Sustainability Strategy and Goals

Our stakeholders play a vital role in helping us continually identify and inform ourselves about sustainability issues.

We engage them through our materiality assessment process to identify issues that are material and relevant to our business, helping us prioritise, focus and integrate these into our activities.

Business as Mutual

By aligning the efforts of multiple stakeholders, we are better prepared to identify and address contemporary challenges. We apply the Business as Mutual mindset when addressing local topics such as waste management to global challenges like climate change. This enables more informed decision making and strategic feedback to provide better solutions and greater ecosystem-wide shared value.

Sustainability Focus Areas

By setting long term targets and working on improvements and initiatives under each of our sustainability focus areas namely Environmental (E), Social (S), Governance (G), we strive to make positive impact on society and the environment.

Target Status Achieved On Track Lagging Behind Not Commenced

Climate Resilience and Decarbonisation Green Buildings Resource Management Stakeholder Engagement Innovation Accountability and Transparency

Environment

Climate Resilience and Decarbonisation

We recognise and support the global goal to limit temperature rise and to prepare our portfolio in the face of physical and transitional risks.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
25% reduction in carbon emissions intensity (Scope 1 & 2) across our portfolio by 2025/2026 (compared to 2018/2019 baseline)		Carbon intensity (Scope 1 & 2): 13.8% reduction compared to baseline Submitted our SBT Net Zero target for validation in April 2023 Committed to expand EV charging points to 3,000 by end of 2024
Net Zero carbon emissions (Scope 1 & 2) by 2035
Set Science-Based Targets initiative’s (SBTi) approved net zero carbon emissions targets (Scope 1, 2 & 3) by 2024/2025
100% renewable energy adoption across our portfolio by 2035⁽¹⁾

Climate Resilience and Adaptation

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Conduct climate risk assessments across our portfolio and develop corresponding climate resilience strategies		Conducted climate risk assessment for our recently acquired Singapore assets during due diligence Updated flood/storm resilience plan for Hong Kong portfolio Currently conducting a climate risk assessment for our community mall development project in Hong Kong
Engage with investors and regional-level policymakers to develop comprehensive climate resilience strategies

Notes:

⁽¹⁾To cover our electricity footprint via renewable energy on-site generation and off-site procurement, purchase of renewable energy certificates and direct investments in renewable energy.

Environment

Green Buildings

Owning and operating buildings is our business, and it is through continuous improvement of the sustainability performance of our buildings as well as our management processes that we can reduce our environmental footprint and create positive impact.

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
100% green building certification coverage across our portfolio by 2025/2026⁽²⁾		Reached 97.3% green building certification coverage, compared to 86.5% in 2021/2022 Launched publicly available asset-level sustainability factsheets on our corporate website Improved green operation standards by upgrading housekeeping contract requirements
Develop minimum sustainability performance standards for each asset class and meet these standards by 2025/2026

Notes:

⁽²⁾Green building certification includes environmental, health and well-being related building certification schemes. Portfolio includes retail, office and logistics assets, but excludes retail <40,000 sq ft by IFA and car park properties. Newly acquired/developed assets without green building certification to be excluded from calculation for up to 24 months.

Environment

Resource Management

We are committed to support a sustainable planet by improving resource management in our buildings and operations which consume natural resources.

Energy Efficiency

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
30% reduction in electricity intensity across portfolio by 2035 (compared to 2018/2019 baseline)		3.1% reduction in electricity intensity compared to baseline

Waste Management

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
>50% general waste recovered/recycled by 2035⁽³⁾		15.6% general waste recovered/recycled, compared to 6.7% in 2021/2022 1,491 tonnes of organic waste recovered Expanded organic waste collection service to retail tenants Conducted waste audit in selected Hong Kong properties
Zero organic waste to landfill
Reduce single-use plastics generated in Link’s premises

Water Management

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Reduce general water use intensity (per sq m) by 10% by 2035 (compared to 2018/2019 baseline)⁽⁴⁾		8.2% reduction in general water use intensity compared to baseline

Biodiversity

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
100% of new developments and redevelopments to conduct biodiversity assessments		87.5% of our horticulture investment sum was used for planting native flora Biodiversity assessment and enhancement plan for community mall development project in Hong Kong is in progress
Maintain >70% of our horticulture investment sum in planting native flora

Notes:

⁽³⁾General waste includes organic, inorganic and recyclable waste (including any tenant waste) handled by Link at properties where Link has operational control. Excludes construction waste and hazardous waste.

⁽⁴⁾Including water for cleansing, flushing, potable uses, irrigation and other minor uses but excluding cooling tower water.

Social

Stakeholder Engagement

Understanding the needs and expectations of our stakeholders and engaging with them on our sustainability journey is key to maximising value creation.

Talent Management

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Build a diverse workforce that represents the communities we operate in (considering skill-sets, industry expertise and experience, background, ethnicity, age and gender)		Conducted in-depth reviews of talent pipeline and succession planning for leadership Expanded our talent pipeline by recruiting talents with diverse background Achieved average of 26.1 hours of training per staff Conducted workstation assessment for all Linkers to enhance workplace set-up Reported on our regrettable turnover for the first time (Hong Kong Regional Centre: 16.9%; Mainland China Regional Centre: 4.5%)
Ensure equal opportunities for career advancement
Pursue zero fatalities, zero staff injury incidents and zero prosecutions related to OHS Regulations across all of Link’s daily operations
Conduct an employee survey at minimum every 2 years, targeting 85% or greater response rate and engagement score of 3.5 or greater
Maintain >16 hours of training per year for all staff

Tenant Engagement

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
50% green lease adoption in Hong Kong and Mainland China by 2026/2027		Achieved 14% green lease adoption in Hong Kong and Mainland China portfolio Tenant Academy organised 3 seminars on sustainability-related themes to enhance our tenant comprehension of ESG issues

Supply Chain

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
100% implementation of Supplier Code of Conduct and Procurement Policy		Completed environmental and social review of 122 top suppliers – no major violations found
Environmental and social compliance review of top 5 suppliers in each business unit annually

Community

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Maintain >80% customer satisfaction rate		Completed Mystery Shopper Assessment with 90.8 customer satisfaction score Hired 18 staff through the Local Employment Initiative and promoted upward social mobility for the poor Link Together Initiatives committed HK$18M over the year supporting nine community projects and 220 students under Link University Scholarship
>10% housekeeping and security staff hired locally from underprivileged groups by 2026/2027 in Hong Kong
Contribute an amount of up to 0.25% of net property income to charity and community engagement

Social

Innovation

We support innovation inside and outside of our business operations by being continually open-minded to new ways of doing business.

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Investigate and invest in new technologies, materials, processes and business models		Collaborated with local startup to pilot circular economy project upcycling waste plastic fruit baskets into paving bricks that were installed at our shopping mall in Hong Kong Collaborating with Urban Land Institute's Hong Kong Chapter to develop a report for Landlord - Tenant Decarbonisation Engagement based on our Business as Mutual mindset
Engage and collaborate with NGOs and startups to achieve sustainability targets

Governance

Accountability and Transparency

We are committed to adhering to industry corporate and sustainability governance standards and best practices and to ensure open and objective reporting across all our practices.

Corporate and Sustainability Governance

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Maintain an independent and diverse Board (considering skill-set, industry expertise and experience, background, ethnicity, age and gender)		Maintained a diverse Board Expanded Board presence in the Sustainability Advisory Committee Established Sustainability Working Groups under the Sustainability Committee to underpin our sustainability priorities Developed a standalone Human Rights Policy

Sustainable Finance and Responsible Investment

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
100% sustainability-linked finance transactions to include E, S, G KPIs		100% sustainability-linked loans with E, S, G KPIs Implemented Responsible Investment Policy in our acquisitions and development project
Be an advocate of sustainable finance, striving to grow sustainable finance and to improve best practices
100% implementation of Responsible Investment Policy

Reporting

Key Sustainability Target	Status	2022/2023 Progress
Strengthen climate disclosures by aligning to TCFD recommendations		Climate disclosures in full compliance with TCFD recommendations and with mapping to ISSB Climate Exposure Draft