Commerz Real has created a new Impact Investment division and named a new Head of Sustainability. The asset manager intends to place its focus to a greater degree than in the past on capital investments whose returns are not measured solely in terms of economic success, but also with a view to their positive impact on society and the environment.

7R is the first warehouse developer in Poland to create an innovative eco-friendly warehouse – 7R Green. The company's main goal is to provide facilities in which ecological solutions will help minimize their impact on the natural environment. Construction of the first warehouse, designed in keeping with the new green concept, will start in the first half of the year.

Sustainability is top of the agenda this year at Davos as governments and businesses around the world are grappling with ways to combat climate change. Of the four global issues the World Economic Forum has said “clearly stand out as urgent and important” at the annual meeting in Switzerland, the first two are how to address environmental challenges harming our ecology and economy, and figuring out how to transform industries to achieve more sustainable business models. The built environment has a huge role to play in developing and implementing solutions, with technology, investment and robust governance central to success, according to the City Momentum Index report from JLL.

Ikea plans to open a new furniture store in central Vienna, next to the Westbahnhof railway station with no parking place for cars. The construction works started in January 2020 and will be finished by next year.

CTP recently announced Arcadis, ADP and CEVRE as winners of the tender for certifying CTP’s entire portfolio of buildings. Winners were chosen based on track record, capability, ESG activity and cost. Key to the winning the tender was sufficient resources available to certify all 293 buildings in six countries within the timeframe. CTP plans to have all 293 buildings certified by the end of June 2020. The certification process will require close cooperation and transparency among the various parties and each party has dedicated teams to complete the task by the agreed deadline. In total, CTP expects to invest up to €1.2 million into the certification process.

In an industry first, CTP Invest and BRE will collaborate to implement BREEAM In-Use International across the entire CTP Invest portfolio of industrial buildings, throughout 2019 and 2020, in a landmark strategic alliance.

According to the RICS Global Commercial Property Monitor (GCPM), 38% of respondents reported that climate risks are not important or irrelevant for investors. In addition, according to the Global Construction Survey (GCM), over a third, (36%) of respondents believe that though compared to two years ago, investor focus has shifted towards building designs that are energy efficient and carbon neutral, it is only limited to a few niche investors.

If an architect plans a building now, that building will stand for at least 50 years. Architects have to keep this in mind, and take into account climate change scenarios as well as research and think with the mindset of the next generation. Gergely Paulinyi and András Reith, Founding Partners of Budapest-based architecture firm Paulinyi-Reith & Partners talked to Property Forum about branding, future goals and sustainability.