We reached out to leading experts in SRI to find out their responses, and this is what we found…
QUESTIONWhat are cities doing to become more energy efficient and sustainable? And how are they paying for it?
ANSWERDaria Bogatyreva, Head of Canadian Sustainability and Outreach, Pappus 101
ANSWERHere is my vision of what cities are doing to become more energy efficient and sustainable and how they are paying for it. I observe that cities are generating opportunities to make a quantum leap in energy-efficient infrastructure. To accrue energy efficiency, Urban planners assess wards rather than distinct buildings according to a consistent strengthening of guidelines for the placement of green facilities and DE&I traction planning. There are several ways that cities are paying for strengthening infrastructure performance, including PPPs (in transportation and water & sanitation services provision), subsidies, revenue from utilities, and the funds circulating from offsetting payments.
QUESTIONWhat are cities doing to become more energy efficient and sustainable? And how are they paying for it?
ANSWERSarah Welton, Expert in Social & Environmental Sustainability, NYC
ANSWERAcross the United States, cities and localities are taking a variety of approaches toward combating climate change, especially when it comes to one of the primary culprits of carbon emissions: buildings. This bespoke approach can be a headache for national, or even regional, real estate owners, but it also allows some cities, like NYC to stand out as sustainability leaders. Most notably, New York recently passed Local Law 97, which penalizes large emitters, including the LEED Platinum BofA Tower, which is estimated to pay nearly $2.5 million dollars per year for its carbon emissions. In an effort to reduce carbon in the atmosphere, the city is offering programmatic and financial support for property-level assessments, retrofits and efficiency improvements like green roofs and solar panels. Though NYC is criticized for working too slowly on cleaning up the grid or installing EV charging stations, New Yorkers are responsible for fewer carbon emissions than most Americans, even after death.
QUESTIONWhat are cities doing to become more energy efficient and sustainable? And how are they paying for it?
ANSWEREugenio Liu, ESG Strategy and Development & Sustainability Consultant
ANSWERCities need a catalyst to get things rolling, and often times it is the government that needs to take on that role. In the case of Santiago (Chile) where I hail from, our cities are tackling decarbonization from three very specific areas: Clean Transportation, through sustainable mobility and public EVs; Energy Efficiency, from subsidies to vulnerable sectors; and Green buildings. These projects which have added up to approx. $8.5 Billion are being financed through green bonds and sustainability bonds successfully placed and oversubscribed in international markets. In fact, Chile was the first country in the American continent to issue a green bond.
QUESTIONWhat are cities doing to become more energy efficient and sustainable? And how are they paying for it?
ANSWERMaria Stoica, Environmental & Sustainability Advisor, Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)
ANSWERThe cities accelerate the revision and allocation of development permits that include energy efficiency requirements among other environmental and social aspects. So, businesses are delivering energy efficiency but cities are facilitating that opportunity.
ANSWERNonetheless, cities assess the energy efficiency of the local built environment and send grant schemes information to property owners and tenants in mapped low energy efficiency buildings.
QUESTIONWhat are cities doing to become more energy efficient and sustainable? And how are they paying for it?
ANSWEREve Zoma, ESG/Climate Analyst, APICIL Asset Management
ANSWERThe carbon footprint of cities and urban areas accounts for nearly 70% of global carbon emissions. From this observation, the N°11 of the Sustainable Development Goals calls on cities to trigger the necessary transformations to become more energy efficient and sustainable. To meet this goal, cities are increasingly turning to cleaner energy sources such as solar power. They are redefining themselves by becoming smart cities and creating green spaces to reduce pollution. Furthermore, more and more eco-districts and coworking spaces are being created in cities, facilitating telecommuting and relieving congestion in certain areas. These actions, allowing cities to meet the dual climate objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to climate change, require massive investments. For this purpose, cities usually use credits or loans (green bonds, bonds, bank credits, or others). In addition to the substantial investments to be made, some cities have to face technical difficulties.
