April fireworks!
We’re thrilled to announce two remarkable events that are happening this month:
- the first one regarding a new addition to the GRESB-approved ESG Assurance Standards (i.e. Get It Fair ESG Rating and Reporting Assurance Scheme); and
- the second one about the ESG Forum 2030 on 18th and 19th April in Rome where we’re going to present a case study involving an Italian management company in the hospitality sector which has embarked on an amazing sustainability journey and wants to disclose its ESG credentials through GRESB, BREEAM In Use and an externally assured ESG rating & sustainability report.
1) The GRESB Portal is open and it looks like there has been a new addition to the list of assurance schemes!
On 1st April the GRESB Portal opens marking the beginning of the 2024 assessment submission period. Until 1st July 2024 all GRESB participants will be completing their Real Estate and Infrastructure Assessments with the aim of improving their score.
Alongside the portal opening, E.S.G. Solutions is pleased to announce that there has been a new addition to the list of GRESB-approved ESG Assurance Standards – the “Get It Fair ESG Rating and Reporting Assurance Scheme“.
Get it Fair (GIF) is a programme managed by Diligentia ETS, a not-for-profit organisation that E.S.G. Solutions are proud to be a founding partner of, to grant organisations the right to use the “GIF Responsible Organization” mark. The Get It Fair ESG Rating and Reporting Assurance Scheme is the first scheme in the world positively evaluated for accreditation purposes by a national accreditation body (Accredia, which is the Italian equivalent of UKAS in the UK) with respect to international standards (ISO/IEC 17029:2019) for the following scopes:
- ESG Rating: determination of the exposure level to risks that can result into adverse impacts relating to Governance, Social, Safety, Environment and Business Ethics issues;
- Assurance of Sustainability Reporting: conformity assessment to assure a sustainability report prepared by an organization with respect to specific international sustainability reporting standards (e.g. GRI, EFRAG–ESRS, IFRS).
The sustainability reporting assurance scope of GIF centres around an assessment performed ON SITE by certified Assessors (GIF Approved Professionals) and undertaken in accordance with ISO 17029 and the “Get It Fair ESG Rating and Assurance Scheme”. It can also be undertaken at both the limited and reasonable levels of assurance, making it one of the first schemes in the world that offers a reasonable assurance of assurance for sustainability information.
The acceptance of the scheme within GRESB offers participants the opportunity to achieve additional points for a number of indicators within the Management and Performance Components of the GRESB Real Estate Assessment as it can be used:
- as an assurance standard for ESG reporting (+0.9 points on RP1 if used for a standalone sustainability report)
- as well as for the external review of energy, GHG, water and waste data (up to +5.5 points on indicators MR1-MR4).
As our GRESB AP Theo Bibby reminds us (by the way, have we said yet that he’s the first ever GRESB Accredited Professional available out there?), with the Standing Investments Benchmark having just a 5.91 points difference between the top limit of a 3-star and bottom limited of 5-star (see the table below with the 2023 results), combining GIF with your GRESB assessment could make all the difference to your GRESB results!
2) We’re going to present a ground-breaking case study at the 2° Forum ESG 2030 in Rome next 18th and 19th April!
The ESG Forum 2030 is an initiative promoted by the Italian Ministry of Environment and Energy Security, hosted by Diligentia ETS at the UnionCamere HQ in Piazza Sallustio on 18th and 19th April in Rome (Italy). On the second day, during the workshop on “sustainable tourism” at 11:00-12:00 in Aula Sabbatini our Director and Founder Antonio Messina has been invited alongside Aeroviaggi, Federalberghi, Unicredit Bank and Expedia Group to present Mangia’s case study involving a management company in the hospitality sector which is going to disclose in 2024 its ESG credentials using some of the most renowned certification and benchmarking tools in the industry, such as GRESB, BREEAM In Use for its resorts and club (some 100% owned, others in JV with Blackstone‘s HIP) and aims to obtain an externally assured ESG rating & sustainability report in due course.
The session will be broadcasted live on 19th April and will also be recorded. If you would like to attend the even in person, the registration link is provided here. If you are unable to visit Rome on those days and would like to join remotely, you can still register here.
We are looking forward to very exciting weeks ahead! Don’t hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected] should you like to find out more about the topics discussed in this blog article.
