1 Cumberland Place
One of my favorite places in the world is Dublin, Ireland. Having been there 3 times with family, friends and solo Dublin has some of the friendliest locals, great pubs and architecture that speaks to the history of the city alongside modern green buildings that are pushing the envelope of what is next.
1 Cumberland Place is one such green building that is showing Ireland’s might in the green building space. Having been built in the 1970’s it was refurbished by Hibernia Real Estate Investment Trust and comprises 129,000 square feet of office space over seven floors on the south side of Dublin’s inner city. Since it’s refurbishment in 2016, X (formerly Twitter) and TravelPort have become the main occupiers of the building.
According to the USGBC 1 Cumberland Place is certified at LEED Platinum under LEED O+M: Existing buildings (v4.1) having scored a 76 out of a possible 100 points. The building is ranked highly in the Location & Transportation Category scoring 12/14 points as it is centrally located in Dublin walking distance from Dublin Pearce Railway Station and has main bus routes mere steps from the entrance. The Indoor Environmental Quality also scored highly as it received 18 out of 20 possible credits in this category. The project notably received credits for Integrated Pest Management and Green Cleaning that are imperative for Indoor Environmental Quality alongside overall performance.
One way in which Ireland assess buildings and homes for how energy efficient they are is through a program Building Energy Ratings or BER for short. BERs measure three things: Energy Efficiency, Carbon Emissions and Running Costs. BERs are rated on a scale from A to G with A being the most efficient and G being the least efficient. Continued investment into 1 Cumberland Place has allowed the energy efficiency rating to increase from an E2 to B2 that has allowed for a 63% reduction in primary energy demand according to Ronald Quinlan of the Irish Times. This jump in efficiency rating and reduction in energy consumption shows that continued investment into buildings can save owners, operators and tenants money in the long run.
My interest in the green building space has lead me to companies called Real Estate Investment Trusts or REITs for short that own many of the greenest buildings globally. REITS are companies that own and operate various types of real estate properties. If you live in the United States odds are that you’ve been in a REIT owned apartment complex, healthcare facility or hotel. Within these publicly traded REITs all of them have sustainability teams that report on the energy, water, waste, and ESG metrics within their portfolios for investors and the public to have access to.
Hibernia, the REIT that owns 1 Cumberland Place has dedicated itself to be a leader in ESG & Sustainability initiatives in Ireland. Hibernia’s most recent ESG report for 2023 (This is being written in January 2025) has highlighted that they have decreased 1 Cumberland Place’s scope 1,2,3 emissions by 57% while achieving a 71% recycling rate across managed office assets while providing 100% of staff with mental health awareness training. These are just a few statistics that show Hibernia’s dedication to not only the environment but their staff’s well being.
Interested in learning more?
Hibernia’s ESG Progress Report: https://www.hiberniareg.com/~/media/Files/H/Hibernia-Corp/documents/esg/transforming-dublin-updated/hibernia-esg-progress-report-2023-2-1-min.pdf
1 Cumberland Place LEED Scorecard: https://www.usgbc.org/projects/1-cumberland-place
Irish Times Article: https://www.irishtimes.com/property/commercial-property/2023/11/29/investment-of-30m-sees-1-cumberland-place-cut-energy-use-by-63/
About Hibernia REIT: https://www.hiberniareg.com/properties/our-portfolio/1-cumberland-place