CaGBC wins Ontario Minister’s Award for Environmental Excellence for National Energy Benchmarking Framework
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OTTAWA, ON – June 22, 2017 – CaGBC is pleased to announce that it has won a 2016 Ontario Minister’s Award for Environmental Excellence. The award was presented at a special awards gala on June 21 by Glen Murray, Ontario Minister of Environment and Climate Change, and accepted on behalf of CaGBC by President and CEO Thomas Mueller.
CaGBC was recognized for its development of a National Energy Benchmarking Framework that provides building owners, policy makers and utility companies with benchmark data to measure and increase energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the building sector. The framework also supports local and provincial governments in developing energy benchmarking policies and regulations.
“CaGBC is honoured to have won this recognition for our National Energy Benchmarking Framework,” says Thomas Mueller, President and CEO of CaGBC. “The Framework was developed to provide a consistent, standardized approach to the energy benchmarking of existing buildings for government– which will play a key role in the growth of our nationwide low-carbon economy. We look forward to continuing to engage with the Government of Ontario and other jurisdictions across Canada in order to maximize carbon emission reductions from existing buildings.
Each year, the Minister’s Award for Environmental Excellence recognizes individuals, advocacy groups, companies, municipalities and post-secondary institutions in outstanding work and innovation in environmental protection.
Recipients of the 2016 award are taking action to reduce pollution, fight climate change and protect Ontario’s environment for generations to come by:
- Promoting waste reduction and resource recovery by recycling computer parts and using cutting-edge technologies to recharge batteries
- Reducing greenhouse gas pollution by using innovative tools to conserve energy and increasing energy efficiency in the building sector
- Helping prepare for the negative impacts of climate change by increasing the resilience of infrastructure and natural landscapes in cities.
These efforts support the province’s move toward a circular economy, which reuses and recycles valuable materials destined for landfills, protecting the environment while creating new jobs and investment opportunities.
The work of organizations like CaGBC and individuals also supports the government’s own actions to combat climate change, including putting a cap on pollution and investing all proceeds from the province’s carbon market into programs like energy efficient home retrofits, electric vehicle incentives and new cycling infrastructure to help families, communities and businesses reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.
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About Canada Green Building Council (CaGBC)
CaGBC (portal.cagbc.org) is the leading national organization dedicated to advancing green building and sustainable community development practices. As the voice of green building in Canada, we work closely with our national and chapter members in an effort to make every building greener. The CaGBC reduces environmental impacts from the built environment through project certification, advocacy and research, and has helped meet the demand for skilled workers by providing green building education to over 20,000 professionals across the country since 2002. CaGBC is the license holder of the LEED green building rating system in Canada and launched the country’s first Zero Carbon Building Standard on May 29, 2017. CaGBC also supports the WELL Building Standard and GRESB in Canada, oversees the Canada Coalition for Green Schools, and is a member of the World Green Building Council.