Green Venture

Green Venture is a community-based, non-profit organization committed to helping Hamilton-area residents live more sustainably where they live, work, and play. Our Staff directly engage and support between 13,000 and 20,000 residents of all ages every year.

Green Venture grew out of partnership formed in 1994 between the Region of Hamilton-Wentworth, the Province of Ontario, utilities, private sector environmental companies, and community organizations. We provide information and services that help individuals reduce their impact on the environment and contribute to a healthier, economically strong community.

Green Venture is Hamilton’s premier environmental outreach organization and we collaborate closely with the City of Hamilton, businesses, school boards, faith-based organizations, volunteers, and other community-based non-profits and charities. Green Venture promotes climate change mitigation/adaptation, energy efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction, and pollution prevention; we aim to create global change through local initiatives.

We have extensive experience in developing and implementing environmental projects and employ community-based social marketing techniques to develop programs that affect behaviour change and achieve measurable, positive results. We have achieved success since 1995 through the development and implementation of a variety of outreach and awareness programming and energy-related services.

EcoHouse:

From 2000 to 2003, Green Venture worked with the City of Hamilton to establish EcoHouse, an education centre and environmental demonstration home open to the public. Also serving as our offices, EcoHouse is Southern Ontario’s first such facility open to the public on a permanent basis. The 150-year-old historic farm house has been retrofitted with green technology and sustainable living products such as renewable energy, composters, rain barrels, and energy efficient appliances. The two-acre property features native species gardens, natural landscaping, a community garden, rain gardens, and a renewable energy generation system. EcoHouse provides an informative and interactive backdrop for all programs delivered by Green Venture and is visited by approximately 2,000 to 4,000 residents annually.

Tours:
Green Venture offers sustainable living tours of EcoHouse year round. During the school year, curriculum based tours are available for teachers who wish to take their students on a half-day environmentally focused field trip to Green Venture’s one-of-a-kind EcoHouse headquarters.