Corporate Responsibility

UDR Corporate Responsibility
Our Commitment to Environmental, Social, and Governance Responsibilities
At UDR, we understand the impact our business can have on the environment and upon our stakeholders. ESG assists us in identifying and managing our sustainability risks and opportunities. Our ESG improvements are designed to improve operational quality, improve Associate and resident retention, and reduce our impact on the environment.
The 2020 Corporate Responsibility Report describes our work in environmental sustainability, our commitment to community and relationships, and our dedication to sound corporate governance.
Download the Full ReportRecognized by Logical Buildings & NAA for innovation/implementation of new building energy & water management technology
Installed over 831,000 kilowatt hours of solar generation capacity
Procured over 12M kWh of Green-e Certified Renewable Energy Certificates
Green Bond issued
Installed smart irrigation at properties resulting in an over 5-million-gallon reduction in water usage
of leases completed online
of associates are proud to work for UDR
Associates
Associate community service hours
11% increase in resident loyalty scores
Board of Directors are women
Interactions with our shareholders, representing ~79% of our ownership
UDR ESG Methodology
Incorporating ESG initiatives into our overarching business strategy helps to drive continued innovation, enhance operating results, increase our interactions with the markets and neighborhoods we operate in, and drive total shareholder return (TSR). But the lack of industry accepted ESG reporting and measurement standards can create confusion. To address this, we performed a Materiality Assessment in 2018 that included feedback from investors, Associates, resident engagement surveys, and senior management to better understand which ESG topics were important to UDR’s business, strategic goals, and stakeholders. UDR’s Corporate Responsibility Committee, which consists of the CEO and senior management from across the Company, prioritized the ESG sustainability topics that have the greatest benefit to UDR and our stakeholders.
ESG Governance
UDR’s Corporate Responsibility Committee, which consists of senior officers at the Company, sets and manages its ESG targets and goals. Our Chairman and CEO, Tom Toomey, steers the Committee and is actively involved in determining and implementing our ESG strategies and initiatives. UDR’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Services and Innovation, Matt Cozad, is responsible for the design and implementation of core ESG targets and goals, monitoring performance, and coordinating with all areas of the Company to ensure proper execution. During 2020, our Board of Directors has continued to expand their involvement in and contribution to the Company’s overall ESG strategy and ongoing ESG initiatives that help to fulfill this strategy. Their influence can be seen in our annual update to the Company’s three-year forward-looking Business Plan.
Materiality Assessment
In 2019, we enhanced our Materiality Assessment by incorporating all SASB materiality topics for the Real Estate sector as well as additional sustainability-related topics to address a broad set of stakeholder interests.
We then evaluated UDR’s ESG processes and controls for each topic to set resource allocation, frequency of performance measurement, goal setting, and reporting structures, with the objective of meeting the needs of our Corporate Responsibility Committee and aligning with the findings of our Materiality Assessment.
This process identified numerous opportunities for improvement, such as enhancing the measurement and reporting of our GHG emissions, updating our Associate and resident ESG-related training, better evaluating Associate engagement and diversity, as well as other areas of interest that drove clear and executable goals for 2019. This disciplined, top-down approach positively impacted our business results and ensured that our ESG goals aligned with the Company’s strategic objectives to expand margin, generate long-term earnings growth, and drive strong TSR relative to peers.