The
Sustainability
Project.

The Lake Huron Regional Team will improve community readiness to identify and implement nature-based solutions and build robust citizen engagement that reduces polluted stormwater in order to provide safe, accessible water and strong, vibrant communities. The Sustainability Project board member Leigh Grigg remains an important advisor to the project. View the recordings of our hosted virtual sessions here.

Visit the new Lake Huron Forever website to find out more about this important bi-national network.

Working alongside & supported by Bruce Power, our team takes old binders and separates them into reuseable materials. Tens of thousands of binders over the years, both used and hardly used were “de-constructed” in this program which is ongoing! The cardboard has been distributed to schools and libraries in the region for re-use.

The Sustainability Project's Bruce Davidson remains a key coordinator for this project as more binders get re-purposed each year!

Food Security Hub

Building on the success of past community food conversations, this project led by staffmember Kimberly Edwards aimed to encourage further collaboration between food security players in Grey Bruce communities to improve food security. The conversations also enhanced the content of the Grey Bruce Food Asset Map. The Food Security Action Group has recommended support for community food centres and events that reduce barriers for community food skills programming, including events which support the promotion of local food. Result: a widely-read published paper, available here + the ensuing Fall Food Gathering (below) and the momentum that created the Community Garden Network

Fall Food Gathering

Hosted a regional conference to share knowledge on local food security issues at the Harmony Centre in Sept 2019 based on the finding above and encouraged others to share updates. Result: Sold out conference & great feedback.

Climate Action Team Bruce Grey Owen Sound

Following the premiere of the documentary Resilence by Liz Zetlin and John Anderson, GBSusNet hosted monthly gatherings at the Harmony Centre. Result: meetups spurred the public into Climate Action, eventually creating the Climate Action Team Grey Bruce, which is now Climate Forum.

Brockton Film Plastics Recycling Project

20,000 lbs of film plastic was diverted from the Hanover/Walkerton landfill in 2016 alone through this program. Presenations are still being made around the region to encourage other municipalities to move forward with similar programs. Result: By adding a Film Plastic Depot to their collection system Brockton municipality gives residents the opportunity to recycling a material that is currently not acceptable in the “blue box” program.

Coffeehouse Collective Series

From 2014-2020 we've hosted a traveling "coffeehouse" in the communities of Big Bay, Owen Sound, Paisley, Lions Head, Flesherton, and more. “Elevator Speeches” were given by members of the community on local issues and provided a special contrast to the music that was performed by local artists. Result: The formula works! These are great events that raise awareness of local issues and groups and support local musicians with a place to play and some great food to eat. Let us know if you want to assist with hosting one in your community.

Sustainable Living Workshops

SLW’s were held at Edale in Big Bay and at Kimbercote Farm in the Beaver Valley, among other great places. During each of these day-long workshop events people took part in hands-on learning about earth plaster and straw bale construction; organic vegetable gardening; cooking with what you have; friction fire, edible landscaping; coffee roasting and more. Local contractors provided the expertise, designed and hosted the workshops throughout the day. Result: Great hands-on learning, check out some of our videos here.

Bruce Power "Beach Party" Recycling

Our contractors & volunteers assisted Bruce Power in achieving maximum waste diversion rates at a "Beach Party" in Port Elgin. Result: 7000 people attended. Volunteers created a makeshift recycling depot under the tents on the beach. Thanks to all those who helped out!

Youth Portal Project

Keeping young people and families in Grey Bruce means there have to be jobs and things to do in our community. How do we engage youth in this process of change? What is a “youth portal”? University of Guelph International Development student Braden Weltz (a Mildmay native) developed a much-needed vehicle for youth engagement. Result:

“Letters Home” Youth Theatre Project – Thanks to ON150!

The Letters Home Project was a unique theatrical enterprise that celebrated both Ontario and Canada’s 150th anniversary by highlighting the accomplishments of key personalities within Bruce and Grey Counties. GBSusNet hosted this project and provided a “leg up” to AVProductions en route to a sustainable cultural enterprise. Result:

Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) and Municipal Energy Planning (MEP)

For 20 years the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) has hosted a program called Partners for Climate Protection (PCP) which is designed to engage municipalities in the process of implementing actions to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and measuring the results of these actions. GBSusNet was hired by Brockton to assist in the completion of Milestones 1-4 of the PCP Protocol. Result:

Senior’s e-waste Recycling Project

We helped develop an electronic waste deconstruction program with financial support from Community Foundation Grey Bruce for residents of Brucelea Haven. Members of Walkerton’s Community Living workforce assisted with the collection of e-waste which was then deconstructed by volunteers, then utilized to rehabilitate aging commuter systems +provided supplies for multi-media art projects at local schools. Result:

Composting Pilot Project

GBSusNet was hired to develop a residential organics diversion program. Waste audits at the time showed that approximately 40% of Brockton’s residential waste was comprised of organic material which consumes valuable landfill capacity and generates harmful greenhouse gases. The goal of this project was to not only divert the organics from regional landfills, but also to create employment and produce a valuable bi-product.... healthy compost! Result:

Click the Sustainability Map here to explore the vast network of sustainable groups around us.