Responsible office operations

Our own office operations

We’re already reducing our own impact.

Whilst the footprint of our assets under management has a significantly larger impact on the environment, we also consider the footprint of our own internal operations. These CO2 emissions come primarily from the energy use of our offices, air travel and emissions from company cars. If we want to inspire our client investors and our tenants to join the movement so we can limit our emissions together, we need to lead by example in our own operations and show that every bit counts.

Net Zero Carbon platform

For the energy use in our offices we try to apply the same rules as to our portfolio: reduce energy demand as much as possible and use on- and off-site renewable energy for the remainder. Currently, 86% of our offices have green energy contracts and we aim to raise this to 100% in 2023. Only one office has not yet switched to a “green contract” as this office is scheduled to be refurbished in 2023.

In keeping with Mission 2040, we aim to maintain a Net Zero Carbon platform. Our platform is already carbon neutral as we compensate the scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions related to our activities and operations as investment and asset manager.

In 2020 we entered a longer-term partnership with Land Life Company to offset CO2 emissions from our platform’s operations. Through Land Life Company our emissions of 237 tonnes of CO2 in 2020 and 253 in 2021 were offset by planting trees in northern Spain. Our 2022 emissions of 325 tonnes of CO2 will be offset by Land Life Company again. While offsetting certainly contributes to a more resilient environment, we view it as a last resort and our principal focus is on actively driving down our emissions further.

How we'll get there

Offices

We are continuously improving the environmental performance of our offices through different measures e.g. LED lighting, separating our waste, installing smart meters. Currently, 86% of our offices have green energy contracts and we aim to raise this to 100% by 2023, while solar panels on the roof of our Amsterdam office supplied 96% of our total office energy consumption there in 2021.

Employee well-being

The health and well-being of our colleagues is important to us and expressed through various initiatives and benefits organised both locally and centrally. In terms of office fit out this includes ergonomic chairs, flexible/standing desks, double screens and headsets, quiet areas and plants/living walls. Health benefits in some of our countries also include regular health checks, gym subscriptions, free fruit, filtered water and yoga or massage in the office.

Mobility

Clearly, the COVID-19 pandemic continued to play a major role in 2021, with travel restrictions and lockdowns in many regions. As most restrictions across Europe were lifted in early 2022, we look forward to being able to compare the carbon footprint of our ‘new normal’ way of working to the ‘business as usual’ approach prior to the pandemic. Behavioural change will be the biggest driver to ensure that we stay on track for our medium-term 2025 target.

Impact on society

Our employees play an active role in proposing charities we support through the Redevco Foundation. Each of these initiatives is intended to have some degree of positive societal, environmental or cultural impact for the respective stakeholder group that is targeted.

Corporate giving

Redevco is convinced that businesses have a broader responsibility to the communities in which they operate. Through the Redevco Foundation and by offering our employees a volunteering day per year for a charitable organisation of their choice, we have created an opportunity to ‘give back’ and go beyond ‘simply’ maximising our operational sustainability.

Employee development

We live and work in a dynamic world which requires constant learning and adaptation from us all. We stimulate continuous professional development through global and local initiatives. We launched the Redevco Skills Builder. This 24/7 online learning portal offers a wide variety of training opportunities, with a direct link to our business needs.