Community Service Award

Kìchì Sìbì Winter Trail, a community-driven winter pathway along the Ottawa River. The Kichi Sibi Winter Trail—formerly known as the Sir John A. Macdonald Winter Trail—is a multi-use urban winter pathway that runs through parkland along the Ottawa River, right next to downtown Ottawa. Designed for cross-country skiers, snow bikers, walkers, and snowshoers, it brings vibrant, active use to the riverside throughout the winter. The trail began as a community concept in the winter of 2016. Before then, this valuable greenspace was largely underused during the colder months. The trail changed that, and its success has inspired six other community groups to launch similar winter trails in their own neighbourhoods. Now operated as a registered charity, the Kichi Sibi Winter Trail is maintained by a dedicated team of volunteers using snowmobiles and snow grooming equipment to keep it smooth, safe, and welcoming. The trail is completely free to use, with operating costs funded primarily through donations. Next winter, Kìchì Sìbì is proud to celebrate its 10th season—a milestone made possible by community support and a shared love of winter activity.

Ottawa Riverkeeper is a citizen-based action group for the Ottawa River watershed, providing leadership and inspiration to protect, promote and improve its ecological health and future. This includes the acknowledgement of the rights of the Anishinābeg Algonquin Nations within the watershed and a commitment to working together to build good relationships and shared understandings on water protection. They advocate for responsible and participatory decision-making, public education, access to information, and compliance with protective regulations. Guided by a science-based approach, they provide clear information with the aim to engage the public and empower citizens and decision-makers to ensure clean, healthy, and accessible water for all people and species. Ottawa Riverkeeper is a licensed member of Waterkeeper Alliance, an international grassroots advocacy organization devoted exclusively to clean water, protecting 2.7 million miles of waterways with more than 300 Waterkeepers in 47 countries.

The Winnipeg Architecture Foundation (WAF) is a charitable organization dedicated to advancing the awareness and appreciation of Winnipeg’s built environment through public education. 

Montreal and the Mont-Royal are indivisible. With its three peaks, this iconic location is affectionally referred to as "the mountain" and spreads over ten square kilometers. It boasts beautiful residential neighborhoods, several founding institutions of Montreal - hospitals, universities, religious communities, vast cemeteries, numerous neighborhood parks, and the magnificent Mount Royal Park covering a spacious and attractive green area of nearly 200 hectares overlooking downtown Montreal. Since 1986, Les amis de la montagne have played an active role in protecting and enhancing Mount Royal. Declared a heritage site by the Government of Quebec, much of the mountain enjoys several safeguards that guide the development of its land and buildings. As the city that surrounds it is thriving, the mountain is constantly feeling the pressure of densification and urban development. With the support of a community of people who are aware of the inestimable worth of Mount Royal, Les amis de la montagne contribute to further strengthen the culture of respect and long-term protection of this place.

SOVERDI, the Société de verdissement du Montréal Métropolitain, is an NPO established in 1992 with  the mission of ‘greening-up’ the Montreal landscape by planting the right tree in the right place. Its action aims to significantly increase the urban forest and to "democratize green" to improve the health and quality of life of Montrealers. A leader in urban greening, Soverdi favours a participatory approach to its interventions. The communities and local stakeholders are all invited to join together as agents of change and take part in Montreal’s great green alleyways project. Commissioned by the city of Montreal, SOVERDI coordinates the planting of trees on private and institutional properties referred to in the Canopy Action Plan (PAC). It brought together 40 partners under the Alliance forêt urbaine, the largest consultation table in Montreal for the planting of trees, in order to meet the ambitious challenge of planting 180,000 trees over the next ten years for the benefit of all Montrealers. In 2015, 10,000 trees were thus planted under the Urban Forest Action Plan, through more than 100 different projects. A significant undertaking, which was successfully accomplished thanks to the collaboration of our partners in the Alliance, the ‘A tree for my neighborhood’ campaign, various greening packages offered in industrial and commercial districts as well as other projects carried out on school boards’ and health care properties. Robert Norman and Pierre Bélec (Photo: J. Landry)

The Ecology Action Centre is a member-based charity in Nova Scotia taking leadership on critical issues from biodiversity to climate change to environmental justice.

Claude Potvin and Louise Hanavan of the Ecology Action Centre (Photo: J. Landry)

Elinor Gill Ratcliffe is known as a humanist, builder, dreamer, visionary and philanthropist. First and foremost, however, she is a proud descendant of generations of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. She grew up in St. John’s and, in 1974, she moved to Ontario where she met and married Edward Ratcliffe, founder of Arriscraft International. They shared a passion for helping the disadvantaged and, through their company, funded numerous projects in Canada and other parts of the world. Ms. Gill Ratcliffe graduated from Bishop Spencer College and continued her education in various institutions over the years. Ms. Gill Ratcliffe has also been involved with, and supported, various organizations and projects in Newfoundland. She has provided start-up funding for the Send Them Back Smiling Project of the Single Parent Association of Newfoundland and Labrador for the purchase of school supplies and has donated to The Bowring Park Foundation for the reconstruction of the duck pond. She is also a benefactor to The Rooms, the reconstruction of Fort Amherst, as well as the George Street United Church soup kitchen project, just to highlight a few. She has gained distinction by her genuine interest in and support of local initiatives, as well as her constant efforts to enrich the cultural heritage of her birthplace.

Photo: Elinor Gill Ratcliffe

The Iqaluit Community Greenhouse Society is a not-for-profit organization established in 2001 by residents who wished to build and operate a community greenhouse. Located at 63° 45′ 5″ N and 68° 31′ 24″ W, the Iqaluit Community Greenhouse is above the treeline on Baffin Island.

The Bill Mackenzie Humanitarian Society is responsible for the Compost Iqaluit groundroots community movement. Since 2004, the Society has been encouraging the diverting of organics in the North. 

Operating since 2010, the Elk River Alliance is a community-based water charity that connects people to the Elk River using science, education and community collaboration to ensure sustainable stewardship of the Elk River watershed.

The Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve is situated in south-eastern Ontario at the intersection of terrestrial and riverine ecosystems. The area comprises islands and islets of the Saint Lawrence River, which function as important stepping stones for the migration of plants and animals. The Frontenac Arch is an important land bridge linking the habitats of the Algonquin and Adirondack Park regions. 

The Rotary Club of Calgary is an organization of business, professional, and community leaders who come together through commitment and fellowship to create opportunities and a better future for generations who follow.

Partners FOR the Saskatchewan River Basin (PFSRB) has a mission to promote awareness, linkages, stewardship, knowledge, and respect for the Saskatchewan River Basin ecosystem and heritage that will encourage sustainable use of the basin’s natural resources and nurture cultural values.

The Central Experimental Farm is an agricultural research facility and a working farm located in the heart of Ottawa. It is a National Historic Site and a cultural heritage landscape.

Yvon Dumont, CM, OM, Métis leader, lieutenant-governor of Manitoba (born 21 January 1951 at St. Laurent, Manitoba, a mostly Métis community northwest of Winnipeg). Dumont became involved in Indigenous politics as a teenager and, throughout his career, held senior positions in the Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF), the Native Council of Canada (now the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples) and the Métis National Council (MNC). As MNC president in 1986, Dumont participated in the defeat of the Charlottetown Accord. On 5 March 1993, he was sworn in as the lieutenant-governor of Manitoba, the first Métis person in Canadian history to hold a vice-regal office. Yvon Dumont was a successful appellant in the 2013 Supreme Court of Canada land claims case Manitoba Métis Federation vs. Canada. This case helped bring about the signing of a memorandum of understanding in May 2016 between the Canadian government and the MMF to “advance exploratory talks on reconciliation.” Dumont remains a proponent of recognizing the Métis people as a distinct Indigenous population. (Source: Canadian Encyclopedia)

General Motors of Canada Limited, with headquarters in OSHAWA, Ontario, is a major manufacturer and distributor of cars and trucks.