Julie Strilesky
School Board · Vancouver
Mt Pleasant 11 yrs
About
Julie Strilesky has more than 20 years' experience driving change across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, including 8 years working in policy development for 2 provincial governments. Julie is committed to strengthening our public schools.
Policy commitments
Buildings
We all want healthy, affordable, and comfortable homes. These policies will help to lower energy bills, cut pollution, and improve indoor air quality.
✓
Support electrification of new buildings.
Supportive
✓
Incentivize electric heat pumps and air filtration systems.
Supportive
✓
Scale up energy retrofits for existing homes, businesses, and public buildings.
Supportive
✓
Implement a 'right to cool' bylaw to protect tenants during extreme heat events.
Supportive
Climate Justice
Our community is already experiencing the harmful impacts of climate change caused by fossil fuel pollution, and taxpayers are on the hook to upgrade and repair critical infrastructure.
✓
Pursue available legal options to recover a fair share of the climate costs facing our community from fossil fuel companies and other big polluters.
Supportive
✓
Collaborate with Indigenous peoples as partners in the stewardship of the land, air, and water, and work towards reconciliation.
Supportive
Ecosystems
The air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat all rely on healthy ecosystems. Nature can also help protect our community from extreme weather by controlling floods, protecting shorelines, and cooling neighbourhoods. Access to nature improves the health and well-being of residents, and supports biodiversity.
✓
Expand and protect tree canopy, parks, and green infrastructure to cool neighbourhoods, clean air, and manage stormwater.
Supportive
✓
Prioritize native tree planting in all areas, especially those with low tree cover, higher population densities, and more vulnerable residents.
Supportive
✓
Create connected urban greenways for people and wildlife.
Supportive
Land Use
We envision vibrant, walkable communities that protect nature and improve food security.
✓
Build affordable homes near jobs, schools, shops, and transit.
Supportive
✓
Upgrade critical infrastructure for heat, fire, flood, and storm resilience.
Supportive
✓
Increase food security by supporting local agriculture and community gardens.
Supportive
Transport
Connecting neighbourhoods through public transit and active transportation networks will cut pollution, improve public health, and make our communities more affordable (and fun!).
✓
Deliver reliable, frequent, affordable local transit.
Supportive
✓
Advocate to improve regional public transit between communities.
Supportive
✓
Build bike and roll networks that are safe for everyone.
Supportive
Zero Waste
Zero waste policies reduce pollution, keep waste out of landfills, build resilient local economies, and safeguard public health by shifting society away from a disposable culture toward a sustainable circular economy.
✓
Support the development of a circular economy to eliminate waste and improve resilience.
Supportive
✓
Implement bylaws to eliminate waste from new buildings, renovation, and demolition projects and to use existing buildings as efficiently as possible.
Supportive
✓ Supportive
~ Neutral
× Opposed
– No response
Climate action
How have you contributed to climate action in your community through advocacy, past work, advisory committees, volunteer work, and/or reducing your personal carbon footprint?
I have contributed to climate action by volunteering with Sue Big Oil and Climate Reality for several years. I have spent over 20 years working in ESG and sustainability. I also work to reduce and offset my carbon footprint and that of others in my family and community.
Questions for Vancouver
What is your position on gas hookups for new buildings?
There is ample scientific evidence that we should move away from gas hookups for new buildings - for human health, the climate, and to drive clean innovation. I am opposed to gas hookups for new buildings.
Will you vote to restore full funding for the Sustainability Office? In your view, what is the role of the Sustainability Office?
Yes I will vote to restore full funding for the Sustainability Office. The office should play a key role in coordinating related initiatives, and driving change and accountability across government. It should also offer expertise and resources to support the scale of change required to create a truly resilient city.
What is your view on a moratorium on AI data centres, given the natural resources they require?
More analysis is required to fully understand this complex, emerging issue and I personally support a pause to ensure a review is undertaken that involves community input and considers the natural resources required. Some aspects of AI data centres fall outside the city's jurisdiction. Some regions are including requirements to include new clean energy generation, waste-heat recovery for district energy, and closed-loop or non-potable cooling.
I would seek to protect resources and ensure community needs are heard and met.
I would seek to protect resources and ensure community needs are heard and met.
Given the “controversy” of the Villages Plan, how do you envision accommodating the population growth of the City while dealing with the impacts of climate change?
My approach would be to integrate climate resilience into any gentle density that is approved with meaningful input by the local community. We can focus growth near transit and existing infrastructure to reduce car dependence and emissions. We can include heat and smoke resilience, including passive cooling, heat pumps, filtered air, and tree canopy. We can keep new housing out of flood-prone areas and plan for sea-level rise along the waterfront. We also need to build trust by conducting more transparent consultation and integrating the public's input.
What is your plan to create climate safeguards for all of Vancouver’s inhabitants, including the unhoused population?
Vancouver's climate safeguards should include short-term protection along with long-term resilience. For unhoused residents, expand 24/7 warming and cooling centres with more access, mobile outreach during extreme weather such as heat domes, and supportive housing as the long-term solution. Retrofit older buildings for heat resilience, expand tree canopy and shaded public space in underserved neighbourhoods, and strengthen the extreme-weather alert system.
Compiled & presented by
Vote4Tomorrow is an independent voter guide to evaluate where local candidates stand on climate and environmental policies that will affect our future.
© 2026 Vote4Tomorrow