ULI and PwC report unprecedented collective action needed to decarbonize built environment

Real estate industry is tackling the twin-challenge of a cyclical downturn juxtaposed with the long-term consequences from the disruption caused by COVID-19, and the environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda becoming increasingly important.

A report by PwC and the Urban Land Institute (ULI) highlights a clear global narrative of COVID-19 as an “accelerator of existing trends,” such as digitalization and online shopping, while at the same time hugely reinforcing the real estate industry’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) agenda. More companies than ever before are putting climate change and decarbonization strategies at the heart of the way they do business, as they respond to the pressures of the pandemic.

The industry leaders canvassed for the annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate®: Global Outlook report are hopeful of a consumer-spending-led economic recovery feeding through into an uptick in activity in the second half of 2021. B