Sustainability

Evaluating Sustainability Using DGNB or BNB Certification
Evaluation systems help to monitor, optimize and transparently document the sustainability of real estate. The systems follow a performance-oriented approach and consider the sustainability of real estate holistically and over the entire building life cycle.

At MorgenGrün, we support clients and planning teams from the initial project idea (pre-check) to the submission of the certification application. We prepare important calculations such as the life cycle assessment (LCA) and the life cycle costs (LCC), thus optimizing your certification result.

We have been a member of the German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) since 2008. Our auditors implement your DGNB certification projects – as well as the “Assessment System for Sustainable Building” (BNB), which is used primarily for public sector buildings.

Since 2021, building certification with the “Quality Seal for Sustainable Buildings” (QNG) has been linked to BEG funding. We at MorgenGrün are also available to provide our expertise in this area.

Certified sustainability with the DGNB, QNG or BNB assessment systems: with our consulting, project support and auditing services, you can achieve your goals easily and reliably.
 

Building In Line With People and Nature
As each construction project has its own individual requirements, it is important to consider each project on its own merits in order to select the right materials. At MorgenGrün, we help you use materials that have been produced in alignment with people and the environment. We take the following criteria into account:

1. Protecting the climate with a minimized CO2 footprint
Since the fields of energy efficiency and renewable energies have developed technically, the environmental impacts caused by materials (= grey energy) are becoming increasingly important. By selecting materials based on our life cycle assessment, we help you optimize CO2 emissions over the entire life cycle.
 2. Conserving resources through circular construction
The construction industry is responsible for more than half of the waste generated in Germany. To counteract this, we are promoting the transition to a circular economy. We advise you on resource efficiency and circularity and create building resource passports. With our building residual value assessment, we also show you that circular construction can also be economically advantageous.
 3. sustainability through socially and environmentally responsible supply chains
Sustainability also means taking responsibility for supply chains and improving social and ecological standards in manufacturing countries through conscious demand. We at MorgenGrün support you in selecting building materials by promoting the use of products with certified resource extraction (e.g. FSC®, PEFC, Fair Stone).

Make the EU’s Climate Protection Targets Transparent for Your Building

In the Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor (CRREM), the EU's climate protection targets for the building sector are set out as annual emission targets in the so-called decarbonization path.

In the CRREM analysis, we determine the CO2 emissions of your building or real estate portfolio and evaluate them in terms of the EU climate targets. In the year in which emissions exceed the decarbonization path, your property is said to be 'stranded'. It then no longer meets market expectations and can lose value.

Based on our risk analysis, we at MorgenGrün develop a renovation strategy to reduce emissions with economical solutions and maintain the value of your property. Our CRREM consulting is the basis of your holistic climate protection roadmap.

Making Sustainability Goals Measurable and Achieving Targets

“Environmental, Social, Governance” – the EU is using these three central criteria to make the ecological and ethical impact of business activities in the EU measurable and comparable. This not only assesses the sustainability of companies, but also the risks and opportunities that go beyond traditional financial analysis. The aim is to achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) and to steer financial flows towards sustainable investments.

The EU taxonomy contributes to implementing the EU Green Deal and initially defines specific targets in the environmental area (for the “E” in ESG).
To be taxonomy-aligned, companies must make a significant contribution to achieving one of the environmental objectives, such as climate protection, climate adaptation or a circular economy – while doing no significant harm to any of the other environmental objectives.
 To ensure that your real estate project also meets the EU taxonomy, we offer:

• requirements analyses for new construction projects, renovation, building operation, management of building portfolios and real estate transactions,
• advice on taxonomy conformity including the necessary calculations,
• taxonomy-compliant energy concepts,
• suitable sustainability and modernization measures for your building or building portfolio, and
• taxonomy-compliant verification.
   

Sustainability Reporting for Future-Proof Buildings
As a central instrument of the EU taxonomy, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) ensures that companies report on their sustainability in a standardized way in the future. Sustainability reporting is thus given the same importance as financial reporting. Reporting is mandatory for large companies from 2025, and from 2027 the obligation will be extended to SMEs.

At MorgenGrün, we support you in your sustainability reporting and work with you to develop strategies for

• reducing your CO2 footprint – all the way to climate neutrality,
• developing your circular value chain and
• protecting or restoring biodiversity.

In this way, we support you in creating a sustainable building portfolio that maintains its value.
 

Achieving climate neutrality with the right roadmap
The building stock in Germany is to be climate-neutral by 2045. With the right climate protection roadmap as a target corridor, your building is also on the right track to “net zero”. We work with you to develop a schedule for your modernization measures that will ensure your properties remain prepared for the future – and become climate-neutral by 2045 at the latest.
 

There is no standard way to achieve these goals, as each building has its own starting point and its own framework conditions. Using tools such as the Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor (CRREM), we anticipate risks to your real estate portfolio and can define countermeasures at an early stage. This way, we develop a customized roadmap that will soon make your building climate-neutral as well.