CBRE Group, Inc. (CBRE) announced today that 722 million square feet of commercial property it manages for clients participated in WWF’s Earth Hour 2012, representing an estimated 26 million building occupants worldwide. This year’s total broke CBRE’s previous global record and surpassed the company’s goal of 500 million square feet.
Considered the largest environmental event in history, Earth Hour 2012 took place from 8:30-9:30pm on Saturday 31 March in a symbolic and unified call for action to reduce the impact of climate change. Hundreds of millions of people located in more than 150 countries switched off non-essential lights for one hour, including CBRE managed properties in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific.
Mark Creamer, Executive Director, CBRE said: “By taking part in Earth Hour 2012, we are sending a powerful message that CBRE clients, tenants and employees stand united with people across the globe in their concern about climate change and their commitment to environmental sustainability.”
Andy Ridley, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Earth Hour said “CBRE continues to be a recognized global leader in the action towards a more sustainable planet as demonstrated by its commitment to Earth Hour since its inception in 2007. The amount of real estate space that CBRE influenced this year to participate is nothing short of phenomenal.”
As the leading commercial real estate services firm, CBRE has been uniquely positioned to lead the industry’s participation in Earth Hour since its inception 2007. In 2010, CBRE set a new industry standard, becoming the first global commercial real estate services firm to achieve carbon neutrality. CBRE also assists property owners and occupiers with energy efficiency programs within the commercial space it manages, as well as for client organisations.
In EMEA, CBRE’s Energy and Sustainability practice supports reduction of corporate impact on the environment through sustainable design and fit-out (including BREEAM), energy cost savings, legal and regulatory compliance, benchmarking and bespoke carbon reduction initiatives.
