Thames Region Ecological Association
TREA is a local, non profit registered charity, established in November 1986. Our main goal is to educate our members the local community to protect the environment, stay informed, and to take personal action. Our vision is a responsible and sustainable community.
TREA projects support our strategic goals of increasing waste diversion, active transportation, and reducing fossil fuel usage. Many of these projects may be in collaboration with other community groups interested in similar issues as well as the City, health unit, and school boards.
TREA is located at Grosvenor Lodge, London’s Regional Centre for Heritage and the Environment at 1017 Western Road just north of Oxford Street. TREA can be reached at info@trea.ca or (519) 645-2845. TREA’s website is found at www.trea.ca. We welcome new members and new ideas.
Organization Profile
TREA’s main goal is to educate its members and community to protect the environment, stay informed and take personal action. Its vision is a sustainable community. TREA is a registered charity.
Our strength stems from many dedicated volunteers that support TREA individually or through working groups to allow TREA to engage with the public on a larger scale for change. TREA also frequently takes on co-op student placements to support their career development and training in an environmental field. TREA has had a strong influence on civic issues of enhancing ‘green’ public policy in London. This has helped keep TREA viable and engaged in community issues.
Our Focus
TREA’s geographic scope of our work’s impacts is mainly in London. Our primary area of focus is environment and climate change.
TREA projects support TREA’s strategic goals of increasing waste diversion, active transportation and reducing fossil fuel usage. Projects often involve schools, neighbourhoods, a workplace, or the community through service groups, and non-profits, and decision-makers to increase capacity and support community development on environmental issues.
TREA encourages self-sufficiency through a strong interest in relocalization, conservation and local food, important topics for Londoners.
Our Impact
TREA frequently has acted as a catalyst to start collaborative strategies and measurable projects that serve a need in diverse communities and/or have a role in multi-sectorial initiatives.
TREA has initiated or contributed to meaningful and responsive policies, programs, services, and events over time that help citizens make good decisions to help the environment and everyday practices. TREA provides opportunities where possible to add to the quality of life in our community. TREA believes success is dependent upon a process that encourages system-thinking, shared leadership, responsibility and accountability.
Major accomplishments include the startup of London’s community curbside recycling bin program (80’s), residential composting training/outreach as well as education on pesticides, plastics, PCBs, spearheading yearly TREA’s Bike Week (90’s) the City of London’s first walking and biking map and championing of a municipal energy plan toward a baseline tied to global targets and future planning. This was followed by a community air quality agenda and then the One-Tonne Challenge (early 2000’s) involving individual actions by 55,000 residents in a number of take action projects from TREA and numerous partnerships.
TREA initiated its Greening of the Festivals (2007) program/volunteers with Home County Folk Festival and the City toward zero waste in Victoria Park (still operational) where many festivals are held, reducing tonnes of waste and emissions. Waste free campaigns have included promotions for the elimination of one time use disposables such as plastic bags, bottled water, coffee cups packaging, and addressing pesticides. TREA welcomes the community to visit its compost demonstration site and pollinator garden.
TREA helped start the regional Active & Safe Routes to School program and CAN-Bike national cycling safety training regionally. More recently, TREA has facilitated newcomer Environment 101 sessions, and visited specific neighbourhoods’ street-by-street to discuss waste reduction strategies. 2020 has brought some changes with the constraints of Covid-19, thus TREA has primarily been delivering online how-to workshops on taking action on climate change and adding to its comprehensive Green Directory.
More details of TREA activities can be found throughout the website.