Looking for maximum impact? Fund climate work in Atlantic Canada: Report

Atlantic Canada is known for its lobsters, Peggy’s Cove, the Cabot Trail … and soon, where funders can get more bang for their buck. 

A new report from Environment Funders Canada says the size, connectedness, and cohesion of Atlantic Canadian communities make it easier to develop the buy-in needed to drive environmental solutions. 

The region is also experiencing an economic and population boom that creates a significant opportunity, said EFC executive director Devika Shah.  

In 2022, Charlottetown, Halifax and Moncton led the country in population growth spurred by international immigration to the region, according to the federal government.

The vision of Atlantic Canada that many may have—one of outmigration and few opportunities—is outdated, said Richard Bridge, legal council for Ulnooweg Indigenous Communities Foundation, a local grantmaker. 

Cutting-edge work is happening across the region’s four provinces, driven by the arrival of more people, he said.  

‘Historic opportunity’ 

With population growth comes new construction and a time-bound opportunity for grantmakers to support environmentally friendly design, said Shah. 

Such grantmaking efforts may also find more support in Atlantic Canada than elsewhere, according to the report. 

A 2021 survey found 75 per cent of Atlantic Canadians agreed Canada should take a leading role in tackling climate change. 

This perspective may be shaped by the intensity of the climate-related disasters that have hit the region over the past several years.

Communities in New Brunswick were devastated by spring floods in 2018 and 2019, which caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damage. 

In 2022, Atlantic Canada was subsequently rocked by Hurricane Fiona, one of the costliest and most intense cyclones ever to hit Canada. 

Then there was the massive wildfire near Halifax in 2023. It forced the evacuation of more than 15,000 people and destroyed more than 150 homes, according to Global News. 

Earlier this summer, a young person died in Nova Scotia during flash flooding. 

“Having fatal floods in this province felt deeply shocking,” said Maggy Burns, executive director of the Halifax-based Ecology Action Centre. 

“We have been moving through these very extreme impacts of climate change.” 

Atlantic Canada ‘underfunded’ 

Yet despite factors that may create positive conditions for climate work, the region’s environmental charities are underfunded, according to the report. 

Seven per cent of Canada’s population lives in Atlantic Canada. However, the report says grants from Canadian foundations to charities operating outside of the MUSH sector (municipalities, universities, schools and hospitals) receive just two per cent of all grant funds. 

The paper, which details environmental funding opportunities in Atlantic Canada, does not explain why the region receives less foundation support than elsewhere.

However, Shah believes part of the reason is that there is less wealth generated in Atlantic Canada than elsewhere in the country. 

Fewer affluent Canadians means fewer foundations to give environmental grants.

In addition, affluent Atlantic Canadian families such as the Irvings, McCains, and Sobeys, tend to focus their support on other community-based priorities, Shah said,

With modest regional foundation support, many of the grants given to local environmental organizations come from foundations operating elsewhere. 

Some foundations continue to support great work, but others have come and gone, said Burns. 

“Maybe more populous parts of the country get more of the mental landscape and resonate more with funders,” she said. 

Ways to dig in

The Environment Funders Canada report offers a roadmap for grantmakers keen to give Atlantic Canada another look. 

Funders new to the region could offer support to map existing environmental and climate-focused work in the region, said Shah. 

According to the report, these efforts would be useful for locals, ensuring underrepresented communities are engaged in climate-focused efforts.

But Shah said resourcing these sorts of projects would also be useful for grantmakers, allowing them to build relationships locally and to identify the projects that best align with their priorities. 

The report also recommends funders consider supporting Indigenous sovereignty-focused activities, noting that Atlantic Canada is a region with a particularly active land back movement. 

There is a new Mi’kmaq-led land trust for Nova Scotia, and funding for this initiative supports its leaders to purchase additional land to steward, according to the report.

Bridge also encouraged donors to consider establishing a fund with Ulnooweg Indigenous Communities Foundation.

The foundation’s advisors can work with donors to resource a wide variety of Indigenous-focused programs, such as ecology-focused education, language retention, or sustainable forestry initiatives.  

The report additionally suggests funders could resource projects focused on ocean conservation, impact investing, building clean economies, and advancing environmental policy and advocacy. 

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