SusTec at the NZZ Real Estate Days

The Masterclass organized by CUREM (Centre for Urban & Real Estate Management) at the University of Zurich, catering to young executives in the Swiss real estate industry, serves as the prelude to the Annual NZZ Real Estate Days. This year, the focus was on the critical aspects of real estate decarbonization, encompassing Scope 3 emissions, and on the second day on economic development, and future industry forecasts.

The initial part of the event, led by Christof Knoeri from SusTec and moderated by Alice Hollenstein from CUREM and Lisa Ritter from CoPiloten, commenced with an introductory overview of the subject matter. Participants were tasked with situating their companies within one of the three phases of real estate decarbonization while identifying the obstacles and driving forces in this transformative journey. In the subsequent segment, Christof Knoeri shared findings from previous and ongoing research projects at SusTec. The discussion revolved around the influence of policy measures on real estate decision-making, the presentation of long-term decarbonization strategies at the asset and portfolio levels, and a comprehensive examination of Scope 3 emissions. In the final phase, participants engaged in hands-on work with a concrete case study derived from their own companies—an existing building from the latter half of the 20th century. The task was to explore and present how the long-term decarbonization strategy would evolve when considering Scope 3 emissions.

All in all, this event proved to be an engaging and fruitful experience, effectively bridging the gap between academia and industry practitioners by translating scientific insights into practical, actionable knowledge.