Real estate consultancy Savills aims to shed light on this and other sustainability challenges faced by the global and regional real estate sector at the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 27) to be held on 7-18 November 2022 at Sharm El-Sheikh, Invest-Gate reports.

Real estate contributes to 40% of carbon emissions globally, a concerning statistic for everyone driving the sustainability agenda in the industry.

COP 27 will build on COP 26 held in 2021 in Glasgow, UK with a deeper focus on the African continent.

The conference in Egypt will highlight some of the region’s main concerns on climate change including emission reduction, mitigation of the effects of climate change, and procuring climate funding to help developing countries, specifically those in Africa which are most affected.

Catesby Langer-Paget, Head of Savills Egypt says, “With respect to sustainability in the real estate sector, Egypt, along with the continent overall, lags other global economies in efforts to reduce the sector’s impact on climate change but there is a huge opportunity to change for good. Currently, there are only 23 LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certified Buildings in Egypt, which is the most recognized green building rating system globally. Further, there is only one holds Platinum certification. We expect this number to increase significantly over the coming years, particularly in the NAC.”

Moreover, Savills global has established Savills Earth which helps support clients in their sustainability, energy and carbon strategies. Locally, Savills is working with multiple stakeholders, developers and customers to achieve the goals of sustainability and climate preservation in the region.

For her part, Sherine Badreldine, Head of Operations at Savills Egypt, said, “We aim to utilize our extensive knowledge, consultancy and research capabilities at our disposal to be the voice of the property sector at COP27.”

On the other hand, Savills Egypt participated in the Race to Zero campaign in 2021, an event hosted at the British Embassy in Cairo, where Savills Egypt pledged its full commitment to optimizing processes to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Over the next few months, Savills will roll out a range of thought leadership initiatives on sustainability to help communicate its importance and relevance, and ignite the discussion among the sector’s stakeholders regarding their efforts to combat climate change.