Become a BARC Member
Join the Building Adaptive and Resilient Communities (BARC) Program
BARC Membership provides structured, expert support for communities to progress through the five milestones framework. It combines local leadership with expert guidance to help your community move from early planning and action identification through to implementation and monitoring. Members stay in the driver’s seat—building trust and buy-in locally—while ICLEI Canada provides the technical and process expertise to support Milestone activities.
Membership is for you if you…
- Want to work with experts on a locally developed plan that builds on existing initiatives and priorities
- Have some time and staff capacity to develop an adaptation plan
- Would like access to worksheets, templates, and guidance to support milestone activities
- Want the buy-in to implement your plan once it’s been completed
- Want to use your consulting dollars wisely for future technical work rather than having a consultant lead a planning effort
How It Works
BARC members receive structured, expert support and guidance as they work through the BARC methodology. Members stay in the driver’s seat—building capacity, trust, and local buy-in—while ICLEI Canada provides expertise, templates, case studies, and peer connections to support Milestone activities.
If you are not sure whether BARC fits your needs, contact us to connect with a BARC expert and find out. Email karina.richters@iclei.org.
What is Included
Core services and benefits
Dedicated support
Dedicated ICLEI Canada expert hours to support your milestone activities.
Regular check-ins
Bi-weekly meetings with your liaison.
Expert guidance
Guidance to design and strategically advance your adaptation planning process.
Tools and custom materials
Access to templates, worksheets, and other customized materials created specifically to support you.
Milestone Momentum
Review and analysis of milestone activities with tailored recommendations to maintain momentum.
Formal recognition
Milestone recognition, including formal certificates and national visibility through ICLEI Canada’s channels.
Peer connections
Opportunities to connect and learn from a Canada-wide network of peers.
Optional add-ons
Building the Business Case
Receive a comprehensive report highlighting the costs of inaction in your community. Includes data acquisition from sources and expertise not typically available to municipalities, analysis, and synthesis.
Communications
Receive a tailored communications plan. This add-on includes climate communications training for staff and dedicated ICLEI Canada staff support to develop custom communications materials.
Facilitation
Receive professional facilitation from ICLEI Canada staff for workshops and meetings. This add-on includes the preparation of tailored slide decks and workshop materials, as well as support to generate and integrate activity outputs into BARC milestones.
Outreach and Engagement
Receive a tailored outreach and engagement plan. This add-on includes dedicated ICLEI Canada staff support to develop tailored engagement activities, materials, and summary reports.
Research
Receive targeted research support to fill gaps in Milestones 1–3. This add-on includes benchmarking adaptation responses, identifying best practices, and additional research based on your community’s priorities.
Membership Fee
- We recommend budgeting 18 to 24 months to complete Milestones 1–3, and an additional year for Milestones 4–5.
- ICLEI members receive a 15% discount on BARC membership fees.
Optional Membership Add-Ons
- BARC members can add on optional services to bring more resources and dedicated staff capacity to their team at a discounted rate.
- ICLEI members receive a 15% discount on BARC membership add-ons.
Interested? Email karina.richters@iclei.org to explore how BARC membership can fit your needs.
About BARC
BARC is a proven climate adaptation framework for local action. Developed by ICLEI Canada with and for Canadian communities, it provides a clear, flexible five-milestone methodology to build adaptive and resilient communities in a changing climate. Recognized as Canada’s go-to adaptation program, BARC drives climate resilience from early planning through to implementation and monitoring. Above all, BARC meets communities where they are—whether they are just starting, struggling with implementation, or ready to update an existing plan.
Reach us
iclei-canada@iclei.org
Suite 204
401 Richmond St. W
Toronto, ON
M5V 3A8
We respectfully acknowledge that ICLEI Canada’s work happens across Turtle Island which has traditionally been and is home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples since time immemorial.