A UN body has called on institutional investors to engage with property fund managers to embed the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in their decision-making amid concern that the property industry is moving far too slowly to address its environmental footprint.
A UN body has called on institutional investors to engage with property fund managers to embed the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in their decision-making amid concern that the property industry is moving far too slowly to address its environmental footprint.
A new report released this week by the UNEP FI Property Working Group, whose members manage $300bn in property assets, notes that buildings are directly and indirectly responsible for around half of global carbon dioxide (C02) emissions in terms of their operation and the energy consumed by people travelling to and from them.
The report, 'Building Responsible Property Portfolios', points out that embedding the six PRIs in this sector could play a key role in ending the 'circle of blame' over who precisely should manage a transition to more sustainably-managed real estate investments. The UN-backed group believes that investments in sustainable buildings are likely to generate higher rates of return because of lower operating costs of these types of buildings.
The UNEP FI Property Working Group's European members include AXA Investment Managers, Caisse des Dépôts, F&C Asset Management, Hermes Real Estate, Morley Fund Management, Prupim, and WestLB.
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The United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) is a global partnership between UNEP and the financial services sector. UNEP FI works with more than 170 financial institutions - banks, insurers, asset managers, and pension funds - to develop and promote links between sustainability and financial performance.
Click on the link to read the report
