On the discussion panel will be Rudolf Pienaar of Growthpoint, Richard Thomas from Nedbank, David Green from the V&A Waterfront, Jurgens van Huyssteen from Menlyn Maine, Martin Evans from the Brydons Group and David Savage from the Abland Property Group.
"There are clear environmental benefits for building green as well as a compelling business case. Going green is not just about the environment, the bottom-line benefits of building and operating green buildings are particularly important considering South Africa's rising energy costs and water scarcity - coupled with lower risks, improvements to employee productivity and ultimately, better investment returns and higher property valuations," says Brian Wilkinson, CEO of the Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA).
Globally, property owners and developers face the challenge of 'future-proofing' their buildings. Going green is now broadly regarded as the smart choice which takes account of sustainability, responsible investment requirements, aesthetics and critically, profitability.
Both the Responsible Investment Code, that most of the major asset managers have signed up to, and the King Code of Governance, require that organisations record and report on their actions in respect of, amongst others, environmental sustainability. The effects of this will be long reaching and profound; an organisation that performs badly in respect of their sustainability initiatives will be punished in terms of the ultimate measure - their share price.
Asset managers are including so-called ESG (environment, social and governance) requirements in their investment mandates and, by definition, poor performers will suffer as investment moves to better performers. So there is a wonderful 'virtuous triangle' in respect of commercial property development and management.
This year is designed to maximise peer to peer networking and exposure to the key influencers in the global and local sustainable building space, as the local council hosts the World Green Building Congress in parallel. The 2013 programme is designed to strike a captivating balance between big picture sustainability and the more technical aspects of sustainable building and communities. This premier event is complemented by a world-class exhibition of sustainable innovation.
