Keyword Community

Canada is experiencing two major changes at the same time: an aging population and a changing climate. By 2040, approximately 10.7 million people will be 65 years and older, comprising a quarter of the national population [1]. Everybody ages, and everybody ages differently. Biological, physical, and socioeconomic factors all contribute to health and well-being as we grow older. This means while there is no typical blueprint for aging, we each experience the joys and challenges of aging in some form. As climate change increases the severity and frequency of hazards such as heatwaves, wildfires, flooding, the impacts of these events can intersect with the challenges that come with aging, making them more difficult to manage. [2][3] How we live today and plan for the future will shape our health, independence, and longevity as we all grow older in a changing climate.

We often point fingers at individuals for their struggles, but what if the problem lies in our systems? This film examines how large-scale structures—like capitalism and colonialism—impact community health. As climate change amplifies existing inequities, we explore the urgent need to move toward a more empathetic, collective responsibility.

Across Canada, the changing climate is affecting the health of people. [1] Prolonged periods of heat, wildfires and poor air quality, and infectious diseases are impacting our mental health, physical health, and the health of communities. We are realizing more and more that climate change is a health issue, as much as it is an environmental and social issue.

The North Shore Tribal Council, together with Sagamok Anishinawbek, Batchewana First Nation, and OFNTSC, is preparing infrastructure for climate impacts using the First Nations Infrastructure Resilience Toolkit (FN-IRT). This approach combines technical expertise with community knowledge to support adaptation planning for infrastructure and cultural resilience.

In the Heiltsuk (Haíɫzaqv) Nation, community-led infrastructure projects such as clam gardens and the Big House enhance community resilience. This film explores how values, traditions, and the principle of “Looking Back to Look Forward” guide the creation of climate-resilient, culturally relevant infrastructure. It shares the intergenerational wisdom of the Haíɫzaqv Nation on climate change and community infrastructure.

Northwest Angle #33 is a remote community in the southwest corner of Ontario that is only accessible by ice road in winter and boat in the summer. Confronted with climate change, the community is looking at how a less cold winter, shortening season, and erratic weather will affect their ice road. With a feasibility study on the table, the possibility of an alternate road is contingent on many factors lining up. Their dream is bringing their children back to their home to continue their culture and traditions.

Infrastructure is often thought of as physical objects built from concrete, steel, and timber, like roads, buildings, water treatment plants or energy networks. These are the physical systems, buildings, structures, and facilities that help people carry out daily activities. They are designed and developed by humans to make lives easier, more efficient, and generally to improve quality of life. [1]

Climate change is happening. Understanding what the potential risks of climate change are helps us to prepare for them. Even with large efforts to reduce global emissions, we will still feel impacts from these changes, and the effects will be felt most heavily at the community level. It is therefore critical for communities to adapt, make changes, and reduce risk. This generally starts with a planning process called a climate risk assessment.

“We want to take a look at how we can build better information for First Nations.” Climate change planning needs to be done by the First Nation community, for the First Nation community. That’s what Elmer Lickers believes is the key to success. Elmer Lickers is Mohawk, a member of the Six Nations of the Grand River Territory. He is also a senior advisor at the Ontario First Nations Technical Services Corporation (OFNTSC). Lickers and his team work with communities on a program called the First Nations Infrastructure Resilience Toolkit (FN-iRT), a First Nations specific approach to climate change risk assessment for infrastructure and asset management. (Learn more about the Basics of Climate Risk Assessment

Winter is central to the Canadian prairie identity. It’s the defining season for a people whose common enemy is also their strength. The long cold snowy winter is also important to economies and ecosystems. And that winter is changing. Set to the backdrop of the Nestaweya River Trail, one of Canada’s longest skating trails, resilient settlers and newcomers alike talk about adapting to a world where the joys of the season are shrinking and what that will mean for future generations.