Environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting has become top-of-mind for corporate leaders, investors and stakeholders as global interest in sustainability and energy equity mounts. As leading corporations increasingly turn their attention toward greater ESG compliance, many that own their building(s) are reaping the multiple benefits of sustainability property improvements.
First, what are the components of ESG?
Environmental: The measurement of a company’s impact on the natural world. This includes a company’s use of natural resources, such as water and energy, and the effect of its operations on its environment. Waste management, air pollution and deforestation are commonly measured to evaluate a company’s ESG score.
Social: The interactions between a company and its employees, customers, suppliers, partners and local community. Alignment with social values, such as diversity and inclusion, product quality and employee and customer satisfaction, determine a company’s ethical practices.
Governance: The internal structure and composition of a company’s top level. Executive compensation, decision-making policies, risk management, shareholder rights and corporate disclosures are among the factors evaluated when assessing how well a company is governed.
Tackling every angle of ESG simultaneously can be an ambitious undertaking, so many corporations are prioritizing initiatives that make a big impact.
Far-Reaching Benefits of Sustainability
Corporate buildings consume an enormous amount of energy – between heating, cooling, lighting and powering equipment – with operational emissions accounting for 28 percent of all global carbon emissions. Moreso, 30 percent of the energy used in commercial buildings is reportedly wasted, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Focusing on energy gives companies the opportunity to improve their impact on the natural world while also realizing several operational benefits. Installing solar is a great way to swap fossil fuels for a cleaner, renewable alternative, for example. By generating their own electricity, companies simultaneously offset utility expenses, boosting their bottom line. Other energy-related improvements could include adding battery storage or electric vehicle (EV) charging stations as well as upgrading to energy efficient equipment and energy management systems.
Optimizing energy clearly supports the ‘E’ in ESG, but its perceived social value is also reflected across employee and customer satisfaction, resulting in greater productivity, operational performance and capital gains.
Setting Attainable ESG Goals
With the technology and services needed to address ESG mandates only increasing, corporations that own their building(s) are well positioned to implement attainable ESG strategies today.
Interested in advancing your ESG initiatives? Learn more about novel finance programs available for your EV charging infrastructure, renewable energy or energy efficiency project, from Clean Energy PPAs to Credit Based PPAs to C-PACE financing, by visiting projects or contacting us to schedule a meeting with our team.