Lauren Moss, senior vice president and chief sustainability officer at Vornado Realty Trust (NYSE: VNO), sat down for a video interview during Nareit’s REITwise: 2025 Law, Accounting & Finance Conference in San Antonio on March 25-27.
Moss highlighted that Vornado has been committed to environmental initiatives for more than 15 years, with carbon neutrality by 2030 as its guiding goal. A key component of that goal is a 50% reduction in energy consumption across its portfolio compared to 2009 levels.
“We’re tracking to hit that, which we’re super proud of,” Moss said. “That clearly is the piece for us in the sustainability work that we do that’s most important.”
She emphasized the operational advantages of sustainability, noting that the ultimate aim is to optimize building performance for tenants and shareholders alike. One of Vornado’s most notable achievements is reaching 100% LEED certification across its portfolio—a first among U.S.-based companies of its size. This, Moss explained, represents a “portfolio-wide approach to operational efficiency and optimization.”
Moss also pointed out that even as occupancy levels return closer to post-pandemic levels, both energy and water usage have continued to decline—a clear sign that the company’s sustainable building strategies are yielding long-term results.
Looking ahead, Moss expects sustainability practices in the REIT industry to become more standardized as regulations increase. “We think what we’ll see is this real integration of sustainable operations and regulation reporting,” she said, noting the importance of accuracy and collaboration in the evolving regulatory landscape.