Cynthia J. Hoffman is editor of Real Estate Forum.

DENVER-One good reason to go green, say many corporate real estate and property professionals, is that their clients expect them to do so. "Our clients are charging us to be more environmentally aware," noted Steve Hess, senior director of real estate development at Exel, a division of DHL, during a session on "Greening the Supply Chain" at the CoreNet Global Summit here. "We can't wait until there's a line item on an RFP dealing with sustainability." It is an issue, he stressed, that must be addressed today.

And many firms are doing just that. "Sustainability is really a business approach that focuses on economic, social and environmental factors," said Jack Rizzo, managing director of global development for ProLogis. When the industrial REIT began constructing its corporate headquarters here in 2004, it began looking at environmental design elements, which it then decided to incorporate into their other projects, he said. Today, the company's efforts to be more environmentally conscious include having teams focused on renewable energy here and abroad and participating in the Chicago Climate Exchange, a greenhouse gas-emission registry, reduction and trading system.