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Highlighting Grants and Grantees Through The Years: Ecojustice - 2009

Ecojustice

The Foundation has assisted many innovative grantees over the years through our grants program. Over the next couple of months, we will be featuring grants past and present on our homepage to highlight the great work of many organizations across the Greenbelt. 

$173,000 - December 14, 2009

Ecojustice, an environmental law organization, is working with Ducks Unlimted, Ontario Nature and Earthroots to assess the effectiveness of the Greenbelt Plan in protecting wetlands, which are rapidly disappearing in near urban environments across the province.A series of interviews and case studies on various planning decisions will shed light on how the current policy framework is or is not adequately protecting wetlands in the Greenbelt.The assessment will enhance our understanding of the complexities and key policy issues related to Greenbelt wetlands, increase public awareness and influence policy reform, to ensure the broader vision of ecological integrity is met in the Greenbelt’s Protected Countryside, Oak Ridges Moraine and the Niagara Escarpment.

www.ecojustice.ca 

The Greenbelt Foundation is

  • Contributing to greater sales of Greenbelt wines at the LCBO

  • Bringing thousands of Ontarians out into the Greenbelt each year through grantee activities and the Annual Tour de Greenbelt cycling event

  • Supporting the creation of new multi-cultural crops and development of ethnic local food guides in Toronto and York Region

  • Contributing $2.65 million to Greenbelt farmers to improve their operations (leveraging millions of dollars from federal sources), and to employ the opportunities of the Green Energy Act

  • Supporting development of action plans for a variety of agricultural areas and commodities

  • Enhancing Farmers’ Markets, increasing sales for farmers in the Greenbelt and beyond

  • Increasing amount of Greenbelt food in food share program 140%

  • Supporting the Ontario Greenbelt Alliance to foster strong Greenbelt Plan implementation at the municipal level

  • Developing a successful culinary tourism platform for Niagara

  • Identifying barriers to opening markets for Greenbelt farmers and proposing solutions

  • Funding research and analysis on greenbelts around the globe which concluded that Ontario’s Greenbelt is the most robust in the world, with a strong legal and policy framework

  • Securing local food procurement commitments for Peel schools, City of Toronto, City of Markham and others

  • Funding visionary planning processes such as the new Cootes to Escarpment Park Management Plan, and a massive reforestation plan in Rouge Park

  • Supporting the Credit Valley Conservation Authority to protect and restore wetlands

  • Reaching over 75 million by placing 220 permanent highway and regional road signs to ensure Ontarians and visitors know about this valuable protected area

  • Engaged Hamilton schools to switch to Greenbelt food for their students

  • Creating a network of Farmer’s Markets to help improve our local food economy

  • Creating Greenbeltfresh.ca, the leading electronic marketplace to source local, Greenbelt foods from over 600 producers

  • Convincing Peel school boards to buy Greenbelt food for students

  • Supporting tourism initiatives including in the Niagara and Caledon areas

  • Supporting the creation of an award-winning Greenbelt granola bar

  • Funding the Holland Marsh Growers’ transition from an export, commodity focus to one that serves the local market with value- added products

  • Hosting the successful Tour de Greenbelt to promote Ontario’s Greenbelt as a tourism destination

  • Engaging with over 170 million Ontarians directly through our marketing, events and communications activities

  • Supporting interested Greenbelt Farmers to Go Organic

  • Supporting the development of multi-cultural crops and training new Canadian Farmers

  • Partnering with Harbourfront Centre to tell the story of Ontario’s Greenbelt to 12 million people via a year-long, outdoor photography exhibit

  • Providing grants and support to significantly increase sales at farmers’ markets

  • Successfully merging social welfare initiatives with environmental concerns

  • Building a local food economy from developing new markets to enhancing distribution channels

  • Funding policy changes to encourage more local food to be sold in Durham

  • Securing local food procurement commitments for Peel, U of T. City of Toronto Facilities and Markham

  • Assisting in designing new policies to protect Lake Simcoe through timely research

  • Supporting food policy council in Durham to create food charter

  • Participating strategically in growing the Greenbelt by working with Toronto, Peel, Halton, and Guelph

  • Bridging farming and hiking interests to acknowledge environmental progress by farmers

  • Hosted the first ever Global Greenbelts Conference in Toronto in March 2011 with speakers and delegates from over nine countries

  • Supporting changing the City of Toronto policy to adopt a local food purchasing bylaw for city facilities

 
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