Sustainability Tips

• Buy locally grown food

• Reduce your carbon footprint by purchasing locally produced ingredients

• Support local businesses during these challenging and unprecedented times caused by the global pandemic
  
  

• Conserve energy at home

• Reduce your energy consumption by unplugging any unused electronics or switching power bars to eliminate phantom power, turning off lights when you leave the room, and taking shorter showers
  
  

• Organize a cleanup in your neighbourhood

• Each year, thousands of community members are keeping Markham beautiful by cleaning up litter on our streets, walkways, ravines, parks and public spaces

• Organize your own cleanup with members of your immediate household
  
  

• Make sustainable home improvements

• Improving the energy efficiency of a home can save money, improve home comfort and reduce greenhouse gas emissions

• Most homes use fossil fuels such as natural gas, oil and/or propane for thermal (heat) energy needs

• Certain measures can help reduce and/or avoid the use of fossil fuels, lessening the impact on the environment.

• Learn where and how your home is losing energy and money

• Consider the following retrofit options: air or ground heat pumps, air sealing (building envelope, ducts and Windows, Doors) Energy Star water heater replacement, smart thermostats with zone control, high efficiency furnace (Energy Star), Solar PV options with battery storage

• Related links:

• • Smart Thermostat Rebate — Enbridge Gas

  • Home Winterproofing Program — Enbridge Gas            

  • Energy Saving Rebate Program — Environment and Climate Change Canada

  • Energy Affordibility Program — SaveOnEnergy

  • Natural Resources Canada (NRCAN) – List of financial incentives

  • Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation (CMHC) – 25% back on the CMHC mortgage loan insurance premium
    
    

• Enjoy environmental films, books and more from Markham Public Library

• Read the latest children’s book Adventures of the 905 Green Team: Exploring Markham’s Energy , written by Markham youth.
  
  

• Sort your recycling, organics and garbage properly

• Use our What Goes Where search tool

• Sign up for personalized alerts and reminders so you never miss another collection day

• Access your recycling and garbage collection schedule online or on the Access Markham mobile app
  
  

• Plant a tree

• Markham supports residents in planting trees with LEAF Backyard Tree Planting Program , including a contactless delivery option and discounts

• The Markham Tree Preservation By-law protects the urban forest. Contact the City before you prune or cut down trees
  
  

• Eat sustainably

• Try a plant-based meal
  
  

• Cut down on food waste

• Learn about the meaning behind “best before” dates and how to reduce food waste at Love Food Hate Waste

• Additionally, review the advice offered by York Region Food Network for their Good Food Challenge
  
  

• Create an action plan

• Our lifestyle choices often translate into greenhouse gas emissions

• Calculate your carbon footprint , foodprint , and plastic consumption to identify ways you can reduce your impact
  
  

• Experience Forest Therapy

• Shinrin Yoku is the Japanese practice known as Forest Bathing or Forest Therapy

• Deepen your connection with the forest by visiting a self-guided Shinrin Yoku trail in the City of Markham
  
  

• Use water efficiently

• There are so many easy ways to reduce your water use indoors and outdoors

• Protect the environment, our water supply and keep your water bill down

• Read Water Efficiency: An At-Home Guide [PDF]
  
  

• Protect your pipes

  • Fats, oils and grease (also known as F.O.G.) should never go down the drain

  • Avoid sewer backups and costly repairs
    
    

• Explore the world of water online

  • Explore the world of water with a trained professional from the classroom or the comfort of your own home.

  • Educators:

  • • Sign up to receive a live Get to Know H20 session or a pre-recorded session for your students

  • Parents:

  • • Sign up to receive a pre-recorded Get to Know H20 session to watch from the comfort of your own home (individual live sessions not available)

    • Speak to your children’s teacher and ask for a live Get to Know H20 session be presented to the class
      
      

• Pack your work lunches and snacks in reusable containers

  • Buy bulk or bake snack at home so you don’t have any wrappers
    
    

• Clean out your closet

• Don’t let fashion go to waste

• Drop off your unwanted textiles to one of Markham’s textile donation bins so they can be recycled into new products
  
  

• Shop sustainably

• Save money and reduce waste by purchasing second-hand from a local thrift store or organizing exchanges between friends and family

• Avoid purchasing magazines, books, movies, and other media content that can be accessed for free at the Markham Public Library

• Use less plastic while shopping by bringing reusable bags and refillable containers (bulk stores) on your trips
  
  

• Get outdoors for some exercise and enjoy our open spaces

• Take a walk, a run or a bike ride

• Parks

• Milne Dam Conservation Park

• Rouge National Urban Park

• Public art

• Pedestrian safety

• Cycling safety
  
  

• Drop off items at one of Markham’s Recycling Depots

• These locations accept items for recycling that are not collected at the curb (Styrofoam packaging, batteries, plastic bags, metal and more)

• Do your part and help keep items out of the landfill
  
  

• Watch Markham Teen Arts Council Eco-Inspired 24-Hour Film Challenge

• One of the Markham Teen Arts Council’s signature events that unites youth across the city to celebrate the art of film-making
  
  

• Be Creative

• Create eco-art from foraged or repurposed materials

The Markham Environmental Sustainability Fund Program supports innovative and leading environmental initiatives. It provides financial support for projects in Markham that promote environmental responsibility, enhance the protection of natural resources and supports the vision for a greenMarkham.

The purpose of the program is to provide demonstrable, widespread, and lasting environmental benefits to the Markham community through:

Environmental Conservation & Green Programs:

As a leader of sustainable practices in North America, the City of Markham prides itself on its eco-friendly infrastructure and facility improvements, its 80% curbside waste diversion rate, the Greenprint – Markham’s Community Sustainability Plan and its commitment to educating, enabling and inspiring members of the community to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

Many of the City’s programs and initiatives have become leading examples for change that other communities worldwide are implementing. This is just another way that Markham’s work is having a positive global effect!

Follow #greenMarkham on Twitter to learn more about Markham’s sustainability highlights.

Movies and Series (Free Streaming)

• Free videos by Netflix on YouTube

  • Explained World’s Water Crisis

  • Chasing Coral

  • Our Planet | Frozen Worlds

  • Our Planet | Jungles

  • Our Planet | From Deserts to Grasslands

  • Our Planet | Fresh Water

  • Our Planet | Forests

  • Our Planet | One Planet

  • Our Planet | High Seas

  • Our Planet | Coastal Seas

• Additional resources on YouTube

  • Environment and Climate Change Canada

  • Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

  • UN Climate Change

  • York Region Food Network

• Canadian Programs

  • Anthropocene: The Human Epoch (TVO)

  • Big Blue (CBC Kids)

  • The Superfood Chain (TVO)

  • Rebellion (Nature of Things) (CBC)

  • VeraCity: The Fight for Tomorrow (CityNews)

Streaming Services

• Netflix

  • A Plastic Ocean

  • The Biggest Little Farm

  • Breaking Boundaries: The Science of Our Planet

  • Brave Blue World

  • David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet

  • Kiss the Ground

  • Life in Colour with David Attenborough

  • My Octopus Teacher

  • Mission Blue

  • Our Planet

  • Rotten
    

• Amazon Prime Video

  • 10 Billion – What’s on your plate?

  • Arctic Drift

  • Before the Flood

  • Burning

  • Climate Change: Ade on the Frontline

  • Wild Weather: Our World Under Threat

• For Children

  • Arctic Tale (Amazon Prime Video and YouTube)

  • Big Blue (CBC Kids)

  • The Lorax (Netflix)

  • Wall-E (Disney+)
    

Podcasts

• 2050: Degrees of Change 

• The Flux Capacitor

• Hard to Stomach

• Into the Anthropocene: Our Impact on Earth

• What on Earth with Laura Lynch

• World on Fire

Websites for Youth

• Climate Kids: online site to teach kids about climate change and tips on what they can do about it through interactive games and quizzes (Grade level: 3-8)
• Hinterland Who’s Who and the Canadian Wildlife Federation: online resources to help understand the impacts humans have on our environment, and how they can help to conserve Canadian wildlife (Grade level: K-12)
  

• Greenprint: Community Sustainability Plan

• Municipal Energy Plan

• Markham’s Waste Diversion Strategy

• Mission Green Newsletter

• Building Markham’s Future Together: 2020 - 2023 Strategic Plan

• Garbage and recycling

• Water and wastewater