Be a Changemaker!
The Changemakers Program is our free neighborhood support program for Pocket homeowners doing home upgrades that also reduce your home's energy use - anything from installing attic insulation or a heat pump to renovations that involve more or all of your home. It is run by knowledgeable Pocket Change volunteers who have experience with this topic, and guided by the building science expertise of Pocket neighbour and Retrofit Coach Paul Dowsett, one of Canada's leading sustainable architects, and our parent organization, Toronto Home Energy Network.
Think of us as a bridge. If you know nothing about green home upgrades and technologies, we can help you close the gap between layperson and expert knowledge. We help to get you up to speed with the basics you need to know before moving forward with technical services from energy advisors, installers and contractors. As an example, we may not be able to size a heat pump for you, but we can tell you some of the basic things you need to know when you start thinking about one.
To join the Changemakers program or ask us a question about it, please email [email protected] or sign up on this page.
Program benefits:
- Networking and peer-to-peer support from other neighbours, for example, at our regular (every few months) Changemaker Social gatherings in the Pocket (usually in a neighbour's house or backyard).
- Retrofit tools, information and resources that we share directly with our Changemakers.
- The support of all of us at the Pocket Change Project, and particularly from your own personal Retrofit Coordinator! Our Retrofit Coordinators are Changemakers themselves and are there if you have any questions or need help troubleshooting something.
- Support in finding ways to save money (by avoiding costly mistakes and making sure you get all the rebates and loans you qualify for, not to mention by sometimes substantially reducing your energy bills!).
- Support to help you to maximize your budget and your emissions reductions, while addressing your - and your home's - needs.
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Support in finding reliable contractors, installers and other retrofit professionals, who know what they are doing. For example, check out our Retrofit Advisors page for a list of organizations who can help you to strategically plan your approach.
The Changemakers program also gives you...
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The chance to....
- Have a much more comfortable home when you are done. Winter drafts and uncomfortably hot rooms in summer, be gone!
- Save money especially if you can go 100% electric with your home - bye bye high utility bills! Even without being 100% electric, the average homeowner in Toronto saves $500 on their bills a year, just by getting a heat pump.
- Make your home more resilient to extreme weather and climate shocks (with better cooling, battery back-up, and solar power for example)
- Increase the value of your home, because over time, all homeowners in Toronto will be required to report their home's energy efficiency ratings when they sell them, and buyers will be increasingly looking for homes that have the latest energy-saving and climate-resilient upgrades. Not having these upgrades will make your house less attractive.
- The chance to inspire others by what you are doing. We offer you an optional lawn sign when you start your work, and it's amazing how much this encourages other Pocket neighbours to start thinking about retrofits too. Just joining and talking about it is a great way to inspire your neighbours.
- The chance to take meaningful climate action - as our homes are one of the biggest sources of our personal climate footprints, and our Changemakers are doing amazing work to bring those down.
- The chance to help out Pocket Change and influence decision-makers. As more homeowners join this program, the reeal-world data we are putting together about all the good work they are doing helps us share our this good news story with Pocket neighbours, governments, and others.
How do I qualify?
To be a Changemaker, you need to:
- Own a home
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Live in The Pocket (see boundaries here)
- Be planning on doing some home green improvements in the near future, or have already started.
- And that's it!
Pocket Changemakers, March 2024