The Green Municipal Fund (GMF) Council does critical work to guide and support GMF, a fund that invests in innovative and effective environmental programs across Canada. The Council also provides advice, as required, to FCM's Board of Directors.

The members of the GMF Council are leaders from the federal, municipal and environmental sectors. One-third of Council members are Government of Canada representatives, one-third are elected municipal officials appointed by FCM's Board of Directors, and one-third are external members representing the public, private, academic and environment sectors. We're proud to have these innovators and champions of environmental sustainability on the GMF Council.

Members representing the municipal sector

Alan DeSousa
Mayor DeSousa is serving his sixth term as the Mayor of Saint-Laurent, QC and has served on the City of Montreal's executive committee for over 11 years. He also served on the Montreal Metropolitan Community (MMC) council from 2002 to 2017 and was a member of the MMC executive committee for eight years. In 2022, he was named Chair of the Green Municipal Fund Council. Mayor DeSousa is the architect of Montreal's sustainable development and environmental policies, taking them from planning to implementation. Under his leadership, Saint-Laurent became sustainable municipal territory in 2019 and became the same year the first Québec municipal entity with over 100,000 residents to complete the final phase of the Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) program.

Shanon Zachidniak
Shanon is serving her first term as the Ward 8 City Councillor in Regina, SK. In that role, she is the co-chair of the Community Advisory Group for the city’s Energy & Sustainability Framework. A passionate community builder, her work has included management roles with several organizations. She has a Master’s degree in Environmental Studies and a Bachelor’s in Journalism. She has served on the board of several non-profits and is the founder of Regina’s award-winning EnviroCollective & co-founder of Food Regina. Shanon and her husband, John, have two sons—Wylie and Ivan—and a dog named Penny.

Gabrielle Blatz
Gabrielle Blatz was first elected to city council in Wetaskiwin, Alberta in 2019. As a Metis woman, she has always had deep roots and passion for environmentalism. With her role on council, she has been able to transfer that passion for the environment into her community. In 2021, Wetaskiwin became home to an edible urban forest after she highlighted the benefits of urban forests in a presentation. This became the catalyst in her career for exploring ways for smaller municipalities to become leaders in accessible sustainability practices. Climate action, sustainability and green initiatives are the future of our country, and it will take communities of all sizes to make a positive impact on generations to come.

Brittany Merrifield
Brittany Merrifield is the Mayor of Grand Bay-Westfield, President of the Union of Municipalities of New Brunswick, and a dedicated community leader known for her advocacy in sustainable growth, fiscal reform, and climate action. She contributes to national policy as an active member of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Board of Directors and brings local insight to broader conversations. A small business owner and mother of four, Brittany also co-leads 100 Women Who Care of Greater Saint John, helping raise over $1.1 million for local charities through collective community giving.

Members representing the federal government

Ben Copp
Ben Copp is the Director General of the Office of Energy Efficiency at National Resources Canada.  Prior to this role, Ben was Senior Director of the Strategic Policy and Analysis Division in the Office of Energy Efficiency. Ben has worked for the Government of Canada for 19 years, and prior to his current role, has held positions as the Director of Resource Division at Treasury Board Secretariat, as the Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at Natural Resources Canada and as Senior Advisor in the Priorities and Planning Sector at the Privy Council Office. Prior to joining the federal government, Ben worked in the Ministry of Finance with the Government of British Columbia and in two municipal governments in British Columbia. 

Jocelyn Millette Ph.D, P. Eng.
Director general of CanmetENERGY in Varennes since February 2019. CanmetENERGY is Canada’s leading research and technology organization in the field of clean energy, namely in Buildings and Communities, Renewables, Industrial Processes and the world-leading RETScreen tool. From 1996 to 2019, he worked for LTE - the Hydro-Québec research institute's energy technology laboratory - as a researcher and later as the head of the LTE. His domains of expertise are energy conversion, heat and mass transfer and building physics.

Jeff MacDonald 
Since 2021, Jeff MacDonald has been the Director General, Climate Change Adaptation at Environment and Climate Change Canada. His directorate includes climate change adaptation policy and the Canadian Centre for Climate Services and is responsible for the development and implementation of Canada’s National Adaptation Strategy. Jeff has held several executive positions over the past 20 years at four federal departments and agencies. He is a skilled negotiator with international, intergovernmental and indigenous experience.

Ramsey Wright 
Ramsey has spent the past 5 years developing and implementing national programs at Environment and Climate Change Canada to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. As the Acting Director General of the Programs Directorate, he currently oversees the administration of the Low Carbon Economy Fund and the Output Based Pricing System Proceeds Fund. Outside of his federal experience, Ramsey serves as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of Just Food, a nonprofit supporting sustainable food and farming systems in the Ottawa region. 

Lo Cheng
Director General of Environment and Infrastructure Policy at Infrastructure Canada, Lo Cheng advances low carbon, resilient infrastructure systems that serve communities. Previously, Lo was with Environment and Climate Change Canada where she negotiated internationally, developed policies and regulations and managed programs. Most recently, she established the Canadian Centre for Climate Services to provide Canadians with the data, tools, and training to incorporate climate in their decisions. Lo is an environmental engineer with a Master of Business Administration from Queens University.  

Will Meneray 
Will Meneray is a Senior Manager with Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation (CMHC). Will leads a team of housing policy specialists focused on long-term policy planning for climate adaptation, affordability, and market stability in the housing sector. Will has more than a decade of experience working in finance and innovation, having previously worked as an Associate Partner with the global management consulting firm Oliver Wyman. He is a graduate of the Ivey Business School in London, Ontario.

Members representing the public, private, academic and environment sectors

Vito Dellerba
Vito Dellerba is currently a Managing Director in the Sustainable Investing team at Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ). For a year prior to this role, Vito was Head of Sustainability at CDPQ’s commercial real estate lending subsidiary, Otéra Capital. From 2015 to 2023 he spent eight years as Senior Director, Government Credit managing a portfolio of quasi sovereign fixed income. He started his career at Cordiant Capital, a private debt fund manager, where he spent 10 years in the investment team progressing from Analyst to Deputy Chief Investment Officer. In addition to his Chartered Financial Analyst certification, Vito holds a bachelor's degree in finance from Concordia University's John Molson School of Business, and an MBA from Cornell University's Johnson Graduate School of Business in New York.

Ursula Eicker
Ursula Eicker is the Canada Excellence Research Chair (CERC) in Smart, Sustainable and Resilient Communities and Cities and Founder and Director of the Next-Generation Cities Institute at Concordia University in Montréal. She works on decarbonization strategies for cities using living labs and urban digital twins for scenario modeling, user engagement and operational optimization. Her research interests cover zero emission and smart cities, renewable energy integration, and sustainable urban infrastructure. With a team of about 50 graduate students and software developers she is working on multiple eco-district projects in Canada and builds the urban modeling and data analytics platform Tools4Cities. To engage users, 3D city models can be accessed via web interfaces or immersive gamification tools. Prof. Eicker has published 8 books, 20 book contributions, over 140 Peer-Reviewed Papers and more than 340 Conference Papers.

Jonathan Frank
Jon has expertise in sustainability-focused finance, development, engineering, construction and M&A in the areas of renewable power generation, energy efficiency retrofits, geothermal heating and cooling, electric vehicle charging and energy storage. He has worked in start-ups, large private and public companies, and regulated financial institutions. Today, Jon is the Chief Development Officer at CABN, a cleantech company advancing prefabricated, net-zero and zero-carbon material buildings. Prior to this, Jon was Vice President at StoneWood Group, a boutique executive search firm, Head of Clean Energy Finance at Vancity Community Investment Bank and Managing Director and Head of Project Finance at CoPower. In addition to GMF, Jon has served on several advisory committees on low-carbon strategies, including the Canadian Green Building Council, the City of Toronto, and MaRS Discovery District.

Graeme Hussey
Graeme Hussey is the Director, Affordable Housing for Windmill Development Group, and a recognized national expert in the creation of affordable housing. Previously Graeme was the Director of Housing Development for Centretown Citizens Ottawa Corporation (CCOC) and President of Cahdco. He was the creator of the Toolbox+ by Cahdco, a national affordable housing community of practice and has led the creation of more then 1,000 non-profit affordable homes in Ottawa.

Parminder Sandhu
Parminder Sandhu is an entrepreneur with over 25 years experience operating at the intersection of public policy needs and private sector innovation to deliver market-based solutions.  His experience includes starting and scaling businesses, managing investment portfolios, and public service.  He has served on several boards and advocates for governance, outcomes orientation, and being mandate driven.


 

Share the satisfaction of working to improve the quality of life in communities across Canada. Visit FCM’s careers page to view current opportunities

Our core values

  • Listen and engage: we aspire to be an open, inclusive and empowering organization. We are transformed by our conversations and our partnerships.
  • Learn and educate: we share our knowledge and expertise and learn from others, internally and externally.
  • Make a difference: we act decisively to achieve results for our communities, our cities, and our workplace.
  • Collaborate and unite: we are committed to building a diverse and strong team. We work collaboratively and respectfully to achieve our goals.

Our core values reflect who we are and who we want to be. We hope they’ll resonate with you. These values help us create and sustain a respectful and balanced workplace—one that provides work that’s diverse and satisfying.

Discover the members of the Peer-to-Peer Network

On July 20, 2022, the CCRI announced the 15 local governments and communities selected to participate in their new Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Network. Located from Squamish, British Columbia, to Haute-Yamaska and Granby, Quebec, members of this Network have direct access to leading experts in the field and connect with local governments and communities across the country, develop their own circular economy roadmaps for their local regions, and much more. Learn more about the participants and the P2P Network today.

Local communities have a unique role to play in accelerating the transition to a circular economy. Cities and regions are leading the way in this transition, acting as hubs for innovation and culture, and engines of economic activity.

The Circular Cities & Regions Initiative (CCRI) aims to advance circular economy knowledge sharing and capacity building in Canadian cities and communities of all sizes. This one-year pilot was created and developed by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Green Municipal Fund (GMF), the National Zero Waste Council, the Recycling Council of Alberta and RECYC-QUÉBEC.

Through direct support, locally focused guidance tailored to their needs, and access to a peer network that encourages and fosters collaboration amongst participants, those taking part in CCRI have the opportunity to:

  • learn how to get started and to embed circular economy approaches in their respective communities;
  • access one-on-one mentoring and workshops offered by circular economy experts in Canada and worldwide, to support and advise on the development of their local circular economy roadmap; 
  • identify benefits to the members of their communities, challenges to overcome and opportunities during this transition;
  • collect lessons learned and best practices to support the future transition of other cities and regions to a circular economy;
  • access monthly peer-to-peer (P2P) workshops that bring together participating communities to exchange ideas with peers across the country, while embarking on their own unique circular economy journey.

Want to learn more about circular economy?

Interested in learning more about how the circular economy can come to life in cities and regions? Review the CCRI webinar recordings featuring speakers from leading organizations and global cities. Webinars are delivered in English with French simultaneous interpretation. Watch the recordings today.

For more information on CCRI, please visit canadiancircularcities.ca

Still have questions?

For more information about CCRI and the Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Network, please contact us.

government-of-canada-logo

Delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, GMF manages approximately $2.4B in programs funded by the Government of Canada.

Launched in 2020 as a six-year, $300 million initiative, GMF’s Community Efficiency Financing (CEF) program has supported more than 40 municipalities to launch and expand innovative home-energy upgrade financing programs.

By empowering homeowners to invest in energy-efficient upgrades, CEF has strengthened local economies, supported climate leadership and made homes healthier, more affordable and more resilient. Through CEF funding and learning resources, municipalities can:

  • Design, launch and expand residential energy financing programs that empower homeowners to invest in energy-efficient upgrades
  • Drive environmental leadership by helping residents reduce energy use, lower greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen climate resilience
  • Support economic growth and affordability by cutting energy costs, creating local jobs and improving housing affordability for Canadians
  • Enhance community well-being by making homes healthier, more comfortable and more resilient to climate impacts 

Due to strong demand, CEF funding is nearing full commitment and will close to new Capital Program applications on September 1, 2025. If you have any questions about this change, please contact our Outreach team. gmfinfo@fcm.ca

About CEF funding

FCM offers support throughout the delivery of a home-energy upgrade financing program through the following funding options:

Community Efficiency Financing Application Guide
  • Studies: Explore your options, build on market research or assess program performance with feasibility, design and program evaluation studies
  • Pilot projects: Test a smaller-scale version of your program in real-world settings; reserved for exceptional proposals that demonstrate clear market transformation potential and are otherwise ineligible for capital project funding
  • Capital projects: Access a grant combined with a low-interest loan or credit enhancement to implement a new program or scale up an existing model

Read our application guide for details.

Are you looking for tools and lessons learned to implement a financing program in your community? Visit our virtual library to find dozens of relevant tools, guides, examples and more. 

 

CEF intake criteria 

CEF funding prioritizes projects that maximize community impact and innovation while ensuring balanced access across Canada. Applications for capital project funding are assessed based on the following criteria:

  • Geographic balance: Supporting diverse regions and increasing uptake in provinces and territories where fewer CEF-funded programs currently exist.
  • Innovation in program design: Encouraging the adoption of diverse financing models beyond traditional PACE, such as utility on-bill financing and third-party lender partnerships.
  • Depth of impact: Prioritizing programs that:
    • Target deeper energy retrofits.
    • Achieve higher greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions.
    • Include new capacity-building or stakeholder partnership models.
    • Integrate climate resilience and adaptation measures.

Applications for CEF capital funding are reviewed through a competitive intake process to ensure fair and strategic allocation across all regions and sectors. 

  • CEF funding is nearing full commitment, and new Capital Program applications will close on September 1, 2025, or earlier if funding is fully allocated.
  • Funding decisions are based on merit, with priority given to projects that demonstrate innovation, regional balance, and strong potential for community impact.
  • Due to strong demand, full funding amounts may not always be awarded, and some applications may not receive funding.

We encourage applicants to carefully review the intake criteria and consider these factors when deciding whether to proceed with a full application. 

Questions?

Contact our Outreach team who can answer any questions regarding the CEF update.
gmfinfo@fcm.ca

 

FCM’s Community Efficiency Financing initiative is delivered through our Green Municipal Fund and funded by the Government of Canada.

Read the transcript

Case studies

Read about initiatives your peers have run using GMF funding. Their stories are inspiring.

Case Study: An innovative path toward net-zero homes

How Better Homes Ottawa leveraged a private-sector partnership to finance home energy-efficiency retrofits.

Read more

Case Study: Making Alberta homes more energy efficient

How Alberta municipalities teamed up to access Community Efficiency Financing and retrofit homes across multiple communities.

Read more

Residential energy programs overcome barriers to financing retrofits in Toronto

FCM Sustainable Communities Award winner – Energy Program

Read more

Case Study: Helping Maritime homeowners boost energy efficiency

An innovative financing tool makes sustainable retrofits on single-family homes accessible to all

Read more

Have questions about Community Efficiency Financing?

Contact our Outreach team who can answer any questions you have relating to this funding opportunity.

Take me to CEF funding offer

Get funding to deliver home-energy upgrade financing programs for residential energy projects.

Learn more

government-of-canada-logo

Delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, GMF manages approximately $2.4B in programs funded by the Government of Canada.

Aging housing stock, rising energy costs and increasing demand for affordable housing have created a unique challenge for municipalities and other affordable housing providers working to build better lives.

Our $300 million initiative offers support to local affordable housing providers – including municipal, not-for-profit organizations and housing co-ops – to retrofit existing affordable housing units, or construct energy efficient new builds that emit lower GHG emissions.

Our new funding and learning resources can help your community achieve the following:

  • Retrofit existing units or construct new affordable housing
  • Generate triple bottom line benefits:
    • Reduce energy and GHG intensity
    • Increase energy and housing affordability
    • Improve building quality, and increase comfort, health and quality of life for residents

About the SAH offer

Sustainable Affordable housing Application guideGMF offers support throughout the life cycle of an affordable housing construction project through five funding options:

  • Planning: Early support to assist eligible housing providers to get started on achieving more sustainable affordable housing initiatives
  • Studies: Assess the approaches needed to implement an eligible energy efficient pilot or capital project in detail
  • Pilot projects: Test out a new or innovative approach on a small scale
  • Retrofit capital projects: Complete the renovation of existing housing units with the installation of energy efficient technologies
  • New-build capital projects: Construct new homes that are highly energy efficient

As part of our SAH initiative, our Regional Energy Coaches (RECs) will help affordable housing providers initiate energy efficiency retrofits and new builds.

Read our application guide for details. 

Update: Due to high demand and success of the FCM’s Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH) initiative, processing times may vary across our several funding areas as we manage the volume of applications.

We’re no longer accepting initial proposals for pilot projects. Stay tuned for a new call for applications to be launched later this year.

Thanks to all current and future applicants for their interest. We look forward to working together to make our communities more sustainable and affordable.

FCM’s Sustainable Affordable Housing initiative is delivered through the Green Municipal Fund and funded by the Government of Canada.

Featured News

See featured news related to Sustainable Affordable Housing.

Delivering hundreds of new sustainable and affordable housing units across British Columbia

The City of Vancouver is receiving $7,081,100 for the Coal Harbour mixed-use passive affordable housing development.

Learn more on FCM.ca

Canada and FCM announce support for net zero energy ready affordable housing in Rossland, B.C.

The Government of Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) are investing in communities to provide sustainable and affordable housing for residents.

Learn more on FCM.ca

Canada and FCM invest in affordable housing for seniors in Vancouver

The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources and Garth Frizzell, Past President of FCM announced a $10 million investment through the Green Municipal Fund's (GMF) Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH) initiative to support the redevelopment of two buildings.

Learn more on FCM.ca

Case studies

Read about initiatives your peers have run using GMF funding. Their stories are inspiring.

Case study: Raising the bar on community housing retrofits

Affordable housing project generates valuable lessons

Read more

Case study: Consultation and innovation improves performance

Ottawa affordable housing project raises the bar on sustainability

Read more

Case study: Energy retrofit delivers multiple benefits

Improved air quality and resident comfort

Read more

Have questions about Sustainable Affordable Housing?

Contact our Outreach team who can answer any questions you have relating to this funding opportunity.

Take me to SAH funding offer

Get funding for planning, studies, pilot and capital projects

Learn more

government-of-canada-logo

The Green Municipal Fund is a $1 billion program, delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and funded by the Government of Canada.

Aging housing stock, rising energy costs and growing demand for affordable housing are creating complex challenges for municipalities and housing providers across Canada.

The Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH) initiative was launched in 2020 as a six-year, $300-million program to help not-for-profits, co-ops, and municipalities retrofit existing housing and construct new, energy-efficient homes. Since then, the program has supported more than 4,100 units across the country—reducing emissions, lowering operating costs and improving housing quality.

SAH program update

SAH is now entering its final year under the original federal funding envelope. Demand has been exceptionally strong, reflecting both the urgency of the housing crisis and the sector’s commitment to sustainable solutions. We are on track to fully allocate the original $300 million by March 2026.

As a result, funding for capital projects and pilots is now closed, and intake for plans and studies is paused until April 2026. When the program reopens, it will continue on a smaller scale, with a renewed focus on early-stage planning and study grants that help providers move forward with retrofits and new-build projects.

How we can still support your work

Even as the program evolves, SAH continues to offer a range of no-cost supports to help housing providers plan for impact:

Results and reach

Since 2020, SAH has:

  • funded 385 projects, supporting more than 4,100 affordable units
  • enabled planning and study work on more than 31,000 additional units
  • achieved average GHG reductions of 70% and energy savings of 47% per project
  • delivered up to $200/month in utility savings for some tenants
  • supported small providers; more than 75% of approved projects came from organizations with portfolios under 100 units
Stay connected

We’re proud of what the SAH program has achieved, and we remain committed to helping you build on that success. To receive updates as the next phase of SAH takes shape, we encourage you to stay connected through the SAH webpage, and to reach out to a Regional Energy Coach if you need support.


FCM’s Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH) initiative is delivered through the Green Municipal Fund (GMF) and funded by the Government of Canada.

Featured News

See featured news related to Sustainable Affordable Housing.

Delivering hundreds of new sustainable and affordable housing units across British Columbia

The City of Vancouver is receiving $7,081,100 for the Coal Harbour mixed-use passive affordable housing development.

Learn more on FCM.ca

Canada and FCM announce support for net zero energy ready affordable housing in Rossland, B.C.

The Government of Canada and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) are investing in communities to provide sustainable and affordable housing for residents.

Learn more on FCM.ca

Canada and FCM invest in affordable housing for seniors in Vancouver

The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources and Garth Frizzell, Past President of FCM announced a $10 million investment through the Green Municipal Fund's (GMF) Sustainable Affordable Housing (SAH) initiative to support the redevelopment of two buildings.

Learn more on FCM.ca

Case studies

Read about initiatives your peers have run using GMF funding. Their stories are inspiring.

Case study: Raising the bar on community housing retrofits

Affordable housing project generates valuable lessons

Read more

Case study: Consultation and innovation improves performance

Ottawa affordable housing project raises the bar on sustainability

Read more

Case study: Energy retrofit delivers multiple benefits

Improved air quality and resident comfort

Read more

Have questions about Sustainable Affordable Housing?

Contact our Outreach team who can answer any questions you have relating to this initiative.

Find out more about GMF funding

Explore our other funding opportunities.

Learn more

government-of-canada-logo

Delivered by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, GMF manages approximately $2.4B in programs funded by the Government of Canada.

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