Climate Ready Infrastructure Service (CRIS)

Free expert guidance to strengthen climate resilience in community infrastructure

About CRIS

The Climate Ready Infrastructure Service (CRIS) connects small Canadian communities with climate and infrastructure experts to support the integration of climate resilience into infrastructure projects.

Delivered by the Canadian Urban Institute and funded by the Government of Canada, CRIS helps communities reduce risk, improve long-term service delivery and move projects forward at no cost.

Bioswale

Hand Holding A Model Of Earth With Leaves

CRIS is not a grant. It is a service.

Participating communities receive hands-on expert guidance aligned with their infrastructure priorities without requiring matching funds or significant internal capacity. Support is tailored to each community and may include:

Climate risk and vulnerability reviews
Hazard-specific guidance
Scoping support to advance future funding
Alignment of capital operations and strategic plans

Eligible Communities

CRIS is designed for Canadian communities and First Nations under 30,000 population that are planning or advancing infrastructure projects and facing climate-related risks such as flooding heat drought or wildfire. The service is well suited for communities with limited time budget or in-house climate expertise.

Service area EV charging facilities

Common Project Areas

CRIS support can assist with issues such as:

Flooding and freeze-thaw damage to roads and culverts
Heat and energy efficiency in community facilities
Climate risks to water wastewater and stormwater systems
EV transition and fleet resilience
Climate considerations for master plans facility upgrades or asset strategies

Getting started is simple.

Communities are invited to complete a short expression of interest form to share basic information about their project and help the CRIS team understand how support can be provided. This is not a formal application and typically takes less than 15 minutes to complete.

Complete EOI Form

Support from NAMS Canada

NAMS Canada is available to support communities in scoping projects and completing the CRIS expression of interest.

support@namscanada.org