EP 11 — Acento's Emily Pierce on Scaling Sustainability in Workforce Housing

What does it really take to implement sustainability in workforce housing? Emily Pierce, VP of Sustainability and Impact at Acento Real Estate Partners, offers practical wisdom on this topic in this episode of The Future of CRE Sustainability. Emily tells Sean about the unique challenges of bringing environmental initiatives to multi-family properties, from managing split incentives across hundreds of units to building cross-departmental support. 

 

She also explains how Acento is making sustainability accessible through practical approaches like EV charging stations and solar initiatives, while maintaining strong financial performance. Emily touches on the importance of relationship building, effective communication, and speaking the language of different stakeholders are crucial for success in scaling sustainability programs across real estate portfolios.

 

Topics discussed:

• Implementing comprehensive sustainability strategies in workforce housing while managing unique challenges of multi-family properties including split incentives and tenant engagement.
• Strategic approach to building cross-departmental support through effective communication and relationship building, focusing on stakeholder-specific benefits and metrics.
• Analyzing and implementing sustainability initiatives like EV charging and solar projects with careful consideration of lease structures and property characteristics.
• Balancing environmental impact with financial returns through systematic property assessment, energy audits, and strategic project prioritization.
• Integration of technology and software solutions for monitoring building performance and identifying sustainability opportunities across the portfolio.
• Evolution of sustainability reporting frameworks and their impact on institutional investment, with focus on GRESB and TCFD standards.
• Navigating policy changes and government requirements while maintaining focus on private sector opportunities for environmental initiatives.
• Strategic approach to education and communication for driving behavioral changes and building support for sustainability programs.
• Impact of natural disasters and climate events on market trends and their influence on risk assessment and resilience planning.
• Development of comprehensive sustainability strategies that combine technological solutions with behavioral change initiatives for maximum impact.