Background

This white paper is the first in a two part series on Change Leadership in Climate Change for The Steven L. Newman Real Estate Institute, Baruch College, City University of New York. The paper was launched on Friday 22 November 2013 at the Change Leadership in the Built Environment conference in New York.

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Abstract

Over the past decade real   estate   owners   around   the world  have  experienced  the impact   of   increasingly  frequent extreme weather events. Scientists suggest that although it is difficult to link any single weather event to climate change, there is a high probability that the frequency and intensity of severe weather events will continue to increase as the concentration of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere rises.

 

This white  paper shares the experience of the Australian commercial real estate community in developing  new  approaches to  address the business risks associated with climate change.  The white paper examines:

• The key business drivers in the Australian market that have focused property owners on climate change including: recent extreme weather events; increasing government regulation; changing investor expectations; tenant concerns and corporate reputation.

• The key steps involved in conducting a systematic climate change risk assessment.

• How climate change strategy can be developed in an integrated way to address energy and greenhouse gas reduction together with climate change risk assessment and adaptation.

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