_ESG Ambassador stories: Greater China perspective from Jackie Cheung
Jackie Cheung is our Associate Director for ESG in Greater China. He advocates for positive change and collaboration and strives to embed ESG across our business through the Greater China ESG Committee and Global ESG Ambassador Network.
Jackie is responsible for formulating corporate ESG strategies for our regional Executive Board and providing ESG consultancy advice to clients, straddling corporate impact and client services.
We caught up with Jackie to find out why becoming an ESG Ambassador at Knight Frank was important to him.
What sparked your interest in sustainability?
I’ve always been an open-minded person, constantly curious and interested in innovation. Challenging ideas and proposing new ways of doing things has been my mindset since I was at school – and this has continued into my career. I come from an environmental and engineering background, which benefits how I think about sustainability in the built environment. I believe this is one of the reasons why I find driving ESG at Knight Frank so important.
Across Hong Kong, companies have different ESG mandates, so I’ve been able to help organisations formulate and implement various robust ESG strategies.
In recent years there’s been controversy around greenwashing – a misleading tactic by companies to influence stakeholder perception of ESG. Consumers and customers are more environmentally and socially conscious than ever, so appealing to them has become increasingly important. The most vital thing, however, is demonstrating progress transparently and honestly with board oversight.
At Knight Frank, I am pleased to say we communicate openly and are building a robust and ambitious Group ESG strategy.
What aspect of sustainability are you most passionate about?
Without a doubt, it's climate change. Nature is increasingly unpredictable across the globe, and I’ve witnessed the effects close to home. In recent years, we have experienced a super typhoon (Mangkhut), excessive rainfall, and flooding far beyond normal levels. It’s caused many deaths in the APAC region, and these extreme weather events are only becoming more frequent.
The effect of nature on real estate has triggered a reaction from investors investigating buildings' short- and long-term climate resilience. As well as efforts from NGOs and individuals, we also need collaboration from corporates. It’s crucial we work together to monitor, mitigate, and combat future climate scenarios.
What’s the market like for ESG in Hong Kong and Greater China?
ESG has been gaining traction in recent years in the APAC and Greater China regions. Policy drivers, mandates and financial incentives have all motivated and catalysed ESG implementation.
Increasing disclosure is an ESG trend in Greater China. And we’re all tackling many of the same issues worldwide, such as net zero, TCFD, ESG ratings and corporate governance. Responding to climate change is a key priority for companies in our region.
The establishment of TCFD not only improves reporting of climate-related financial information to investors, lenders, insurers, and other stakeholders, but it’s a key step forward in terms of governance. It influenced many countries in APAC to mandate listed companies to disclose TCFD reports by 2025 or earlier. The Singapore Exchange (SGX) has requested companies from the financial and transport sectors to disclose by 2023 and The Hong Kong Exchanges (HKEX) by 2025.
In the Chinese mainland, the government has the ambition to reach peak carbon emissions by 2030 and be carbon neutral by 2060. We are looking forward to seeing regional governments implementing emissions reduction plans, investing in renewable energy projects, and conducting carbon trading in the future.
There’s been a noticeable shift towards more dynamic social material topics such as wellness and safety – particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic. Developers are keen to upgrade their portfolio with WELL certifications to demonstrate their focus in this area. WELL certification measures and certifies a series of features that promote occupant wellbeing and human-centred design.
Biodiversity will be a rising trend as pioneer corporates start to disclose their TNFD progress. One to watch for sure!
You’ve been in the role for close to 1 year. What are your observations?
It’s clear that Knight Frank takes ESG seriously and that it plays a critical role in our company strategy and governance. Our approach to ESG mainly follows the strategic direction led by our global headquarters. We ensure we’re aligning with the objectives of the Group’s ESG Taskforce, Corporate Impact and Client Services Steering Groups.
On World Environment Day and Hong Kong Green Day last year, we announced an important milestone in our ESG journey: a new ESG governance structure for Knight Frank Greater China.
Comprising our Executive Board members and chaired by our CEO Piers Brunner, the Knight Frank Greater China ESG Committee gathers and steers more than 20 Knight Frank experts in our ESG Taskforce, who facilitate the integration of ESG into every aspect of our business. Our global ESG Ambassador network helps to drive this ESG agenda forward.
Jackie on the panel at the ESG Ambassador Summit, November 2022.
What’s the best way to make a difference to ESG agendas?
Collaboration. It’s necessary if we are to tackle these key ESG issues and make a difference. It’s also important to regularly communicate, share insights and opinions at industry events as well as internally with colleagues.
We aspire to be one of the pioneers in our field and are keen on sharing our global insights with our local stakeholders. Carrying out thought leadership and analysis in our sector with regional ESG experts are necessary to demonstrate our position in the market. My collaboration with APAC on an ESG occupiers publication is one of the examples that helps our clients to solidify market trends.
Looking forward, I am keen to collaborate more with our business lines, and regional and countrywide ESG Ambassadors. We can deliver even more sophisticated ESG insights through cross-country or disciplinary research papers and symposiums.
Jackie at the ESG Ambassador Summit, November 2022.
What can we all do to address ESG?
Let’s ask those challenging questions.
Every one of us has a role to play, whether that’s enhancing the lives and environments of colleagues, communities, or organisations. This could be through volunteering, championing corporate objectives, or advising organisations on ESG considerations.
With the global expansion of ESG at Knight Frank, we are connecting the dots and creating excellent team collaboration among our regions. Ultimately, with the aim of leading our industry towards an ESG-driven future.