Building climate-resilient infrastructure ensures your community remains safe, connected, and prepared for the impacts of climate change. From safeguarding buildings and energy grids to strengthening transportation networks, resilience is essential for extending infrastructure lifespans and protecting against extreme weather, rising sea levels and other risks.
This factsheet provides guidance to help Canadian municipalities protect their communities by addressing vulnerabilities, integrating equity-focused designs and preparing for a net-zero future. It guides you through assessing climate risks, incorporating resilience into your plans and securing funding to bring projects to life.
Understand why resilience matters: Lower costs, ensure service continuity and enhance community safety.
Conduct climate risk assessments: Identify risks, assess vulnerabilities and meet grant funding requirements.
Develop effective strategies: Address challenges like flooding, wildfires and permafrost impacts with practical solutions.
Use this factsheet to identify steps towards protecting your community from climate risks, lowering costs and ensuring your infrastructure is prepared for the future.
Download the factsheet and start building a safer, stronger and more resilient future today.
Thank you to the sponsors and partners of FCM's Sustainable Communities Conference (SCC) 2025.
AFMNB - Association francophone
The AFMNB unites 30 Francophone and bilingual municipalities, representing nearly 389,000 people, or half of New Brunswick’s population. It helps to promote strong local governance, essential for building innovative, prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable communities. Recognized as a full-fledged level of government, our municipalities play a pivotal role in the social, cultural, and economic development of the Acadian/Francophone community, while also contributing to its influence on national and international stages.
Carbonzero is a Canadian leader in greenhouse gas (GHG) measurement, reduction, and carbon offsetting. For nearly 20 years, we’ve helped businesses, organizations, and governments prepare for the low-carbon economy by assessing, reporting, and reducing their emissions. Our services include professional consulting, GHG inventories, reduction strategies, and access to high-quality, third-party verified carbon offsets and Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs). With a presence across Canada, Carbonzero is a trusted partner in driving meaningful climate action.
The mission of CSA Group’s Standards Development organization is to enhance the lives of Canadians through the advancement of standards in the public and private sectors. We are a leader in standards research, development, education, and advocacy.
Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) is a sustainability leader through our work in standards, conservation, community, and education. As an independent, non-profit organization, we support our diverse network to help address local and global sustainability challenges through forest-focused collaboration.
Co-operators is driven by our purpose to provide financial security for Canadians and our communities. We’re working today to ensure this purpose is upheld for generations into the future, focused on collaborative and imaginative solutions that build sustainable, resilient communities.
Intact Public Entities has helped Canadian municipalities meet their complex insurance needs for over nine decades. We have the stability and history to support you with a sustainable and trusted insurance program.
Municipalities are at the heart of our business. We understand the importance of offering best-in-class products and services that make it easier for you to do business with us.
Intact Financial Corporation is the largest provider of Property & Casualty insurance in Canada, a leading provider of global specialty insurance and a leader in commercial lines in the U.K. and Ireland. We exist to help people, businesses and society prosper in good times and be resilient in bad times. Our social impact and climate priorities sit alongside our financial goals and are embedded in the company’s strategic roadmap.
Plug’n Drive is a not-for-profit organization accelerating EV adoption in Canada to maximize the environmental and economic benefits of an electrified transportation sector. Since 2011, we have made incredible strides in our mission through a variety of consumer education programs, including the launch of the world’s first Electric Vehicle Discovery Centre (EVDC) in Toronto, the Electric Vehicle Roadshow event series and the Mobile EV Education Trailer (MEET). Our corporate partnerships include EV auto and charger manufacturers, utilities, and others. For more information about Plug’n Drive’s programs, services, and events, visit plugndrive.ca.
NB Lung is your provincial lung health charity, dedicated to supporting individuals living with lung disease through direct patient support, respiratory equipment loans, and a variety of lung health patient services. We are proud of our history of serving New Brunswickers living with lung disease and advocating for improved respiratory care and environmental stewardship in the province since 1933.
Clean Foundation brings specialized teams together to work on complex problems, delivering many climateaction and capacity building projects and initiatives around Nova Scotia, PEI and the Atlantic region.
Clean Foundation brings specialized teams together to work on complex problems, delivering many climate action and capacity building projects and initiatives around Nova Scotia, PEI and the Atlantic region. Learn more about us and the work we do: https://cleanfoundation.ca/ .
Habitat
Habitat is an environmental solutions company that helps organizations in all sectors to integrate nature at the heart of their strategic decisions. We specialize in biodiversity measurement, ecosystem services assessment and sustainable land management planning. Comprising a team of highly qualified professionals in biology, geography and forestry, Habitat offers innovative solutions to facilitate the application of the best available science.
ClimateView is a Swedish technology company equipping governments worldwide with IPCC-based intelligence and tools to plan, finance, and monitor their green transition. Officials, consultancy experts, and elected leaders in 180 municipalities use the industry-leading ClimateView Platform to assess the impact of policies, and track progress with KPIs. Customers include Scotland, Germany’s Ruhr region, the cities of Bristol, Cincinnati and Munich.
Ducks Unlimited Canada has over 85 years of experience conserving, restoring, and managing landscapes to benefit wildlife, water quality, and people. Talk with our team to learn more about how our programming and services can benefit your community!
Re.Climate is Canada’s centre for climate change communication and engagement at Carleton University. Our team has decades of experience conducting research, developing climate, energy, and sustainability campaigns, and training leaders in how to apply evidence-based best practices in outreach efforts.
ReliON delivers the first comprehensive end-to-end Operation & Maintenance (O&M) platform for EV charging infrastructure, offering complete visibility and control over a network’s operational status and issue resolution to optimize uptime and reduce operational complexity. The platform integrates with the supply chain for streamlined field interventions and parts logistics, delivering a cohesive experience from problem detection to resolution.
At Trane®, we partner with our clients to understand how energy effects their business, taking into consideration their assets, visions and goals. As a leading global provider of indoor comfort and energy solutions, Trane® offers solutions to unleash the hidden potential of a building.
Porter O’Brien is an internationally recognized public affairs and management consulting firm based in Eastern Canada. We bring deep, cross-sector experience to a diverse set of clients. Our team of consultants deliver services in public relations, government affairs, market research, marketing, management consulting, and training.
The Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick (UMNB) is a bilingual association of 58 local governments of all sizes, representing over 80% of New Brunswick's population. Together, our members tackle local challenges and share solutions to make life better for their citizens.
As one of the largest professional services firms in the world, WSP exists to future-proof our cities and our environment. It provides strategic advisory, engineering, and design services to clients seeking sustainable solutions in the transportation, infrastructure, environment, building, energy, water, and mining sectors. With close to 13,000 Canadian employees, and 73,900 trusted professionals worldwide, are united by the common purpose of creating positive, long-lasting impacts on the communities it serves through a culture of innovation, integrity, and inclusion.
GREENLAND® Consulting Engineers specializes in civil, water resources, environmental and urban land engineering. Staff and associate offices are located in Ontario, Atlantic and Western Provinces to service Public Sector, Indigenous Peoples and Resource Industry clients. GREENLAND® has established collaborative partnerships with water and wastewater technology providers. These well-established market systems are now being integrated with GREENLAND® decision support tools and were recently showcased in multiple municipal projects involving FCM.
By integrating nature-based solutions into your infrastructure, building or retrofit planning, you can not only build resilience to climate change but also help to sustain local biodiversity, improve air and water quality, and offer physical and mental health benefits. Within the development of green infrastructure, natural assets such as wetlands, forests, meadows, shorelines, lakes, ponds, and groundwater aquifers can be incorporated into municipal services such as stormwater management, flood control, and erosion control in order to promote resilience to climate change and achieve a net gain in biodiversity.
This factsheet will give you valuable information about why integrating nature-based solutions into municipal infrastructure projects is a great investment. Defining key terms such as biodiversity, natural assets, and green infrastructure, it will guide you through important considerations for integrating the benefits of nature into your projects.
The City of Markham, in Ontario, held a Battle of the Buildings competition inspired by Energy Star's National Building Competition and designed to empower and encourage facility staff and users to reduce electricity consumption through practical low- and no-cost operational and behavioral changes, while also boosting engagement and awareness around energy efficiency.
Background
The competition was initiated by the City of Markham’s Manager of Corporate Energy in response to the development of a Corporate Energy Management Plan in 2014 and has inspired other municipalities to do the same, such as the Regional ClimateWise Challenge in York Region.
This case study focuses on the last competition held in 2018. In 2019, Markham updated their Corporate Energy Management Plan and needed to re-align the competition with the new baseline. The competition was set to restart in 2020, however, external factors, including the Covid-19 pandemic, disrupted these plans and the competition has not yet restarted.
From its inception to its final year in 2018, the competition demonstrated a commitment to sustainable practices and community involvement, emphasizing the importance of energy efficiency and environmental stewardship.
What the competition set out to achieve
The objective of the competition was to educate staff on how local facilities use energy and how to identify operational behavioral changes that could significantly impact energy consumption, cost savings and greenhouse gas emissions reduction.
Approach
The competition ran for four years from 2015 to 2018. In 2015, the initial competition ran for three months, from January to March, and participation was limited to large community centres. From 2016 onward, the competition extended to six months (January to June) and participation was opened to both large and small community centres, as well as administrative facilities. Participants competed in separate categories based on facility type.
To encourage staff participation and make energy efficiency more engaging, prizes were awarded to winners of five categories based on overall energy reductions (Table 1).
Table 1. 2018 Battle of the Buildings award categories
Award categories
Overall reduction (%)
Most energy-efficient building
Lowest electricity intensity (kWh/square foot)
Platinum
Best energy reduction performer
Gold
At least 15%
Silver
At least 10%
Bronze
At least 5%
Some of the prizes included monthly pizza lunches and movie tickets. The big prize for winning the battle was $1,000 which could be used by the winning team toward energy conservation initiatives such as weather sealing and LED light installation. Overall, the budget for visuals, posters, food, certificates, movie tickets and prizes was about $10,000, excluding staff time.
Barriers and solutions
Markham’s energy staff encountered several challenges running the competition, including:
setting accurate baselines
designing effective incentive structures
preparing clear informational materials
dedicating sufficient staff time and resources to manage the competition efficiently
Staff overcame challenges by creating an engaging communication plan, using easy-to-understand visuals and reporting results in relatable terms such as energy and cost savings. They collaborated with the communications department to produce materials such as posters, banners and newsletters while recognizing achievements through monthly celebrations.
Data analysis was conducted to track anomalies, and the competition was gradually scaled up with feedback-driven improvements. The City also engaged local post-secondary students and interns to assist with the launch of the competition.
Results in 2018
Annual electricity cost savings of $100,000.
Annual electricity savings of more than 700,000 kWh.
In total, the winning facility achieved a cumulative energy reduction of 24% over six months, while the second- and third-place facilities reduced their energy consumption by 15% and 12% respectively.
Overall, the average energy reduction from this effort across all participating facilities was 8%.
The winners of the 2018 categories can be found in Table 2.
Table 2. 2018 Battle of the Buildings winners
Certificate / Award
Overall reduction (%)
Winners
Platinum
Best energy reduction performer
Centennial Community Centre
Gold
>15% energy reduction
Centennial Community Centre 8100 Warden
Silver
>10% energy reduction
Markham Village Arena Crosby Arena Clatworthy Arena
Bronze
>5% energy reduction
Angus Glen Community Centre Civic Centre Pan Am Community Centre Cornell Community Centre
Most energy-efficient building
Large multi-use
Milliken Mills Community Centre
Most energy-efficient building
Small arena
Markham Village Arena
Most energy-efficient building
Fitness and administrative
8100 Warden
Benefits
The competition engaged and educated facility staff by encouraging them to review energy data and bills, exchange ideas and improve their awareness of energy use and management. It fostered the adoption of best practices, generated project ideas aimed at improving efficiency and triggered investigations into anomalies or re-commissioning projects. Additionally, it made the workplace more fun and collaborative.
Lessons learned
Lessons learned from the competition include:
The importance of extending the timeline to six months for better engagement and even considering expanding it to 12 months.
The scope of the competition could be expanded to include thermal energy monitoring and reporting (i.e., natural gas, district energy).
Installing real-time energy meters would support timely data analysis and quicker anomaly detection.
Incorporating weather normalization into the process is recommended.
Engaging local staff to read meters can provide immediate results.
Running the competition is time-intensive and requires sufficient staffing capacity. Hiring interns and college students was essential to success.
Next steps
The City of Markham has no current plans to relaunch the competition, but remains interested in pursuing it in the future. Presently, the staff continues to advance corporate energy efficiency by analyzing more trends in real-time metering and building automation systems (BAS) and adding thermal (natural gas and district energy) tracking. The City aims to create a recommissioning program with predictable cycles between BAS retrofits and to align its baseline to its new five-year corporate energy management plan.
Want to explore all GMF-funded projects? Check out the Projects Database for a complete overview of funded projects and get inspired by municipalities of all sizes, across Canada.
Discover how standards can help your municipality tackle climate risks head-on. This one-hour webinar explored how the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Group National Flood Resilience standards and other tools could elevate your municipality's climate action.
The webinar was delivered in English with French simultaneous interpretation (SI).
Watch the webinar recording to learn more about:
What national standards and guides can strengthen your municipal climate adaptation plans
Practical steps for incorporating these standards into municipal bylaws and policies
Real-world examples of municipalities that have successfully used these standards to mitigate climate risks
Speakers:
Jeff Menard, Program Manager, CSA Group
Bill Given, CAO, Jasper, AB, and former mayor of Grand Prairie, AB
This webinar is especially beneficial for municipal staff involved in climate planning, asset management and community resilience initiatives, particularly in communities with limited resources or in-house expertise. It will be most valuable for municipalities at the beginning stages of planning and developing a climate strategy.
The Climate-Ready Communities (CRC) Assessment Tool empowers local governments to evaluate and enhance their climate adaptation efforts. Through a structured self-assessment, the CRC assessment tool can help your municipality identify gaps and next steps and find effective ways to integrate adaptation into existing municipal processes. The pillars of the CRC Assessment Tool are interdependent. Each play an important role in supporting a community's pathway to becoming more resilient to climate impacts. On this webpage you will find three steps to get started on your journey: the assessment tool, tip sheets to read before you begin, and a guide and video to walk you through the process to complete.
Step one: Download the Climate-Ready Communities Assessment Tool
Evaluate your climate adaptation progress and identify how you can boost resilience with the Climate-Ready Communities Assessment Tool.
Benefits: Helps municipalities evaluate their climate adaptation efforts, pinpoint areas for improvement, and create a clear plan for strengthening adaptation efforts.
What you will learn: Gain insights into your municipality's current resilience, identify key areas for growth, and develop actionable strategies to integrate climate adaptation into existing processes.
Who should use it: Designed for local governments of all sizes and locations across Canada.
Access the Tool Please download the file and save it to your computer to ensure full functionality.
Things to know before you begin
Collaborative Process: This tool is meant to be used in collaboration with key municipal departments.
Time Commitment: The tool is designed to be thorough, and municipalities should expect to dedicate approximately one week to gather input, assess current resilience, and develop a roadmap for improvement.
Starting Point: If your municipality has not yet conducted a climate risk assessment, it is recommended to start there. The tool builds on this foundational work.
Step two: Discover key considerations in the tip sheets
Reconciliation & Inclusion
Find tips and examples for integrating Reconciliation, anti-racism, equity and inclusion into your climate adaptation activities.
The Green Municipal Fund’s Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH) initiative offers support to affordable housing providers—including municipal and not-for-profit organizations and housing co-ops—to construct energy-efficient new builds or retrofit existing affordable housing units that reduce GHG emissions.
Because a deep energy retrofit can be disruptive, engaging with residents is an important part of the process. This webinar aims to help housing providers develop their own plans for resident engagement that consider the unique circumstances of each project.
This webinar was delivered in English with French simultaneous interpretation.
Watch the webinar recording to learn:
How to effectively communicate to residents the challenges and disruptions associated with a deep energy retrofit, as well as the tangible benefits they’ll see as a result
Examples of best practices for resident engagement, such as training for new equipment
The positive effects of effectively engaging with residents to emphasize benefits such as energy efficiency, cost savings and quality of life
Lessons learned from previous projects that can be adapted and applied to your own project
How SAH’s funding and resources can help your project
Speakers:
Kaitlin Carroll, The Atmospheric Fund
Jon Jackson, Sarcee Meadows Co-op
FCM’s Sustainable Affordable Housing initiative is delivered through our Green Municipal Fund and funded by the Government of Canada.
Course: Building climate resilience with asset management
How to protect municipal infrastructure from climate hazards
Courses and training
Take this self-paced 10-module course and build climate resilience with asset management
Climate hazards like flooding, drought, extreme storms, and increased precipitation pose significant challenges to communities across Canada's diverse and varied landscapes. While these challenges are experienced differently across regions, they can threaten the reliability of municipal infrastructure and the vital services they deliver to residents and businesses.
It is important that local governments prioritize and integrate climate planning into their municipal decision-making processes so that they can guarantee the efficiency of infrastructure for current and future climate impacts.
Learn about the importance of integrating climate action into asset management planning with the Building climate resilience with asset management course.
This free, 10-module course is self-paced, with each module taking approximately 30-45 minutes to complete. It is designed for municipal practitioners from communities of all sizes, who are already familiar with the basic concepts of climate resilience and are looking to take their planning to the next level.
In this course, you’ll learn about:
How weather and climate change impact regions, communities and people
A framework for building climate resilience with asset management
How setting levels of service fits into municipal climate resilience
How to embed climate resilience strategies into your community’s plans and processes
