-
$6.8BInvestment properties fair value(1)
-
46.5M sfof GLA(1)(2)(3)
-
98.9%in-place and committed occupancy(1)
-
257assets(1)(2)(3)
(2) Number of assets comprises a building, or a cluster of buildings in close proximity to one another attracting similar tenants.
(3) Includes the Trust’s owned and managed properties as at December 31, 2022. Managed properties include U.S. assets in the U.S. industrial fund (“the U.S. Fund”) for which the Trust provides property management, construction management and leasing services at market rates.
(4) Includes the Trust’s share of equity accounted investment as at December 31, 2022.
DIR.UN aspires to be a market leader in sustainability, it has a responsibility to manage the impact its operations have on the environment and it recognizes that investing in sustainability is a key driver of creating long-term value for its stakeholders.
2021 Key Accomplishments and Initiatives
-
Certifications
2 million sf of green building certifications underway for 11 properties (including properties under development)(1)
-
Amenities and inclusive atmosphere
Enhanced outdoor space at an 840,000 sf industrial park by planting trees, creating lounge areas and installing bike racks
-
Amenities and inclusive atmosphere
Engaged a third-party consultant to assist in developing a sustainable roofing policy including roof categories such as cool roofs, green/vegetative roofs, energy efficient roofs, and solar-ready roofs. DIR.UN currently has 7 million sf of cool and green roofs in our portfolio
-
Tenant relationships
Conducted a survey to benchmark tenant sustainability goals and provide insight into opportunities to broker new sustainability-related partnerships. Survey results have been incorporated into our asset planning process to align tenant sustainability goals with our asset strategies
-
Government collaboration
Engaged with the Institute for Market Transformation (supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Alliance) to adopt green lease standards through the Green Lease Leaders program
-
Tenant relationships
Held engagement sessions with our tenants to inform them of the opportunity to purchase renewable energy generated by Dream-installed solar arrays for their operations that led to the execution of seven rooftop solar projects and a $4.5 million capital investment
-
Innovation and technology adoption
Refined internal process to identify buildings that are the best candidates for solar installations
-
Carbon and resource efficiency
Explored low-carbon strategies such as mass timber and low-carbon concrete, to reduce the embodied carbon of new industrial warehouses, while maintaining a high level of marketability
-
Climate change resilience
Assessed the physical climate risk at each property in DIR.UN’s portfolio against the following hazards: flooding, wildfire, windstorm, tornado, hailstorm, lightning, and earthquake, using third-party climate data
-
ESG impact and management
Issued $850 million to date in Green Bonds using DIR.UN’s Green Financing Framework. In 2021, DIR.UN completed over $295 million in eligible green projects
-
Corporate governance
Became one of the first Canadian public real estate companies to become an official supporter of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD)
-
ESG impact and management
Launched the Net Zero Steering Committee, which includes executive representatives from across the Dream group of companies
(1) Existing and forecasted building areas as of September 30, 2022. Excludes Development Joint -Venture owned projects at owned share.
ESG Scorecard
Indicator | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Target |
Energy | ||||
Energy consumption (ekWh)(2) | see note(3) | see note(3) | 16,691,442 | |
Annual MWh of renewable energy produced(4)(5) | 2,507 | 2,975 | 6,119(6) | |
Cumulative on-site solar PV system capacity (kW)(5) | 2,433 | 2,817 | 5,795(7) | |
Cumulative percentage of total floor area with on-site renewable energy generation(5)(8) | 3.7% | 4.2% | 5.8%(9) | |
GHG emissions(10) | ||||
Scope 1 emissions (tCO2e) | see note(3) | see note(3) | 852(2) | |
Scope 2 emissions (tCO2e) | see note(3) | see note(3) | 2,461(2) | |
Total GHG emissions (scope 1 and 2; tCO2e) | see note(3) | see note(3) | 3,313(2) | |
Water | ||||
Annual water savings from climate-controlled irrigation (litres)(11) | 15,667,000 | 13,331,000 | 10,712,000 | |
Building lighting upgrades | ||||
Cumulative total floor area with LED lighting upgrades (sf)(12) | – | 4,022,407 | 9,173,345 | |
Green Buildings | ||||
Cumulative GLA of portfolio with green building certifications(sf) | 472,123 | 472,123 | 1,601,587 | |
Percentage of eligible portfolio with an energy rating(13) | see note(3) | 25% | 49% | |
Percentage of portfolio with sustainable roofs(14) | see note(3) | 12% | 20% | |
Number of EV charging stations(15) | see note(3) | see note(3) | 93 |
Indicator | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
Employees(16)(17) | 69 | 78 | 90 |
Voluntary turnover rate(18) | 35% | 15% | 16% |
Women employees(19)(20) | 64% | 62% | 52% |
Women managers(19)(21) | 56% | 53% | 53% |
Woman executives(19)(22) | 50% | 34% | 34% |
Indicator | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
Women trustees | 25% | 25% | 25% |
Independent trustees | 75% | 75% | 75% |
(1) Excludes US Portfolio.
(2) Represents data coverage of 18% of utility meters in Canada paid for or controlled by DIR.UN. For buildings where there was no utility account information available, the number of meters was assumed based on the industry standards.
(3) Indicators tracked for the first time in 2021.
(4) Includes estimations from engineering calculations for some solar panel systems where production data was not provided.
(5) Includes capacity and production from rooftop solar PV that is owned by tenants or third parties or DIR.UN.
(6) Approximately, 95% of the annual MWh of renewable energy produced is from tenant-owned/third-party owned solar panels whereas the remaining 5% is from panels owned by DIR.UN.
(7) The total capacity includes DIR.UN-owned solar PV systems with capacity of 299 kW and third-party or tenant-owned solar PV systems capacity of 5,496 kW.
(8) Represents total GLA of buildings with rooftop solar PV system.
(9) The total square footage 2,011,717 sq. ft includes DIR.UN owned solar PV systems covering 392,366 sf and third-party or tenant-owned solar PV systems covering 1,619,351 sf.
(10) GHG emissions are calculated in accordance with the World Resource Institute Greenhouse Gas Protocol. Calculations in this table capture activities DIR.UN has direct and indirect operational control over:
Scope 1 emissions generated directly from its operations, including heating properties.
Scope 2 emissions indirectly associated with generation of purchased electricity, heating, cooling and steam consumed by properties.
(11) Data is based of 42 sites in Calgary.
(12) Historic numbers are updated to exclude T5 lighting and US Portfolio GLA to stay consistent with our future reporting.
(13) Represents 100% of GLA of floor area of properties in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager or have Energy Performance Certificates (EPC) ratings.
(14) Sustainable roofs include cool roofs and green roofs with vegetation.
(15) Includes EV chargers owned or installed by tenants.
(16) Includes only employees 100% dedicated to DIR.UN and excludes employees on unpaid leaves of absence (e.g., permanent disability, long-term disability, parental leave) and interns.
(17) Numbers represented as total head count, not full time equivalent.
(18) Turnover is calculated as a percentage of average employee headcount for 2021.
(19) Percentages are based on total headcount.
(20) Includes employees at all levels.
(21) Managers include Manager level and above.
(22) The Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Dream Industrial REIT are employees of Dream Asset Management Corporation. For the purposes of this Report, we are including them under DIR.UN.
Environmental
DIR.UN’s approach to sustainability includes engaging tenants to uncover opportunities to enhance asset value and incorporate energy management initiatives into capital expenditures to increase energy efficiency throughout its portfolio and lower operational costs.

Solar Program Financial Returns
DIR.UN launched its Alberta rooftop solar feasibility program in 2020 as part of a program launched by Energy Savings for Business (ESB) via Emissions Reductions Alberta. In 2021 DIR.UN completed assessments of 11 potential projects and is proceeding with the installation of 7 rooftop solar projects.
To facilitate these projects, in 2021 DIR.UN conducted information sessions with its tenants to inform them of the opportunity to purchase renewable energy generated by DIR.UN, installed solar arrays for their operations, and amended leases to incorporate the recovery of renewable energy. Procuring solar power from DIR.UN provides tenants financial and sustainability benefits including cost certainty amid rising electricity rates, as well as mitigating greenhouse gas emissions from their energy usage. The estimated carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) savings over the lifetime of these seven Alberta projects will be 38,655 tonnes.



ESG impact and managementTenant relationshipsCarbon and resource efficiencyInnovation and technology adoption
DIR.UN is also implementing an extensive solar program in the Netherlands, where it is executing on projects and continually expanding the inventory of projects to be assessed for on-site solar feasibility. The goal is to ensure all available government incentives are pursued while also preparing for future grid capacity requirements. DIR.UN currently has a total of 8 projects in execution in the Netherlands and 9 projects in its feasibility pipeline. The projects that are currently underway have a savings of 50,586 tCO2 over the lifetime of the projects.
In addition to the environmental benefits, the capital investment in solar projects is delivering a new and expanding revenue stream. The 15 projects that are currently underway will provide an unlevered return of 8% on an overall capital investment of $11.6 million, contributing to DIR.UN’s commitment to drive organic NOI and NAV growth in its portfolio.
Key Accomplishments
-
As part of the Dream group of companies’ commitment(1), DIR.UN, is supporting the Net Zero Asset Managers (NZAM) Initiative, which is a group of international asset managers committed to supporting the goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 or sooner, in line with global efforts to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.
-
As part of the Dream group of companies’ commitment(1), DIR.UN is supporting the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI), which includes a group of more than 4,300 investment managers and asset owners from nearly 90 countries committed to developing a more sustainable global financial system.
-
DIR.UN is an official supporter of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) which provides guidance and recommendations to help companies provide better climate disclosures to support capital allocation. More than 2,300 companies support the TCFD and Dream is one of the first Canadian public real estate companies to become an official supporter.
(1) While DRM is the official signatory, DIR.UN will be an active participant and included in the boundary for reporting to the NZAM initiative and UN PRI as part of the Dream group of companies’ commitment.

Courtney Park Net Zero Development
As part of our Net Zero Action Plan, DIR.UN is targeting net zero by 2035 on all new developments and major renovations. DIR.UN has engaged an independent consultant to develop roadmaps to net zero by conducting an in-depth GHG audit, creating a calibrated energy model, and completing a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for its Courtney Park project, an industrial warehouse that is currently under construction and scheduled to be completed in 2024.


Carbon and resource efficiencySustainable developmentInnovation and technology adoptionESG impact and management
In alignment with the Canada Green Building Council’s (CaGBC) Zero Carbon Building (ZCB) Design Standards and ZCB Performance Standards, DIR.UN is establishing its approach to developing this net zero base building warehouse through:
- Upgrading the HVAC ventilation systems to the highest efficiency ERVs
- Recovering 90% of heat exhausted
- Full HVAC electrification
- Installation of a rooftop solar array
- Procuring renewable energy credits (RECs) and carbon offsets
For other new industrial warehouse developments, DIR.UN is also undertaking an architectural design review to assess how low carbon materials, such as mass timber and low carbon concrete, can reduce the embodied carbon of an industrial warehouse development, while maintaining a high level of marketability for the building.
Social
DIR.UN’s strength as an organization comes from our strong and diverse workforce. Our employees possess expertise in a wide variety of areas that benefit our business, from real estate management and development to capital markets, risk, insurance and many more.

Tenant Engagement
DIR.UN conducted a tenant engagement and satisfaction survey in 2021 to benchmark and enhance tenant satisfaction.
Sustainability-related questions have been incorporated into the survey to help us to better understand tenant sustainability preferences, identify priority assets for sustainability investments, such as rooftop solar and EV charging stations, and provide insight into opportunities to broker new sustainability-related partnerships. As part of this process,
we are holding feedback sessions with tenant sustainability teams to discuss results and develop action plans.

Tenant relationships
- 71% have shown interest in using renewable energy for their energy requirements. Dream Industrial’s progress in roof top solar projects and continuous research and analyses on other sources of renewable energy will address the interest of our tenants in getting access to cleaner forms of energy.
- 80% are interested in pursuing LED retrofits in their premises, which will inform our LED retrofit planning.
- 64% of respondents have expressed interest in green building certifications, which we will align with our green certification program for our portfolio.
- 55% are interested in installing EV charging stations at their buildings.
DIR.UN Employee Gender Breakdown(1)(2)
(1) Includes only employees 100% dedicated to DIR.UN and excludes employees on unpaid leaves of absence (e.g., permanent disability, long-term disability, parental leave) and interns.
(2) Numbers represented as total head count, not full time equivalent.
(3) Includes employees at all levels.
(4) Managers include Manager level and above.
(5) The Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Dream Industrial REIT are employees of Dream Asset Management Corporation. For the purposes of this Report, we are including them under DIR.UN.
Governance
As part of the ESG Framework, DIR.UN links ESG performance to executive and employee goals and compensation.
Sustainability at DIR.UN is managed by the following:
-
Governance, Compensation and Environmental Committee
+
Oversee approach to environmental, social and governance matters
-
ESG Executive Committee
+
Adopt ESG Framework for each Dream entity
Communicate sustainability strategy and commitment across company and key external stakeholders
Delegate implementation to each entity’s sustainability and ESG team
Report to the Governance, Compensation & Environmental Committee
-
Green Finance Committee
+
A cross-departmental committee co-chaired by the COO and CFO and made up of senior executives representing the following departments at DIR: Finance, Sustainability and Portfolio Management
Established to provide oversight of DIR.UN’s Green Bond Framework and to identify sustainable financing options
-
Sustainability and ESG Team
+
Oversee and manage portfolio sustainability initiatives including building certifications, energy, water and waste management and monitoring, as well as strategic initiatives
Meet quarterly with the Sustainability Executive Committee
-
Sustainability Working Groups
+
Responsible for advancing sustainability initiatives and activities at company and property level
Includes four working groups covering the following focus areas: Green Property Operations, Employee Engagement, Tenant Engagement, Reporting and Communications
Includes representatives from central functions, regions and properties
Report monthly to the Sustainability and ESG team

Environmental
Green Roofs
182,000 sf building in Offenau, Germany has an extensive green roof, which is covered with a layer of low-profile, self sustaining plants with no artificial irrigation.The roof construction consists of metal decking and is covered with insulation and synthetic roofing membrane. The main roof parts are intensive green roofs with integrated roof light domes. Rainwater is discharged via irrigation. The addition of this green roof to our portfolio will provide our property management teams with valuable and transferrable insight into the structure and performance of green roofs that can be considered for applications elsewhere in our portfolio in the future.

Environmental
Green Building Certifications in Development
DIR.UN is pursuing the development of a 241,544 sf logistic center in Radeberg, Germany, intensifying excess land in our portfolio. German Sustainable Building Council (DGNB) Gold certification will be pursued and the building total performance score is projected between 65% and 85%. The building roof is being designed with the intent to install solar panels in the future. DIR.UN is planning an initial installation of two EV charging stations with the capacity to add more stations based on tenant demand. Biodiversity has been given special consideration for this project as the existing brownfield site is being redeveloped without affecting the surrounding area.

Environmental
Pursuing Green Building Certifications
DIR.UN partnered with a tenant in 2021 to conduct a feasibility assessment to obtain LEED O&M Silver on a 30,000 sf building in Calgary. The feasibility assessment was successful and the certification process will be completed in early 2022. The building is outperforming buildings of similar size and occupancy, both locally and globally in water use. The certification will expand our portfolio of green certified buildings, and aligns with our tenant’s sustainability goals and commitments.

Social
Responding to COVID-19
DIR.UN responded to the impact of the pandemic on our tenants through a comprehensive outreach program. Our teams connected directly with 100% of our tenants within the first 60 days of the lockdown. We proactively offered a rent deferral program to tenants in need of financial assistance, to support the continuity of their business operations in uncertain times. In addition, we provided extensive support to our tenants in the filing of their CECRA applications, to ensure they met application deadlines and submitted all required documentation.

Environmental
Climate Controlled Water Management
We use climate-controlled irrigation at 42 of our sites in Calgary. The system uses real-time weather data from specialized water management weather stations to automatically adjust watering based on the best horticultural practices. Water schedules are programmed to meet specific landscape needs and detailed site assessments. The system also monitors seasonal performance to analyze opportunities for efficiencies. In 2020, we conserved 13,331,000 litres of water, equivalent to five Olympic sized swimming pools.

Environmental
Alveole Beehive
In 2020, DIR.UN partnered with Alveole to install a beehive at Glenmore Park in Calgary. The hive contains approximately 50,000 bees during peak season in July and early August. Alveole visits the hive every 3 weeks to monitor health and productivity and perform maintenance. Annually, each hive produces approximately 100 jars of delicious honey that we share with our tenants. Our beehive is a unique tenant engagement tool that helps to promote positive attitudes toward protecting biodiversity in our local ecosystem.

Environmental
LEED Certification Existing + Expansion
Construction is currently underway to build a 44,000 sf expansion to the existing facility located at 100 East Beaver Creek Road in Richmond Hill, with an initial target of LEED Core & Shell certification for the expansion area. The design of the building expansion contemplates each of the eight LEED categories to maximize energy performance, minimize the carbon footprint and contribute to a healthy indoor environment for the occupants. In a parallel process, DIR.UN has also initiated LEED for Operations and Maintenance certification of the existing 110,000 sf building. At the completion of both certifications, and once the appropriate commissioning is complete, DIR.UN plans to align and advance LEED status by re-certifying the entire building to achieve LEED Silver accreditation. Our phased approach to LEED certification creates an opportunity to optimize building performance in our existing portfolio while executing our strategy to design and build sustainable developments.

Environmental
EV Charging Stations
Impact 83, a 158,000 sq.ft. property just outside the town of Duiven, Netherlands currently has 42 EV charging stations installed that are used by our tenant’s employees. The building also has an EPC label of ‘A’ that highlights the energy efficiency of the building. Our portfolio currently includes a total of eleven buildings with over 50 charging stations for electric vehicles. In 2021 DIR.UN used our tenant outreach program to assess if tenants would like to have access to EV charging stations in our buildings, and 65% of respondents expressed interest. Going forward, we will be expanding the number of charging stations with a program that will align with our tenants’ requirements.

Environmental
Sustainable Attributes in New Acquisitions
Sustainability plays a significant role in our capital allocation decisions including our acquisition, development, and capital expenditure programs. In 2021, we acquired assets with a broad range of sustainable attributes including 182,000 sq.ft. of green roofs with self-sustaining plants, 16 properties with bicycle storage, 11 buildings with EV charging stations, 10 properties with solar panels comprising over 3 MW of capacity, 2 properties that utilize land for grazing, and a property with a beehive.
When we evaluate potential acquisitions our due diligence process identifies a building’s sustainable attributes including EV charging stations, solar rooftop PV systems, bike storage, type of roof (white and green roofs), green building certifications, physical climate risk assessment and energy performance ratings (such as EPC and ESPM). We are continually updating our due diligence policy to stay current with technological advances in sustainability and regulatory requirements to ensure that we identify all existing sustainable attributes as well as opportunities to improve sustainability in the future.

Environmental
Renewable Energy in Alberta
In 2020, DIR.UN commissioned feasibility assessments on over 10 properties in Alberta to assess the viability of installing roof-top solar PV systems. We are partnering with our tenants to provide them with the opportunity to purchase zero-emission energy to power their operations. We have commenced two of the projects in 2021, and the remaining projects are in the final phase of review, with a total potential system capacity of 2.9 MW.

Social
Enhancements of Tenant Outdoor Space
We are continually seeking ways to enhance our tenants’ experience and access to outdoor spaces. At Glenmore Centre in Calgary, we added an additional 15 all weather picnic tables along with 10 bicycle racks for the 130+ tenants in the park, and worked with the City’s Urban Forest Planner to replace trees and enhance planting with local native species. The landscape improvements benefit the business park as well as the surrounding community by promoting biodiversity. At another property in Lachine, Quebec, we installed 7 outdoor picnic tables for our tenants.

Social
Making our Buildings More Inclusive
We installed accessibility ramps at two buildings to enhance the access to the buildings. One ramp will service a 58,000 sq. ft. two story building currently occupied by 8 tenants and the second ramp will serve a two story 25,000 sq. ft. building. Accessible washrooms were also installed at both buildings.

Case Studies
-
Environmental Green Roofs
-
Environmental Green Building Certifications in Development
-
Environmental Pursuing Green Building Certifications
-
Social Responding to COVID-19
-
Environmental Climate Controlled Water Management
-
Environmental Alveole Beehive
-
Environmental LEED Certification Existing + Expansion
-
Environmental EV Charging Stations
-
Environmental Sustainable Attributes in New Acquisitions
-
Environmental Renewable Energy in Alberta
-
Social Enhancements of Tenant Outdoor Space
-
Social Making our Buildings More Inclusive
Sustainability Reports
-
2021 DIR.UN Sustainability Update Report
↗ -
2021 Dream Group of Companies Sustainability Update Report
↗
- Previous years +
-
Policies
+
Dream Industrial REIT’s Declaration of Trust governs our operations and includes such topics as investment guidelines and operating policies, financing restrictions, units and distributions, and the responsibilities and obligations of the Trustees.
Disclosure PolicyThe objective of our disclosure policy is to ensure that communications to the investing public about Dream Industrial REIT are timely, factual and accurate, and disseminated in accordance with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements. The policy covers topics including trading restrictions and blackout periods, confidentiality, and designated spokespersons. This policy applies to all trustees, officers and employees of Dream Industrial REIT and its subsidiaries.
Code of ConductOur Code of Conduct (the “Code) is our statement of the values and principles that guide us in our day-to-day business activities. The keystones are: integrity, respect, fairness, accountability and transparency. The Code supports our commitment to operate our business at the highest level of legal, moral and ethical standards. The Code applies to all trustees, officers and employees of Dream Industrial REIT and subsidiaries.
Whistleblower PolicyAt Dream Industrial REIT, we are steadfast in our commitment to maintaining the highest business and personal ethical standards by dealing openly and honestly with our investors, tenants, suppliers and employees. With our Whistleblower Policy we marry this commitment to that of securities laws and regulations with respect to accounting standards and internal control standards. We have contracted EthicsPoint Inc., an independent service provider, to manage any complaints or concerns on our behalf. This service reports directly to the Audit Committee of Dream Industrial REIT and is available seven (7) days a week, 365 days a year. Any concerns may be reported directly, confidentially, and, if preferred, anonymously, through www.ethicspoint.com
Majority Voting PolicyThe Trust has a majority voting policy, requiring that each Trustee nominee receive the support of a majority of the total number of votes cast by the unit holders entitled to elect such Trustee nominee, failing which such Trustee shall submit his or her resignation to the Board for consideration.
Diversity Inclusion & Advancement CommitmentAs one of Canada’s leading real estate companies, we always invest with purpose, embracing creativity and diversity, passion and innovation, while positively impacting our communities and the world around us.
Board Diversity PolicyDream seeks to maintain a Board comprised of talented and dedicated trustees whose skills and backgrounds reflect the diverse nature of the business environment in which Dream operates. Accordingly, the composition of the Board is intended to reflect a diverse mix of skills, experience, knowledge and backgrounds, including an appropriate number of women trustees.