david.laing

14 June 202614 June 2026

BEA Board Members Recognized at Brampton’s Grow Green Awards

The BEA Board couldn’t be more proud that two of our members received awards at last Saturday’s Grow Green Festival, hosted by the City of Brampton at Jim Archdekin Recreation Centre.

Climate Change Award, Individual: Julius Lindsay
Stewardship Award, Individual: Jeya Thavachandren
Stewardship Award, Business/Organization: The Food Quotient
Environmental Youth Award: Human Nature Projects Canada
Environmental Legacy Award: Pauline Thornham

Amisha Moorjani, was recognized as owner of The Food Quotient a catering business focused on preparing healthy meals in an environmentally sustainable way. The business buys from local food sources and uses reuseable packaging wherever possible.

Amisha is member of the Brampton Environment Advisory Committee. She became a BEA Board member in 2025 and has been an active contributor to various BEA projects and events. She has recently taken on the role of BEA Community Outreach Coordinator to help bring organizations together in the common goal of having Brampton grow as an environmentally sustainable city.

Polly Thornham was recognized for her outstanding environmental work over many years. She is an active member of Sierra Club, BikeBrampton, and the Green Party of Ontario. She has run as a Green Party candidate at both the Provincial and Federal level. She is a past member of the Brampton Environmental Advisory Committee and the Brampton Active Transportation Advisory Committee. Polly joined the BEA Board in 2024 and is a tireless contributor to BEA projects and events.

The BEA congratulates all of the Brampton Grow Green Environmental Award winners for 2026!

7 June 202611 June 2026

Discussion Paper – Getting Major Projects Built in Canada, There is a Better Way

The Government of Canada has published a sparse but alarming Discussion Paper that proposes sweeping reforms to federal assessment and permitting processes. The overall goal of the Paper is to simplify and shorten these processes so that major projects can be approved and implemented more quickly. The public consultation period on the Discussion Paper has been extended until July 22, 2026. I have reviewed submissions by the Canadian Environmental Law Association, 350.org and Environmental Defence. All three have grave concerns about what the government is proposing to do. Here is a nutshell summary of what the Discussion Paper proposes:

23 May 202623 May 2026

Brampton Climate Walk & Native Plant Tour at Dorchester Park

Hosted by Brampton Environmental Alliance in collaboration with Toronto Climate Week
Sunday June 7, 2026 | 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Dorchester Park, Brampton (Meeting point details will be confirmed upon registration)

What if your front yard, backyard, or boulevard could become a haven for bees, butterflies, and the plants that sustain them — right here in Brampton?

20 May 202627 May 2026

Ever wondered how discarded packaging in the Blue Box becomes new packaging?

Most of us put something into the blue box every week and hope it gets recycled properly. Have you ever wondered what actually happens behind the scenes after the truck picks it up? How much of it actually gets recycled? Or, why materials need to be separated into the blue, black or green bins?

These are important questions that our BEA team is aiming to answer at an upcoming interactive workshop on Thursday, June 04, 2026. There you will learn why it is important to separate your waste, how to dispose of it in a way that has the least environmental impact, and how discarded material, like an old yogurt container, eventually become new packaging again.

17 May 202611 June 2026

BEA Partners with Brampton Forestry, ACER and local schools to deliver tree monitoring

The BEA has partnered with Brampton Forestry and the Association of Canadian Educational Resources, (ACER) to provide tree monitoring services to sites at Batsman and Gore Meadows Parks. Students from Louise Arbour and Fletcher’s Meadows Secondary Schools participated in the 2-day event, Batsman Park on May 02nd and Gore Meadows Park on May 16th.

11 May 202611 May 2026

Announcing the ClimateFast Brampton Voting Record Database

The Brampton Environmental Alliance is pleased to announce a collaboration with ClimateFast to bring climate accountability and transparency to the City of Brampton. ClimateFast is a volunteer-led not-for-profit organization driving climate action through education and civic engagment. Now, through the Brampton Environmental Alliance website, you can access a searchable database of votes made by Brampton City Council on climate and environmental issues during this 2022-2026 term. With this database we can now see how our Council stacks up on climate leadership.

20 April 202627 April 2026

My trip to the Netherlands

I just returned from a 2-week bike and boat tour in the Netherlands. It was a transformative experience, seeing first-hand how a society and economy can be built where the car is not the primary mode of transport, where most energy requirements are met by renewable sources, and where climate action is a visible and normalized part of daily life.

De Nassau ship, part of Boat and Bike fleet. This is the ship we sailed on. Bikes were unloaded onto the dock in the morning. We rode to the next town where the boat would meet us in the evening. Breakfast and dinners were served on the boat and we packed lunches each day to take with us. Photo credit: Boat and Bike

22 March 202625 March 2026

TRCA Announces Climate Ready Homes Program

This past week I met with Sarah MacKell, from TRCA. Sarah is a Program Manager with the Sustainable Neighbourhoods Action Program (SNAP). You can read about the activities that the BEA has done with the Bramalea SNAP team over the past several years here.

Sarah was telling me about the Climate Ready Homes program that TRCA started in September 2025. The program builds on the success of SNAP. Climate Ready Homes is designed to help homeowners make practical, affordable upgrades that boost comfort, save money, and prepare for a changing climate. It provides access to personalized guidance, financial incentives and educational workshops on a variety of topics including:

9 March 202629 March 2026

BEA hosts most successful AGM in its history!

Over 100 people, aged 11 to 80, from all different walks of Brampton life, attended the Brampton Environmental Alliance Annual General Meeting this past Monday March 02nd. Co-hosted by BEA Board members Amisha Moorjani and Gunjan Sharda, the meeting took place at the Unifor Local 1285 Hall, where the group was warmly welcomed by Local 1285 President, Vito Beato following the land acknowledgement delivered by BEA Board member Yarim Hinojosa.

2 February 20262 February 2026

Brampton Council punches hole in east-west cycling corridor

This past week Brampton Council voted 10-1 in favour of removing the bike lanes along a section of Howden Blvd. between Williams and Dixie. Councillor Santos was the only member who upheld Vision 2040 and the principles of good city building. There is no candy-coating this; it is a huge blow to the city’s plans for sustainable transportation.