Item - 2025.EX28.5

The Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry recommends that:

1. City Council adopt the Climate Change Resilience Workplan, as presented in Attachment 2 to the report dated November 25, 2025 and direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, to lead its implementation in collaboration with the applicable City Divisions.

2. City Council direct that the item be forwarded to Toronto Community Housing Corporation Board, Toronto Hydro Corporation Board, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority Board, Toronto Public Library Board, and the Toronto Transit Commission Board for their consideration and request the Boards to consider actions they can take to address climate change risks, and participate in the Climate Change Resilience Workplan as presented in Attachment 2 to the report dated November 25, 2025 from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry.

3. City Council authorize the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, or their designate, until December 31, 2028, to negotiate, enter into, and execute non-procurement agreements, as may be required, to support the implementation of the Climate Change Resilience Workplan, as presented in Attachment 2, to the report dated November 25, 2025 from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, with City of Toronto Agencies and Corporations, and with the non-profit, private, and public sectors to:

a. collaborate on research, projects, forums, or initiatives;

b. provide in-kind and/or financial support from the approved Environment, Climate and Forestry Division budget and that is within the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry financial authority;

c. data sharing; and/or

d. accept funding and/or in-kind support,

with each non-procurement agreement being on such terms and conditions acceptable to the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, and each being in a form satisfactory to the City Solicitor.

4. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, in consultation with the applicable City Divisions, to develop a Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan for the City, as outlined under Action 1.2.1 in the Climate Change Resilience Workplan, as presented in Attachment 2 to the report dated November 25, 2025, from the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, and report back to City Council by the second quarter of 2027 with information on feasibility, cost and accountability for climate change adaptation actions proposed for the City.

5. City Council direct the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, in collaboration with the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, and the General Manager, Parks and Recreation, to develop a workplan to improve integration of climate risks and impacts and incorporate natural assets into the City’s asset management planning process, in line with improvement initiatives currently identified in the City of Toronto's 2025 Corporate Asset Management Plan, and reflect these developments and enhancements as part of the 2030 update to the Corporate Asset Management Plan.

6. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry, with the support of the Executive Director, Financial Planning, to report back to Infrastructure and Environment Committee in the second quarter of 2027 on the feasibility of amending Toronto Municipal Code Chapter 669, Climate Change Goals and Governance, to include climate resilience and climate change adaptation in the Carbon Budget Report.

7. City Council direct the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry and the Director, Indigenous Affairs Office, in collaboration with the applicable City Divisions, to identify and encourage the adoption of new approaches to engaging with Indigenous communities on stewardship of lands and waters that respect, honour and enable Indigenous-led climate action.

In 2024, Toronto City Council directed Environment, Climate and Forestry to report back on current and future climate resilience initiatives across the corporation, provide a refreshed governance approach to climate resilience, identify climate resilience priorities and discuss Indigenous worldviews and relationships in climate resilience planning. This report responds to this direction, and has been prepared in coordination with two other heat-related reports being presented to City Council: Towards Implementing a Maximum Indoor Temperature Requirement for Rental Units and Cooling Rooms, led by Municipal Licensing and Standards Division (and co-signed by Toronto Public Health and Environment, Climate and Forestry), and Strengthening the Heat Relief Strategy, led by Toronto Emergency Management. Together, these reports contribute to a coordinated approach to enhancing heat resilience across Toronto.

Toronto’s climate is changing, with extreme heat and flooding from heavy rainfall two of the city’s most urgent climate hazards. Extreme heat is projected to escalate rapidly in the coming decades, making it the most pressing concern. High winds, poor air quality and severe winter weather also pose risks to the city. Most risks are expected to intensify over the coming decades, with growing impacts on public health, infrastructure, mobility, access to services and natural systems. Importantly, the impacts are not felt equally, making equity a critical consideration in building climate resilience.

Two essential types of climate action are mitigation, which means reducing greenhouse gas emissions to limit future climate change, and adaptation, which involves preparing for and responding to the impacts we are already experiencing and those to come. Effective adaptation strengthens Toronto's overall climate resilience, with evidence consistently showing that it delivers long-term benefits that outweigh the costs.

City Divisions are already taking important actions to build climate resilience, including actions to address heat, flooding and other climate risks through emergency preparedness, seasonal planning and dedicated initiatives. Despite these efforts, more is needed to close gaps and plan for risks that will continue to escalate in coming decades, coordinate and direct efforts and resources where they are needed most, connect long-term planning with seasonal planning and short-term response and ensure climate risks are considered in the mandates of City Divisions. The City also needs to fill information gaps, clarify accountabilities and specify resourcing needs for climate change adaptation actions.

Staff will convene an Oversight Table for Climate Resilience, co-chaired by Environment, Climate and Forestry and Toronto Emergency Management, to reflect the importance of connecting long-term climate resilience planning and seasonal preparedness and emergency response to extreme weather events. The Oversight Table will be composed of City Division Heads with representation from each City service area and will be supported by interdivisional working tables, including a wider range of City Divisions, Agencies, and Corporations, to generate a Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan. This Plan will enable the City to address the risks identified in the City's new climate change risk and vulnerability assessment. The climate change adaptation action planning process will also include engagement with residents to ensure actions are inclusive and locally relevant, and to generate data to support decision-making.

Complementary work to embed climate risk considerations into existing cross-corporate decision-making processes, such as asset management and budget planning, will further enable climate change adaptation actions to be identified, prioritized and addressed systematically. Over time, these changes will be mainstreamed into annual operations, strengthening decision-making to account for future climate conditions.

This governance approach will be coordinated by Environment, Climate and Forestry as described in the attached Climate Change Resilience Workplan (Attachment 2). This approach is recommended over the creation of a singular Chief Resiliency Officer position, as it builds on and leverages existing expertise, Division-specific authorities and responsibilities and limits duplication or uncertainty around accountabilities.

This report also recognizes that Indigenous climate solutions are an essential companion to Western climate science approaches. Indigenous communities led and maintained the health of these lands and waters, and the living beings that are here, since time immemorial. As it works toward climate resilience, the City seeks to honour this knowledge and work alongside Indigenous communities to enable approaches that centre reciprocity and kinship with all beings and collective prosperity.

Adopting the recommendations will have no immediate financial impact. Year 1 (2026) will focus on strategic planning, initiating, and implementing effective internal governance structures. This will include evaluating the costs, feasibility, and resourcing needs associated with potential actions. These enabling activities will be prioritized and accommodated within divisional budgets. Staff will also assess and identify the resources required to implement a Climate Change Adaptation Action Plan as part of the report back in 2027. The Climate Change Resilience Workplan is a City-wide initiative involving multiple Divisions. Any incremental funding or resource requirements will be requested through future staff reports to Council and/or in subsequent budget processes, to be considered alongside other City priorities.

The Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer has reviewed this report and agrees with the financial implications as presented in the Financial Impact section.