By: Magdalene Carson
The CAFES network is delighted to welcome one our very latest new organizational members, the Wild Arts Collective (WAC). As we continue to grow our network in exciting new directions, this partnership with WAC is a way to strengthen environmental communication in Ottawa and to learn from the experience of others working in the arts and culture sector toward a sustainable future.
The WAC was formed in 2023 with a shared goal: to use art as a clear, accessible way to spark conversations about the environment. The eight Ottawa-based artists work in different mediums, united by the belief that creativity can move people toward practical, local environmental action.
Grounded in the idea of “think global, act local,” WAC focuses on issues that shape life in our city - for example, the protection of trees and green spaces, the risks of waste-to-energy incineration, and the shift toward renewable energy. WAC engages with broader concerns as well such as single-use plastics, consumption habits, and the everyday choices that either harm or help the planet.
Most of WAC’s current pieces take the form of 2×3-foot posters, inspired by Bill McKibben’s insight that "the poster is where art meets organizing most powerfully". WAC's work aims to meet people where they are — in cafés, markets, and community spaces — and hopes to open a moment of curiosity and reflection.
Since then, WAC has shared their work in several venues and community events, including gallery cafés and neighbourhood gatherings. Their current exhibit is on display at Happy Goat Coffee Co. in Sandy Hill and runs until the end of December 2025. Several additional exhibits across Ottawa are planned for the coming months, including a new series focused on reducing plastic use. WAC also includes musicians, and they plan to explore sound-based environmental work in upcoming projects.
Learn more about WAC by visiting their website.
PS. If you are curious about who all are organizational members of the growing CAFES network, Mitzi regularly updates the list at this obscure but public-facing spot on the website: https://chrisl335.sg-host.com/about/organizational-members/
On November 14th, 2025, CAFES, Ecology Ottawa, and the Ottawa Field Naturalists Club, led by Ontario Nature and Friends of Stittsville Wetlands, sent a letter to the City of Ottawa urging Council and staff to strengthen municipal protections for Ottawa's wetlands.
Wetlands play an enormously critical role - they provide habitat for a huge number of species, store carbon, protect against erosion, stabilize shores, recharge groundwater, mitigate flooding, filter and clean water, provide resources for food and medicine, and provide important cultural and recreational opportunities for people and communities.
However, wetlands are consistently threatened by climate change, invasive species, changes in hydrology, land conversion (predominantly to agricultural lands), development, and expansion of the urban boundary.
In 2024, many wetlands in Ontario lost their protected status when the Province changed the scoring system that determined which wetlands were granted as Provincially Significant Wetlands (PSW). Noteably in Ottawa, this resulted in losing protection for 55 hectares of the Goulbourn Wetland Complex, and today in 2025, the City's proposed Official Plan and Zoning By-law amendments would further reduce municipal protections for another 74.6 hectares of Goulburn and 19.7 hectares of the Richmond Fen.
In fact, Ottawa and surrounding areas of eastern Ontario have had the highest rate of wetland loss recorded in the province from 2000 to 2020. The City must avoid these losses by ensuring all types of wetlands, not just those with PSW status, are strictly protected under municipal planning policies. This would also align with Climate Ready Ottawa, the City's climate resilience strategy. The Goulburn complex in particular received the highest possible score for flood protection and providing clean water. As we know, many areas of the City are especially vulnerable to floods and we have been seeing record-high rainfall from climate change in recent years.
As CAFES continues to expand our city-wide policy advocacy efforts, we also recently attended the Public Open House on the Bear Brook Watershed. The City is conducting a watershed study on the area to assess current watershed conditions and to gather community priorities for how to maintain watershed health into the future. Ironically perhaps, invited by watchful CAFES members at Greater Avalon Community Association, on Mon Oct 17th, CAFES ED Angela Keller-Herzog attended the E1-South Orleans - Wall Road Third Public Open House, only to learn that this urban expansion will wipe out several wetland areas and replace them with a municipal stormwater pond. Will this work? Has the water budget of the sub-watershed been calculated? Is this the most cost effective approach to manage water? Does anybody ever calculate the value of habitat for biodiversity lost? We have so many questions.
If you want to learn more about municipal wetland policy and existing conservation efforts, be sure to attend the CAFES Trees and Greenspace Caucus on Tuesday, December 2nd from 12:00 - 2:00pm via Zoom. We will be having special presentations from the City of Ottawa, Ontario Nature and Friends of Stittsville Wetlands followed by group discussions and community networking. Register here!
You can read the full letter below, and consider contacting your Councillor to express your concerns. You can also visit Friends of Stittsville Wetlands for more info, and check out Ontario Nature's resource page.
Mark your calendars for a powerful climate-themed performance coming to Ottawa in October!
CAFES is excited to bring to you Wanting to Start Again, a unique musical experience that addresses climate change concerns in a poignant and powerful violin-piano performance.
DoSi, a duo of exceptional musicians, pianist Tong Wang and violinist Maitreyi Muralidharan, will deliver this deeply moving program born out of the artists’ experience with the devastation of the Banff and Halifax wildfires, the climate crisis, immigrant stories, and discovering identity. This interactive concert featuring works by Fu-Tong Wong, Nick Bentz, Fazil Say, Joe Hisaishi/Wesley Chu and Kevin Lau, provides a space for audiences to reflect, sit with difficult emotions, and ask: how do we start again when we feel at our lowest?
DoSi will be touring through Ottawa from October 17-19th 2025 and CAFES is honoured to be co-hosting a number of performances - see below!
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Check out the trailer below! We can't wait to see you all there.
CAFES had a fantastic time tabling at the annual Carp Fair from September 25th to 28th!
The Carp Fair is a wonderful agricultural fair celebrating community, family, local artisans, farmers, businesses, and agricultural learning and education. This year's theme was "Celebrating Our Best", which was all about what can be created when we come together as a community.
CAFES enjoyed speaking with folks at the fair all about our climate and environmental advocacy work. We were partnered up with and right next to the Electric Vehi cle Council of Ottawa (EVCO), who had an EV Ford 150 Truck on display and answered all sorts of questions about electrical vehicles in Ottawa.
We had lots of fun handing out free snacks, and asking kids and families exciting environmental trivia questions with our spinning wheel. We even had solar powered popcorn, and coffee and tea powered by EVCO's electric truck!
CAFES has recently been expanding our membership network and community outreach/engagement into Ottawa's rural neighbourhoods, and the Carp Fair is always a wonderful opportunity to chat with our rural residents about transitioning to renewable energies and other climate-friendly actions.
We also want to give a huge thank you to the wonderful CAFES volunteers who helped out at this event!
City Environment and Climate Change Committee Meeting - Tuesday Sept 16th at 9:30am
The City of Ottawa's next Environment and Climate Change Committee Meeting (ECCC) on Tuesday, September 16th will be important. While the agenda has not yet been posted, we are anticipating a belated release of the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventories from the past several years, an update to the City's implementation of the Climate Change Master Plan (CCMP) as well as its audit, which should include recommendations on prioritization and accountability.
We are also anticipating a report on the urban tree canopy (fingers crossed) and discussion on the management of invasive plant species by the City, which follows a staff inquiry by Councillor Marty Carr at the February 2025 ECCC. Staff have come back with a short report on the inquiry, outlining existing City efforts on invasive species and plans for new staff positions to manage an invasive stewardship program. On Wednesday, September 3rd, CAFES is hosting an in-person community dialogue event on invasive species at the Jim Durrell Centre to gather community input ahead of the Sept 16th ECCC. RSVP here!
Finally, the ECCC meeting may also cover updates on solid waste management.
We encourage everyone to mark your calendars for this date. Please consider making a public delegation on one or more of the above agenda items, to urge the City to do more.
Attend the CAFES Climate Caucus - Tuesday, September 9th 12-2pm
Want to learn more about the climate-related items, connect with like-minded others, or prepare your public delegation? Come to CAFES' next Climate Caucus on Sept 9th from 12pm-2pm via Zoom. Register here to attend. By this date the documents for the ECCC will be available, and our caucus will include updates and group discussions on the emissions inventories, CCMP and the audit.
Join CAFES and our members Fridays for Future Ottawa, Seniors for Climate Action Now (SCAN), World Changing Kids and Ecology Ottawa for the Draw The Line March Saturday, September 20th, 2025!
Draw the Line is a national Day of Action taking place on September 20th in communities across Canada. In Ottawa, this action continues the tradition of a September climate march. The Day of Action is also part of a larger international movement calling for climate action and economic justice worldwide. You can find out more about the march and its demands here.
There will be separate start locations in Ottawa and Gatineau, but the contingents will converge in downtown Ottawa. The Ottawa contingent meets at 11 am on the corner of Elgin and Wellington, while the Gatineau contingent meets at 11 am at Maison du Citoyen.
Draw the Line has brought groups together from across different sectors, joining forces to take united action toward the shared call - "For People. For Peace. For the Planet".
In Ottawa, this united approach is bringing together a broad coalition to help organize the march. The growing coalition includes seniors groups, labour unions, student associations, faith organizations, environmental groups, and many others from across the Ottawa-Gatineau region. Working with so many other passionate, action-driven organizations has been an exciting experience, and we are looking forward to sharing more details with you as we get closer to the march.
If you are part of a group that wants to join, or you individually are interested in volunteering, organizing, or making a donation - join up! Email fridaysfutureottawa@gmail.com for all inquiries.
RSVP here to attend the March on September 20th!
Are you a heat pump owner in Ottawa? We want to hear from you!
We have launched a 5-minute survey for heat pump owners asking you about your experience during the installation process, so we can provide the best advice and recommendations to others looking to reduce their own emissions and install a heat pump. You can fill out the quick survey at the link below:
We will be turning the survey responses into a consumer guide - giving people in Ottawa the best advice on who to hire, what they should be looking for, and more.
For every 50 responses we will be randomly giving away a $25 gift card to Perfect Books Ottawa - so share this survey with your friends who have heat pump, and help us make the heat pump process easier for everyone!
Portage Power, a subsidiary of Hydro Ottawa, has submitted proposals for three new solar energy projects (Richmond Solar I, II, and III) in response to Ontario’s effort to expand renewable electricity generation. These proposed projects would contribute up to 80 megawatts of clean energy to the provincial grid while supporting environmental sustainability and long-term community benefits here in Ottawa.
The proposed solar installations would span four parcels of land in the Richmond area:
As Ontario prepares for major growth in electricity demand, these projects would help deliver clean, reliable power while generating local value. We encourage residents to learn more and take part in the public consultation process - there will be a Virtual Community Information Session on Friday, August 1st, 2025 at 12:00 pm. Email development@portagepower.com to register!
Visit Portage Power to learn more about these projects.
On Monday, June 30th, 2025, CAFES' Executive Director, Angela Keller-Herzog, spearheaded a rich feedback submission with the Peoples Official Plan Coalition (POP) to the City of Ottawa on the draft Climate Resiliency Strategy, known as Climate Ready Ottawa (CRO).
The City’s draft CRO provides a critical opportunity to reduce risk, protect health, and strengthen community wellbeing in the face of the climate crisis. The POP feedback document highlighted opportunities to make the CRO more actionable, inclusive, and community-informed. Our detailed feedback submission dove into several strategic outcomes surrounding flood preparation, extreme heat, the economy, resilient buildings, protecting drinking water, stormwater management, tree canopy, wetland conservation, parks, power outages, and more. We additionally addressed suggestions for implementation, best-practice benchmarks, and performance metrics.
Many of our comments, recommendations, and ideas were pulled from the CAFES Climate Resiliency Community Dialogues from 2023, in which we led 11 dialogue sessions with over 300 participants in collaboration with community groups and the City of Ottawa.
Ultimately, CAFES and POP commend the City for its leadership in climate resilience planning. We recognize this climate strategy builds on years of foundational work and cross-departmental collaboration and we look forward to seeing how our recommendations contribute to a more climate-ready Ottawa.
This item is expected to be coming to the October 21st, 2025 City Environment and Climate Change Committee (ECCC). Stayed tuned!
CAFES had an invigorating day attending the Ottawa Energy Symposium on Tuesday, June 10th, organized by the Ottawa Board of Trade and supported by us as a community sponsor.
This dynamic event explored the future of energy in Ottawa by hearing from industry leaders, government officials and innovators as they discussed what local customers need, the latest developments in energy infrastructure, and how new solar and storage technologies are helping to power up our city for tomorrow. We also learned how local organizations are adapting to the evolving energy landscape and what that means for Ottawa’s business community.
We listened to several fantastic panels, which covered topics on how AI, real estate, and electrification are reshaping demand; how infrastructure investment unlocks economic potential; how distributed energy is reshaping Ottawa’s grid; and how tools are driving Ottawa’s low-carbon transition.
The event speakers included:
It was wonderful to connect with others, learn from experts, and to be part of such engaging discussions on the National Capital Region’s sustainable energy future.
This event was sponsored by Hydro Ottawa, Brookfield Renewable, Ottawa Climate Action Fund (OCAF), Envirocentre and KMPG, and CAFES Ottawa was a community partner.
