Engaging a community in climate action poses unique challenges. How do you get a community to mobilize on climate change issues affecting them? What happens when you get all ages, especially youth, involved in voicing their concerns on civic policies affecting their environment? The Community Climate Council (CCC, for short), has emerged as a platform for Peel residents, especially youth, to demand bold climate policies while fostering community-driven solutions.
The organization’s genesis traces back to 2019 when Miranda, CCC’s CEO and co-founder, and four other young women participated in the Youth Challenge International. Through consultations with Peel residents and climate experts, they identified three primary concerns:
- They wanted to see more young people participate in the council chambers. They noticed that there was no youth representation in council discussions and their voices weren’t reflected in the agenda items.
- Improve climate and political literacy to make ‘politics talk’ more accessible and less intimidating for people to participate in.
- Finding ways to address the increased loneliness and disconnect caused by a predominantly suburban area.
Increasing community participation was key to resolve the above. The CCC’s inaugural climate strike in 2019 drew over 250 participants, including political leaders from various parties, underscoring the community’s unmet needs. Recognizing the post-strike demand for ongoing engagement, the CCC was formally established in 2020, creating a grassroots space for community collaboration.
However, what about after the strike? There needed to be a space for people to congregate and continue sharing solutions on the climate crisis. That’s why the CCC was officially formed in 2020; creating a space for and by the community.
One of CCC’s distinguishing features is its youth-led, inclusive structure, funded by community donations. While youth-led climate movements remain scarce in Peel, the CCC pioneers climate justice and political advocacy in the region. Grounded in three pillars—climate literacy, political advocacy, and community engagement—the CCC aims to democratize climate action.
Their team is a reflection of the diversity of their community; Peel is known for having a primarily BIPOC, radicalized immigrant community. And yet, in the larger climate change movement across the GTA and even across Canada, it’s still predominantly led by privileged white representatives. One way to address this is to increase climate literacy and political literacy in underrepresented persons, especially youth who get left out of solution-making in climate policy talks.
Miranda emphasizes, “Improving climate literacy means empowering people to engage with political representatives.” Despite facing challenges during the pandemic, the CCC adapted its programs to hybrid and in-person formats, navigating volunteer retention and burnout issues. Miranda stresses the importance of embracing rest for sustainable activism, a departure from the relentless productivity culture.
The Youth Harbour Action Grant provided crucial support, enabling the purchase of essential tools like a QuickBooks account, facilitating the transfer of their web domain and email subscriptions and procuring materials for their annual strike, including vertical banners for increased visibility, business cards, and necessary supplies. The CCC achieved significant milestones, including the ability to compensate volunteers with honorariums for their contributions during front-facing events, covering expenses such as transportation and lunch—an unprecedented feat for a volunteer-led organization. Additionally, they successfully:
- Recruited more volunteers dedicated to sustaining CCC’s operations.
- Expanded their community engagement efforts, including a sold-out free movie night attended by 100 individuals.
- Garnered substantial media coverage, with media outlets actively seeking interviews with CCC representatives.
- Launched the Climate Hub, a comprehensive digital library focusing on climate-related topics in Peel Region.
- Organized a Greenbelt rally to advocate against construction within the protected area, resulting in a notable victory when the Ford government announced their decision to uphold the Greenbelt’s integrity just three days after the rally. This achievement symbolized the collective efforts of Peel residents and underscored the power of community mobilization.
Assessing impact, the CCC tracks attendance, partnerships, and policy outcomes. Miranda recalls instances of changing perceptions during community engagements, underscoring the organization’s qualitative impact. Looking ahead, the CCC aims to develop a comprehensive 5-year plan while expanding outreach to BIPOC youth and other municipalities.
The question for the team now is, how far can they go? A big project coming up is the yearly climate rally. They hope to encourage more BIPOC youth to come out as they did the first time in 2019. Miranda “dreams that the rally attendees reflect BIPOC youth”, and hopefully this will happen through outreach to schools and youth volunteer groups to encourage their participation in the next one.
Furthermore, they plan on expanding beyond Peel and have delegates in other municipalities. A challenge in making this happen is figuring out how to grow their political advocacy team. The team is considering organizing a summit next year to “bridge the gap between politicians and residents” by creating a space where the councilors are more approachable.
As the council navigates these endeavors, it remains resolute in its commitment to empowering communities and advocating for substantive climate action, embodying the transformative potential of grassroots activism in shaping a sustainable future for all.
*The Region of Peel is situated on the lands of the Haudenosaunee, Anishinabek, Petun, Attawandaron and treaty lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
