What is the Toronto City Council?

The Toronto City Council is made up of the Mayor and the 25 Councillors representing the 25 Wards of the City, and is the main governing and legislative body of the City of Toronto.

 

Does Toronto have a plan to reach net zero?

The City Council adopted the TransformTO Net Zero Strategy in December 2021, which aims to reduce community-wide emissions to net zero by 2040. It is one of the most ambitious municipal targets in North America.

 

What is the Infrastructure and Environment Committee?

The Infrastructure and Environment (IE) Committee is composed of 6 Councillors and reports to City Council. It focuses on the City’s infrastructure and natural environment, and many of the net zero initiatives of the City fall under its purview.

 

What is the Planning and Housing Committee?

The Planning and Housing (PH) Committee is made up of 6 Councillors and reports to City Council. It focuses on urban form and housing development of the City; this includes net zero issues related to the residential and building sectors.

 

How are decisions on net zero issues made at Council?

Many of the net zero-related issues are brought up and discussed at the Infrastructure and Environment, and Planning and Housing Committees. The Committees then decide on whether to bring these items for discussion and decision at Council; the tracking history for specific items is available.

 

Are deliberations of Council, IE and PH Committee meetings available to the public?

Documentation of these meetings are generally available to the public. The Schedule of meetings, and Agenda, Minutes, and Decisions of Council and Committees are published on websites of the City of Toronto. E-mail updates are available for some of this documentation.

 

Are resources available on climate and net zero issues relevant for the City?

There is much documentation available from the City of Toronto website on these issues. The websites of Council, TransformTO Net Zero Strategy, and Live Green Toronto are good places to start.

 

How can a citizen make his/her views known to Council or Committees?

A citizen can submit comments in writing or ask to speak at Committee meetings on specific agenda items.