Tracking Climate Action: How Canadian Municipalities Approach Local Climate Action Monitoring, Evaluating, and Progress Communication
Written by Kristen Ma, Megan Meaney, and Curniss McGoldrick
Establishing a greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory is a critical step in creating a climate action plan. However, a comprehensive framework for monitoring, evaluating, and communicating results is also necessary in order to measure progress and identify areas of improvement. So, what does this look like in Canada? How are Canadian municipalities monitoring, evaluating, and communicating on GHG emissions and local climate action progress?
The Working Group 1 (WG1) of the Municipal Net-Zero Action Research Partnership (N-ZAP) recently published The State of Climate Action in Canadian Municipalities Report which presents the findings from a nationwide survey on the progress made and initiatives undertaken by Canadian local municipalities to reduce GHG emissions through local climate action. As part of the WG1 activities, Collin Neveroff studied GHG inventory practices among 205 Canadian municipalities to better understand how GHG emissions and local climate action progress are monitored and communicated in Canadian municipalities.
Neveroff ’s study was undertaken in 2023 under the supervision of Dr. Amelia Clarke, Professor at the University of Waterloo, and Megan Meaney, Executive Director at ICLEI Canada. The outcome of this research provides an in-depth understanding and description of practices used by Canadian municipalities to measure emissions, set GHG reduction targets, and monitor and report on climate actions. This article pulls from Neveroff’s findings to provide an overview of how Canadian municipalities currently monitor, evaluate, and communicate progress of local climate action plans.
Practices Canadian Municipalities Currently Use to Monitor and Evaluate Climate Action Plans
Continual monitoring and updating local climate action plans allow municipalities to evaluate scientific findings, financial and development capacity, and incorporate technological advancements on a regular basis. Neveroff found that 80 of the 205 municipalities in his study reached the stage of monitoring a corporate plan and/or a community plan. Here are some of the components built-into their monitoring and evaluating systems that could be used by other municipalities.
Systems of Interests
Systems of interest outline what is to be monitored, including the boundaries in time and space and aspects of the system to be evaluated. Each municipality can choose different aspects, such as specific functions of emission-producing activities and evaluation timeframes. During the monitoring stage, it is important to re-emphasize and assess systems of interests. Of the 80 municipalities at the monitoring phase, most had defined a system of interest for both corporate and community inventories.
Progress Evaluation
Updating emissions inventories is a fundamental step to evaluate climate action plans, and it is usually completed every three to five years. In addition, three different types of indicators are commonly used to evaluate the status of implementation: process-based indicators, output indicators, and outcome indicators. Using these indicators to evaluate the status of implementation can help municipalities understand implementation challenges and identify which actions to continue to pursue. Quantifying the results of energy savings and emissions reduction projects can also allow municipalities to evaluate and showcase the success of specific actions outlined in a plan, and thus inform decision-making, priority setting, and generate support (including funding) for future projects.
In Neveroff’s study, almost all municipalities in the corporate sample included an updated inventory while about half of the municipalities in the community sample did. 78% of the corporate sample include quantifying action results while this number was 54% for community sample. In terms of implementation indicators, most municipalities used all three types of indicators to evaluate actions. Outcome indicators were the least used in the community sample.
Supportive Governance Structures
Another important element needed to monitor and evaluate climate action plans is a supportive governance structure. This should include consistent reports from an oversight committee to municipal council, a system for monitoring and reporting progress, and a clear understanding of responsibilities for data gathering and evaluation. The involvement of staff, council members, community-wide entities, stakeholders, and municipal as well as external peer reviewers are several aspects that contribute to an effective and supportive governance structure.
Among Neveroff’s sample municipalities, staff, council members, and community-wide entities were identified as being involved in monitoring both corporate and community plans. Staff members were most often identified as responsible for monitoring, followed by council members, and community-wide entities. Community-wide entities were more often responsible for monitoring community plans. Stakeholder engagement was also used in more than half of the corporate and community monitoring systems while peer review was only mentioned by a small number of municipalities.
Monitoring and Evaluation Procedures
When evaluating climate action plans, it is critical to have detailed monitoring and evaluation procedures to explain how data are collected, managed, analyzed, and reported as well as how stakeholders are engaged and to outline the approach used to refine the monitoring system and the local climate action plan. Although there is currently no universally accepted monitoring system, procedures for monitoring and evaluation should be transparent and technically sound, allowing stakeholders to understand and analyze the results for themselves.
Monitoring procedures were described in close to 50% of the sample municipalities in Neveroff’s study. Reporting procedures were evident in roughly 80% of municipalities while plan revisions were mentioned in closer to 30% of municipalities, but the review of the monitoring system was hardly mentioned at all.
How Canadian Municipalities Approach Reporting and Communicating Progress
Proper reporting of GHG emissions allows external stakeholders to understand a municipality’s GHG footprint as well as its climate mitigation efforts and accomplishments. It also provides transparency and accountability to external stakeholders and helps pinpoint areas of improvement for collaborative programs. Aspects of reporting to be considered include reporting frameworks (such as the timeliness of data, reporting, and data verification), the standardization of reporting (such as CDP-ICLEI Track and Global Covenant of Mayors), and reporting channels (such as municipal government reports, website, and social media platforms).
Reporting Frameworks
Standardization of Reporting
Reporting Channels
In Neveroff’s study, 80 of the municipalities reached the stage of reporting and communicating progress. More than half of these municipalities provided information on report timing with most using annual reporting. However, reporting and data verification was rarely found – only one municipality in the corporate sample and two municipalities in the community mentioned reporting verification details. On the other hand, more than 60% of the municipalities included in the study use some form of standardized reporting and close to 60% municipalities use their own and third-party channels to communicate climate action information. A much smaller proportion of municipalities mention the use of social media.
Takeaways
Many Canadian municipalities are actively implementing local climate action actions and making progress to achieve net-zero emissions. As N-ZAP’s recently released The State of Climate Action in Canadian Municipalities Report shows, a large number of Canadian municipalities are well on their way in establishing targets, measuring emissions, and driving action to achieve goals. In addition, Neveroff’s findings show that many municipalities are considering monitoring, evaluating, and communicating progress as part of their process. However, these considerations are not commonplace even though monitoring, evaluating, and communicating results is necessary to measure progress, identify areas of improvement, and secure support for continued climate action.
Practices to Consider
The following practices are being used by several Canadian Municipalities as part of existing processes and can be replicated by others:
- Defining systems of interests
- Evaluating progress continuously
- Establishing supportive governance structures
- Establishing detailed monitoring and evaluation procedures
- Adopting reporting frameworks
- Using standardized of reporting
- Utilizing various reporting channels
Adopting these practices can help municipalities track the implementation progress of their climate action more effectively and make sound decisions to enhance their strategies.
Dive Deeper
As previously mentioned, N-ZAP recently published results of a survey that was conducted to assess the state of climate action in Canada. Results include valuable information on policies, targets, interventions, and stakeholder engagement methods used by various Canadian municipalities. These are all available in an online database that can be used to guide decision-making when setting greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets.
About N-ZAP
N-ZAP was established to support Canadian municipalities in monitoring, measuring, and achieving their greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation goals. N-ZAP is a partnership between the University of Waterloo, ICLEI Canada, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ Green Municipal Fund, as well as 11 other Canadian universities, nine other national organizations, and 13 municipal governments across Canada.
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Q&A with the Team Behind Climate Insight
Discover how others are using the platform, how it has evolved since 2024, and what new features we are working on.
Climate Insight is a free, online platform that empowers communities across Canada with the data and information needed to build low-carbon, resilient housing and infrastructure. Its functionality, features, and content are continuously updated to better serve communities as they confront the growing challenges of climate change.
In light of Climate Insight’s most recent update, which launched on April 29, 2026, ICLEI Canada’s Managing, Engineering, and Project Directors share their thoughts on Climate Insight, its features and its future.
Sheri and Josh, you have both worked for municipal governments. If you had access to Climate Insight while you were in those roles, what features would you have used most?
Sheri Young, Project Director, Climate Insight (SY): Most often? The Solutions Finder. I would run every permit request through the Solutions Finder and attach the results to every application. I would actually also do that with the Rapid Risk Assessment (RRA) tool. Both of these tools can initiate discussions and provide background support for any project at any stage, whether it’s prioritizing projects, building a business case, or looking for ways to add resilience to existing infrastructure.
Joshua Kelly, Engineering Director, Climate Insight (JK): For me, it would be the map and the RRA tool. I used to work to integrate climate considerations into the community’s asset management systems. The climate and social vulnerability data available on Climate Insight’s map provide valuable tools to inform and support asset-related decisions. To take this one step further, our asset management systems were also increasingly considering risk, and I would have used the RRA as a low-barrier access point to complete climate risk assessments for community infrastructure internally, without the need to allocate resources to bring in external consultants.
“If I were still working at the Town of Okotoks, I would use Climate Insight to run every permit request through the Solutions Finder, and attach the results to every application.”
— Sheri Young, Project Director
Nearly two years into Climate Insight, how are communities using the platform?
Ewa Jackson, Managing Director, ICLEI Canada (EJ): We built Climate Insight to help fill capacity gaps so that all Canadian communities can realize their ambitions. The good news is that we’re seeing that this is already happening.
For example, the Town of New Glasgow, NS used the Climate Insight map to layer climate, infrastructure, and social vulnerability data to help choose sites for new Resilience Hubs. The map makes it possible to look at complex systems without having to tap a huge number of experts.
The RRA tool is another great example of this. It takes a few hours to complete, and produces a more detailed assessment than other free tools, without requiring months of work and resources. It can be filled in by anyone who is knowledgeable about their community—not just engineers or technical experts. The City of Winnipeg, MB had staff across departments use the RRA to help move through planning more efficiently, identify where to focus resources, and to spark discussions around climate early in project processes.
One more example: a municipal practitioner in Quebec told us they use Climate Insight both to validate their work and to demonstrate proof of concept. They use the Solutions Finder, for example, to get ranked options, and use that ranking to let their Council know which solutions are worth investing in.
“We built Climate Insight to help fill capacity gaps so that all Canadian communities can realize their ambitions, and we’re seeing that this is already happening.”
— Ewa Jackson, Managing Director
Protecting new and existing critical infrastructure from the impact of climate change is a priority for communities across Canada. What is a Climate Insight tool or feature that can be used to do this?
JK: If I had to pick one tool, I would say the Solutions Finder. The Solutions Finder can help move from identifying critical infrastructure and planning for climate impacts to actually finding solutions tailored to a specific project and set of requirements.
Beyond a single feature, I’d also recommend using Climate Insight as a starting point as you begin identifying climate risks to your critical infrastructure and planning for those risks. You can start with the map and Community Profiles to get a snapshot of local socio-economic, infrastructure and climate data, and of the likelihood of experiencing different climate hazards in your community. Then, complete a risk assessment for your infrastructure project using the RRA tool. You will end up with valuable information that can support decision-making and help you find solid infrastructure options through the Solutions Finder.
“Climate Insight can be used as a starting point if you are beginning the process of identifying climate risks to critical infrastructure, assessing those risks, and finding solutions.”
— Josh Kelly, Engineering Director
For users specifically interested in using Climate Insight to support housing projects, where is a good place to start?
JK: Short answer, anywhere. There is data and information throughout Climate Insight to support housing projects regardless of whether you are starting from a place of climate action, development, or supporting infrastructure.
EJ: That’s right—there are so many great housing resources on the platform. I’d say that homeowners, developers, and organizations supporting them can start with the Climate-Smart Home Explorer. Municipalities might want to begin with the library’s housing filter to find housing-supportive infrastructure options, case studies, tools, as well as codes, standards and guidelines. And the Solutions Finder is a good first stop for anyone. My biggest advice is to check back often because we are constantly adding and updating all of these housing resources.
Climate Insight is constantly evolving to meet its users’ needs. Since it launched in the fall of 2024, new features have been added every six months, and new content is updated monthly. Why do you think these updates are so important?
SY: Local governments are dealing with aging infrastructure and changing populations—not to mention limited budgets—which means doing more with less in an ever-changing landscape. Climate Insight’s regular updates and enhancements ensure you can always access the most up-to-date resources and tools to increase the resilience and reduce emissions of the infrastructure your communities depend on. Plus, local leaders and practitioners are speaking to us as they use the platform. This means that we can be responsive in our updates, reflecting your ideas and needs in the platform as it evolves.
“Local leaders and practitioners are speaking to us as they use the platform. This means that we can be responsive in our updates, reflecting their ideas and needs in the platform as it evolves.”
— Sheri Young, Project Director
What is an upcoming feature you are particularly excited about?
EJ: It’s really exciting to work on a platform that constantly evolves. It means we can publish tools as soon as they’re helpful to you, and then can keep updating and adding to them over time to make them better and better.
We’ve got a great new costing tool that we’re about to release alongside the Climate-Smart Home Explorer, which compares home improvement options’ costs at build with occupant savings or avoided costs. In other words, the Climate-Smart Home Explorer will soon become even more useable! I’m also looking forward to a map update, which will add more layers and new analytical capabilities that include things like per capita and benchmarking information.
JK: Being an engineer and having worked with map-based data tools, I am most excited about upcoming enhancements to the map, as well as the Community Profiles. We started Climate Insight with a relatively simplistic map interface, which has put some constraints on our bolder ideas for mapping spatial and community-related data. We are working on exciting new enhancements to the map that will allow us to support more data, more analyses, and make Climate Insight’s place-based tools even more useful.
SY: I am very excited about expanding our content on equity across the platform. I don’t want to give away too much, as we are still very much in the planning stages. But, I can say that we are looking into developing a very cool new feature that will make it easier to identify how and when equity considerations can be integrated into your infrastructure projects, to ensure a low-carbon, resilient future for all. And in the meantime, I also can’t wait to play with a new land use planning tool coming in September to compare the impacts of different types of neighbourhood density and home types.
Q&A with the Team Behind Climate Insight
Discover how others are using the platform, how it has evolved since 2024, and what new features we are working on.
Climate Insight is a free, online platform that empowers communities across Canada with the data and information needed to build low-carbon, resilient housing and infrastructure. Its functionality, features, and content are continuously updated to better serve communities as they confront the growing challenges of climate change.
In light of Climate Insight’s most recent update, which launched on April 29, 2026, ICLEI Canada’s Managing, Engineering, and Project Directors share their thoughts on Climate Insight, its features and its future.
Sheri and Josh, you have both worked for municipal governments. If you had access to Climate Insight while you were in those roles, what features would you have used most?
Sheri Young, Project Director, Climate Insight (SY): Most often? The Solutions Finder. I would run every permit request through the Solutions Finder and attach the results to every application. I would actually also do that with the Rapid Risk Assessment (RRA) tool. Both of these tools can initiate discussions and provide background support for any project at any stage, whether it’s prioritizing projects, building a business case, or looking for ways to add resilience to existing infrastructure.
Joshua Kelly, Engineering Director, Climate Insight (JK): For me, it would be the map and the RRA tool. I used to work to integrate climate considerations into the community’s asset management systems. The climate and social vulnerability data available on Climate Insight’s map provide valuable tools to inform and support asset-related decisions. To take this one step further, our asset management systems were also increasingly considering risk, and I would have used the RRA as a low-barrier access point to complete climate risk assessments for community infrastructure internally, without the need to allocate resources to bring in external consultants.
“If I were still working at the Town of Okotoks, I would use Climate Insight to run every permit request through the Solutions Finder, and attach the results to every application.”
— Sheri Young, Project Director
Nearly two years into Climate Insight, how are communities using the platform?
Ewa Jackson, Managing Director, ICLEI Canada (EJ): We built Climate Insight to help fill capacity gaps so that all Canadian communities can realize their ambitions. The good news is that we’re seeing that this is already happening.