ESG in the Real Estate Industry Requires Collective Approach to Drive Real Change
- How the real estate industry strengthens partnerships between governments, landlords and occupiers will be central in driving Net Zero Carbon transition, climate resilience and circularity in waste.
By Mark Cameron, Head of Energy and Sustainability, Asia Pacific, JLL
Grabbing headlines in almost every industry globally, there has been a noticeable shift to focus on sustainability amid the COVID-19 pandemic, to the point that Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) is becoming a consideration in every transaction and operation. The real estate industry is no exception, as developers face mounting pressure from their investors, regulators, tenants and their own employees to act on ESG.
The acceleration in ESG adoption and sustainability has manifested itself in the exponential rise of Net Zero Carbon commitments, with signatories to the UNFCC’s Race to Zero program more than doubling in 2021 alone. Today over 5,000 companies, 1,000 cities and 441 investors have signed up to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 at the latest. This sits alongside national commitments in Asia made by China, South Korea, Japan and India as announced at COP26.
At this years’ COP26 in my hometown of Glasgow, there have been renewed calls to sharply increase climate action. in the real estate industry this is vital given that buildings account for nearly 40% of global greenhouse gas emissions, 50% of the world’s energy consumption and 40% of raw materials consumed.
But as global leaders and businesses approach these issues in the property sector, it is imperative that we act collectively, be that at government, corporate or individual level and take a holistic approach to drive real change whilst creating sustainable advantage and value.
There have been real tangible moves in capital allocations and expectations from investors. Last year, over USD 700 billion of sustainable and green debt was issued globally, up from USD 250 billion in 2018 according to Bloomberg. Estimates show that investment products tailored for environmental, social and governance factors could grow to more than USD 53 trillion of assets by 2025.
