2020 GRESB Blog
Achievements & Recognitions
We are proud of our clients’ 2020 GRESB achievements and recognitions!
Verdani Partners is proud to share the exceptional achievements of their clients on the 2020 GRESB Real Estate Assessment, which is the leading ESG benchmark for real estate investments across the world. Verdani submitted 31 GRESB assessments for 10 national and international clients and achieved the following:
CommonWealth Partners - 1st in U.S. Office Corporate High-Rise and Office Americas Regional Sector Leader and Non-listed Sector Leader
GID - 1st in U.S. Residential, Multi-Family Core Non-Listed and Residential Americas Regional Sector Leader and Non-listed Sector Leader
PGIM Real Estate - 2 Sector Leaders in the Development Benchmark for their Industrial/Americas Fund and Retail/Americas Fund, and 2nd place for European Diversified Office/Industrial Fund
Parkway - 5th in U.S. Office - Corporate - High-Rise Office / Core
3 funds rank in top 3 of their peer group
9 funds rank in top 5 of their peer group
GRESB Star Ratings
7 - GRESB 5 Star Ratings - Standing Investments and Development
10 - GRESB 4 Star Ratings - Standing Investments and Development
Resilience Module
23 funds earned 1st rank in Resilience
4 funds ranked within the top 10 for Resilience
All of PGIM Real Estate’s 18 GRESB assessed funds ranked 1st in Resilience
CommonWealth Partners, GID and Parkway 1st rank in Resilience in peer group
We are tremendously proud of the accelerated progress our clients have seen throughout the years reporting with GRESB, which reveals increased levels of sustainability, efficiency and resilience throughout our ESG programs.
We are inspired by the ongoing dedication and progress made in sustainability by our national and international clients who include American Realty Advisors, CommonWealth Partners, Clarion Partners, GID, The Howard Hughes Corporation, Jamestown, Mid-America Apartment Communities, Parkway and PGIM Real Estate.
Daniele Horton, Verdani’s Founder and President, explains, “Validating ESG performance through top industry assessments like GRESB and other globally respected benchmarks is an important part of a comprehensive ESG program. In order to truly advance sustainability, we must have verified and measurable ESG metrics and targets tracked over time. It is inspiring to see how quickly the industry is advancing and improving operational performance through both technological advances and improved relationships among stakeholders. Participating in GRESB is an important piece of the puzzle and we are proud our clients consistently rank among top performers in the assessment.”
CommonWealth Partners
Office Americas Regional Sector Leader
ranked 1st
in the U.S. Office Corporate High-Rise category
The distinguished recognition of an Office Americas Regional Sector Leader and Regional Non-listed Sector Leader was awarded to CommonWealth Partners (CWP) in 2020 for their exceptional performance in the 2020 GRESB Real Estate Assessment where they ranked 1st in the U.S. Office Corporate High-Rise category, received a GRESB 5 Star Rating and earned 1st in Resilience in their peer group. This achievement carries forward momentum from 2019, when CWP earned the Northern America Regional Sector Leader and 1st in the U.S. Office Non-listed peer group.
“It is an honor to be recognized again this year for the progress and accomplishments made through our sustainability programs at CommonWealth Partners” said Jessica Loeper, Director of Sustainability for CommonWealth Partners and Vice President of Verdani Partners. “Since 2013, we have been working tirelessly alongside our dedicated property managers, engineers and tenants to advance our environmental performance, stakeholder engagement and governance practices for a comprehensive ESG program. Our Class-A office portfolio remains committed to sustainable operations and high-performance buildings, and we are excited to be recognized for our achievements. It is a tremendous honor to rank #1 again this year and to be recognized as an Office Americas Regional Sector Leader.”
GID
Residential Americas Regional Sector Leader
ranked 1st
U.S. Residential, Multi-Family Core Non-Listed category of the 2020 GRESB Real Estate Assessment
In 2020, GID achieved the prestigious recognition of a Residential Americas Regional Sector Leader and Regional Non-listed Sector Leader by earning 1st rank in the U.S. Residential, Multi-Family Core Non-Listed category of the 2020 GRESB Real Estate Assessment.
GID has been recognized as a leader in sustainability with another GRESB 5 Star Rating for the fourth year in a row, demonstrating continued excellence in ESG management and implementation. GID also earned 1st place in Resilience in their peer group in 2020, building upon strong foundations established in years prior with their 2nd place rank in 2019 within the United States, Residential, Non-listed peer group.
Since the debut of GID’s Sustainability Program in 2016, GID has implemented a broad array of ESG measures in support of their mission to leverage its investment, development and management expertise to enhance the communities in which it invests, lives and operates.
Scott Lemoine, Director of Sustainability for Verdani Partners, reflects “We are very proud of the progress our groups have made across the GID portfolio since we launched their Sustainability Program. GID’s exceptional performance within GRESB is a direct result of the years of dedicated efforts from GID’s executive leadership and the ESG team to implement sustainability measures across all areas of the company. It’s inspiring to be part of this movement to advance sustainable real estate and improve transparency in our industry.”
Learn more at GID's website and 2019 Annual Report
Learn More
How the GRESB Assessment Changed in 2020
Earlier this year, our founder and president, Daniele Horton, participated in a video interview at Nareit’s 2020 ESG JumpStart Workshop, discussing the changes that were introduced to the 2020 GRESB Assessment.
In the video, Daniele shares information about how more investors are requiring participation ESG assessments such as GRESB, which helps investors mitigate risks and enhance and protect shareholder value through having access to ESG benchmark data. She also recommends six best practices participants should consider during the assessment process.
About GRESB
GRESB is a mission-driven and investor-led organization providing standardized and validated ESG data to the capital markets. Established in 2009, GRESB has become the leading ESG benchmark for real estate and infrastructure investments across the world.
Each year GRESB assesses and benchmarks the ESG performance of real assets worldwide. The GRESB Assessments are guided by what investors and the industry consider to be material issues in the sustainability performance of real asset investments and are aligned with international reporting frameworks, goals and emerging regulations.
The 2020 GRESB ESG benchmark covers more than US $5.3 trillion AUM, giving clarity and direction to the real asset investment market as a means to address complex sustainability challenges. GRESB data is used by hundreds of capital providers and thousands of asset managers to benchmark investments across portfolios and understand the opportunities, risks and choices that need to be made as the industry transitions to a more sustainable future.
Learn more at www.GRESB.com
About Verdani
Verdani Partners is a leading sustainability consulting firm managing ESG programs for
10 national and international real estate firms with over 4,000 properties managed across 720 Million SF of diversified real estate portfolios, representing over $350 Billion AUM.
Serving as an owners’ representative for ESG management, Verdani provides clients with a team of sustainability experts that work within their organizations to develop and manage customized programs on an ongoing basis. Verdani’s clients leverage the team of professionals, state-of-the-art tool and resources, and industry connections to advance their portfolios, minimize risk and create long-term value.
Verdani is a GRESB Premier Partner and member of the GRESB Benchmarking Committee. They manage GRESB reporting and produce annual sustainability reports for some of the nation’s top real estate firms. The certification experts at Verdani manage a wide range of certification systems for clients such as Fitwel, LEED, ENERGY STAR, USGBC’s ARC Platform, WELL, Green Globes, BREEAM, IREM, and more. Verdani’s corporate sustainability, green building certifications, technical services, communications department and educational programs bring an impressive breadth of expertise to each portfolio and project.
Contact
Paulynn Cue
Executive Director of Communications and Business Development
213-281-5990