The Climate Board is watching developments in this sector keenly. “Green roofs” and “cool roofs” are promising trends. LEED and green certification rules in Europe are positive steps for change, rewarding office properties that meet the highest standard — and likely resulting in higher rents. On the downside, investors whose properties do not meet these standards run the risk of owning stranded assets.

The New York Times recently reported (To Help Cool a Hot Planet, the Whitest of White Coats) on an early-stage innovation that may have intriguing ramifications. Purdue University scientists have developed a paint so white that it actually cools a surface below the ambient temperature.

As specified in the article, this “technology can help reduce air-conditioning needs by as much as 40%… [as it] can make surfaces as much as eight degrees Fahrenheit cooler than ambient air temperatures at midday, and up to 19 degrees cooler at night, reducing temperatures inside buildings…”

Reach out to us here at The Climate Board to participate in our current capital budgeting research to better understand how organizations with a large real estate foot print are planning for regulation and climate change more broadly.