For many municipalities, there is a disconnect between broader provincial planning policies and programs and local energy planning efforts, adding a layer of complexity and uncertainty to community energy planning activities. With this in mind, QUEST and Clean Air Partnership are working in partnership to deliver the “Ontario Energy Community of Practice (ECOP)” initiative thanks to financial support provided by the IESO’s Education and Capacity Building Program.
ECOP focuses on providing education and capacity building for Ontario municipalities, utilities and other local stakeholders to develop and implement community energy plans, and helping connect local, regional and provincial energy planning initiatives.
ECOP is building the capacity of Ontario municipalities to develop and implement community energy plans (CEPs) through the development of training tools, sharing of best practices and facilitation of peer-to-peer collaboration supporting the Ministry of Energy’s Municipal Energy Plan (MEP) Program. ECOP is also helping municipalities better understand how their local energy planning priorities fit within their economic development, land use and transportation priorities as well as with provincial energy policies and programs.
ECOP Training Modules and Resources
The Ontario Energy Community of Practice Initiative (ECOP) saw the development of a set of resources including three Training Modules and a set of video presentations to support community energy planning activities in Ontario. These resources are designed to serve the needs of municipalities across Ontario and support development and implementation of Community Energy Plans (CEPs) and are available here.
