  • New commercial buildings
  • Existing commercial buildings
  • New residential buildings
  • Existing residential buildings
  • Sequestration
  • Embodied emissions
  • Other

Deadline

This initial Ontario NCA Program Call for Expressions of Interest closes Friday, June 13, 2025 @ 5:00 pm, Ontario-time.

Apply to become a Net-Zero Community in Ontario

Learn More at our NCA Program in Ontario Webinar

Initial funding courtesy of

What participants say:

“It’s an exciting process, something that’s totally new to us, so there’s a lot to discover, a lot to learn. We appreciate the knowledge and guidance we’ve been getting since joining. And our recent Energy Mapping and CEEP Development Workshops have gotten the ball rolling.”

Katy Doucette

Coordinator of Events and Strategic Projects,
Salisbury, NB

“Our citizens have already shown themselves to be sustainability-minded. There’s plenty of concern out there about the environment, and lots of interest in initiatives and activities that will make our community cleaner, greener and even more liveable. As a structured plan of action, a CEEP will focus and guide us towards those goals.”

Karen Thompson

Manager of Community Engagement, Town of Riverview, NB

“Payback is always top-of-mind, so I try to demonstrate that whenever possible, including with case studies from other communities. As well, I point out that having a CEEP will help us access more financial support programs, which enables us to leverage our own dollars and make them go further.”

Dallas Gillis

Director of Planning and Compliance, Town of Oromocto, NB

Questions?

Please contact Norma Panetta, QUEST Canada’s Lead, Projects at:
npanetta@questcanada.org

NT5