Shorter lease, greener lease

Bringing circularity into corporate real estate

Across the workplace landscape, one demand unites employees and employers: flexibility. According to CBRE’s 2024 Americas Office Occupier Sentiment Survey, 80% of companies with over 10,000 employees are
either considering or already adopting shorter lease terms. These companies are also integrating more flexible space options into their portfolios, preparing for future changes.

In addition to shorter leases, these companies are seeking green leases —agreements wherein landlords share energy and waste data and prioritize sustainability initiatives like recycling, composting, and electrification. Notably, 26% of occupiers say that the presence or absence of green lease clauses would influence their real estate decisions.

But this push for flexibility poses a challenge: How do companies minimize waste while frequently changing offices? Most furniture, fixtures, and equipment (FFE) are designed to last over a decade, and their carbon footprint is substantial.

The solution lies in adopting a circular mindset from the outset. Kay Sargent, senior principal at HOK, emphasizes the importance planning many iterations ahead: “Design the spaces with change and the ability to adapt in mind. Identify core elements that don’t change and elements that can be tweaked or refreshed to accommodate new users.”

And when furniture, fixtures, and equipment are no longer needed, turn to the global leader in sustainable office decommissioning to ensure they stay in use and out of landfill.

By focusing on adaptable design and prioritizing reuse, companies can reduce waste while embracing the flexibility they need. The less that has to change, the more sustainable and efficient the workplace becomes.

We’re always looking for new voices on workplace circularity at circularsurvey.com, and we highlight your advice for other members of the Circular Workplace coalition here each month:

For designers:
“Think about how things come apart as you design how they come together.”
— Jenn Chen,
Partner, LMN Architects, Seattle

For facility managers: “Why buy what you rarely use? Many pieces of equipment or small appliances can sit unused in offices. It’s not a great investment, it takes storage space, and it’s not good for the environment. Instead, consider renting what you don’t use regularly.”
— Francois Servranckx,
Founder, Green Gooding, New York City

For circularity champions: “An average ChatGPT query uses nearly 10 times more electricity than a Google search, and by 2030, data center power demand could balloon by 160%, according to Goldman Sachs. And with that, carbon emissions from these facilities could more than double. From a CE perspective, we can be mindful of how we use AI tools and consider that our usage is cumulative in the overall production and use of carbon, water and electricity use, and resulting water waste. AI use could turn into another plastics situation where we take a very useful material (plastics in healthcare) and use it for disposables.”
— August Nazareth,
Global Director, Built Environment, Americas, BSI, New York City

Circular Spotlight: Acoustically private, sustainably produced

Ecolution Design is a furniture manufacturer based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and the newest member of our Circular Workplace coalition.

Nick Feuerstein, the company’s national sales director, explains why:

How does your company support a circular workplace?
Ecolution Design’s products are locally sourced and manufactured. 80% or more of all the material used in our product offerings are from recycled materials rather than just recyclable material. Our crates shipping the products are 100% recycled wood and we buy back the crates from the end customer, encouraging them to not discard the wood.

What’s the most encouraging sign for workplace circularity?
The curiosity around it. End customers and designers are asking deeper questions beyond a headline a company puts out as part of their PR campaign.

What’s the biggest challenge that you see?
Greenwashing. It’s common practice to push a sustainability story that doesn’t take into account the total carbon footprint of sourcing materials. At Ecolution Design we’ve spent a significant amount of time finding all of our local partners in the United States.

What’s the best way to win support for workplace circularity?
Educating on what happens 5+ years after the purchase and where the materials came from so you understand the impact the product has.
Did you make a decision that is not able to support you in the future?

What can the readers of this newsletter do to help your company?
If you have a project requiring modular, acoustically private rooms, we’d be happy to discuss the most sustainable solution that can meet your global demands as a company.