WX New York Women Executives in Real Estate (WX) is pleased to announce that it hosted a panel discussion on achieving greater energy efficiency in buildings in New York City, at The Harvard Club in New York City on Thursday, April 12, 2018. The well-attended talk featured Helen Chananie, Project Associate at Building Energy Exchange; Anthony Malkin, Chairman and CEO of Empire State Realty Trust, Inc.; Dana Robbins Schneider, Managing Director at Jones Lang LaSalle; and Daniel A. Zarrilli, PE, Senior Director of Climate Policy & Programs and Chief Resilience Officer in the New York Office of the Mayor. Marjorie Tsang, a Visiting Scholar at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, moderated the informative panel of experts.
During the program, Tsang asked a series of questions about New York City’s 80×50 initiative and building owners’ successes in retrofitting existing office and multifamily buildings. The panel discussed how city agencies, building owners and managers are working together to achieve energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the City. Making buildings more energy efficient through retrofits and awareness is a paramount goal in the City’s effort to reduce 80% of emissions by 2050 because building emissions account for 70% of greenhouse gas emissions. The panelists emphasized benefits including the positive return on investment, tenant satisfaction and incentives to support owners that embark on retrofit projects — from class A Manhattan office buildings to Bronx co-ops. Energy-saving retrofits integrated into routine or scheduled improvements are the most cost-effective measures.
Many resources, incentives and skilled professionals are available to assist in energy efficiency initiatives. New legislation and adjustments to existing regulations will still be needed. All panelists agreed that this is not a liberal or conservative issue. There are many challenges, but also opportunities to build coalitions and work collaboratively under “a big tent” to achieve profitability and the broader social goal of reducing climate change risk.
About the Speakers:
Helen Chananie, Project Associate, Building Energy Exchange
BE-Ex is an independent non-profit that connects the real estate and design communities to energy and lighting efficiency solutions through education, exhibits, technology demonstrations, and research. As project associate, Helen helps develop BE-Ex’s case studies, reports, and presentations on energy efficiency best practices. Helen has authored and contributed to resources on a wide range of topics, including residential steam heating upgrades, commercial lighting retrofits, ventilation and air sealing measures, and high-performance construction standards.
Anthony Malkin, Chairman and CEO, Empire State Realty Trust, Inc.
Tony joined ESRT’s predecessor entities in 1989. Tony has been a leader in existing building energy efficiency retrofits through coordinating the team of Clinton Climate Initiative, Johnson Controls, JLL, and Rocky Mountain Institute in a groundbreaking project at the Empire State Building. Tony is a board member of the Real Estate Roundtable and Chair of its Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee, a member of the Urban Land Institute, member of the Board of Governors of the Real Estate Board of New York, member of the Partnership of New York City’s Innovation Council, member of the Building Committee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, member of the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy, member of the Advisory Board of MissionPoint Capital Partners, and member of the Advisory Council of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. Tony received a bachelor’s degree cum laude from Harvard College.
Dana Robbins Schneider, Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle
Dana Schneider leads JLL Energy and Sustainability Projects in a region anchored by New York City, Boston and Washington, D.C. Her focus is on energy optimization as well as the development and implementation of energy and sustainability programs for new and existing clients. Additionally, she specializes in energy and sustainability performance and LEED certification for new and existing buildings and portfolios as well as commercial interiors; leading a team which has completed more than 450 LEED certifications for more than 150 million square feet. Dana joined JLL in 2002.
Dana leads the implementation of a whole-building energy retrofit of the Empire State Building, which recently achieved LEED EBOM Gold certification for the most famous office building in the world. This major initiative uses a groundbreaking analytical model for maximizing energy and environmental value per dollar spent, which Dana was instrumental in developing. She is now replicating this energy optimization process in more than 80 buildings across the United States. In addition to her work at the Empire State Building, she manages energy and sustainability aspects of mission critical facilities across the country and has led energy and sustainability assignments at more than 60 million square feet of properties in the Northeast.
Daniel A. Zarrilli, PE, Senior Director, Climate Policy and Programs, Chief Resilience Officer, New York City Office of the Mayor
As New York City’s Senior Director of Climate Policy and Programs and its Chief Resilience Officer, Daniel Zarrilli is preparing America’s largest city for the future. In the last five years, he has positioned New York City as the global leader in the fight against climate change.
Notable successes include launching a comprehensive $20 billion climate adaptation program, aligning the city’s GHG reductions with the 1.5C target of the Paris Agreement, committing to divest the City’s pension funds from fossil fuel reserve owners, suing fossil fuel companies for the damage caused by climate change, reaching a first of-its-kind agreement with FEMA to provide new climate-smart flood maps, and delivering on Mayor de Blasio’s groundbreaking OneNYC strategy for growth, equity, sustainability, and resiliency.
Until recently, Daniel served on NOAA’s advisory committee for the Sustained National Climate Assessment. He also concluded a 3-year term on FEMA’s National Advisory Council and advised the State of Louisiana on its 2017 Coastal Master Plan update. He is currently serving on C40’s Expert Advisory Group.
Previously, he was Senior Vice President for Asset Management at the New York City Economic Development Corporation and spent five years with Bechtel Infrastructure Corporation. Daniel is a licensed Professional Engineer in New York and holds an MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering from MIT and a BS in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University. He resides in Staten Island with his wife and three children.
Marjorie Tsang, Visiting Scholar, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
Marjorie Tsang is a Visiting Scholar with the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies on issues relating to financing climate-resilient infrastructure projects worldwide, an initiative on behalf of the UN Secretary-General. She is currently a board member of the USAA Real Estate Company and a board member and Vice President of the WX Charitable Fund, Ltd.
Marjorie served as a senior investment officer at the New York State Common Retirement Fund, the third largest public pension fund in the United States. From 1999-2011, she was the Assistant Comptroller for Real Estate Investments with investment and asset management responsibilities for the Fund’s $9 billion Real Estate portfolio. From September 2011 through August 2012, she served as the Interim Chief Investment Officer. Until her retirement from the Fund in 2014, she covered strategic initiatives including the Real Assets portfolio, asset allocation and the Environmental Social Governance program. Marjorie joined the Office of the New York State Comptroller in October 1993 as Assistant Counsel for Real Estate Investments and later assumed legal responsibility for the Fund in all asset classes.
Marjorie was honored to receive the WX Woman of the Year recognition in 2013.
About WX New York Women Executives in Real Estate
WX New York Women Executives in Real Estate is an invitation-only association of executive-level women actively engaged in the commercial real estate industry in New York. The mission of WX is to promote the advancement of women in commercial real estate; to enhance public perception about the role of women in the industry; and to promote the highest standards of professionalism, ethics and integrity in the field. Through educational seminars, breakfasts with industry leaders, mentoring programs, scholarships, and special events, WX provides members with a forum for visibility and exchange, spotlights the accomplishments of individual women in the industry, and paves the way for the next generation of women in the field. For more information, please visit www.wxnyre.org.