Corporate Responsibility
Planet
A sustainable, environmentally focused approach recognising the responsibility and the opportunity to influence the way buildings are built, sourced, managed, occupied and sold.
Overview
Our vision is to realise a more sustainable world for all. As the world’s largest manager of commercial buildings, we take proactive measures to make our properties and operations more environmentally sound. We have an approved science-based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction target to significantly reduce the emissions generated through our operations and by the properties we manage. Across every service and team, both as individuals and as a company, every action matters, so we embed sustainability into everything we do. We have a dedicated ESG strategy and team to ensure we deliver our global sustainability aims.Sustainability Policy
Our Environmental Sustainability Policy outlines our ambition to reduce our environmental impact and drive sustainable real estate practices, aligning to UN Sustainable Development Goals 7, 11 and 13.Net Zero Carbon goal
Our UK and Ireland business will be net zero by 2030, supporting our global 2040 targets which includes our business value chain emissions; i.e. scopes 1, 2 & 3. We will improve the operational energy and resource efficiency of our offices and reduce the environmental footprint of our business activities through reduced and more sustainable business travel and engaging with our supply chain. And we will advocate sustainability to our employees and provide leading client advisory services across the entire property lifecycle.How we get our people involved
To take sustainable action at scale it is critical we bring our people with us on our journey and upskill them to have meaningful conversations about sustainability with our clients and colleagues. It’s why we offer all our employees the ability to get involved in our award-winning All Greens network, and run gamified employee upskilling programmes that allow our people to learn what they need at a time that suits them best.Our Impact
Nearly 97% of our total emissions are related to managing and developing properties for our clients. This includes in-use emissions from managed properties and assets under management, procurement of goods and services on behalf of our clients, embodied carbon and capital goods used in real estate development, and fuel combustion from vehicles used to service properties. CBRE’s ability to achieve our net zero ambition is directly connected to our clients’ and suppliers’ investments in decarbonization.
About 3% of our emissions are associated with our corporate operations. This includes energy use in our leased offices, corporate procurement, waste, employee commute and business travel.
Our Progress
Since 2019, CBRE has reduced absolute GHG emissions across total Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions by 18%. Scope 1 and 2 emissions make up a small part of our total impact (0.5%) and have decreased 25% since 2019, putting us on track to achieve our near-term target ahead of 2030. Emissions from properties we manage for clients (Scope 3.11) have decreased 19% per square foot since 2019.
We have a clear understanding of the actions required to reach our near-term absolute reduction target. Scope 3 emissions (99.5%) remain our biggest challenge—and an even greater opportunity. While holding ourselves accountable across our corporate operations, we can apply the same insights and expertise to actions for our clients as they work to decarbonize their own real estate portfolios. We know that progress will not be linear and sustained progress will become increasingly complex.
Our Climate Transition Strategy
Read our Climate Transition Strategy
With nearly 500 corporate offices and more than 7 billion square feet of managed property globally, CBRE has an outsized opportunity to help reduce GHG emissions in the built environment.
Our Climate Transition Strategy provides a global approach to align our business with our climate commitments. We outline the pathways and actions to transform our own operations while also serving as a catalyst to decarbonize the commercial real estate industry.
Related Resources
Read our Commitment to Sustainability, Environmental Sustainability Policy and Sustainability Operating Standards.
Our 2023 Corporate Responsibility Report highlights our progress scaling a low carbon future, creating opportunities so all people thrive and leading with integrity to build trust.
CBRE is committed to transparency and earned an A- performance score on CDP’s global climate change disclosure in 2023. Read our latest CDP questionnaire.
We help organizations decarbonize, fast. As pioneers in real estate, we simplify complexity, turning your operations and assets into shining examples of environmental responsibility.
