Each year, the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) updates its standards to reflect changes in sustainability reporting, industry best practices, and regulatory expectations. These updates guide how property owners and managers collect and report ESG data.
What’s new in the 2025 GRESB real estate standards
The recently released 2025 GRESB standards bring several important changes that commercial real estate owners need to know about. These updates are part of a multi-year plan to improve how buildings report their environmental impact.
The biggest changes in the 2025 standards include:
- Energy efficiency recognition: Buildings with excellent energy performance can now earn points even if they didn’t improve from last year.
- Streamlined reporting: GRESB removed some indicators about employee engagement and ESG personnel, making the reporting process simpler.
- New focus areas: The standards now collect data (but don’t score) on renewable energy quality, embodied carbon, biodiversity, and different types of building certifications.
For residential properties, GRESB created special indicators that better fit how apartment buildings and housing communities operate.
Why these updates matter
Just like bee colonies adapt to changes in their environment, the real estate industry is adapting to growing concerns about climate change and sustainability. GRESB updated its standards because investors, tenants, and regulators are asking for better information about how buildings affect the environment.
The new standards help real estate companies:
- Show they’re serious about reducing carbon emissions
- Prove they’re using renewable energy correctly
- Demonstrate how they protect natural habitats
- Compare different types of green building certifications
These changes make GRESB work better with other reporting systems like GRI, SASB, and TCFD. This means property owners can use similar data for multiple reporting requirements, saving time and ensuring consistency.
New updated guidelines for 2026
The introduction of biodiversity criteria in GRESB 2025 represents just the beginning of nature’s integration into commercial real estate assessment frameworks. As GRESB continues to refine its standards through 2026, property companies can expect increasingly sophisticated evaluation methods that reward measured biodiversity outcomes.
The current unscored biodiversity indicator allows GRESB to assess market readiness and establish baselines before introducing weighted scoring in future cycles. Asset managers who implement comprehensive biodiversity strategies now will be well-positioned when these criteria begin influencing overall GRESB scores and star ratings.
New key focus areas in 2025: Biodiversity and Building Certifications
Biodiversity
Just as bees play a crucial role in ecosystem health, buildings affect the plants and animals around them. GRESB’s new biodiversity indicators ask about how properties support or harm local ecosystems.
These unscored questions cover:
- Habitat protection or creation
- Native plant species
- Reduction of harmful chemicals
- Wildlife support
Urban beekeeping is one way commercial buildings can support biodiversity. Bees help pollinate plants in city environments where natural pollinators may be scarce. Educational programs about bees also help tenants understand the importance of biodiversity.
Other biodiversity initiatives include:
- Green roofs with native plants
- Rain gardens that filter stormwater
- Reduced use of pesticides and herbicides
- Bird-friendly window designs
Building certifications
GRESB is collecting more detailed information about building certifications to better understand their quality and coverage. The standards now ask about:
- What aspects of sustainability each certification covers
- How rigorous the certification requirements are
- What percentage of the building is certified
For more details on building certification, visit our recent article on how GRESB measures up to other leading green building standards.
Tools and guidance for GRESB reporting
GRESB simplified its guidance documents, making them easier to use. The key resources include:
- Reference guide: Explains what information to report and how to report it
- Asset spreadsheet: Template for reporting data from individual buildings
- Technical FAQs: Answers to common questions about specific indicators
- Scoring document: Explains how points are calculated
The Reference Guide now focuses only on reporting instructions, with scoring details moved to a separate document. This makes it easier to find the information you need.
When using these resources:
- Start with the Reference Guide to understand what data to collect
- Use the Asset Spreadsheet to organize building-level information
- Check the Technical FAQs if you have questions about specific indicators
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Steps to align your portfolio with GRESB
1. Assess your current ESG performance
The first step is to see how your buildings are doing right now. This is like checking a beehive to see how much honey is being produced.
Take an inventory of:
- Energy use in all buildings
- Water consumption patterns
- Waste management practices
- Current certifications
- Biodiversity initiatives
Compare your current practices to what GRESB asks for. This will show you where you’re doing well and where you need to improve.
2. Implement data collection tools
Accurate data underpins a successful GRESB submission. Set up systems to capture:
- Energy and water usage (e.g. utility bills, submetering)
- Carbon emissions (from energy and fuel)
- Waste diversion (via hauler reports or service providers)
Many buildings use software platforms that automatically collect this information. These tools can save time and improve accuracy.
3. Advance biodiversity and certification efforts
Biodiversity initiatives don’t have to be complicated. Simple projects like:
- Installing beehives on rooftops
- Planting native flowers and plants
- Creating small wildlife habitats
- Reducing light pollution to protect night creatures
can make a difference and help meet the new GRESB biodiversity indicators.
For building certifications, review which ones best match your property type and sustainability goals. Some certifications focus on energy, while others emphasize occupant health or overall environmental impact.
Tips for public disclosure and transparency
GRESB evaluates not just what you report to them, but also what information you make public. The Public Disclosure assessment looks at 23 indicators of transparency, with ratings from A (best) to E (worst).
To improve transparency:
- Publish ESG policies on your website
- Share performance metrics in sustainability reports
- Outline clear goals and track progress
- Highlight tenant engagement or green initiatives
Companies with better public disclosure often find it easier to attract environmentally conscious tenants and investors.
Preparing for what comes next
GRESB has shared its plans through 2027, giving real estate owners time to prepare for future changes. The unscored indicators introduced in 2025 may become scored in future years.
The roadmap shows that GRESB is moving toward:
- More detailed renewable energy reporting
- Greater emphasis on embodied carbon
- Expanded biodiversity considerations
- More nuanced evaluation of building certifications
By collecting data on these topics now, even though they’re not scored, you’ll be ready when they become part of the scoring system.
Unlocking long-term ESG benefits
Meeting GRESB standards isn’t just about getting a good score. It creates real value for commercial properties. Buildings with strong sustainability performance often have:
- Lower operating costs from reduced energy and water use
- Higher tenant satisfaction and retention
- Better resilience against climate risks
- Increased appeal to ESG-focused investors
Nature-based solutions like urban beekeeping contribute to both GRESB scores and tenant engagement. When Alvéole installs beehives on commercial properties, the bees help pollinate nearby plants, supporting local biodiversity. Tenants can participate in educational workshops and honey harvesting, creating a unique amenity that connects people to nature.
These programs help real estate owners earn points in multiple GRESB categories while creating meaningful experiences for building occupants. The data collected from beehives, such as pollinator activity and honey production, can also support biodiversity reporting.
