This year, we announced plans to decarbonise our business by 2030 and committed to designing climate change resilient and adaptable spaces. The time is now to create a lasting positive social impact on our communities and to put health and wellbeing front and centre. Because, if not now, when?
Committed to a sustainable London
In May 2020, we launched our sustainability Statement of Intent ‘The Time is Now’ which is underpinned by four pillars with commitments that we will:
– decarbonise our business to become net zero by 2030;
– design climate change resilient and adaptable spaces;
– create a lasting positive social impact in our communities; and
– put health and wellbeing front and centre.
Never has it been more important to address climate risk; nor has the link between the environment, social impact and health and wellbeing been more evident. Last year, recognising the increased urgency of the climate crisis, we set challenging targets to:
1. reduce the energy intensity of our occupied portfolio by 40% and carbon emissions by 69% by 2030, including occupier consumption;
2. create net zero carbon new build developments from 2030; and
3. set out our timescales and approach to becoming a net zero carbon business.
Targets are meaningless unless they are embedded throughout the organisation and shape behaviour. Accordingly, during the year we incorporated our energy intensity target into our ESG-linked revolving credit facility, along with targets to reduce embodied carbon of our new developments and major refurbishments by 40% by 2030 and to improve biodiversity net gain across our portfolio by 25% by 2030. Looking forward, the rate of interest we pay on this facility will depend on our performance against these targets.
Furthermore, these targets have been included within the objectives of a number of our senior management team and will be used to assess levels of future remuneration. These four pillars are supported by our review of material risks undertaken last year, and align with the four UN Sustainable Development Goals we identified as resonating most with our business.
We are committed to ensuring that our buildings are designed and managed to support the mental health and wellbeing of our employees, occupiers and our local communities. Air quality is a significant issue for London and for ensuring health and wellbeing. Our Statement of Intent sets out how we are considering outdoor and indoor air quality and putting health and wellbeing front and centre.
Our targets to reduce the energy intensity and carbon intensity of our occupied portfolio now included within our ESG-linked RCF will help us to drive carbon emissions down. Through the installation of renewable energy and the use of technology to improve targeting and monitoring of energy consumption, we are making our buildings more sustainable.
We are focused on ensuring a lasting positive impact for the communities in which we are working and have committed to contributing £10 million of social value by 2030.
We recognise the role we have to play in reducing carbon emissions. We have therefore committed to decarbonising our business by 2030.
