Our Company believes that sustainability, social responsibility and strong corporate governance (collectively, “Corporate Responsibility”) are key contributors to our success. Our approach to Corporate Responsibility matters is all-inclusive, addressing our effect on the environment, our social impact and our relationships with all of our stakeholders, including our shareholders, tenants, employees and vendors.
Our commitment to the principles of sustainability starts at the top: our Board oversees our sustainability program and initiatives, our management team regularly reports to our Board on that program and our executive officers are evaluated and compensated, in part, on the Company’s efforts with respect to Corporate Responsibility initiatives. Our CEO directly oversees our sustainability activities and performance, and our CEO and General Counsel, along with senior members of our sustainability team, regularly update our Board on sustainability initiatives.
We have a sustainability team focused on sustainability risks and initiatives, whose team co-managers have reported directly to our CEO and General Counsel. The team comprises and leverages a variety of subject matter experts within the Company (e.g., human resources, information technology, leasing, legal, asset management and finance) as well as a variety of third-party consultants.
The Company is a member of GRESB, a globally recognized independent organization that provides validated Corporate Responsibility performance data and peer benchmarks of more than 1,500 real estate portfolios worldwide. GRESB is also aligned with many of the standards set forth in the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (“TCFD”). Our annual GRESB assessment rating improved by 8 points to achieve an overall score of 80 in 2023 and a slight decline to 78 in 2024.
The following summary describes some of our Corporate Responsibility principles. For a more thorough description of the Company’s Corporate Responsibility initiatives and goals, please see the link below for the Company’s 2024 Corporate Responsibility Report. This report, which was published following the review and approval of our Board of Trustees, includes a third-party assurance statement and incorporates certain TCFD recommendations related to climate resilience strategy, transition and physical climate risks and climate opportunities.
Our Corporate Responsibility initiatives include the following:
Corporate Governance
We are committed to a corporate governance approach that promotes transparency as well as alignment with and accountability to our shareholders.
Our Board reviews our corporate governance practices and we strive to operate the Company on a foundation of strong corporate governance principles. For further information on our corporate governance structure and policies, please see “Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance” in our latest Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Environmental
The Company’s sustainability approach seeks to actively manage environmental impacts and climate-related risks and opportunities. Our environmental and climate strategic planning and initiatives, combined with our targeted capital investments, are aimed at reducing carbon emissions, mitigating risks and potentially realizing climate-related opportunities that benefit our stakeholders.
Social Responsibility
We believe in a shared commitment to diversity, ethics, integrity and community engagement, which commitment serves as the foundation of our corporate purpose. Diversity of all types brings varying perspectives, encouraging differing viewpoints in order to effectively manage risk and create value.
We seek to maintain the highest standards of integrity and ethics. We have implemented a set of rules that governs our conduct and can be found in our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which covers our employees and trustees and applies to the Company’s relationships with its vendors. This Code remains a cornerstone in fostering a respectful and ethical work experience at the Company, setting forth our anti-bribery policy, our standards with respect to compliance with the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar governance-related matters.
For further information on our Company’s efforts with respect to Corporate Responsibility, please see the 2024 Corporate Responsibility Report link below.
Appendix
2024 Corporate Responsibility Report
CY2023 Independent Assurance Statement