
GTHA Energy Benchmarking
You can’t change what you don’t measure. In 2020, our 3-year long Faith Building Energy Benchmarking Program came to an end. This project engaged over 100 faith groups in tracking their electric, gas, and GHG consumption with monthly data from their utility companies.
Diverse religious communities participated in the program including Jewish, Muslim, and numerous Christian denominations. Happily, the changes brought about as a result of this unique program will have a long-lasting effect with over half of the participants committing to continuing to track their energy data in the future and implement necessary improvements.
Three Years of Energy Benchmarking Project Wraps Up
Also, our Ottawa Chapter launched their Energy Benchmarking Program in August.
Faithful Footprints Sustainability Report
With the United Church of Canada (UCC), we produced our first Faithful Footprints Sustainability Report – an initiative that offers grants and support for churches to measure their energy use and reduce their climate pollution, in ways that save money and strengthen congregational renewal (UCC has invested $3 million to reduce GHG 80% by 2050). See the Faithful Footprints website for more.
Community Space, Faith Place
Our two-year study, “No Space for Community,” conducted in partnership with the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Ontario Nonprofit Network, the City of Toronto, Cardus, and the National Trust for Canada, gathered new data through surveys of existing non-profit and community groups that make use of faith-building space.
“The survey results have made it clear that faith buildings are host to a myriad of groups including a large number of daycares and arts groups who have their offices and performing spaces in faith buildings... If the faith buildings close, what will happen to these groups and the people they bring together?”, says Kendra Fry, project lead.
Visit communityspacefaithplace.org to download the full report and view more resources.
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