The April Council meeting of 2017 focused a lot on Toronto Community Housing, including the closure of rental units due to serious repair backlogs. Council called on the Provincial Government to commit more funds to social housing and transit projects, and they increased support for building retrofits to improve housing and our environment.
Cities around the world are stepping forward to lead the fight against climate change. Now more than ever, it is crucial for Toronto to commit to ambitious climate actions to reduce our emissions and build a more sustainable and resilient city.
The rising costs of housing for prospective home-buyers and renters has been on a lot of people’s minds lately - and there’s been a lot of speculation in the news about why housing costs continue to rise. A new letter to the Premier, co-signed by TEA and 19 other organizations and individuals, offers a fresh and factually-accurate perspective on the issue.
Community Environment Days are held by City Councillors in every ward of the city from April to September - these are a great one-stop shop to drop off waste, pick up a new green bin, and talk with your Councillor about environmental programs!
It’s Monday, March 20th and members of the development industry are at Queen’s Park trying to convince the Premier and her Cabinet to go ahead with proposed changes to the Greenbelt Plan and Growth Plan that would allow urban sprawl in and around the Greenbelt, forever harming the precious agricultural lands and natural areas that need Greenbelt protection.
When it comes to addressing climate change, we need solutions that help communities and address social inequities. Thanks to a grant from the Atkinson Foundation, TEA is exploring how local climate change investments can do just that.
Despite 10 years of developing laws to promote more cost-effective and environmentally sustainable housing development in and around the GTHA, a new report shows that urban sprawl is still a major threat to our Greenbelt.
Did you know that Scarborough has the highest recycling rate in Toronto?
Every day, hundreds of workers in all parts of Toronto do the hard - and often dangerous - work of picking up our garbage, recycling, organics, yard waste and heavy bulky furniture and appliances.
City Council’s most recent meeting was a heated debate on priorities for the 2017 City Budget and resulted in a mixed bag of wins and losses for climate action.
With too many questions unanswered, City Council voted against a plan to move forward with contracting out waste collection in Scarborough. One of the key questions that TEA brought to Council's attention is why waste diversion (recycling and composting) rates* are worse in districts served by private collectors.
The first Council meeting of 2017 was only a day long, a rarity at City Hall! One of the most important environmental issues they debated was waste collection service in Scarborough. Council also discussed trees, cycling, and how new legal powers might improve waste diversion in Toronto. Here’s what happened.
TEA said a heartfelt goodbye to two departing board members and hello to three new members at this year’s annual general meeting.
After reviewing over 700 requests to remove lands across the Golden Horseshoe, the Province announced it will not shrink Ontario’s Greenbelt.
TEA's Waste Campaigner Emily Alfred addressed the Public Works and Infrastructure Committee about the future of curbside waste collection east of Yonge and highlighted the stark difference between Etobicoke and Scarborough's waste diversion rates.
To ensure Toronto’s new climate change plan succeeds, City Council must invest $1.6 million in the 2017 Budget, an amount far less than the costs of inaction. This was the key message delivered by TEA’s Executive Director delivered to the City’s Budget Committee.
Meet Ben: one of TEA's dedicated canvassers. Ben explains why he loves working for TEA and gives us an inside scoop on canvassing in the City of Toronto.
TEA’s Executive Director, Franz Hartmann, reflects on the life and legacy of lifelong environmentalist Dan McDermott who died on Wednesday, January 4th.
At the last City Council meeting of 2016, Councillors quietly adopted a new climate action plan for our city. This important plan outlines the short-term strategies for achieving an emissions reduction target of 30% by 2020. However, without any new funds to support the action plan we are unlikely to meet our targets.
As 2016 comes to an end and City Council’s four year term hits its halfway point, there’s a lot of attention on City Hall and budget expectations are high. December’s Council meeting stretched for three long days and covered a wide range of environmental issues from road tolls to waste bin fees, public hydro victories to unfunded climate strategies. Here’s what happened.