Our strategy
Photography by Sue Winston courtesy of Unsplash
Climate action and urban resilience
Carbon emissions
Goal
What we've done so far
Reduce the carbon impact of our workplaces globally to net zero by 2040; with a 50% reduction by 2030
- Improved data collection, accuracy and benchmark the performance of our office portfolio.
- Global scope 1 emissions have reduced by 27% compared to 2022.
- Global scope 2 emissions have increased by 11% compared to 2022.
- Our Global emissions intensity (tCO 2e/m2) has increased by 25.2% due to advances in our data collection processes and increase in the carbon intensity of the U.K. electricity grid.
- Built on a foundation of science, our U.K. business continues to analyse scope 3 supply chain emissions and is transforming the data into actionable insights.
- Scope 3 emissions (U.K. only) have seen an increase of 33% compared to 2022 due to improved data collection and an expanded scope.
Reduce the carbon impact of the buildings we manage for clients.
- Measured and provided dashboard reporting to clients in managed buildings.
- Supported clients to reduce energy consumption, set targets and review performance.
- An increasing number of projects that we manage are achieving high sustainability standards in retrofit.
Empower our places and communities to reduce carbon emissions.
- Took part in local forums to share best practices.
- Continue to engage communities on initiatives relating to client regeneration projects.
Green buildings and performance
Goal
What we've done so far
Improve the sustainability of our workplaces.
- Applied our global occupancy standard to help guide site selection, design, and operation of our workplaces to progress our journey to net zero.
- We signed a green lease at ourglobal HQ in Toronto and are pursuing LEED and WELL certification.
- A 12-month post occupancy evaluation has confirmed a 56.4% scope 2 carbon reduction resulting from the relocation, fit out and operation of our Manchester office (U.K.).
Develop services that improve the sustainability of the built environment across the whole asset lifecycle.
- Continue to provide decarbonisation and social impact services, creating environmental and social outcomes.
- For example, we have grown our advisory services for retrofit, EV charging infrastructure and biodiversity net gain, and climate resilience in planning.
Climate resilience and adaptation
Goal
What we've done so far
Assess the resiliency of our own operations in the face of climate impacts.
- Creating a roadmap towards ISSB alignment and compliance.
Assess climate impacts on our clients’ buildings and portfolios and provide risk mitigation solutions.
- Continue to monitor and evaluate the market for harnessing digital technology and data platforms to inform clients on climate risk and resilience.
- Expanding our due diligence offer to identify risks in site selection.
Photography by Greyson Joralemon courtesy of Unsplash
Diversity, equity and inclusion; and healthy and sustainable living
Talent attraction and knowledge
Goal
What we've done so far
Support learning and development for our people, ensuring access to knowledge and information to do their jobs.
- We had more than 570 users register to participate on the Together Mentoring platform. This resulted in more than 840 different mentor-mentee matches, and more than 500 mentoring sessions completed.
- Four mental health first aid courses delivered and 36 mental health first aiders trained in U.K.
- Integrated sustainability education sessions within key business units and service lines including inductions, upskilling series, and seminars.
- We continue to provide in- house sustainability and social impact education to all staff.
Attract the best talent to do meaningful and impactful work for our clients.
- Enhanced our sustainability expertise within business functions.
Diversity, equity and inclusion
Goal
What we've done so far
Inspire a balanced and diverse workforce that reflects the communities in which we operate.
- Redesigned our Canadian maternity and parental top- up plans, providing improved support for fulltime employees.
- Continue to expand and develop our Employee Resource and Business Groups: Empower, Roots, Folx, Conexíon and Pangea.
- Continue to invest in our future talent through internships and work experience placements.
- Launched a workplace engagement programme called My Perspectives, to shine a light on our people and their experiences, histories, customs, and celebrations.
- Delivered a range of career and upskilling programmes through school and college outreach.
Work with a diverse and inclusive supply chain to improve opportunity and accessibility.
- Global tracking of certified diverse spend.
- All Avison Young staff have access to Supplier.io’s searchable global database of diverse vendors to identify small, local, and diverse vendors.
- Internal promotion of existing certified diverse vendors.
Keeping spend in the local economy to support local businesses.
- All Avison Young staff have access to Supplier.io’s searchable global database of diverse vendors to identify small, local, and diverse vendors.
Employee engagement, wellbeing and sustainable living
Goal
What we've done so far
Promote health, wellbeing and sustainable living for our employees.
- Continue to grow our internal sustainability communications channel to inspire and promote sustainable good practice and behaviour.
- Continue to inspire our staff to look after their personal safety alongside their physical and mental wellbeing through workplace practices and wellness programmes.
- Continue to provide regular webinars on physical and mental health via our global wellbeing hub.
Promote the benefits of healthy spaces and places to our clients.
- We continue to monitor and advise our clients in this area.
Community Impact
Community Impact (place/people focus)
Goal
What we've done so far
Make a positive impact on the communities we operate in.
- Avison Young staff donated 7,900 volunteer hours, supporting 90 community- based organisations as part of our Annual Day of Giving.
- Continue to encourage office fundraising and empower corporate-charity partnerships through our local offices and regional networks.
Be purposeful: Transform our business into a purpose-led organisation.
- Developed a set of social value principles to guide our service delivery and corporate social activities.
Focus on places: Real impact through assets, places and communities we engage.
- Promoting our impact framework to shape client projects, developments, and asset management approaches.
- We continue to develop frameworks to measure our own social value activities and initiatives.
Harness relationships with people: Holistic, long-term and meaningful impact through stewardship and ecosystem working with our clients and partners, our people and community.
- Social Value in Urban Regeneration Taskforce established between the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Avison Young.
- The WEF taskforce is developing a set of principles and tools aimed at stakeholders involved in urban regeneration projects.
- Avison Young is a steering committee member of the Davos Baukultur Alliance.