ESG

UDR ESG
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. Our ESG efforts assist 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 2021 ESG Report describes our work in environmental sustainability, our commitment to community and relationships, and our dedication to sound corporate governance.
Download the Full ReportAwards
Newsweek America's Most Responsible Companies 2022 GRESB Global and Regional Sector Leader 2021 Smart Buildings Innovator of the Year for Second Consecutive Year NAA 2020 Excellence in Technology & Innovation Award Smart Buildings Innovator of the Year Award NAA 2020 Silver Sustainable Living Innovation AwardCommitting to set a science-based target through the Science Based Target initiative ("SBTi")
Installed over 1.7 million kilowatt hours of solar generation capacity since 2019
GRESB Real Estate Global and Regional Sector Leader
9 UN Sustainable Development Goals ("SDGs") selected for alignment
Achieved an “A” rating on our GRESB Public Disclosure for the third consecutive year.
Residents sign our Green Lease Addendum
Board of Directors are women
12% increase in resident loyalty scores
Associates
Interactions with our shareholders in 2020 and early 2021, representing 84% of common stock outstanding
of Common Area Electric Consumption procured from Renewable Energy Sources
of resident interactions completed online
UDR ESG Methodology
Materiality Assessment
We believe consistent reviews of our ESG processes and initiatives ensure that they (1) remain aligned with and enhance our strategic goals, (2) address the evolving needs and expectations of our stakeholders, and (3) continue to provide useful and actionable ESG metrics. Ongoing reviews are critical to our long-term success as a Company, the results and total shareholder return ("TSR") we generate, our cultural evolution, and our residents’ experience.
Stakeholder feedback on our GHG Emissions, overall sustainability practices, DEI outreach, resident / associate health and safety, combined with changes in the regulatory environment resulted in an upward shift in these sustainable topics in our 2020 materiality matrix. Our consistent reviews of ESG processes and initiatives combined with stakeholder feedback contribute to the updates to our materiality matrix. We have set more rigorous targets for some of our E goals and are in the process of setting a science-based target for greenhouse gas mitigation and adaptation through the SBTi. We are continuously broadening how we can utilize new technologies across our portfolio with additional onsite solar and wind generation, as well as submetering and the ability to harness real time data at more of our properties through Smart Building and SmartHome tech through our Next Generation Operating Platform. We have created a long term plan to obtain additional green building certifications at our existing communities. In addition, we have added new ESG goals around diversity, equity, and inclusion, associate health and wellbeing, and stakeholder engagement around ESG.
ESG Governance
In 2020, our Governance Committee Charter was revised to formally assign the Governance Committee oversight of the Company’s disclosures of ESG matters, including any ESG report that is published. In addition, sustainability has been incorporated into UDR’s overall risk assessments reviewed at every Board meeting, and the Board has performed in-depth reviews of various ESG topics like climate change risk, DEI initiatives, and more throughout the years.
- Progress updates toward long-term environmental goals.
- Reviews of SASB / TCFD / GRI standards for annual changes / updates / recommendations.
- Assessments of risk posed to our portfolio by climate change, including physical, transitional, and regulatory risks.
- Feedback from stakeholders (shareholders, associates, and residents).
UDR’s ESG Committee, made up of senior officers at the Company, sets Company-wide ESG targets, goals, and strategy. Chairman and CEO, Tom Toomey, steers the Committee which approves the ESG strategy, while UDR’s Senior Vice President of Corporate Services and Innovation, Matt Cozad, is responsible for the implementation and monitoring of progress towards meeting ESG targets and goals and the integrity of the Company’s overall ESG reporting processes. As part of our on-going commitment to our stakeholders, we expanded the Company’s ESG control environment to include additional internal and external assurance testing of the accuracy and completeness of significant ESG metrics, including emissions, energy usage, water usage, waste diversion, and S-related pay, diversity, training, and gender metrics included in the report and included in the 2021 GRESB survey.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

UDR’s ESG goals align with several of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The UN SDGs purpose was to adopt a long-term, comprehensive strategy to address the world’s greatest challenges related to global sustainable development, including quality education, life below water, zero hunger, no poverty, climate action, etc. These integrated goals, provide a global perspective for our ambitions to continuously improve our corporate citizenship and create long-term value for our stakeholders. We have aligned with 9 of the 17 UN SDGs that we believe are the most relevant to our industry and towards which we can make material progress.
ESG Measurement and Reporting
We have established ambitious yet realistic ESG goals and targets to operate more sustainably and create long-term value for our stakeholders in the coming years. For each goal and target, we have developed a framework to report our progress to the ESG Committee, our Board of Directors, and our Stakeholders. During 2020, each of our goals and targets was reviewed to confirm alignment with the findings of our materiality assessment. Trends that emerged during COVID impacted some of our environmental goals in ways that may not be sustainable going forward as COVID restrictions ease, such as YOY reductions in Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions and common area energy consumption or increases in whole building water consumption. We will continue to evaluate and expect to update some of our goals in 2021 to reflect science-based targets.