In 2019, the global value of real estate was estimated to be US$217 trillion – roughly 2.7 times the GDP of the entire world.[1] Global real estate consumes approximately 40% of world energy annually and accounts for more than 20% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.[2] This highlights the contribution the real estate industry can make to help achieve the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to well below 2°C from pre-industrial levels.

Real estate is a varied industry consisting of developers and maintenance professionals, as well as property managers and investors. Building and managing real estate provides many social benefits, but also depletes natural resources and releases pollutants into the environment. As a result, the industry has seen the emergence of a number of global and national regulatory frameworks around the integration of sustainability in business practices. Several key countries (i.e., Germany, France, and the UK) have introduced legal standards on the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) performance of existing and new real estate assets, covering both investment and development. More and more, real estate companies are compelled to demonstrate their ability to operate in line with emerging ESG benchmarks.