Top 19 Environmental Organizations in Ottawa

Ottawa, the capital city of Canada, is an ecologically diverse area, and some environmental organizations have devoted both their time and resources to the development and restoration of this environment.

In this article, we take a look at these top environmental organizations in Ottawa, Canada.

Environmental Organizations in Ottawa

Ecology Ottawa
Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability (CAFES)
Ottawa Sustainability Fund
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society
Canadian Parks and Recreation Association
Friends of the Earth Canada
Nature Canada – Canada Nature
Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club
Ottawa Peace and Environment Resource Centre
Ottawa Riverkeeper – Sentinelles De La Riviere Des Outaouais
Sierra Club of Canada Foundation
The Rideau Trail Association Incorporated
Sustainable Youth Canada Ottawa
Old Ottawa South Community Association
Sustainable Eastern Ontario
Peace and Environment Resource Centre (Ottawa)
Ottawa Climate Action Fund
Environmental Defense
Project Learning Tree Canada

1. Ecology Ottawa

Ecology Ottawa is a non-profit, volunteer-run, community-based organization located at 123 Slater St, Floor 6, Ottawa, ON K1P 5H2.

They think that the inhabitants of Ottawa are concerned about problems like climate change, pollution, and waste and that they want sustainable communities where safe energy, water, and air are prioritized, as well as public transportation, active transportation, and the preservation of green spaces.

They give locals the knowledge and resources they need to comprehend environmental problems that affect their community and encourage environmental leadership at all levels that affect the City of Ottawa.

City councilors have historically reacted to public pressure and have a sensitivity to their constituents’ needs as they rely on their votes, so by mobilizing and engaging the community to respond at key moments to calls to action, they will create a critical mass of pressure that will result in a majority vote on the focus issues of their campaign.

2. Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability (CAFES)

The network of environmental and climate change leaders in the city of Ottawa is called Community Associations for Environmental Sustainability (CAFES).

Incorporated as a non-profit corporation in 2021, CAFES was established in 2010 and operates on unceded Algonquin land.

Community associations from urban, suburban, and rural areas as well as environmental and citizen organizations make up CAFES’ organizational members.

The chairs of the environment committees or the Green Point people in their local associations frequently serve as their community association representatives. Their members are engaged citizens who care about maintaining ecological equilibrium.

As of May 2023, the network has representatives from more than 150 individuals and groups from 20 wards and more than 50 neighborhoods.

To create and protect a healthier and more livable city, CAFES’s objective is to promote effective environmental action in the local community and at the municipal level.

CAFES communicates frequently with the Ottawa Federation of Citizens’ Associations (FCA) and is a member of it.

They support local groups’ initiatives to make Ottawa a better, healthier, and more livable place by collaborating with groups like Ecology Ottawa, Forêt Capital Forest, the Greenspace Alliance of Canada’s Capital, Waste Watch Ottawa, City for All Women (CAWI), and Synapcity.

A key player in the Peoples’ Official Plan coalition is CAFES.

3. Ottawa Sustainability Fund

The Ottawa Community Foundation established the Ottawa Sustainability Fund (OSFund) as a charitable fund in 2006 and is located at 301-75 Albert St. Ottawa, ON, K1P 5E7. It makes it possible for donors to fund initiatives that support an environmentally sustainable society in the City of Ottawa with confidence.

The fund has given grants totaling more than $100,000 to initiatives and organizations serving the city of Ottawa since 2006.

EnviroCentre was contacted in 2015 to assist the OSFund with its administrative needs. They continue to support important environmental initiatives and programs in the Ottawa region because of a strategic alliance between EnviroCentre, the OSFund Advisory Committee, and the Ottawa Community Foundation.

A group of dedicated volunteers and the generosity of donors enable the OSFund. The Ottawa Community Foundation is responsible for managing the funds.

4. Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society

The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society is located at 506-250 City Centre Ave., Ottawa, Ontario.

The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS) is the only national organization in Canada devoted completely to preserving parks and safeguarding public lands and waters and the nature within them.

They have taken the lead in defending more than 500,000 square kilometers in the previous 50+ years—an area larger than the Yukon Territory! To ensure that future generations may enjoy Canada’s unique wilderness, they want to safeguard at least half of the country’s public lands and waters.

5. Canadian Parks and Recreation Association

The Canadian Parks and Recreation Association is located at 1180 Walkley Road, Ottawa, Ontario.

The Canadian Parks and Recreation Association (CPRA) is the national voice for a thriving grassroots network with alliances that link individuals who create active, healthy communities and have an impact on Canadians’ daily lives.

6. Friends of the Earth Canada

Friends of the Earth Canada is located at 251 Bank Street, 2nd Floor, Ottawa, Ontario.

From a tiny group of volunteers in 1978, Friends of the Earth Canada (FoE) has expanded into one of the nation’s most significant environmental advocacy groups.

7. Nature Canada

Nature Canada is located at 75 Albert Street, Suite 300, Ottawa, Ontario.

The oldest national environmental nonprofit in Canada is called Nature Canada. Over the past 75 years, Nature Canada has worked to save the many species that depend on these habitats and the over 63 million acres of parks and wildlife areas in Canada.

Today, Nature Canada represents a network of more than 350 nature organizations nationwide, with affiliates in every province and over 45,000 members and supporters.

8. Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club

Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club is located in Ottawa, Ontario.

The Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club is Canada’s first natural history club; it was established in 1863 and officially organized in 1879. Over 800 people are involved, with interests ranging from birding to botany, research to writing, conservation to collaboration.

9. Ottawa Peace and Environment Resource Centre

An organization and registered charity is the Ottawa Peace and Environment Resource Centre (PERC). It is essentially a grassroots organization maintained by volunteers, and it is governed by a Board of Directors.

10. Ottawa Riverkeeper – Sentinelles De La Riviere Des Outaouais

Ottawa Riverkeeper-Sentinelles De La Riviere Des Outaouais is located at 379 Danforth Avenue, Unit 2, Ottawa, Ontario.

Ottawa Riverkeeper is a grassroots organization that works with all levels of government, communities, businesses, and volunteers to find solutions to issues that endanger the health of our river.

11. Sierra Club of Canada Foundation

The Sierra Club of Canada Foundation is located at One Nicholas Street, Suite 412B, Ottawa, Ontario. The Sierra Club Canada Foundation’s goal is to use philanthropic funds to improve environmental conservation and preservation.

12. The Rideau Trail Association, Inc.

The Rideau Trail Association, Inc. is located at 568 Laverendrye Drive, Ottawa, Ontario.

By coordinating self-propelled outdoor activities including hiking, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing on the trail and in the surrounding areas, the Rideau Trail Association is an active nonprofit organization that promotes and preserves the Rideau Trail.

13. Sustainable Youth Canada Ottawa

The Sustainable Youth Canada branch with the highest number of school students is in Ottawa. It currently oversees several initiatives in the Greater Ottawa Region to:

Create and maintain the SYC Canadian Sustainable Youth Registry for Ottawa to link enthusiastic youth with sustainability opportunities in the area;
Lead regional and local initiatives in Ottawa to raise awareness of energy efficiency and environmental sustainability.

Work with neighborhood groups to fill the gap between partner organizations needing assistance and volunteers looking for ways to become involved with sustainability.

SYC Ottawa is a youth-based organization that advocates for Canada’s environmental and energy sustainability. The club’s goals are to raise awareness of current environmental problems and provide local kids with the opportunity to get involved in sustainability-related projects.

While they have organized park clean-ups and raised awareness of current issues this year, their main focus has been the community’s fight against the possible deforestation of a national historic site in the heart of the city.

14. Old Ottawa South Community Association

Making Old Ottawa South (OOS) a pleasant, gratifying, and meaningful place to live is the mission of the Old Ottawa South Community Association (OSCA), a collection of community volunteers located at 260 Sunnyside Ave., Ottawa.

OSCA works to enhance the community’s quality of life in several ways, including:

Putting on social activities to improve neighborhood ties and foster neighborly interaction
Providing community members with educational, sporting, exercise, and leisure activities, including the stimulating after-school programs that are so crucial for working parents,
Actively promoting and defending the community’s interests in planned and upcoming development in and around OOS.
Ensuring that the public, the City of Ottawa, and other governmental bodies whose actions may have an impact on OOS are informed of the community’s interests
Keeping the neighborhood informed about events and opportunities that might be of interest
Launching occasional new initiatives to promote the neighborhood.

The Ottawa South Community Centre, often known as the “Old Firehall,” is where OSCA is based and where most of its well-liked events, committee and community meetings, monthly board meetings, and the Annual General Meeting (AGM) are held.

The OSCA Board of Directors and Executive are made up of community volunteers who oversee OSCA. The operations of OSCA are managed by several committees comprised of interested OOS residents and Board members. A committee is in charge of overseeing the program options, special events, and zoning, development, and traffic issues for OSCA.

The nominating committee looks for community people who want to be put forward for the Board’s nomination in the first few months of every year.

The Bylaws of the Association, board-approved rules, and standard operating procedures all control how OSCA and the Board conduct their business. The annual general meeting (AGM), which is held on the first Tuesday in May, is when the association’s operations are reviewed.

15. Sustainable Eastern Ontario

A networking group called Sustainable Eastern Ontario promotes alliances and teamwork on sustainability initiatives throughout Eastern Ontario. Incorporated in 2011, Sustainable Eastern Ontario was established in 2010 and is located at Station E, Ottawa.

They establish strategic alliances across sustainability organizations, increase the sector’s capability for administration and operations, and recognize achievements locally.

They are conveying the tale of transition and resilience in our community and enhancing the visibility and capability of sustainable projects. Sustainable Eastern Ontario’s networking group promotes alliances and teamwork on sustainability initiatives throughout Eastern Ontario.

16. Peace and Environment Resource Centre (Ottawa)

The PERC is one of Ottawa’s oldest environmental organizations and has been a registered charity since 1984. It is essentially a grassroots group run by volunteers, with a Board of Directors overseeing operations. Peace and Environment Resource Centre (Ottawa) is located at 2203 Alta Vista Dr., Ottawa.

At its office in the Glebe, PERC houses a physical and virtual library of resources and currently has 130 members from across the National Capital Region and Canada. They produce the quarterly, free publication known as the Peace and Environment News (PEN), distributed throughout Ottawa by volunteers.

The Healthy Transportation Coalition is the publisher of their most recent issue (Summer 2016), which addresses difficulties with the city’s bicycle infrastructure.

17. Ottawa Climate Action Fund

The Ottawa Climate Action Fund (OCAF) was established to spur and expand low-carbon solutions in Ottawa to their maximum potential. By bringing low-carbon initiatives, investments, and people together, we integrate this effort with community benefit and achieve accurate, long-lasting results.

In ways that are beneficial to the community, they scale up climate solutions. They aim to hasten Ottawa’s transition to a just, carbon-free future. Their ideal Ottawa is prosperous, equitable, and carbon-neutral.

The OCF, which is located at 301-75 Albert St., Ottawa, is very interested in combating climate change and creating new foundational organizations in Ottawa to support the advancement of beneficial, systemic, and sustainable change.

18. Environmental Defense

Leading Canadian environmental advocacy group Environmental Defense works with the government, businesses, and citizens to protect clean water, a stable climate, and thriving communities.

Their goal is to create a future in which everyone in Canada may live happily and successfully in an environment that is safe for future generations.

Environmental Defense, which is located at 75 Albert St. Suite 305, Ottawa, has worked for more than 35 years to protect our freshwater resources, promote livable communities, reduce Canadians’ exposure to dangerous chemicals, halt plastic pollution, combat climate change, and create a clean economy at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels.

They strive each day to bring about real, long-lasting change. They place a high value on working with the government, businesses, and people for this reason. As a result, their work is concentrated on:

Encouraging the government to adopt laws that will safeguard the environment and health of Canadians.
Collaborating with businesses to create a healthy, thriving economy
Enabling Canadians to take initiative in their daily lives

19. Project Learning Tree Canada

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative, a non-profit charitable organization to increase sustainability via collaborative efforts centered on forests, is the organization behind PLT Canada.

Using trees and forests as windows on the world, Project Learning Tree Canada (PLT Canada), which is located at 1306 Wellington Street West, Suite 400, Ottawa, is dedicated to increasing environmental knowledge, stewardship, and green career opportunities.

Their distinguished professional track, forest literacy, and environmental education tools provide a lifetime of learning from infancy through adulthood.

Their extensive and varied network offers opportunities for young people to learn about nature and the variety of green vocations in the forestry and conservation sectors, as well as professional development for educators. Future leaders in forestry and conservation are developed in this way.

Conclusion

As seen, there have been major impacts by some of these environmental organizations in Ottawa, and it would be a great thing to join in on their journey toward the earth’s restoration. One way you can do that is by donating to their course or else still you can volunteer. is a great way to interact with people and have excellent working experience.

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Providence Amaechi

A passion-driven environmentalist by heart. Lead content writer at EnvironmentGo.
I strive to educate the public about the environment and its problems.
It has always been about nature, we ought to protect not destroy.