GRESB Quarterly, Americas | EVORA on unlocking sustainable value through active asset management; GRESB at SuperReturn; Insights into GRESB scoring & data centers

Spring is almost here—or at least, that’s what the calendar is promising us! The arrival of warmer weather and new beginnings also brings us another GRESB reporting season.

At GRESB, preparations for the 2025 Assessments are in full swing. This year, more than ever, GRESB stands ready to support our Members with:

• New and improved Reference Guides and related resources, which will be released in the coming days
• Upgraded and enhanced behind-the-scenes technologies and systems for a smoother submission
• New Member support resources like GRESB QuickStart 
• Readily available Standard development information, released last year
• A fully trained, global GRESB Member Success team ready to assist

While the bar for operational performance is rising for all of us, we are very confident that GRESB and our entire community are set up for success in 2025.

In addition to GRESB guidance and resources, our network of experienced GRESB Partners is here to provide expert insights and tailored assistance. If you need help finding the right GRESB Partner for your situation, please contact us.

Be on the lookout for more GRESB communications hitting your inbox over the next several weeks. We work hard to keep everyone informed and, at this time of year, our outbound emails contain key resources.

This newsletter, crafted specifically for the GRESB Americas community, features resources and updates most relevant to all of us working and living in this hemisphere. Please take a few minutes to review the content below.

GRESB is geared up and ready for another record-breaking submission season. Thank you for your dedication to creating and advancing a more efficient, resilient, and sustainable real assets sector.

Let’s go!

Sincerely,

Tom Idzal
Head of Americas
GRESB

In a changing real estate market, where rising interest rates and shifting tenant demands are redefining success, active asset management has never been more important. GRESB Global Partner EVORA Global explores how investors can adapt to these challenges, drive NOI growth, and manage risk effectively in its latest paper, “Unlocking sustainable value: How active asset management is transforming real estate in a high-interest rate era.”

The article breaks down key strategies, from market risk analysis and asset repositioning to capital planning and operational efficiency. It also examines how sustainability and evolving tenant expectations are shaping investment decisions and property performance. With practical insights on today’s market conditions, this piece is a must-read for real estate professionals looking to stay ahead.

Read the full article here to gain a clearer understanding of how asset management strategies can help unlock long-term sustainable value.

Join us online for the upcoming “Unlocking value: How sustainability is helping asset managers succeed in a high-interest era” webinar on April 8, hosted in partnership with EVORA, to further explore how sustainability is reshaping asset management strategies.

As traditional strategies like leverage and refinancing become less viable, funds must focus on active asset management to enhance value. This session will cover how sustainability influences capital flows, asset valuations, and new opportunities, with practical insights on increasing NOI and future-proofing portfolios in a changing market.

Learn more and register here.

Earlier this week, GRESB announced a significant update to the Real Estate Standard, introducing a new approach to assessing energy efficiency and marking a major step toward rewarding real-world performance.

The update improves the scoring logic in the Energy Like-for-Like Change section by recognizing highly efficient assets, even if they show limited year-on-year reductions, ensuring that they are assessed based on their absolute energy efficiency as an alternative to incremental annual reductions. This ensures that low-performing assets remain incentivized to improve while high-efficiency assets are rewarded for their superior energy performance.

To support this methodology, GRESB has incorporated energy use intensity thresholds based on ASHRAE Standard 100:2024, the most comprehensive, data-driven engineering standard available for this purpose today. This integration enhances consistency across portfolios and provides a standardized, industry-aligned way to evaluate energy efficiency.

Learn more about the update here.

Join Sarah Welton, Director of the GRESB Foundation, at SuperReturn Energy North America in Miami on March 18-19, where she will be speaking during the main event and hosting an exclusive LP-only workshop on energy efficiency.

The conference brings together more than 180 senior private equity thought leaders specializing in energy, including investors from both traditional and renewable energy sectors, and unpacks topics ranging from renewables and energy transition to navigating the North American energy market and the US data center boom.

LP-only workshop | Energy efficiency: The untapped driver to cut costs, reduce risk, and boost returns

Energy efficiency is not just a sustainability goal—it’s a key driver of financial performance. As energy costs rise and regulatory pressures increase, LPs have a unique opportunity to unlock value by prioritizing efficiency in their portfolios. This exclusive session will explore the financial impact of energy efficiency and provide actionable strategies for LPs to engage with GPs on reducing operational costs, mitigating transition risks, and enhancing long-term asset value.

Run under the Chatham House Rule, this exclusive discussion group is open to 20 pre-registered development finance institutions, endowments, foundations, insurance companies, pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, subject to qualification.

Learn more about the workshop here. To register for the workshop, please contact: [email protected].

GRESB Members get a 10% discount off SuperReturn registration with the code: FKR3629GRES 

Register for SuperReturn here.

GRESB QuickStart is now available! Designed to help first-time participants quickly get acquainted with the GRESB Assessment process, QuickStart is a tailored assessment service that offers a comprehensive introduction to GRESB’s resources and procedures, ensuring participants are well-equipped for a smooth and efficient reporting period.

As part of the program, Participants will receive one-on-one demonstrations of key tools including the Real Estate Assessment Spreadsheet or the Infrastructure Materiality & Scoring Tool. They’ll gain access to best practices, tailored tips to enhance their reporting, and dedicated support through one-on-one conversations with GRESB experts. Participants will be able to ask their most pressing questions and receive insights specific to their needs.

QuickStart is an excellent opportunity for new participants to confidently engage with GRESB and optimize their reporting process.

Learn more about QuickStart and reach out to the GRESB Member Success team to get started.

Access to sustainability data and ensuring high-quality data are critical in the infrastructure investment industry.

In the latest edition of Institutional Investing in Infrastructure, GRESB’s Jensen Hodge, Sales Director, Infrastructure, Americas, discusses trends in operationalizing sustainability data.

Hodge highlights how sustainable practices, including climate-resilient design, water stewardship, and biodiversity considerations, are reducing risks, lowering operational costs, and driving long-term value creation for infrastructure investors. With a growing focus on resilience and sustainability, integrating these practices early in asset development is becoming essential to mitigating climate risks and ensuring predictable returns.

Read the article here (paywalled).

The rapid growth of data centers is reshaping the built environment, bringing both opportunities and challenges for sustainability. From the surge in AI-driven demand to the sector’s intensifying energy footprint, investors are grappling with how to balance expansion with environmental responsibility.

GRESB Chief Innovation Officer Chris Pyke shared insights on the sustainability challenges and opportunities shaping data centers in recent articles:

• The data center boom threatens climate goals. How to fight back | Trellis
• Data centers are booming – with and without AI | Infrastructure Investor
• Investor-owned data centers: Sustainability strategies for the year ahead | Intelligent Data Centers
• Sustainability by the numbers: How ESG metrics attract capital to data centers | Data Center POST

Check out the latest episodes of The Pulse by GRESB:

• From tenant surveys to success: Data-driven decisions in Commercial Real Estate
• Has ESG become too big for sustainability reporting?
• The GRESB Standards part 1: How they evolve and what’s in store for 2025
• The GRESB Standards part 2: How they evolve and what’s in store for 2025

Or you can find the whole series on Spotify, YouTube and Apple Podcasts.

Fake news or real progress? Assessing the credibility of climate goals in the automotive sector

The race to net zero is well underway, with 78% of Fortune 500 companies setting climate targets. But as investors look to manage risks and optimize portfolios a critical question remains—are these companies actually delivering on their commitments?

Join Asset Impact on February 26 for a webinar featuring a live discussion between Alex Clark, Research Director, Asset Impact and Joe McCabe, CEO, AutoForecast Solutions, on the realities behind corporate climate commitments, the challenges in existing strategies to assess credibility, and how forward-looking, asset-based data can provide the level of clarity investors need.

Register here.

GRESB 2025: Navigating Updates and Accelerating Decarbonization Strategies 

Join GRESB and JLL in New York on March 20 for “Navigating Updates and Accelerating Decarbonization Strategies.” This collaborative session will feature thought leaders from JLL and GRESB, offering a unique opportunity to:

• Gain early insights into navigating the 2025 GRESB reporting changes
• Explore cutting-edge decarbonization techniques for both new and existing buildings
• Understand the growing importance of embodied carbon and strategies to address it
• Network with industry peers and sustainability professionals

Space is limited, so secure your seat now.

• The New Climate Risk Landscape: A Conversation with GRESB’s Chris Pyke
  ClimateFirst | February 19 | Online
  Join GRESB’s Chris Pyke, Chief Innovation Officer, and ClimateFirst’s @Mike William on February 19 at 12pm EST as they explore the growing importance of managing physical climate risks in real estate.
• GRESB Reporting in 2025: How to Master This Year’s Real Estate Assessment WatchWire by Tango | February 25 | Online
  Join Reid Morgan, GRESB Member Relations Manager, Americas, for an essential webinar dedicated to empowering GRESB Participants with the tools and knowledge needed to be successful when reporting to this year’s GRESB Real Estate Assessment.
• Responsible Investment Forum: New York
  PEI | March 4-5 | New York, NY
  Join sustainable finance practitioners and thought leaders to gain insights on the key themes and trends impacting investments in North America and beyond, including approaches to decarbonization and net zero, biodiversity, how sustainability drives returns, and much more.
• Infrastructure Investor Global Summit 2025
  PEI | March 17–20 | Berlin, Germany
  The Infrastructure Investor Global Summit unites leaders shaping global infrastructure. Over four days, gain expert insights, tackle industry challenges, and refine winning strategies. GRESB’s Joss Blamire, Director of Infrastructure Standards, will be speaking.

See full event calendar.

The future of commercial real estate is sustainable: Reflections on the post-election era | Verdani Partners

The Case for Climate-Resilient Infrastructure | State of the Climate

Thanks to our Global Partner EVORA for sponsoring and contributing to this newsletter.

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