Bucharest, September 21, 2023 – Genesis Property becomes the first real estate company in Romania to obtain the approval of its short-term CO2 emissions reduction target, until 2030, from the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
SBTi is a partnership between some of the most prestigious organisations worldwide – Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), United Nations Global Compact (UNGC), World Resources Institute (WRI) și World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
“At a time when the latest report by the IPCC, the UN’s specialized body for assessing the science of climate change, warns of a code red for humanity, prioritizing climate action is no longer optional. By obtaining the approval from SBTi, our company demonstrates that the Genesis Property’s carbon reduction target is consistent with the actions required to meet the targets agreed in the Paris Agreement, so that global warming is limited to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels by 2050,” said Ioan Bejan, Sustainability Manager, Genesis Property.
Genesis Property is among the just over 3,300 top companies worldwide and only the fifth Romanian company with such approval from said global organization. Moreover, Genesis Property becomes, through SBTi, the first real estate company in Romania to officially join and become a member of the “Race to Zero” campaign, an UN initiative launched with the aim to achieve an economy without carbon emissions and limit increasing global temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius (as outlined in the Paris Agreement).
Genesis Property has committed to reducing, in a first stage, its emissions in Scopes 1 and 2 by at least 46% by 2030 compared to the base year 2019. In addition, the company has committed to measure and reduce emissions related to Scope 3 so that during 2024 it can also obtain from SBTi the validation of the Net-Zero long-term CO2 emission reduction target.
In Genesis Property’s first Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report, the company already reported an almost 40% reduction in Scopes 1 and 2 carbon emissions compared to the 2019 levels.
„Achieving the carbon reduction target by 2030 will, of course, be a challenge that we are confident we will make a reality through the steps, investments and actions included in Genesis Property’s Climate Transition Plan. In this context, the YUNITY Park project represents the most eloquent proof of our actions in this regard,” Bejan adds.
Receiving the SBTi’s validation of Genesis Property’s target to reduce CO2 emissions also comes in the context in which the UN announced that only 15% of the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals, assumed by the world’s signatories of the 2030 Agenda, are on track to be achieved, while for about 48% of them progress is weak and insufficient, and for 37% progress has stagnated or even reversed.
That’s why, on the occasion of the 78th UN General Assembly taking place in New York this week, the UN Global Compact launched the “Forward Faster” initiative, calling on private sector leaders to take more ambitious and credible measures to accelerate progress towards achieving the sustainable development goals. At the moment, Genesis Property is the first company from Romania to join this effort, along with almost 140 other companies from around the world.
Recently, Genesis Property announced obtaining the Certificate of Registration in the prestigious community environmental management system EMAS, which allows the company to better understand its direct impact on the environment and to formulate more precise environmental objectives and targets.
Genesis Property is one of the most important owners, developers and operators of class A office buildings in Romania, with over 20 years of experience in the real estate industry and the first real estate group in the country to become a signatory and support the promotion of the 10 Principles of The UN Global Compact on human rights, work, the fight against climate change and environmental protection. The company owns and manages YUNITY Park and West Gate Business District, with over 150,000 square meters of office space occupied by major companies such as HP, Accenture, Societe Generale, Citibank, Ericsson, Garanti BBVA, Infineon, Luxoft, Yokogawa, Siemens and Alpha Bank , where more than 15,000 employees work.
In 2020, Genesis Property initiated the IMMUNE Building Standard™, an innovative global standard that certifies the resilience of buildings to health threats such as the Covid-19 pandemic. Through IMMUNE™, the company aims to sustainably contribute to the creation of the healthy buildings of the future.
Genesis Property made a commitment to adapt its investment and operational strategy in order to fully contribute to supporting the major objectives of the European Commission, assumed by the European Ecological Agreement, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 and to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
Genesis Property is also the developer of the first private student campus in Romania, West Gate Studios, and the 4-star accommodation unit Studio One Accommodation Suites.
