Frequently Asked Sustainability Questions

Yes.

For Colliers Global Investors France, Sweden and Indonesia, we have an environmental management system certified to ISO 14001.

No.

Yes.

Colliers monitors, tracks and strategizes to reduce our energy usage and carbon emissions. We also monitor and aim to continuously improve our sustainable building design and sourcing practices.

Yes, we have set Science-Based Targets in line with the Business Ambition for 1.5°C program. We are committed to near-term targets to reduce Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 67.4% and Scope 3 emissions by 51.6% by 2030 from a 2021 baseline.

Yes. Our approach to managing environmental impacts is outlined on pages 11-20 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Colliers | Sustainability. The environmental topics addressed by our sustainability strategy include, but are not limited to, energy efficiency; greenhouse gas emissions; climate risks, resilience, and adaptation; healthy and sustainable buildings and design; and sustainability products and services.

Based on our 2025 materiality assessment, water is not a material sustainability topic for Colliers. As such, we have not conducted a water risk assessment.

As an organization that primarily leases office space for operations, we do not have a significant water footprint compared to other sectors. Though we are often tenants in multi-occupant buildings where water is rarely sub-metered, we promote conservation by implementing low-flow and water-efficient fixtures and equipment in refurbished and new office spaces, as part of our Green Lease Checklist.

Despite waste not being a material sustainability topic for Colliers, per our 2025 materiality assessment, we are taking action to support responsible resource consumption.

A circular economy draws inspiration from natural ecosystems in minimizing resources and repurposing those resources consumed. As part of our sustainable fit-out guidelines, we are defining the key activities and KPIs to establish circularity in the design and retrofitting of the built environment, both for our clients’ assets and our own occupied spaces.

We have also implemented our own Green Lease Checklist, enacted upon renewals, which, among other things, requires a minimum of 50% pre-consumer and post-consumer total recycled content where applicable. Our offices also support waste separation and recycling programs. Efforts to eliminate single-use plastics and curtail our use of paper are underway.

As determined through our 2025 materiality assessment, deforestation is not one of Colliers’ material sustainability topics.

Many of our energy and sustainability services are provided as a core element of our property management and occupier services. As a result, it is not always possible to delineate revenue specifically associated with these services. As well, many of our professionals provide a combination of sustainability-related and other services, which are not delineated. Colliers is developing methods to aggregate sustainability services revenues in its financial reporting system.

For the 2024 calendar year, our Scope 1 emissions were 13,310.7 MT CO2e and our Scope 2 (market-based) emissions were 6,151.8 MT CO2e. Our total Scopes 1 and 2 (market-based) emissions were 19,462.5 MT CO2e, with an emissions intensity of 5.49 kilograms CO2e per square foot.

For the 2024 calendar year, our Scope 3 emissions were 4,286,732 MT CO2e. 

For more information, please see pages 13-14 and 41-42 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Colliers | Sustainability.

Colliers understands that tackling climate change requires agility and action across all levels of our organization and value chain. In 2023, Colliers’ emissions reductions targets were approved by the Science-Based Targets Initiative in line with the Business Ambition for 1.5°C program. We aim to achieve net zero for our own operations by 2030.

Within our operations, Colliers has started to electrify our fleet, and we are developing a strategy regarding which vehicles can be electrified at end-of-life or lease expiry. We will also seek greater renewable energy sources moving forward through retail contracts, green leases, and power purchase agreements. Additionally, when relocating or renewing leases, primary consideration is given to buildings and property owners that demonstrate sustainable performance, including high energy efficiency. Specifically, our Green Lease Checklist helps Colliers determine offices to lease that are energy efficient and low/zero carbon.

In tackling embodied carbon, we are increasingly embedding circular economy principles in our design specifications and material choices to reduce the embodied carbon associated with our fit-outs. We are working towards including sustainability criteria as part of our latest sourcing requirements in all of our supplier contracts. We are developing sustainable fit-out guidelines to ensure future internal office fit-outs are consistent with our goals under our sustainability strategy and the Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment. This will launch in 2025, and will include design guidelines, preferred suppliers for sustainable materials, KPIs, and an approach for evolving the guidelines as regulations change.

Colliers is also working with our clients to help them decarbonize their portfolios. We offer a range of decarbonization advisory services to our clients, the results of which help drive down Colliers’ Scope 3 emissions.

Total energy consumed in Colliers-occupied offices (owned operations only; affiliates not included) for 2024 was 357,466 GJ. 

In the above total, 48,565 GJ of electricity was purchased from renewable sources explicitly. In many jurisdictions in which Colliers operates, renewable energy makes up a substantial portion of grid electricity, well over 90% in some cases; this has not been included in the 48,565 GJ calculated.

Looking specifically at Colliers’ offices, 210,601 GJ of natural gas and electricity was consumed within occupied space of 3.544 million square feet. This yields an energy intensity of 0.059 GJ/square foot. Natural gas was used primarily for space and water heating.

For more information, please see page 41 of Colliers’ 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Colliers | Sustainability.

Colliers is committed to reducing energy consumption across our global office footprint including leasing, fit-outs, and operations. As leases expire or business needs drive relocation, we prioritize spaces with low energy-use intensity. We give preference to buildings and landlords that demonstrate strong sustainability performance and a willingness to partner on shared goals. Specifically, our Green Lease Checklists help Colliers determine offices to lease that are energy efficient and low/zero carbon.

Regional and business segment level leaders at Colliers are empowered to drive energy efficiency programs that are tailored to their particular context. For example, our Australia team partnered with the New South Wales government’s funding initiative to commission National Australian Built Environment Rating System (NABERS) ratings and improvement reports for six of our Australian offices. The team is now implementing energy efficiency improvements such as installing occupancy sensors, switching to LED lights, maintaining HVAC temperature setpoints within a certain range, and reviewing energy saving settings on all office equipment.

Colliers continues to grow our purchases of renewable energy, aiming for 100% of our electricity supply to come from renewable sources by 2030. Our means of procuring renewable electricity is through, in order of preference, power purchase agreements, utility-based purchases, and renewable energy certificates.

With Scope 2 emissions comprising 60% of our 2021 baseline emissions, and 99% of these coming from electricity purchases, we can achieve 89% of our Scope 1 and 2 science-based targets through the procurement of zero-emission power.

Yes. Our Science-Based Targets were approved in June 2023, and we aim to achieve net zero by 2030. We are registered with the Science-Based Targets Initiative as Colliers International.

Yes. Our goal is to reduce our Scope 3 emissions by 51.6% by 2030 using 2021 as a baseline, also on a per-square-foot basis. We are working to meet this target via our decarbonization capabilities, which address the full lifecycle of a building and can deliver a complete path to net zero carbon emissions.

In our SBTi submission, we estimated that Use of Sold Products comprises 96% of our total Scope 3 emissions, and therefore no other elements of Scope 3 (such as business travel, employee commuting, or purchased goods and services) are material. With two billion square feet of properties under management, we have a critical role to play in decarbonizing the built environment.

Yes. Our most recent TCFD response can be found on pages 48-53 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Colliers | Sustainability.

Within the ongoing Enterprise Risk Management process, led by our Senior Director, Enterprise Risk Management, Colliers weighs climate-related risks against others faced by the organization, in terms of likelihood and impact; assigns ownership; and determines response, mitigations and controls, as required. Climate-specific considerations are fed into the process by the Global Head of Sustainability, who synthesizes information from scientific, regulatory and industry sources to continually update our assessment of related opportunities and risks. 

To capitalize on opportunities, the Global Head of Sustainability has the mandate to identify new service offerings, markets, energy sources, efficiency measures and other such initiatives that will drive new sources of revenue or cost savings for the enterprise, and work with regional and business segment level leaders to execute on these.

Responsibility for raising climate-related opportunities and risks within the Global Executive team rests with the Chief Brand & People Officer, who directly manages the Global Head of Sustainability.

Climate risk falls within the category of sustainability risk, which was added to Colliers’ ERM Risk Register in 2020. To manage this risk, the role of Global Head of Sustainability was created, to oversee the development and execution of a corporate sustainability strategy. 

In the development of this strategy, climate issues were identified as a material sustainability topic, and the resulting goals include the achievement of net zero emissions by 2030, and adherence to Science-Based Targets for emissions reductions, including Scope 3 emissions at managed client properties. The monitoring of ongoing progress against these goals constitutes the core of our process for managing climate-related risks – reputational and financial. 

Within the commercial real estate industry overall, larger risks are faced by owners of and investors in buildings, who are responsible for meeting regulatory requirements and own the physical risks associated with extreme weather. These owners and investors are Colliers’ clients, creating both the opportunity to provide them with a wider range of services, and customer-retention risk should our suite of services not meet their needs. We are therefore developing a suite of services to enable clients to reduce or eliminate their emissions, as both a growth initiative and a risk-mitigation exercise.

Some of Colliers’ 2024 global climate and environmental management highlights include:

• Reducing Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 27.6% per square foot from our 2021 baseline.
• Achieving WELL Health-Safety Ratings for 87.4% of Colliers’ offices ≥ 2,500 square feet, up from 35% in 2022.
• Expanding our electric vehicle fleet to 170+, representing a 5x increase in just two years.

Yes. Colliers has a Global Code of Ethics and Conduct found here. Each year, all Colliers staff must acknowledge and accept the elements of this code (or a substitute code of similar nature), which provides the foundation for how we conduct business in a manner consistent with our values.

As of December 31st, 60.8% of total employees identified as male and 39.2% as female.

Due to regulatory limitations in many of our regions in asking about ethnicity and other demographic information, and relatively low rates of self-identification in other regions where such questions are permitted, we do not have a significant data set on attributes other than gender. 

As of December 31st, 2024, 65% of management staff are male and 35% are female. 

Our human resource systems do not yet support the classification of senior leadership by gender. 

Among our Board of Directors, 30% (3 of 10) are female and 20% (2 of 10) are members of a visible minority group.

Our commitment to an inclusive workplace can be found here: Our commitment to inclusion. 

Yes. The mentorship programs we run vary by region and business segment. For a full description, please see page 25 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Sustainability at Colliers.

Our recruitment and retention efforts vary by region and business segment. For a full description, please see page 26 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Sustainability at Colliers.

The organizations we work with vary by region and business segment. For a full description, please see page 27 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Sustainability at Colliers.

For most of our business lines, with employees based in offices, a formal occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS) is not required. However, for parts of our business such as Property Management and Engineering where health and safety concerns are material, systems have been put in place, and 100% of employees within those divisions are covered by the system. Certain countries such as Australia and New Zealand have included all employees in their OHSMS. In China, for Property Management, the system has been certified to the ISO 45001 standard.

In the U.S., Colliers Engineering & Design maintains a rigorous Health and Safety Program that integrates employee engagement, standardized procedures, and technology-enabled tools to mitigate risk and ensure workplace safety. In Canada, Englobe maintains a proactive and structured approach to occupational health and safety, prioritizing risk prevention and regulatory compliance across all operational environments— from soil treatment and biomass reclamation facilities to laboratories and field sites. The company has implemented a robust framework aligned with ISO 45001, ensuring continuous improvement, legal compliance, and the prevention of work-related incidents and illnesses.

For more information, please see page 32 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report: Colliers | Sustainability.

Yes. Training is provided commensurate with the requirements of each role, with the most comprehensive training focused on our property management operations and Engineering & Design business. Training is delivered both internally (by line managers and People Services) and via external partners. Content is consistent with local regulatory requirements (e.g., the Occupational Safety and Health Administration), and in some cases, is delivered in part by regulators. New hires are required to complete initial training, and ongoing training is also provided at frequencies ranging from one to three years for most elements.

All staff are paid for their time completing training, either online or in- person. Effectiveness is evaluated through occupational health and safety statistics, and through surveys of employees during and at the conclusion of employment. Training needs are reassessed annually.

Depending on the jurisdiction, there is a combination of dedicated Health and Safety meetings, as frequently as weekly, and inclusion of health and safety on the standing agenda of team and senior leadership meetings. Where applicable, minutes of each joint health and safety committee (JHSC) meeting are published to the intranet for review by all staff.

Within Engineering & Design, DSCs (Discipline Safety Coordinators) and OSCs (Office Safety Coordinators) meet with the Safety Advocate Committee (SAC). There is a DSC for every discipline that performs field work, which provides information and assistance to the SAC for continuous evaluation of the health and safety program.

Within Englobe, a dedicated occupational health and safety advisory team supports operational units in achieving safety objectives, while ongoing initiatives such as weekly safety communications and last-minute risk assessments (LMRAs) drive behavioral accountability.

In Engineering & Design, all suppliers are required to follow Colliers' Health and Safety Plan, and site inspections are performed by managers. Our Australian operation has employed a Visitor Management System in every office, requiring agreement on safety obligations from suppliers and clients before they enter. In China, we maintain records of contractors' safety training and ensure that every worker has received health and safety training before entering job sites. Where applicable, vaccine requirements are also enforced.

Colliers tracks a number of indicators in order to monitor the performance of our health and safety (H&S) program. These indicators include:

• Total hours worked;
• Percentage of workers covered by an occupational H&S management system;
• Number of work-related injuries (including fatalities; high consequence, work-related injuries; recordable work-related injuries; and slips, trips and falls);
• Number of incidents of work-related ill health; and
• Total H&S training hours.

Effectiveness of Colliers’ H&S training is evaluated through occupational H&S statistics, as well as surveys of employees during and at the conclusion of employment. Training needs are reassessed annually.

Yes. Colliers recognizes the deep importance of giving back to the communities where we live and work. This responsibility includes contributing our expertise, time, and energy. Through a global initiative launched in 2022 called Colliers Gives, our people can help make a difference on the ground in the communities where we live and work. Teams get together to seek and perform volunteer activities for any cause or organization they choose within our overarching pillars of environment, inclusiveness, and health and wellbeing. The goal annually is for Colliers to contribute 15,000 volunteer days around the world.

In 2024, our professionals contributed over 10,200 volunteer days—representing 68% of our annual goal of 15,000 days. Please see page 34 of our 2024 Global Sustainability Report for more detail: Sustainability at Colliers.