Nareit's annual Leader in the Light® Awards honor Nareit member companies that have demonstrated superior and sustained sustainability practices.
The Leader in the Light Awards are presented to REITs in eight property sectors: Diversified; Global, (non-U.S.-based companies); Data Center; Health Care; Industrial; Office; Residential; and Retail. Awards are also presented to those in the “Most Innovative” and “Leadership Personified” categories.
Nareit has been presenting the Leader in the Light awards since 2005. In 2012, the Leader in the Light program migrated into and became embedded within the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) Survey. GRESB is an organization based in Amsterdam committed to assessing the sustainability performance of real assets across the world.
Designed in 2009, GRESB's Annual Survey measures the environmental performance of property portfolios around the world. In 2017, 850 property companies and real estate funds completed the 2017 GRESB assessment. In total, they represent 77,000 assets with a value exceeding $3.7 trillion combined. The survey is endorsed and closely watched by many of the world's largest institutional investors.
Incorporating the GRESB survey results into the Leader in the Light judging criteria enables the companies competing in Leader in the Light to measure their performance against a global benchmark.
To participate in the Leader in the Light Awards program, Nareit members must complete both the GRESB Assessment and the Leader in the Light Supplement. The deadline for submission of both the GRESB Assessment and the Leader in the Light Supplement is July 1. If you are interested in applying for the Leader in the Light Awards, you can find more information here.
2022 Winners
- Data Centers: Digital Realty (NYSE: DLR)
- Diversified: Vornado Realty Trust (NYSE: VNO)
- Health Care: Ventas, Inc. (NYSE: VTR)
- Hospitality: Park Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: PK)
- Industrial: Prologis, Inc. (NYSE: PLD)
- Office: BXP (NYSE: BXP) and Hudson Pacific Properties, Inc. (NYSE: HPP)
- Residential: AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE: AVB)
- Retail: Kimco Realty Corporation (NYSE: KIM) and Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE: SPG)
- Self-storage: Extra Space Storage, Inc. (NYSE: EXR)
Leadership Personified award: Kelly Meissner, Vice President, Corporate ESG & Sustainability, Ventas, Inc.,