Leading managers are failing to take even basic steps to tackle climate change, leaving investors exposed to financial risks
Photo credit: Philip Oroni / Unsplash+
New research by ShareAction, the organisation campaigning for responsible investment, shows several of the world’s largest real estate investment managers are failing to take even basic steps to tackle climate change, leaving investors exposed to financial risks and critical emissions unchecked in a key sector for the transition to net zero.
ShareAction’s first ever benchmark of real estate investment managers also reveals a concerning lack of transparency from firms about their approaches to tackling climate change, with several managers not disclosing the emissions from their portfolios at all, despite making public climate commitments.
Aidan Shilson-Thomas, Senior Research Manager at ShareAction, said: “Some of the world’s largest real estate investment managers are failing to act on climate change at a time when rapid action is needed. The construction and operation of buildings account for a staggering third of global emissions, creating financial risks that managers must take seriously. The asset owners they act on behalf of, including pension funds, are relying on them to do so.”
‘Built to Last?’ ranks 16 real estate investment managers, who together control over $1.66 trillion in real estate assets under management, on whether they meet standards for climate action. The research set 12 key standards that investment managers were expected to achieve, including making a public commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, and setting interim carbon reduction targets. While each standard was met by at least one investment manager and one firm was able to achieve every standard, nine of the 16 managers didn’t meet even half of them. Some of the largest firms – Blackstone, Starwood Capital Group and Greystar – failed to achieve any of the key standards and ranked last in the benchmark.
Shilson-Thomas continued: “A few investment managers demonstrate commitment to climate action, but continued inaction by their peers is pulling the real estate sector further off track from net zero, with devastating consequences for people and planet. Given the size of this sector, we need managers to step up and take responsibility for their impacts, while ensuring workers, tenants and communities are at the centre of plans to tackle climate change.”
By excluding critical sources of emissions, several firms undermined the credibility of their net zero commitments. Only nine of the 16 managers included in the benchmark disclosed a commitment that can be considered comprehensive, covering both landlord and tenant emissions. Meanwhile, only five managers demonstrated leading practice by explicitly including emissions from construction in their commitments.
Moreover, it was unclear whether investment managers are anticipating and addressing the impacts of decarbonisation on their tenants, the communities they operate in, and workers in their supply chains – putting a just transition at risk. While firms said they engage with their tenants and communities, discussion of the social impacts of decarbonisation was almost entirely absent from their public disclosures.
However, a few investment managers demonstrated leading practice, with Nordic firm Nrep landing the top spot in ShareAction’s benchmark, having achieved every key standard. Managers in the top half of the ranking had set science-based targets and are making plans to meet them, and transparently disclosed their emissions. These include Savills Investment Management, Patrizia, Heimstaden and Prologis, who were awarded B grades, while Hines and CBRE Investment Management received C grades.
Other key findings from the report include:
- Six investment managers had not set interim carbon reduction targets, including four firms that had made a net zero commitment. Several managers did not disclose the proportion of their assets covered by their interim targets, meaning we don’t know which assets are currently managed in line with their net zero commitments.
- Few investment managers had disclosed portfolio-wide targets on energy efficiency that covered landlord and tenant energy use. The low level of target setting is surprising given the clear benefits of energy efficiency for decarbonisation and making buildings commercially attractive for tenants.
- Only one investment manager – Nrep – demonstrated a clear commitment to stop installing fossil fuel infrastructure in buildings. Others had failed to make the same commitment, despite technologies to replace such infrastructure already being available.
For more information please refer to ShareAction.
