Energy costs are squeezing households across Canada, and newcomers face a particular challenge: many are eligible for free programs to lower their bills, but don’t know how to access them. Power Up is a new initiative to change that.
How It Works
Power Up provides language support and hands-on guidance to help newcomer and multilingual residents in Ottawa access existing, fully funded energy savings programs.
The model is practical and powerful: we hire and train community members to work in their own neighbourhoods, in their native languages. These trusted Energy Ambassadors offer education and support in Arabic, Mandarin, Hindi, and Spanish, helping residents navigate programs they’d otherwise miss. Hindi services are also available in Belleville.
The Ambassadors guide residents all the way through the process, from first conversation to eligibility check, application, and installation. Through programs including the Save on Energy™ Energy Affordability Program and the Enbridge Gas Home Winterproofing Program, participating households can reduce their annual energy bills by hundreds of dollars.
Meet our Ambassadors
From left to right: Mia is originally from China and provides help in Mandarin; Sourabh is originally from India and provides help in Hindi; Mario is originally from Mexico and provides help in Spanish; Noor is originally from Lebanon and provides help in Arabic.
“When people receive information in their own language and feel understood, they are more confident accessing supports and making informed decisions for their families. That’s what motivates me.”
– Dana Al Mansour, Energy Ambassador. Dana is originally from Kuwait and provides help in Arabic.
From Pilot to Province-Wide
Power Up launched in Ottawa in June 2026 as a pilot project, focusing on five neighbourhoods: Heron Gate, Bayshore, Cyrville, Kanata West and Greenboro/South Keys. These areas have among the highest proportions of non-English and non-French-speaking residents in Ottawa, combined with higher-than-average home energy cost burdens.
In its first year, the program aims to engage 2,000 residents and connect 300 households to fully funded home energy upgrades. Once we show it works here, we plan to bring Power Up to communities province-wide in 2027.
Partner with Us
Power Up aims to engage people in the languages and communities where they live. If you work with newcomer or immigrant communities — whether you’re a settlement agency, cultural association, language program, or community health centre — we’d love to work together. Email us at powerup@envirocentre.ca to connect.
Looking for help?
If you speak Arabic, Mandarin, Hindi, or Spanish at home and want to learn more about free energy upgrades, visit the Power Up program page, or email us to get started.