Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW): Delivering a biodiversity tool and renaturation guide for green infrastructure at commercial assets
Supporting the operationalisation of URW’s biodiversity strategy for green infrastructure across its portfolio
Client: Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW)
Location: URW global portfolio (Europe, UK, and US assets)
Sector and asset types: Multi-asset commercial real estate/ shopping centres
Project duration: Multi-phase support between 2024-2026
Key focus: Biodiversity metrics, green infrastructure interventions, biodiversity strategic planning
“Accelar were a highly dependable and responsive partner throughout the development of URW's biodiversity assessment tool and renaturation guide. Through technical expertise and a pragmatic approach to implementation, they’ve successfully helped translate complex biodiversity concepts into practical resources that can be applied across a diverse global portfolio.
The team was receptive to feedback, adaptive to evolving requirements, and consistently delivered high-quality outputs. We are excited to continue working with Accelar as we move into the next phase of developing site-specific biodiversity action plans and further embedding nature-positive outcomes across our assets.”
Kambridge Van Der Veur - URW
Project Overview
Accelar supported sustainability and asset teams at Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW) to develop a practical and scalable approach to biodiversity across its global portfolio. This included the design and refinement of a biodiversity metric tool, alongside the development of comprehensive renaturation and green infrastructure (GI) guidance. The project translated corporate biodiversity targets into operational actions, enabling asset teams to plan, implement, and monitor GI interventions across its shopping centre assets.
Our Role
Accelar acted as strategic and technical partner to URW, supporting the development of its biodiversity measurement framework and implementation guidance. This included designing and refining a green infrastructure assessment tool, focusing on biodiversity, and developing a methodology aligned to URW’s sustainability targets, and translating these into actionable guidance for asset teams. Accelar also led the development of the Renaturation Guide, supporting the operational “recipes” and best practice principles to enable consistent delivery of green infrastructure across the portfolio. We are excited to be supporting the next phase of work by helping to develop biodiversity action plans.
Our Services
Design and refinement of a bespoke tool to assess biodiversity impact from green infrastructure (GI)
Developed a detailed methodology document
GI intervention research and costing ranges
Support with KPI development and benchmarking
Development of a renaturation guide (operational delivery manual)
Translation of technical metrics into asset-level guidance
Integration support with URW frameworks (e.g., BREEAM, Better Places Certification, Science-Based Targets for Nature)
Challenges
Translating technical information into practice: Asset teams are not ecological specialists, requiring environmental information to be simplified into clear, operational guidance. Whilst the tool and guide needed to remain credible, it also needed to be concise, practical and easy to use.
Global applicability: Recommendations and data needed to work across geographies, climates, and regulatory contexts, requiring flexible and scalable guidance without losing context-specific nuance.
Data limitations and consistency: Geographic variability as well as variability in available asset-level data required assumptions and proxy metrics within the tool and guidance.
Impact & Benefits
Established a standardised GI biodiversity assessment framework across URW assets, and pilot testing with asset-level data
Translated corporate biodiversity targets into practical, asset-level recommendations (tips and tricks, dos and don’ts)
Researched and compiled GI cost evidence
Enabled consistent planning and delivery of renaturation projects, to monitor progress towards and help reach URW’s biodiversity target
Demonstrated the impact of GI on biodiversity and ecosystems on assets as well as connecting to URW's nature targets
Improved ability to quantify and report biodiversity benefits from GI
Aligned with internal and external strategic sustainability frameworks
Built internal understanding and capability around biodiversity and GI delivery