Hello! I’m Sheena Sharp.

It’s astonishing to me that we might run an election, as large parts of Canada are on fire, and not make climate action the most important issue for the city to tackle. In fact, council punted a decision on building emissions standards until after the election.

Climate Action is not a technology problem, or a money problem, its a political problem, and it belongs in every election.

Eighteen years ago I decided to refocus my architectural firm on the problem of decarbonizing buildings. I am proud to be the architect of the City’s first Net-Zero building, the Mount Dennis Childcare. I am also proud of The Elmwood, a seniors non-profit housing project that is the first net-zero ready affordable housing project approved under CMHC’s Apartment Construction Loan Program.

Despite successes, we can’t meet our climate goals one building at a time. We need government to align their efforts with the private sector for maximum reductions. For example, the city can play a vital role in finance renovations using CPACE to transfer repayment to property tax bills. With efforts like this, I can see a viable, affordable path to decarbonization in 20 years, which will contribute to climate stabilization.

The next generation of younger architects is ready to move up to leadership, and should I win, they will transition into ownership roles.