Monday 31 January 2022

Urban Land Institute secures record $10m for sustainability in real estate

Urban Land Institute (ULI), a non-profit education and research organisation, has received a $10 million (£7.5m) donation to fund the organisation's efforts to make the built environment more sustainable.

Real estate executive Randall Lewis made the donation, believed to be the single largest in the organisation's history to date.

ULI's former Centre for Sustainability and Economic Performance, now renamed to ULI Randall Lewis Centre for Sustainability in Real Estate, houses its Building Healthy Places Initiative, the Urban Resilience Programme and the Greenprint Centre for Building Performance.

Mr Lewis, Governor of the ULI Foundation and an Executive Vice President and Principal of the Lewis Management Corporation said: "Synergy between the three parts of the centre is important to me.

“Public health and climate action are very closely related and many of the solutions will be linked as well. This gift is a way for me to make a personal impact upon one of the world's most pressing problems and transform millions of lives, and I urge other real estate executives to consider supporting ULI's far-reaching work.”

The donation will be used to fund sustainability programmes “that meet future needs in a rapidly changing environment” and deliver on ULI's mission priority to decarbonise the real estate sector and accelerate the path to net zero.

Ed Walter, ULI Global CEO added: “This gift will transform the Center by providing near term resources to accelerate our work on climate adaptation and mitigation while we continue our comprehensive work to build healthy communities.

“We are grateful for the trust that Randall has in ULI to effectively mobilise its resources, including our 45,000 members, to make a visible difference on these important issues. I want to thank Randall for his invaluable generosity and steadfast support of ULI's vision over the years.”