Mirvac and Dexus top the global sustainability charts

Mirvac and Dexus top the global sustainability charts

15 September 2017

Australian property heavyweights, Mirvac Group and Dexus Property Group, have been recognised as global sustainability leaders, reports The Australian.

Dexus was honoured by the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) for its sustainability commitment and performance.

The GRESB is the global standard real estate benchmark dedicated to assessing the sustainability performance of the sector. The index covers $3.7 trillion of real estate assets across 62 countries, assessing management approaches and measured performance outcomes. GRESB benchmarks company performance for the benefit of investors who are placing a higher importance on responsible and ethical investment.

Dexus chief executive Darren Steinberg said the group was pleased to be recognised by GRESB.

“Being named a global sector leader recognises our success in delivering world class, sustainable properties and is testament to the hard work and efforts of our sustainability team,” he said.

Dexus Office Trust was the top ranked Australian listed entity, and it ranked first amongst global listed office entities.

Additionally, Dexus Wholesale Property Fund (DWPF) was named Global Sector Leader for diversified office/retail entities.

Head of Group Sustainability and Energy Paul Wall said the company had saved $93 million through energy efficiency measures since 2008, while increasing its “focus on customer amenity and wellbeing, while lessening our environmental impact on the broader community”.

“We continue to challenge ourselves by setting ambitious targets and delivering on them,” Mr Wall added.

Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) named Mirvac as the top real estate group in the index, highlighting its sustainability strategy and focus on solar systems for its assets.

“The company’s climate strategy and approach to biodiversity are particularly laudable and have contributed to their strong performance in the environmental dimension of this year’s assessment,” said investment specialist group RobecoSAM, which worked on the rankings.

The rankings measure the world’s largest 2,500 publicly traded companies in 59 industry sectors using a range of financially relevant economic, environmental, and social sustainability criteria. Companies are scored between 0-100 and are ranked against other companies in their industries.

The top 10 per cent of companies in each industry are included in the DJSI World awards.