Community Energy Association is now the proud owner of Canada’s largest Mobile Electric Battery, the Voltstack, and we are excited to share this resource with local communities and community partners in and around the East Kootenays.

With funding from the Real Estate Foundation of BC and BullItt Foundation, CEA is supporting local governments research and design a new business model that can transform the electric air source heat pump market. Currently, households interested in installing an ASHP system are largely left on their own to identify a qualified installer, ensure a quality unit and system design, access relevant information and resources, locate available incentives, and arrange financing. This project seeks to address the market confusion and information gaps this by prototyping a ‘One Stop Shop’ (i.e. Concierge) business model with a single interface for homeowners, offering both education and implementation services.

Through the RDEK Energy Manager position, CEA is leading the East Kootenay Organics Infrastructure Program, a collaboration with municipal partners throughout the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK). The aim of the program is to recover a significant portion of compostable organic resources in the East Kootenay via optimized, scalable, aerated windrow composting at facilities located in each of three sub-regions: Columbia Valley, Central Sub-Region and the Elk Valley.

CEA staff managed and developed some of the early Home Energy Retrofit Campaigns in BC. The Rossland Energy Diet of 2011 was one of the province’s campaign leaders, followed by the Nelson EcoSave program in 2012. Nelson EcoSave is a long-term campaign, recently expanding into the entire Regional District of Central Kootenay as "REEP" – Regional Energy Efficiency Program. In 2019 CEA began managing the New Home component of REEP to encourage a regional approach to adopting the BC Energy Step Code.  The interior “Energy Diets” of 2013, managed by CEA staff, were Kootenay Energy Diet; Okanagan Energy Diet and the East Kootenay Energy Diet. Kootenay Energy Diet was funded by Fortis BC, Natural Resources Canada, Columbia Basin Trust and LiveSmart BC, with partnership of the participating local governments and community Credit Unions. The East Kootenay Energy Diet included partnership with BC Hydro. See Full Details for a summary of the early Home Energy Retrofit campaigns which provides some useful background information on moving forward on “deep dive” retrofit campaigns.

CEA facilitated 2 regional multi-stakeholder workshops - on Vancouver Island and in the Central/North BC region - to co-create solutions to achieve a shared vision of a regional e-mobility ecosystem. Participants also identified projects we can work on now to achieve that vision.

CEA researched how many medium duty vehicles (F250-F450 and equivalents) are registered across Canada, how many are used for what kinds of businesses, and where the opportunities are to reduce emissions in this sector. 

The Fernie Food Action Strategy is a first step toward a vision of a resilient local food system and improved community-level food security in the Elk Valley.

CEA worked with the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources (MEMPR) to host a workshop with key agencies that provide support and funding for Indigenous communities working on energy and climate action. This multi-agency meeting included representatives from programs supporting action across the spectrum of clean energy – planning and implementation, training and capacity building, housing support, energy efficiency and generation.

The BC Municipal Climate Leadership Council (BCMCLC) is composed of leading Mayors and Councillors from across BC representing communities - big and small, north and south, east and west - who are committed to climate action. In September 2010, ten mayors from large and small communities across BC came together to volunteer to assist other locally elected officials move climate action forward. This includes volunteering to mentor locally elected officials. The mayors and councilors do this because they are passionate about climate action and because they agree that: Climate change is happening now; is largely the result of human activity, particularly the combustion of fossil fuels; and is an urgent issue to address The importance of climate action transcends politics Local government leadership on climate action is critical Local governments can have a significant impact on energy and emissions in their own operations and across our communities Addressing climate change will require transitioning to low-carbon energy systems integrated across our communities Climate action is a relatively new area for many locally elected officials in BC Given the importance and scale of the challenge, it is important for locally elected officials who have some experience in climate action to support other mayors, councilors and regional directors who are interested in moving climate action forward in their community. BCMCLC is facilitated by the Community Energy Association who provides staff support, creates resources, coaches members and organizes events like the Climate Leaders Institute.

The Climate Leaders Institute is a two-day workshop expressly designed to help British Columbia mayors, councillors, and regional district directors confidently lead or support bold climate action in their communities. CLI moves beyond a traditional conference setting so participants gain the tools they need to translate their inspiration and political capital into real world, community-specific climate solutions. This is achieved through a combination of small break out groups along with presentations designed and delivered by colleagues, leading professionals and inspirational speakers.