In our recent webinar “Nature-based amenities that stick” hosted by Eliza Dar, senior client success manager at Alvéole, and featuring Anna Mutch, director of business development at Green City Growers, and Christina Chu, co-founder of Demi Composting, participants explored how CRE managers can activate unused spaces, engage tenants through hands-on sustainability programs, and align with green building certifications. This article summarizes key insights from this conversation.
Commercial buildings today are more than places to work, they’re reflections of the values and priorities of the people inside them. As tenants look for spaces that foster well-being, community, and purpose, property managers are rethinking what makes a building stand out. One unexpected but powerful way forward? Introducing nature back into the built environment. From beehives to pollinator gardens, nature-based amenities are helping properties connect with tenants, improve ESG performance, and create spaces people truly care about.
How to activate unused spaces
Commercial properties are rich with untapped potential. Areas like rooftops, courtyards, basement areas, and even indoor lobbies can be transformed into vibrant nature-based amenities that deliver immediate value with minimal operational burden.
Rooftops
Rooftops represent one of the greatest opportunities for activation. Urban farms can flourish in these elevated spaces, providing fresh produce while creating visible demonstrations of your building’s environmental commitment. As Anna Mutch from Green City Growers explains, “We’re working with property managers to figure out what their goals are, what their unique challenges are, to come up with a customized solution that is tailored to their needs.”
The key is strategic placement in high-traffic areas where both existing tenants and prospective visitors can witness your sustainability efforts in action. Modern rooftop solutions extend far beyond traditional gardens—think raised bed systems, hydroponic installations, and even beehives that require minimal maintenance while delivering maximum impact.
Indoor spaces
Don’t overlook indoor opportunities. Lobbies, mail room areas, and common spaces can house sophisticated composting systems that make sustainability visible to every tenant. Christina Chu from Demi Composting notes how their smart composting systems are “clean, odor-free, and really sleek that can bring composting front and center into high-traffic, visible areas like lobbies.”
These indoor nature-based solutions serve dual purposes: they provide functional sustainability benefits while creating conversation starters that reinforce your building’s environmental values daily. The integration of nature into indoor spaces aligns with biophilic design research that demonstrates measurable benefits for employee well-being and productivity.
Ground-level courtyards
Courtyards and ground-level spaces offer unique opportunities for community gardens and outdoor programming. These areas naturally encourage tenant interaction and can host educational workshops, harvest events, and seasonal celebrations that strengthen the building community.
How you can be creative
The most successful nature-based amenities go beyond passive observation—they invite active participation that creates lasting emotional connections. Effective tenant engagement strategies transform sustainability initiatives from background operations into community-building experiences that tenants genuinely value.
Programming that builds community
Successful tenant engagement requires consistent, accessible programming. Weekly gardening sessions, composting education workshops, and seasonal harvest celebrations create regular touchpoints that build relationships between tenants from different companies sharing the same building.
Research from Green City Growers reveals the power of this approach: 68% of participants in their commercial garden programs made new social connections, while 75% reported strengthened connections to their office community. These statistics translate directly into tenant satisfaction and retention metrics that building owners value.
Making it personal and emotional
The emotional component of nature-based amenities cannot be understated. Tenants develop genuine attachments to the plants they help grow, the compost bins they contribute to, and the beehives that produce their building’s honey. As one property manager discovered, some tenants even held a ceremonial goodbye for their queen bee when she passed away—demonstrating the deep emotional investment these programs can generate.
Low-lift, high-impact solutions
The beauty of modern nature-based amenities lies in their turnkey nature. Professional providers handle installation, maintenance, and programming, ensuring that facilities teams gain the credit without operational headaches. This approach allows property managers to offer premium amenities while maintaining focus on their core responsibilities.
How to demonstrate impact
Nature-based amenities provide unparalleled marketing and storytelling opportunities that differentiate your property while supporting broader ESG communications.
Use visual storytelling assets
Unlike behind-the-scenes sustainability efforts like energy management systems, nature-based amenities create compelling visual content. Custom honey jars with building branding, rooftop garden photography, and harvest celebration images become powerful tools for leasing tours, social media content, and investor presentations.
These tangible assets help prospective tenants envision themselves as part of a forward-thinking community that aligns with their corporate values. Take 757 Third Avenue’s success story, where the integration of urban beekeeping created distinctive marketing assets that set the property apart in Manhattan’s competitive market.
Monitor quantifiable impact metrics
Modern nature-based amenity providers deliver comprehensive reporting that supports ESG documentation. Weekly progress reports, annual impact summaries, and participation statistics provide the data needed for sustainability reporting and certification applications.
For composting programs, metrics include waste diversion volumes and participation rates. Urban farms track pounds of produce grown and carbon sequestration. Beekeeping programs monitor pollinator activity and honey production. These concrete numbers transform feel-good initiatives into measurable business impacts.
Gather tenant testimonials and create case studies
The most powerful marketing comes from satisfied tenants themselves. Property managers regularly receive unsolicited emails from tenants praising their building’s composting program or garden. These authentic testimonials become invaluable marketing materials that demonstrate genuine tenant satisfaction.
How they strengthen your ESG and certification strategy
Nature-based amenities support multiple criteria across major green building certification frameworks, making them strategic investments for properties pursuing or maintaining certifications.
LEED and GRESB integration
Both LEED certification and GRESB frameworks recognize the value of on-site food production, waste diversion, and stakeholder engagement—all areas where nature-based amenities excel. Urban farming initiatives earn points for local food production and biophilic design, while composting programs contribute to waste management and tenant engagement criteria.
WELL building standard connections
The WELL Building Standard emphasizes biophilic design, food nourishment, and occupant wellness—perfect alignment for nature-based amenities. Gardens and beehives support the Mind concept through stress reduction and nature connection, while fresh produce and composting programs address Nourishment criteria.
Comprehensive documentation support
Leading nature-based amenity providers understand certification requirements and provide tailored documentation packages. This includes live waste diversion dashboards, participation tracking, educational signage templates, and engagement programming guides that directly support certification submissions across multiple frameworks including BREEAM certifications.
Multi-framework benefits
The strategic advantage of nature-based amenities lies in their ability to support multiple certification criteria simultaneously. A single rooftop garden might contribute to biodiversity, waste reduction, tenant engagement, wellness, and education goals across several different green building certification frameworks.
How to get started
Successfully implementing nature-based amenities requires thoughtful planning and the right partners.
Assessment and goal setting
Begin by identifying your building’s unique spaces and opportunities. Consider your tenant demographics, existing amenities, and specific ESG goals. Different solutions work better for different building types and tenant profiles.
Partner selection
Choose providers with proven track records in commercial real estate who understand the unique requirements of building operations, certification frameworks, and tenant engagement. Look for comprehensive service offerings that include design, installation, maintenance, programming, and reporting.
Communication and launch
Successful launches require clear communication strategies that explain the program benefits to tenants while encouraging participation. Professional providers typically offer marketing support, educational materials, and ongoing communication templates.
Why it makes business sense
The evidence is clear: nature-based amenities deliver measurable business value. Industry studies show composting programs can drive rent premiums of $16-64 in multifamily buildings, while 73% of renters wouldn’t lease from buildings without composting solutions. Commercial properties see similar benefits through improved tenant satisfaction, enhanced leasing differentiation, and strengthened ESG performance.
In a post-pandemic world where 70% of workers want their companies to operate sustainably and only 30% feel connected to their communities, nature-based amenities address critical tenant needs while supporting business objectives.
Property managers who act now position themselves ahead of market trends, creating competitive advantages that will only become more valuable as sustainability expectations continue rising. The question isn’t whether nature-based amenities will become standard—it’s whether your building will lead or follow this transformation.
For more insights on leveraging nature-based solutions for ESG and tenant engagement, explore our comprehensive webinar on nature-based solutions that dives deeper into implementation strategies and success metrics.
Ready to explore how nature-based amenities can transform your property? Book a demo to discover how our urban beekeeping program can engage your tenants, support your ESG goals, and differentiate your building in today’s competitive market.
