CDL was the first organisation in Singapore to begin publishing sustainability reports in 2008 and was the first Singapore firm to issue a green bond in 2017. Proceeds from its first green bond were used to repay a loan spent on retrofitting and upgrading efforts at Republic Plaza, its flagship headquarters, to maintain high levels of building performance in energy and water management. “At the time, we had to explain to local banks how green financing would work for buildings. Today, sustainable finance is becoming mainstream and banks are well versed in supporting green buildings and climate action,” An recalls.
For Esther An and real estate giant City Developments (CDL), a job interview nearly 30 years ago in 1995 has been transformative. At the time, the firm’s then-managing director the late Mr Kwek Leng Joo asked the young An what she thought the real estate sector and CDL could do better. “I said that it could improve its environmental performance and was hired to help it do that,” she says.
As CDL’s first chief sustainability officer, she quickly championed an ethos that still guides its business practices today: “Conserving as we Construct”. As the Singapore-headquartered company built and acquired homes, hotels, offices, malls and other properties — it currently has assets in 29 countries and regions — it also became a pioneer in sustainability.
