Municipal Wish List

Manitobans go to the polls to vote for their municipal governments on October 28, 2026. Municipal elections are incredibly important as no level of government touches your everyday life more than your local municipality!

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Our cities are facing many challenges these days, whether it’s our struggles with housing, transit or just local maintenance, there is a growing awareness that something needs to change. 

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At Green Action Centre, we’re focused on a vision of “all Manitobans living green, and living well”. Our cities and towns play an important role in whether we can make that vision a reality, as they control the systems that we all live in. 

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To help guide the platforms of potential candidates, and to help you evaluate who will earn your vote this October, we’ve created a “wish list” of policies to make Winnipeg—and any Manitoba community—a happier, healthier place to live. 

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WASTE REDUCTION

• Include organic waste collection for multi-family buildings when Winnipeg’s Green Cart program launches in 2030. Currently, only single-family homes will receive organic waste pickup when the program begins, leaving up to 40 percent of Winnipeg households excluded. Expanding the program would divert more compostable waste from the landfill, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and help extend the lifespan of Winnipeg's Brady Road Resource Management Facility.

• Create policies requiring multi-family buildings to provide recycling collection for residents. Many Winnipeg residents living in apartments and condominiums still lack access to convenient recycling services. Expanding recycling access will help divert valuable materials from the landfill and create a more equitable waste management system. Cities such as Calgary have already introduced requirements for multi-family buildings to provide access to recycling, demonstrating that this approach is both practical and achievable.

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SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION 

• Increase operational spending for Transit to match similarly sized cities like Edmonton (Edmonton spends $417.90 per-capita on transit operation, while Winnipeg spends $274.80 and Brandon spends just $159.70).
• Adopt a 30 km/r residential speed limit. This will help calm down neighbourhoods and make it easier and more comfortable for kids to walk and bike to school, seniors to navigate and, generally, make our communities safer. 
• Fund the pedestrian and cycling strategies so the network across Winnipeg is complete by 2030. For smaller cities, we encourage voters to advocate for pedestrian and cycling strategies and funding in their communities. We need all Manitobans, regardless of their mode choice, to have convenient and comfortable access to education, jobs, services and recreation. 
• Adopt “fix it first” policies that stop adding new infrastructure and focus on more efficient use and maintenance of the infrastructure that we already have. This applies to roads, pipes and community spaces. 

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CLIMATE ACTION TEAM

• Call for the restoration of the provincial 50-50 transit funding agreement and pledge to significantly increase municipal spending on transit operations. Communities across Manitoba will benefit from the restoration of this funding agreement. 
• Ban fossil gas use for space and water heating in new buildings.
• Install solar power on city-owned buildings and work with Manitoba Hydro to accelerate permitting/installations    

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As you prepare for this election, we are thrilled to share the many resources out there to help you consider, debate and engage. Many of these campaigns are seeking volunteers, so be sure to reach out to organizations you want to support!

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Climate Reality Project: People’s Climate Mandate

Next Stop: 50-50

Trees Please Winnipeg

Latest Budget a Wake Up Call for Cities

Cities in Transition: The Role of Urban Planning in Energy Policy

YIMBY Winnipeg

Transportation and Land Use Coalition

Safe Speeds Winnipeg

Bird Friendly Winnipeg

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