In our fourth annual Sustainability Report, we bring together a year's worth of stories about community events and activations, green building projects, our work to reduce carbon emissions and making the shift to sustainable financing.
You can download and read the 2022 Britomart Sustainability Report as a PDF here, or keep reading for summaries of each section and links to read them online.
"This spring, it’s been gratifying to see greater numbers of people returning to their Britomart workplaces, sharing free coffee together in on our Reusable Tuesday event during the Climate Festival or simply enjoying the sun on the lawn in Takutai Square. On the face of it, you might say these connections have little to do with sustainability. But sustainability is the ultimate collaborative endeavour, and it is our hope that making places that people enjoy connecting in – and, through this report and other means, being vocal about our long-term efforts to make these places better for people and the planet."
Those are the words of Britomart's Chief Executive Officer Matthew Cockram in his introduction to this year's Sustainability Report. To read more of his take on how the day-to-day work of sustainability functions at Britomart - sometimes in unlikely ways - click this link.
Sustainability Report 2022 | Mana Whakahaere | Governance
Each year we set ourselves sustainability targets to report against to keep ourselves accountable and our sustainability efforts moving forwards. This year, our progress was given a big assist with the appointment of Sarah Hull as Director of Sustainability and Brand for Cooper and Company (under whose umbrella the Britomart group of companies sit).
Among the many aspects of Sarah's role are overseeing our Toitu Carbonreduce progress and the improvement of our NABERNZ energy-efficiency ratings, along with our work to minimise waste at Britomart. Click here to read about our work in all three areas. Sarah also oversees the Britomart team's work towards our annual sustainability targets - you can read about the targets we set ourselves for 2022 here and the targets we'll be working towards for 2023 here.
Sustainability Report 2022 | Te Tonuitanga | Economy
This year, Britomart Group refinanced with Green Loans. To read about what that looked like from the Britomart side, read our interview about the process with Britomart CFO Melanie Barber. And for the story of why banks are increasingly seeking to work with corporates to move to sustainable finance, read our interview with Westpac's Kate Archer.
One of our core aims as urban developers is to make Britomart a thriving community for businesses, from restaurants, bars and retailers to start-up entrepreneurs and established corporations. For this year's report, we spoke to three people from well-established businesses at Britomart about their own sustainability efforts. To read about how Karen Walker's been restructuring her supply chain, click here. For Cafe Hanoi executive chef Nathan Houpapa's advice on how to hold a team together through a crisis, click here. And to learn about why sustainable finance is important for everyone, not just businesses, read our interview with Westpac's Head of Sustainability Belinda Van Eyndhoven here.
Sustainability Report 2022 | Te Tangata | People and Culture
Our social sustainability includes a regular programme of events that run in Takutai Square and throughout the precinct, designed to build connection with Britomart’s unique sense of place, its history and that of the city around it. We've gathered this year's social sustainability projects together at this link, including our annual Matariki celebrations, exhibitions of art from local artists, our regular Makers Market, and the wonderful life-size crocheted Wharenui Harikoa project by Lissy and Rudi Robinson-Cole.
Sustainability Report 2022 | Te Taiao | Environment
Our environmental sustainability efforts range from the creation of 5 Green Star buildings to public events in Takutai Square. This year, one of our most significant projects was the refurbishment of the century-old Hayman Kronfeld Building (previously known as the Barrington and Old Sofrana Buildings) to 5 Green Star standard. For a look inside what it's like to transition a heritage warehouse into a modern green office space, read our interview with Britomart development director Campbell Williamson here, and follow it up with this lovely and sad essay from Emily Parr about the life of her great-great-grandfather, Gustav Kronfeld, original owner of the Kronfeld Building.
Building to a high Green Star standard is just the beginning of a building's sustainability journey at Britomart. To learn a little more about how much is involved in collating the data to measure the ongoing carbon emissions from buildings, click here for an interview with Britomart Facilities Manager Shane Belch. And for a round-up of our environmental activations in Takatai Square this year, head to this link.
