John Schinter of JLL

Easy or not, being green is certainly complex. And complex or not, the pressure is on for the real estate industry to respond to what seems to be a growing mandate from the tenant and investment communities. Just as the business community in general seems to be getting the environmental picture to one extent or the other, the industry that serves its brick-and-mortar needs is catching on, and all of the majors have embraced the concept of sustainability in some form or the other. CB Richard Ellis and Jones Lang LaSalle have both entered the mix with a formal combo of internal standards and advisory services. Cushman & Wakefield has had a formal green council and energy committee “for years,” says a spokesperson. All three are vying for poll position as leader in this initiative–both as an advocate to their clients and as a model of how best to implement green initiatives internally. To understand how the initiative works at the service-provider level, we spoke with one of the newest entrants–Chicago-based John Schinter, who two weeks before this exclusive interview was named president of energy and sustainability services for JLL.

GlobeSt.com: Why you? What’s your background?

Schinter: I’ve been in this field for the past 25 years and have a very strong background in various energy services-related industries, which includes greenhouse-gas emission calculations, energy management and general facilities operations. I’m a professional engineer with two degrees–thermo-mechanical and energy-conversion engineering as well as mechanical engineering, and I’m certified in energy management and sit on the LEED advisory board for air and atmosphere.