Momentum Builds for ULI Greenprint Net Zero Carbon Operations Goal as Eight New Real Estate Companies Publicly Align

The ULI Greenprint Center for Building Performance revealed in October that eight new real estate leaders, representing over 2,400 buildings, have announced plans to reduce the operational carbon emissions of their collective portfolio under operational control to net zero by the year 2050. This is on top of the 17 ULI Greenprint members who already publicly aligned with this goal so far.

The new Greenprint members publicly aligning with this goal are AEW Capital Management, Brookfield Properties, CP Group, Clarion Partners, Lendlease (by 2025), SL Green Realty Corp., Tishman Speyer, and WashREIT. Together, these real estate companies represent buildings covering over 849 million square feet and over $397 billion in assets under management (AUM).

“It is tremendous to see such firms align to the ULI Greenprint net zero carbon operations by 2050 goal. I commend these real estate titans for their leadership,” says Marta Schantz, senior vice president of the ULI Greenprint Center for Building Performance. “This commitment shows a pragmatic understanding of the industry’s responsibility and opportunity to combat climate change across their portfolios and work toward a carbon neutral future.”

ULI Greenprint real estate members are dedicated to reducing carbon and increasing energy efficiency in their real estate portfolios as part of their business strategy. To date, members have improved energy efficiency and reduced year over year greenhouse gas emissions by over 46 percent and are on track to meet ULI Greenprint’s original goal of 50 percent reduction by 2030 (with a 2009 baseline).

This net-zero carbon goal is designed to meaningfully reduce the built environment’s impact on climate change beyond existing efforts. It encourages portfolio-wide carbon reductions across spaces under operational control via deep energy efficiency improvements, on-site renewable energy, green utility power and building electrification, off-site renewables, renewable energy credits and offsets. The goal is in line with the Paris Agreement and findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report to limit global warming.

In total, 25 companies–half of all ULI Greenprint real estate members–that are now aligned with the net zero carbon goal by 2050 represent over $917 billion in assets under management (AUM), over 1.7 billion sq/ft (161 million sq/m), and over 6,700 properties across 20 countries. Companies that have previously made the commitment include: Allianz Real Estate, Boston Properties (by 2025), City Developments Limited (CDL); CommonWealth Partners; Heitman; Hudson Pacific Properties (by 2025); Jamestown LP; Kilroy Realty Corporation (by 2020); LaSalle Investment Management; Morgan Creek Ventures, MultiGreen; NEO; Nuveen Real Estate; PGIM Real Estate, Rudin Management Company, Savanna, and The Tower Companies.

Current ULI Greenprint members include ACRE; AEW Capital Management; Allianz Real Estate; Argosy Real Estate Partners; AXA; BlackRock; Boston Properties; Brookfield Properties; CalPERS; CenterPoint Properties; City Developments Limited; Clarion Partners; CommonWealth Partners; CP Group; Crescent Communities; DWS; FCP; FPA Multifamily; GID; Goldman Sachs; Granite Properties; Grovesnor Americas; Heitman; The Howard Hughes Corporation; Hudson Pacific Properties; James Campbell Company; Jamestown Properties; JBG Smith; Kilroy Realty; LaSalle Investment Management; LBA Realty and LBA Logistics; Lendlease Americas; Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets; Morgan Creek Ventures LLC; Multigreen; Nuveen Real Estate; NEO Property Management Incorporated; Pembroke; Parkway Properties; PGIM Real Estate; Prologis; Rudin Management Company, Inc.; Savanna; Skanska; SL Green Realty Corp; Street-Works Development; The Green Cities Company; The Tower Companies; Tishman Speyer; WashREIT; and Zurich Alternative Asset Management.

“Brookfield Properties is deeply committed to minimizing the environmental impact of our properties, improving our efficient use of resources over time, and pursuing an ambitious path to net zero carbon operations. We are proud to join ULI Greenprint’s Net-Zero by 2050 goal as we, together with other leaders in our industry, take meaningful steps to build a sustainable future,” said Bill Powell, managing partner and chief operating officer, Brookfield’s Real Estate Group.

“Sustainability is a priority to our clients and our firm, and Clarion Partners has long held that sustainable investing improves our properties and performance. We are proud to commit to the net zero carbon initiative, and look forward to partnering with the ULI Greenprint Center for Building Performance to use this framework to help future-proof our assets and protect our planet for generations to come,” said David Gilbert, CEO and CIO, Clarion Partners.

“CP Group commits to reducing greenhouse gas emissions across our 15 million SF portfolio. We support ULI Greenprint’s net zero carbon goals and are committed to achieving a carbon neutral world,” said Elena Villarreal Daniel, director of ESG at CP Group.

“As a 1.5 degree-aligned company, Lendlease has committed to achieving Net Zero for Scopes 1 and 2 by 2025, and Absolute Zero across Scopes 1, 2, and 3 by 2040. We are proud to align with ULI Greenprint’s Net Zero Carbon Operations Goal, which provides critical leadership and guidance for real estate companies in reducing carbon emissions across our industry,” said Sara Neff, head of sustainability, Lendlease Americas.

“SL Green recognizes the importance of playing a role in the global transition to a low carbon economy. We are proud to commit to ULI Greenprint Net Zero goal,” Laura Vulaj, senior vice president and director of sustainability, SL Green Realty.

“Tishman Speyer has long been a leader in the use of innovative energy management technology, and we’re continuing that legacy with our pledge to achieve operational net zero carbon by 2050 or sooner.” said Jonathan Flaherty, global head of sustainability and building technology innovation at Tishman Speyer. “We are dedicated to the health and well-being of our customers and neighborhoods. We design, construct and operate properties across our global portfolio with this imperative in mind.”

“We are proud to join ULI Greenprint’s Net Zero Carbon Operations goal. Following our transformation into a multifamily REIT, ESG remains a core focus. As we continue our planned geographic expansion, carbon neutrality has become an integral factor in the due diligence process as we source acquisition opportunities. This is an important next step we are taking as we develop an even more impactful ESG program and take measures to reduce our environmental footprint as a multifamily company,” said Paul McDermott, president and CEO, WashREIT.

More details on the ULI Net Zero Goal can be found at uli.org/netzerogoal.