The Conservation Council of Ontario (CCO) announces a partnership with greenTbiz, a program delivery organization of the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA). Together they will launch the Toronto component of Doors Closed Ontario 2006 to the 55 Member Business Improvement Areas throughout Toronto with over 20,000 Member Businesses and Property Owners, as part of the We Conserve initiative.

With energy security and the danger of brownouts in the forefront of Ontario minds, public support for conservation is at an all-time high. Our most recent polling shows that 93% of the Ontario public have made energy conservation a personal priority. After a hugely successful campaign in 2005, the Conservation Council of Ontario is once again running Doors Closed in neighbourhoods across Toronto and communities across Ontario.

Toronto is a priority area for electricity conservation in Ontario. With only two major power lines feeding the city, Toronto is particularly vulnerable to brownouts during summer heat waves.

Our campaign focuses on solutions, on partnerships, and on positive social messaging.

For the commercial sector, our initial “Doors Closed” campaign focused on the energy loss resulting from open doors and windows when air conditioning or heating. We fully understand the marketing rationale behind an open-doors policy, which is why we have designed our campaign as a promotional and marketing tool for those stores that practice conservation.

This year we are asking stores to implement a doors closed policy for days where the temperature is above 25 or below 5 degrees.

The Doors Closed campaign encourages people to support those stores that display a We Conserve sticker. “We need to support businesses that show conservation leadership”, said Chris Winter, Executive Director of the Conservation Council of Ontario.

Within the first week of the 2005 pilot campaign, “Doors Closed” received over 100 media hits from both print and television across the province including the Toronto Star, Ottawa Sun, London Free Press and CBC National News.

For a quick overview of the campaign in 2005 including a PDF of the final report please visit www.weconserve.ca/august2005.html

About the Conservation Council of Ontario:

The Conservation Council of Ontario is a not-for-profit association of over fifty organizations and fifty individual conservation leaders. Its mission is to promote a conserver society and economy in Ontario. To achieve this goal, the Council is focusing its efforts on building a stronger conservation movement in Ontario, where a wide range of organizations, businesses, and the three levels of government work to raise awareness and commitment to all aspects of conservation, including nature, resource efficiency, pollution prevention and waste reduction.

About greenTbiz:

greenTbiz is a program delivery unit, under the auspices of the Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA), working with BIAs, for the benefit of its members and the environment. The aim of this delivery organization will be to develop comprehensive and conscientious programs with a focus on Energy Conservation and Environmental (EC&E) concerns that will have both significant EC&E benefits and outcomes, but will also resultantly better the bottom line of the BIA businesses.

About TABIA & BIAs:

The Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas (TABIA) is a non-profit umbrella organization representing the City of Toronto's 55 Business Improvement Areas (BIAs) who in turn represent more than 20,000 business & property owners. A business improvement area (BIA) is an association of business people within a specified district who join together, with official approval of the City, in a self-help program aimed at stimulating local business. They use their own money in an ongoing effort to draw more prospective customers to their area by improving the attractiveness of the area and promoting it as a good place to shop, visit and do business. Once a BIA is approved by City Council, every business within its boundaries automatically becomes a member. There are no exceptions, under the principle that all who benefit should be required to bear their fair share of the cost of the program. While a BIA arises from the retail and professional activities of a main street, it has a profound effect on the surrounding area. It serves as an economic and social anchor, helping to stabilize and revitalize the local community. BIAs are also a part of distinct communities and neighbourhoods and functionally bring the business and the resident together.

Contacts:

The Conservation Council of Ontario  (www.weconserve.ca)

Allegra Newman, Doors Closed Campaign Coordinator
416-533-1635 x2 or research@greenontario.org

Chris Winter, Executive Director, The Conservation Council of Ontario
416-533-1635 x1 or cco@web.ca

greenTbiz and TABIA  (www.Toronto-BIA.com)

Chantal Dalgliesh, greenTbiz Program Developer and Manager
416-697-9000 or cdalgliesh@sympatico.ca

John Kiru, Executive Director, TABIA
416-889-4111 or JKiru@Toronto-BIA.com

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