Toronto Community Housing has been recognized for sustained excellence in its commitment to energy efficiency. Canada’s largest social housing provider, with a portfolio of nearly 60,000 units in 2,100 buildings, was among 16 organizations honoured at yesterday’s 2016 Energy Star Canada Awards ceremony in Winnipeg.

Jim Carr, the Minister of Natural Resources was on hand to present the annual awards acknowledging achievements in manufacturing, retailing, homebuilding and advocacy. Winners are chosen for their role in ensuring that energy-efficient products and technologies make their way into the Canadian market.

Toronto Housing has been a decade-long participant in the Energy Star program, which now counts more than 2,000 Canadian organizations. The housing corporation has been a large consumer — cutting thousands of megawatt-hours of electricity use annually and reaping hundreds of thousands of dollars in cost savings through the installation of  Energy Star refrigerators, air conditioners and light bulbs.

The award also salutes Toronto Housing conservation strategies through its in-house energy management team and partnerships with organizations like Toronto Hydro, Natural Resources Canada’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator to take advantage of available incentives and host pilot projects for innovative products and methodologies. This includes active outreach to tenants at events like last year’s Community Conservation Fairs, which were held in three locations to promote energy-efficient practices such as purchasing Energy Star products.