At the end of 2009, CCA's board of directors established the Ad Hoc Committee on Environmental Sustainability.  CLICK HERE for the Committee's terms of reference.

Committee composition
Committee members were recruited from the Canadian co-operative movement.  They are as follows:

• Beryl Bauer, Federated Co-ops Ltd.
• Brent Bellamy, Science '44 Student Housing Co-op
• Michael Gertler, Centre for the Study of Co-ops, University of Saskatchewan
• Andrea Harris, Vancity
• Yuill Herbert, Sustainability Solutions Group and CCA Board (Chair)
• Kate Martin, Credit Union Central of Canada
• David Moore, Meridian Credit Union
• Willy Robinson, iNova Credit Union
• Esther Speck, Mountain Equipment Co-op
• Barbara Turley-McIntyre, The Co-operators
• Ted Zettel, Organic Meadow

CCA staff members John Anderson, Director of Government Affairs and Public Policy, and Christa McMillin, Manager of Member Services, are resources to the committee.

The committee has met twice in person and meets regularly by teleconference.

Committee initiatives

To date, the work of the committee has focused on:

• The Climate Smart Program: pilot project for co-ops and credit unions in British Columbia

The Climate Smart Program, run by climate change experts, leads organizations through a systematic greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory process and helps organizations build their internal GHG management capacity.   Climate Smart has trained hundreds of BC organizations and businesses. 

Committee members Vancity and Mountain Equipment Co-op subsidized the registration fees of co-ops and credit unions to participate in one of two training sessions specifically aimed at co-operative enterprises in Fall 2010.  CLICK HERE for more information on the program.

The committee is working to identify champion host organizations in other provinces in order to make the program available to co-ops and credit unions across the country.

• Supporting sustainable ("green") retrofitting

A sub-committee sought to determine the scope of sustainable retrofit funding available to Canadian individuals and businesses. This was part of a broader attempt to understand how credit unions can better ensure that members' capital is used to support sustainable projects. 

The findings were organized in a database, divided into three categories: general government programs available to individuals and businesses; credit union green retrofit lending initiatives; and programs offered by other financial institutions, including banks.

Check back for links to the report and the database!

• CCA climate change strategic plan

The committee is also working on a climate change strategy framework that will be presented to the CCA board for approval.  This document is intended as an approach to co-operatively understanding and responding to the issue of climate change.

• Environmental sustainability baseline survey

In Spring 2010, the Committee surveyed CCA members and their members to provide a baseline of information in order to guide the work of the committee. Some of the findings include:

• Almost 70% of respondents have some sort of environmental policy.
• Most respondents have environmental programs in their organizations. The most common programs are around recycling, waste reduction, energy efficiency, and replacing / avoiding toxic substances. Fewer respondents had programs on carbon reduction and/or offsets, employee transportation, water consumption, and education programs for employees and members.
• Almost 40% of respondents have staff explicitly responsible for managing the environmental performance of their co-operative.
• 46% have a stated position on climate change, and lack of capacity was identified as the key barrier preventing organizations from taking action on climate change.
• 83% of respondents perceive particular opportunities for their enterprise with respect to the "green economy".
• 100% of respondents believe co-ops have a particular capacity or potential to respond to the challenges of environmental sustainability.

For more information on the work of the committee or to get involved in any of the initiatives, please contact:
Christa McMillin
Manager, Member Services
christa.mcmillin@coopscanada.coop
613 238 6711 ext 221