Based on estimations that approximately 80% of the buildings that will exist in 2050 already have been built,¹ Cushman & Wakefield’s research — which analyzed one million facilities that totaled 6.6 billion square meters across 143 countries — shows that the reduction of carbon emissions is a vital component to preventing irreversible climate change. The cost to decarbonize the global real estate market is estimated to be approximately $18 trillion, according to the firm. Addressing decarbonization would see the commercial real estate industry achieve 6.2 gigatons, or 75%, of carbon reduction annually.
“Not only is decarbonizing existing real estate essential to addressing climate impact, but it also offers an environmentally responsible way to reduce the cost of owning and managing commercial property,” said John Forrester, CEO, Cushman & Wakefield. “As building regulations for energy consumption and emissions rightly become more stringent, needs to reduce or offset carbon emissions will increase. Cushman & Wakefield aims to empower our clients to increase energy efficiency with economic and social benefits for their investments, businesses and communities.”
To enable this essential change, Cushman & Wakefield has launched C&W Green Buildings, a proprietary digital software assessment tool that identifies custom decarbonization, retrofitting and cost savings opportunities for real estate investors and owners. Created through an exclusive partnership with CFP Green Buildings (CFP), the tool offers Cushman & Wakefield clients a fast, cost-effective, accurate, and auditable way to estimate energy consumption and create a roadmap to greener real estate assets.
The C&W Green Buildings tool filters 120 building characteristics to assess current carbon emissions and energy efficiency at a property. From country, climate, and location to the cost of energy, materials, labor, local emission factors, carbon prices, building age, size and more, the tool uses the data to advise clients on improvement opportunities to reduce the environmental footprints of their real estate portfolios. The tool is now being rolled out in markets within North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
“Not only is decarbonizing existing real estate essential to addressing climate impact, but it also offers an environmentally responsible way to reduce the cost of owning and managing commercial property.”
—John Forrester, CEO, Cushman & Wakefield
“CFP has an unwavering commitment to reduce carbon emissions profitably and at scale through actionable insights,” said Bram Adema, CEO at CFP Green Buildings. “Our digital tool has enabled large, decentralized institutions around the world to make data-informed decisions that are lessening energy consumption. We are delighted to build on this success with Cushman & Wakefield’s data and world-class clients.”
Notes
¹ McKinsey & Company
