Beyond the Blueprint: Leading Sustainability in Real Estate
What connects a high-rise in Japan, a small home in suburban India, and a countryside farmhouse in Brazil? They're all part of the global real estate landscape—and they're all increasingly exposed to the impacts of climate change.
Despite real estate being one of the sectors most affected by climate risks, it's still rare to see sustainability take centre stage in discussions around it.
Elena Rivilla-Lutterkort, Head of Sustainability at Savills France, is working to change that. With a career rooted in environmental responsibility and a passion for practical change, Elena is helping bridge the gap between real estate and climate action, both professionally and personally.
Living The Mission
In her day-to-day life, Elena tries to live sustainably. She is passionate about second-hand clothing, volunteers with her local food banks and tries to support the circular economy; all in order to reduce her carbon footprint. When Elena moved from the UK to France, among other things, her decision was partly driven by environmental considerations.
The transition represented more than just a career move – it was a deliberate choice reflecting her values and commitment to sustainable living. France's progressive stance on environmental policy and infrastructure offered her an opportunity to align her personal life with her professional mission.
“I am lucky to live in an electric-powered house and have allowed my garden to revert to its natural diversity,” she tells Mökki, a company providing sustainability and social solidarity solutions for office buildings, adding that France is much ahead in terms of eco-responsibility. Her home serves as a microcosm of the principles she advocates for in her professional work – embracing renewable energy and biodiversity as foundations for sustainable living.
A Savills report on ‘How cities are adapting to climate change’ mentions how Paris has taken an innovative approach against intense heat waves. The city has created “cool islands”, which are easily accessible spaces to provide relief from the vicious heat and introduced a heatwave phone line to support the elderly and vulnerable. These urban interventions represent the kind of practical solutions that Elena champions – addressing immediate climate impacts while building long-term resilience.
From Strategy to Systems Change
Elena’s role at Savills France also helps further her personal preferences for sustainability. On the face of it, Savills is just another real estate consulting group.
What sets it apart is that the organisation actively integrates climate change considerations into its core real estate investment approach, helping clients understand how environmental factors will shape property values and opportunities. The firm's sustainability strategy revolves around climate, culture, and community, with ambitious commitments to achieve net-zero emissions for its operations by 2030 and for its value chain greenhouse gas emissions by 2040.
These ambitious targets require fundamental changes across the entire business ecosystem – from how buildings are valued to how investments are structured. The timeline reflects both urgency and pragmatism, acknowledging the scale of transformation needed.
Bringing More Women to Sustainability
With 15 years of experience in the field, Elena has seen the sustainability and real estate sector evolve, but one thing hasn’t changed enough: representation. She found herself reflecting on this when she was recently invited to sit on a panel discussion on the role of technology in the transition to a low-carbon economy.
“There is usually a lack of female speakers on these sorts of panels,” Elena tells us. “Often the organisers want better female representation but cannot find them because the algorithms make it harder.” She actively works to counterbalance this by accepting more connection requests from women than men on LinkedIn, particularly from diverse backgrounds.
The gender gap extends beyond representation to the physical environment itself. “Even things like standard desk and chair heights, spacing of keyboard keys are predetermined by male standards. Women are literally shoehorning themselves into a space that wasn't made for them” she explains.
Elena sees a major opportunity for women to close the talent gap in energy infrastructure—as technicians, engineers, and green entrepreneurs—just as AI begins to reshape the sector. She advocates for creating environments where women can access necessary education and experience, and encourages women in senior positions to support newcomers rather than perpetuating struggle. “This is something that we should pay forward, just like parenthood.”
This story is part of the ‘Green Economies, Powered By Women’ campaign by SHE Changes Climate to spotlight women entrepreneurs driving climate solutions in Brazil, South Asia, and Africa. You can read Roots of Resilience from Kenya and EcoSattva’s Blueprint for Environmental Renewal. Also read why green economies powered by women are the need of the hour.