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To address climate change, leading real estate funds and companies around the world are setting decarbonization and net-zero targets. These targets can differ widely and consist of many elements, and some may be more credible than others. In this report — which builds on our net-zero report for companies, “Breaking Down Corporate Net-Zero Climate Targets” — we outline an approach for evaluating real estate funds’ and companies’ decarbonization and net-zero targets. It aims to help the industry set net-zero commitments, as well as support asset owners in evaluating decarbonization targets of companies and funds they invest in. It argues that best practices for decarbonization and achieving net-zero are:

  • Comprehensive: Include all significant sources of emissions, even those that may be hard to quantify, including Scope 3 emissions from tenant-controlled energy use and development activities.
  • Ambitious: Pursue absolute reductions in the short and long term, in line with accepted, science-based pathways.
  • Feasible: Demonstrate progress toward goals, supported by a robust business strategy

This report was originally published in https://www.msci.com/www/research-paper/breaking-down-real-estate-net/03021835623

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By Esther An

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) integration is no longer a choice today. In the global Race to Zero[1], led by UNFCCC, over 5,200 businesses, 1,040 cities and 440 investors have stepped up their ambition and joined the global alliance to catalyse climate change. Following COP26, over 90% of global GDP has committed to achieving net zero by or near mid-century.[2] According to the 17th Edition of the World Economic Forum Global Risks Report, environmental risks were perceived to be the five most critical long-term threats over the next 10 years.[3] Climate risks are investment and business risks – the damage caused by climate change is projected to result in an increase of up to 41% of global property premiums until 2040.[4] With the building and construction sector accounting for about 40% of global carbon emissions[5], the real estate sector is in a prime position to advance sustainable development.  

Integration: Strong Fundamentals for Business and Climate Resilience

City Developments Limited (CDL)’s ESG strategy stems from its corporate ethos, “Conserving as we Construct” established in 1995. Its value creation business model is anchored on four key pillars—Integration, Innovation, Investment, and Impact; guiding CDL to achieve three key deliverables: “Decarbonisation”, “Digitalisation & Innovation” and “Disclosure and Communication”. The CDL Future Value 2030 sustainability blueprint, implemented in 2017, maps out clear strategic goals and ESG targets across CDL’s business strategies and operations.

CDL’s sustainability portfolio reports directly to the Board Sustainability Committee with ESG factors effectively integrated into its business, operations and growth strategy. In 2018, the CDL Group introduced its G.E.T. strategy—focusing on Growth while adopting an ESG lens, Enhancement of assets to drive operational efficiency and Transformation to deliver long-term and sustained value.

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Across the Asia Pacific, what are companies doing to achieve NET ZERO carbon emissions?

APREA's latest issue of Knowledge Brief, The Race to Net Zero, gathers thought leaders in the region, from real estate developers and investors to assets managers and technology providers, providing insightful perspectives and best practices on how businesses and stakeholders in the real assets sector can embark on a journey to #sustainability.

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What will 2022 and the next decade bring? In recent years, climate change has come to surpass corporate governance as the most pressing ESG issue commanding investors’ attention, and ESG investing truly has gone mainstream (and is attracting the regulatory attention to prove it). Yet there are new risks emerging for companies, investors and the planet in the coming decade that will test how well we have learned the lessons of the past.

This report was originally published in https://www.msci.com/www/research-paper/2022-esg-trends-to-watch/02900617144

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