Focus Area: Climate

All sectors of society can contribute to reducing carbon emissions. We support projects that address systemic barriers to reducing carbon emissions such as effective climate communications and public policy changes.

We will support organizations and coalitions advancing climate mitigation projects in a collaborative manner. Specifically, we require that organizations and coalitions indicate in their grant request the economic or societal sector they are operating in, indicate the emissions reduction potential associated with that sector and how their project advances a pathway to net-zero by 2050.  Sectors may include renewable energy generation, energy retrofit of buildings, sustainable mobility solutions, regenerative and climate resilient agriculture, training and other transition support for the labour force impacted by the transition. While nature-based climate solutions are essential to addressing the climate crisis, the Foundation will not support projects advancing nature-based solutions such as reforestation and tree planting, nature conservation or biodiversity preservation.

Criteria questions for climate solutions: 

• How does your project contribute to climate mitigation?
• How is your project contributing to reaching a net- zero carbon economy?
• Applicants must identify in which sector the Greenhouse Gas emissions reduction would take place, and quantify if possible.

An equitable transition to a net-zero carbon economy requires that those individuals, groups and populations that have been traditionally excluded, marginalized or underrepresented in climate solutions, and those who are most vulnerable to the impact of climate change, be resourced and empowered to participate in climate solutions that affect them.

We want to strengthen organizations who represent marginalized and vulnerable groups and support a greater diversity of individuals to participate in the net-zero carbon economy transition.

This may include organizations representing:

• Racialized individuals
• Youth
• Newcomers to Canada
• Women
• Workers in fossil fuel industries
• Communities who depend on fossil fuel industries for employment and tax revenues
• Northern communities who are most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change
• Canadians facing energy poverty
• Indigenous communities

Criteria questions for diversity and inclusion:

• Applicants must describe the diversity and inclusion challenge or opportunity the proposed initiative is responding to.
• Is your project led by equity-seeking individuals or communities?
• How are you including or supporting individuals or communities that are underrepresented in the decision making and/or leadership of your organization?
• How will your project increase equity (fair redistribution of costs or benefits) in the net zero- carbon economy?

Canada cannot reach a net-zero carbon economy without significant investments of capital from the private sector. In addition, climate change poses significant risks to Canada’s financial sector including physical risks of intensifying weather events, the financial risks of stranded assets, and wider risks to the system of increased volatility and unpredictability.

This transition requires major shifts in the flow of  capital investment and risk management across different sectors, including renewable energy, sustainable mobility systems, building energy efficiency, climate resilient agriculture and clean technologies.

Currently, knowledge and data gaps in Canada prevent asset managers, public pension-fund managers, financial institutions from making these sustainable finance investment decisions at the scale that is needed. Meanwhile, the rest of the world is moving ahead rapidly in strengthening climate risk disclosure practices, decarbonizing their investment portfolios and attracting private capital investment in their clean technology sector. Canadian companies need to seize these new market opportunities and attract capital investors in Canada if we are to remain competitive and prosper in the new global climate economy.

The Foundation will support projects that advance climate risk disclosure across the financial sector and that address specific barriers, data and knowledge gaps needed for financial institutions, asset managers, pension fund boards and corporate boards to advance sustainable finance.

Criteria questions for sustainable finance projects or organizations:

• How does your project advance capacity and expertise in sustainable finance in Canada?
• Who in the financial sector would benefit from your project?
• What are the gaps that your project is addressing to advance sustainable finance?
• How will your project facilitate private or public capital moving out of carbon-intensive activities or into climate mitigation solutions?
• How will your project increase equity (fair redistribution of costs or benefits) in the net- zero carbon economy?