Cogeco Communications Inc

Good governance is the foundation of our sustainability efforts. Our Board of Directors continues to actively oversee our sustainability strategy, ensuring that it aligns with our long-term goals and values. We also continue to transparently disclose our sustainability performance, adhering to globally recognized frameworks and standards, and holding ourselves accountable to our stakeholders. [...] The Board of Directors and three of its Committees – the Audit Committee, the Corporate Governance Committee and the Human Resources Committee – oversee the sustainability strategy, including the identification, assessment, and management of sustainability and climate-related risks and opportunities. This includes reviewing current and emerging sustainability trends, reviewing sustainability disclosures and external assurance reports, and incorporating sustainability considerations into compensation decisions, as appropriate. The Board of Directors and its committees receive regular updates from management regarding their respective areas. For further details on the Board's oversight responsibilities, please see our Board of Directors Charter, Audit Committee Charter, Corporate Governance Committee Charter and Human Resources Committee Charter. [...] The Sustainability group develops our sustainability strategy, supports the integration of sustainability considerations into the business and carries out stakeholder engagement and employee training on sustainability. The group works collaboratively with multiple teams, including Operations, Human Resources, Procurement, Technology and Information, Legal, Government and Community Relations, Communications and Finance to implement Cogeco's sustainability program and initiatives. The group also supports the Enterprise-wide Risk Management (ERM) program in identifying and evaluating risks and opportunities related to sustainability, including climate-related ones, and ensuring that risks are managed through the development of mitigation and preparedness plans. [...] The President and CEO and other members of the senior leadership team lead the sustainability agenda, driving action and ensuring long-term resilience. All members of the senior leadership team take part in establishing sustainability goals and monitoring progress in their implementation. They also review the risks and opportunities related to sustainability identified through the ERM program and are responsible for their management, and they review and approve sustainability-related policies and documents. For example, the team oversaw and approved our strategy to meet our net-zero targets, which were approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) on August 15, 2024.

##### Climate policy advocacy

Cogeco agrees and supports governments' priorities to fight climate change and believes companies like ours must act and be part of the solution. Through direct and indirect lobbying, Cogeco has been engaging with policy makers to raise awareness on barriers to transition to a greener economy and to propose policies driving action. More specifically, Cogeco has been directly advocating for policies and programs that incentivize auto manufacturers to increase the availability of electric utility trucks, provide financial incentives for the electrification of corporate fleets and foster investments in the charging infrastructure, especially in less populated areas where Cogeco operates. In 2023, Cogeco also signed on to the Net-Zero Challenge by the Canadian federal government through Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC). By signing on to the Net-Zero Challenge, businesses like Cogeco demonstrate an active and reinforced commitment to a clean future.

Describe the process(es) your organization has in place to ensure that your engagement activities are consistent with your overall climate change strategy[…]Cogeco continuously shares its climate-related commitments with industry and policy makers.

During the 2021 Canadian Telecom Summit, Cogeco's CEO, Philippe Jetté, called on the telecom industry to "take up the call and accelerate our climate ambitions to enable the transition to a net-economy". In the same speech (copy attached), Cogeco's SBTi approved emission reduction targets in line with 1.5°C warming set by the Paris Agreement and joining the Business Ambition for 1.5°C commitment were also presented.

At a policy level, the Senior Vice President Public Affairs, Communications and Strategy Officer has the highest responsibility both for engagement activities that could influence policy, and for sustainability topics, including climate change. Therefore, we ensure that all engagement activities with outside organizations on the topic of climate change are well aligned with Cogeco's strategy and initiatives. Her role governing public affairs, strategy and sustainability covers all business units and geographies of Cogeco. Moreover, there are monthly meetings between the Sustainability and Communications teams, to ensure consistency between direct and indirect activities that could influence policy and Cogeco's overall climate change strategy. The public affairs team has engaged with key Canadian political and department officials to advocate for better programs to accelerate the commercial deployment of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure.

Does your organization have a public commitment or position statement to conduct your engagement activities in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement?[…]Yes