Governance & policies

Governance

Cofinimmo intends to behave as a socially responsible and community-minded company with regard to its physical environment as well as with the local authorities within which it operates, striving to go beyond the minimum requirements or legal obligations.

All of Cofinimmo's employees agree to focus their efforts in this direction because improving the living environment of its customers and employees, reducing its carbon footprint or assisting the local authorities can only be achieved by joining forces, skills, and ideas.

The Board of Directors and the Executive committee therefore support employees in the rollout of projects that are realistic and likely to have an impact.

HEAD OF SUSTAINABILITY

Decisions on integrating, monitoring and developing sustainability objectives, including climate-related topics, into day-to-day management are guided by the Head of Sustainability.

Ensures a holistic approach to environmental, social and governance aspects by integrating these aspects into the activities of the different departments
Promotes dialogue with all stakeholders to determine where efforts should be pursued, and to develop long-term partnerships that increase the positive impact of actions taken
Evaluates and manages the risks and opportunities associated with climate change and suggests specific and economically reasonable measures to improve the environmental performance of the company, its portfolio and, by extension, the spaces occupied by its tenants
Collaborates with the operational teams to monitor the implementation of the group’s environmental strategy in all business segments

Policies

Cofinimmo seeks to maintain the highest standards of corporate governance and continuously reassesses its system based on accepted principles, practices, and requirements in the field. It is a priority for the company to conduct business honestly and correctly. In addition to complying with applicable regulations, ethical, transparent and sustainable corporate governance helps create long-term value for all stakeholders. (shareholders, tenants, occupants, suppliers, employees, the environment, etc.).

These rules and principles are set out in various charters, codes and policies. They constitute the company’s corporate governance principles.

Vision

Cofinimmo, a major European real estate player, is committed to a global sustainability strategy for its activities. Cofinimmo commits to working towards a positive impact in the main aspects of its materiality analysis.

Commitments

Cofinimmo confirms its commitment to the ten principles of the United Nations Global Compact. These are derived from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Labour Organisation Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, and the United Nations Convention against Corruption.

Through its values and way of functioning, Cofinimmo intends to assume its fundamental responsibilities in the fields of human rights, labour, the environment and the fight against corruption.

Cofinimmo’s main commitments are split below by individual sustainability pillar.

Environmental commitments:

Ensure compliance with environmental regulations and other requirements in all geographical areas where Cofinimmo operates.
Focus on resilience to climate change through mitigation and adaptation plans for Cofinimmo’s portfolio and its development.
Protect the environment and preserve biodiversity through green technologies and the system approach to development projects and operations.
Reduce water consumption and work towards sustainable management at company and portfolio level, by stimulating the use of technologies but also by raising awareness of those responsible for the day-to-day management of buildings.
Apply circularity principles for all activities, from property management to renovation projects by partnering with local entities to support the recycling of materials.
Promote and develop green mobility solutions for employees and tenants.

Social commitments:

Respect for human rights is a key commitment of Cofinimmo in all its activities and applies to all its stakeholders (Human Rights Policy).
Ensure that Cofinimmo’s suppliers are aligned with and committed to the same values as Cofinimmo, by respecting a code for sustainable practices (Supplier Code of Conduct).
Ensure the safety and health of employees and occupants of Cofinimmo buildings. To support the professional development of all employees by promoting respect for differences in culture and origin.
Actions are promoted to support public institutions and the community, which is consistent with Cofinimmo’s ethical commitments.

Governance commitments:

Implement transparency and adopt ethical behaviour in all processes and procedures involving Cofinimmo’s highest governance bodies (Corporate Governance Charter, Market Abuse Prevention Code).
Prevent any incident of corruption and ensure the possibility of reporting misconduct for all Cofinimmo employees (Whistleblowing Policy, Anti-corruption, Fraud and Money Laundering Policy).
Fully integrate sustainability factors in the Sustainable Finance Framework.
Ensure information system security and data protection through a structured approach to ICT (Data Protection Statement).
Follow the SICAFI regime in terms of tax policy, ensuring full compliance with legislation, transparency and alignment with industry best practices.

Projet 30³

In response to the risks involved by climate change, Cofinimmo decided to scale up its environmental ambitions. Strategic thinking led to a 30% reduction (compared to the 2017 level) of the portfolio’s energy intensity by 2030, to reach 130 kWh/m² (project 30³). This objective has been established following the science-based targets methodology, which enabled to objectivise the effort to be made in order to contribute to the global objective of limiting global warming to a maximum of 1.5°C. It follows on from the many ESG initiatives conducted by Cofinimmo, and is actively in line with the Paris Agreement concluded at COP21.

To achieve this objective, a 360-degree approach, which takes the entire life cycle of buildings into account, will be applied.
This corporate project concerns both the office and healthcare real estate segments, as well as all activities managed directly within the company such as sales and acquisitions, development, project management and day-to-day management of the buildings.