LIGHTING 
THE WAY TO A 
BETTER WORLD

GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  1
Acuity Brands, Inc.
Welcome to our inaugural Environmental, Social and Governance 
(ESG) report. This report describes the many ways we make 
Environmental, Social and Governance considerations a part of 
daily life at Acuity Brands.
As a leading provider of innovative lighting fixtures, lighting 
controls and building management solutions, we engage 
closely with our customers to help them reduce their energy 
usage and costs, and improve their businesses, residential 
spaces and communities. 
We have a long and successful history of managing the health 
and safety of our operations, complying with environmental 
regulations and requirements, supporting the lives of our 
associates and our local communities, and operating with a high 
level of integrity. We continue to look for ways to add value to 
the lives of all of our stakeholders.
OVERVIEW

OUR APPROACH TO ESG
EarthLIGHT is our all-encompassing approach to ESG. We 
launched it to coordinate our efforts around Environmental, 
Social and Governance factors, measure our performance 
in key areas and communicate about those efforts to our 
various stakeholders.
EarthLIGHT reflects our belief that it is our responsibility to 
help lighten our impact on the Earth in ways that benefit our 
company, associates, customers and communities.
EarthLIGHT is also about driving our culture around a 
common purpose of continuous improvement. It is key 
to our efforts to attract, develop and retain an engaged, 
connected and inspired workforce—all while operating with 
a focus on honesty and integrity.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  2
Acuity Brands, Inc.
GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
OVERVIEW

MESSAGE FROM THE CEO
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
We recognize that ESG is an important topic 
for many of our stakeholders, including 
associates, customers and investors. 
Reporting on our activities in this area is part 
of operating our company with transparency.
Much of the ESG work we are doing is 
not new to Acuity Brands. We have been 
pursuing ESG initiatives for many years. 
Providing energy-efficient, innovative 
solutions has been central to our strategy, as 
well as maintaining a deep commitment to 
integrity and strong governance. Recently, 
we have added additional structure and 
methodology to this work as we continue 
on our journey and leverage our culture of 
continuous improvement. We have taken 
the work our teams have been doing and 
consolidated it into a more meaningful 
form to make our efforts more visible 
and measurable. We call this our 
EarthLIGHT program, and this report 
describes those efforts.
We believe companies that measure their 
performance in these areas outperform 
those that do not—all while doing a better 
job of reducing enterprise risk.
Through our daily application of the 
Acuity Business System (ABS), we seek to 
continuously improve our company and 
our community. We strive for a culture that 
encourages our associates to be brilliant, 
productive and connected. 
We have approximately 12,000 associates 
with great ideas on how to improve our 
operations, eliminate waste and increase 
our positive impact on the world. Among 
other initial EarthLIGHT goals, by the end 
of fiscal 2022 we plan to:
  •  Reduce our carbon footprint by at 
least 25% by reducing raw material 
inputs and increasing energy 
efficiency (natural gas and electricity) 
in our operations;
  •  Generate 9 billion kWh of energy 
savings for our customers by improving 
the energy efficiency of our products 
and increasing the mix of energy-
saving products we sell;
  •  Increase associate engagement 
score to 85 by, among other things, 
increasing our connections through 
charitable and other community 
activities, doubling the utilization of 
wellness examinations, continuing to 
drive our focus on health and safety, 
and improving development and 
recognition opportunities; and
 
  •  Operate with the highest levels of 
integrity and governance by, for 
example, expanding the reach of our 
Code of Ethics, requiring our supply 
chain partners to demonstrate similar 
standards in their operations, providing 
innovative connected solutions that 
protect the privacy and data security 
of our customers, and continuing to 
operate with the input and leadership 
of a diverse and cross-functional team 
that is all measured by success in these 
important EarthLIGHT goals.
We are honored that our associates have 
chosen to share their ideas and talents as 
we work to maximize the opportunities 
before us.
Thank you for being part of our ESG 
journey. We look forward to sharing our 
progress with you.
Vernon J. Nagel 
Chairman and  
Chief Executive Officer
Acuity Brands, Inc.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  3

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  4
Acuity Brands, Inc.
Acuity Brands, Inc.
WE LIGHT THE WAY TO A 
BRILLIANT, PRODUCTIVE,
AND CONNECTED WORLD. 
BE BRILLIANT 
  •  Find the far-reaching possibilities
  •  Challenge the status quo
  •  Be curious and pursue answers
  •  Remove barriers to progress
  •  Continuously raise the bar
  •  Accept and learn from failure
BE PRODUCTIVE 
  •  Demonstrate personal leadership
  •  Passionately exceed expectations
  •  Collaborate and leverage individual and 
group genius
  •  Activate and accelerate change
  •  Listen intently and guide wisely
  •  Simplify processes, make it easy
  •  Protect human, capital, financial and 
environmental resources
BE CONNECTED 
  •  Embrace diverse people and ideas
  •  Seek ways to have fun
  •  Celebrate, energize and inspire greatness
  •  Empower others to succeed
  •  Be transparent and honest
  •  Be present and care for others
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
OUR SHARED COMMITMENTS:

Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE: AYI) is the 
North American market leader and one of 
the world’s leading providers of lighting 
and building management solutions 
for commercial, institutional, industrial, 
infrastructure and residential applications 
throughout North America and select 
international markets. We currently employ 
approximately 12,000 associates and are 
headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with 
operations throughout North America, and 
in Europe and Asia. Our net sales for fiscal 
year 2019 were $3.7 billion.
Our lighting and building management 
solutions range from individual devices 
to intelligent network systems. Individual 
devices include luminaires, lighting 
controls, lighting components, controls 
for various building systems (including 
heating, ventilation and air conditioning, 
lighting, shades and access control), power 
supplies and prismatic skylights. Among 
other benefits, these solutions can help 
optimize energy efficiency and enhance the 
occupant experience for various indoor and 
outdoor applications—all while reducing 
operating costs. 
We continue to expand our solutions 
portfolio, including software and services, 
to provide a host of benefits resulting 
from data analytics that enables the 
Internet of Things (IoT) and supports the 
advancement of smart buildings, smart 
cities and the smart grid.
Our century of tradition, current financial 
strength and commitment to a sustainable 
future provide us with an opportunity to grow, 
innovate and further capture the market 
opportunities before us.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  5
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OUR APPROACH
Provide Customer-driven smart and simple solutions. 
Drive world-class Cost efficiency. Leverage a Culture of 
continuous improvement.
	
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  6
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OUR BRANDS
We have some of the top name brands in the industry.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  7
Acuity Brands, Inc.
ACCELERATING 
LEARNING
There is more to lighting in educational settings than just being able to see. Proper lighting 
sets the stage for a productive learning environment.
GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
OVERVIEW

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  8
Acuity Brands, Inc.
ENHANCING 
THE SHOPPING 
EXPERIENCE
We provide simplified retail solutions that decrease energy, labor and maintenance costs 
with advanced engineering from more than 30 industry-leading brands.
GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
OVERVIEW

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  9
Acuity Brands, Inc.
IMPROVING 
THE POWER 
OF HEALING
Effective lighting enhances the healing and nurturing environment, helping caregivers 
improve patient experiences and outcomes.
GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
OVERVIEW

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  10
Acuity Brands, Inc.
CREATING 
MEMORABLE 
EXPERIENCES
We believe that comfortable, engaging spaces are realized when lighting systems are used 
to improve ambiance and environmental sustainability.
GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
OVERVIEW

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  11
Acuity Brands, Inc.
BRINGING PEOPLE 
TOGETHER
We offer products for a wide variety of lighting needs, including indoor, outdoor, industrial, 
commercial, residential, life safety, controls and building management—all while tapping 
into the power of IoT.
GOVERNANCE
SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
OVERVIEW

ABOUT THIS REPORT
Our assessment of topics covered in this report was guided 
by an internal process with key leaders and with oversight 
by our Board of Directors. This report was informed by 
engagement with stakeholders both within and outside of 
the company. It also incorporates research on our sectors—
electrical product manufacturing, as well as software and 
solutions—from the Sustainability Accounting Standards 
Board (SASB) framework. Our materiality assessment 
balances our industry-specific and company-specific issues 
with our stakeholders’ concerns while prioritizing the topics 
of greatest overall value.
In developing this report, we:
  •  Used peer benchmarking
  •  Were guided by Global Reporting Initiative 
(GRI) standards
  •  Engaged with key stakeholders
  •  Applied learnings from our own gap analysis
  •  Incorporated data from the Carbon Disclosure Project’s 
Climate Change Questionnaire
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  12
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

OUR FAVORITE 
COLOR IS GREEN 
Environment
We develop and manufacture lighting and building management solutions 
that are enabling energy efficiency and providing other benefits for 
customers across North America and around the world. As we seek to 
reduce our company’s environmental impact, we do so across the entire 
value chain.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  13
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
“Working on innovative product, sales 
and marketing teams that create 
demand for solutions designed to 
enrich lives, enhance safety and 
that are environmentally-friendly 
while reducing paper, waste and the 
company’s carbon footprint makes me 
feel that I’m making a positive impact 
on the organization and the planet.” 
    Sarah Golish 
Senior Vice President, Marketing

PRODUCTS AND 
SOLUTIONS
We are committed to helping our customers reduce their own 
environmental impact and creating value by building energy 
efficiency into our products. Acuity Brands LED fixtures sold in 
fiscal 2019 had the potential to save customers an estimated 
9.2 billion kWh annually, an increase of 11.7% compared to the 
previous year. The biggest drivers of energy savings come from 
our industrial high bays, which are 800w more efficient than the 
products they replace and commercial outdoor products, where 
our products are 280w more efficient than the products they 
most often replace. Our energy-saving controls solutions save 
even more energy.
This 9.2 billion kWh (9.2 terawatts) in savings is equivalent to:
  •  The greenhouse gas emissions from 1,381,272 cars, or
  •  Removing 1.7 coal-fired plants from operation, or 
  •  The carbon sequestered in one year by 7,656,806 
acres of forest.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  14
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
 
2020Goal
Enable a further 9 billion kWh in energy 
savings from using our products.

PARTNERING WITH OUR CUSTOMERS TO 
REDUCE CARDBOARD, WASTE AND EMISSIONS
LED lighting fixtures provide tremendous 
energy savings. But what if we could help 
our customers save even more? 
A large retail customer asked us for 
help: unpacking our luminaires was 
taking a long time and resulted in a small 
mountain of cardboard at the end. They 
challenged us to deliver our products as 
safely, but with less packaging.
Our original packaging, while sturdy, 
used excessive cardboard, as each fixture 
was packaged in its own cardboard 
box. So our first step was eliminating 
the individual fixture cardboard boxes, 
resulting in a 72% reduction in cardboard 
per truckload—which dramatically 
increased the number of fixtures per 
total truckload and therefore reduced the 
number of trucks on the road. 
Our solution of reducing our packaging 
by 0.345kg of cardboard per 
fixture eliminated–for this one large 
customer–52 tons of cardboard. Together 
with our customer, we saved the 884 
trees required to make that cardboard 
and used 41 fewer trucks to deliver the 
goods. The trees will sequester 21 tons 
of CO2 per year, and the 10,544 gallons 
of fuel saved represent 103 tons of CO2.
If we can help improve one customer’s 
installation process while simultaneously 
reducing our carbon footprint by 124 
tons of CO2, what could we do company-
wide? This thought motivated us to 
examine all aspects of our supply chain 
and logistics and optimize them for 
minimum environmental impact. The 
results of our supply chain optimization 
project enabled us to reduce the amount 
of cardboard, gasoline and truckloads 
to get products from our manufacturing 
and distribution facilities to their final 
destinations in North America.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  15
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

2020Goal
15% reduction in carbon footprint of our 
raw materials, packaging and shipping
2022Goal
25% reduction in carbon footprint of our 
raw materials, packaging and shipping
EFFICIENT USE OF 
RAW MATERIALS
We are committed to driving efficiency in our usage of raw 
materials to manufacture our products. 
Steel and aluminum are the two biggest drivers of energy 
consumption in the production of our raw materials (based 
on the average composition of our products, by weight). 
We started our quest for efficiency there and were able to 
reduce our carbon footprint by approximately 21.7 million 
kWh in a single year.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  16
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

FACILITIES
We are focused on minimizing the environmental impact 
of our facilities, starting with integrating our BuildingOS® 
business intelligence program at all Acuity Brands locations. 
BuildingOS provides extensive building analytics that enable 
owners, operators and occupants to gain unparalleled 
insights into their energy use and other building operations. 
The information provided can then be used to identify 
opportunities to increase their buildings’ energy efficiency 
while improving the performance of the people and 
businesses using them.
As of the end of fiscal 2019, we integrated BuildingOS 
at 82% of our facilities, providing energy consumption 
baselines both on a facility-by-facility basis and aggregated 
for the company as a whole. Using data from BuildingOS, 
we have calculated an estimate of our own carbon footprint 
that will be further refined. 
We intend to fully integrate this business intelligence 
program at all Acuity Brands facilities by the end of fiscal 
2020 to help us unlock opportunities to reduce our energy, 
water and waste footprints. 
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  17
Acuity Brands, Inc.
BuildingOS provides real-time insights that help building owners, 
operators and occupants improve the operations of their buildings.
2022Goal
25% reduction in energy 
usage per unit shipped
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
 
2020Goal
15% reduction in energy 
usage per unit shipped

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  18
Acuity Brands, Inc.
10 water bottle filling stations installed 
mid-year have already dispensed water 
equivalent to 60,000 bottles. 
Our 12 electric vehicle charging 
stations are available to associates 
at no cost. 
A 4/10 workweek in our Conyers 
and Decatur, GA locations avoids an 
estimated 3.9 million miles driven 
per year.
BRINGING ENVIRONMENTAL 
STEWARDSHIP HOME
How we weave environmental initiatives into the workday
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

REDUCING OUR 
CARBON FOOTPRINT
In fiscal 2019, we consumed energy in our facilities that 
created an estimated 166.5 million lbs (83,250 tons) of 
CO2. An estimated 102.82 million lbs (51,411 tons) of CO2 
were generated by producing the steel and aluminum 
that we used in our products.
As we evolve our sustainability practices, we will be able 
to report on additional inputs and other measures of our 
efficiency. We also intend to report additional information 
related to our Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions over the 
coming year.
Additional ways we help customers save energy: 
In addition to lighting fixtures, we offer numerous controls 
and other products that go beyond energy savings from 
shifting to LED lighting. These include occupancy sensors, 
daylight harvesting and dimming features. These controls 
can lower our customers’ energy usage up to an additional 
24%. This growing product segment has the potential 
to add dramatically to the environmental benefit of our 
company and future reports will attempt to aggregate and 
further estimate this benefit.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  19
Acuity Brands, Inc.
 
2022Goal
Reduce carbon footprint of our 
products by 25%
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  20
Acuity Brands, Inc.
ENVIRONMENTAL 
EXCELLENCE
Our Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) Management System is 
designed to protect the environment while flexing to an ever-changing 
context. Given the requirements that we set, our environmental 
management system creates options for contributing to sustainable 
development by:
  •  Preventing or mitigating adverse environmental impacts;
  •  Identifying, monitoring and reducing air emissions and 
hazardous waste;
  •  Conserving natural resources;
  •  Mitigating the potential adverse effect of environmental 
conditions on our organization;
  •  Helping us fulfill compliance obligations;
  •  Enhancing environmental performance;
  •  Taking a life cycle perspective that can prevent environmental 
impacts from being unintentionally shifted elsewhere within the 
product life cycle;
  •  Using risk-based audit criteria to establish an environmental 
assessment frequency for each of our production and 
distribution locations;
  •  Achieving financial and operational benefits that strengthen 
our organization’s market and financial positions; and
  •  Communicating environmental information to relevant 
interested parties.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

Acuity Brands, Inc.
KEY ENERGY CERTIFICATIONS
We are proud of the independent energy efficiency certifications that reflect the energy efficiency of our products. 
ENERGY STAR 
ENERGY STAR® is a voluntary program of 
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 
(EPA) and the government-backed symbol 
for energy efficiency, providing simple, 
credible and unbiased information that 
consumers and businesses rely on to make 
well-informed decisions. The ENERGY STAR 
program is helping us all save money and 
protect the environment through energy-
efficient products and practices. We have 
more than 500 products that are ENERGY 
STAR certified. 
California Title 20 
Title 20 (T20) is a part of the California Code 
of Regulations and represents appliance 
efficiency standards that require the 
manufacturer of certain regulated products 
to certify that the devices meet minimum 
standards—among them, certain energy 
efficiency thresholds. T20 also restricts the 
sale of non-compliant products within the 
state of California. Most LED luminaires 
are not regulated by T20, but the list of 
regulated devices includes a number of 
lighting products, from LED lamps and 
downlight retrofit kits to exit signs. 
To be compliant with respect to a particular 
product, we must certify that the product 
has been tested by a California Energy 
Commission (CEC)-approved lab and meets 
the T20 requirements. Our portfolio includes 
over 3,000 T20 compliant products, and 
products meeting the certification provisions 
are listed in the CA T20 Appliance Efficiency 
Database or Modernized Appliance 
Efficiency Database System.
California Title 24 
Since 1978, Title 24 (T24) of the California 
Code of Regulations has set forth California’s 
Energy Efficiency Standards for Residential 
and Nonresidential Buildings. It is California’s 
Energy Code and part of the California 
Building Standards Code, covering 
new construction of, and additions and 
alterations to, residential and nonresidential 
buildings. 2019 changes to the Code will be 
effective on January 1, 2020.
Since T24 is a building design code, in 
general, lighting products do not have a 
product-level compliance path. However, 
T24 has a certification requirement for high 
efficacy residential lighting products found in 
Joint Appendix 8 (JA8). To be compliant with 
JA8, we must certify that the product meets 
the T24 JA8 requirements. Our portfolio 
includes over 500 T24 JA8 certified products, 
and products meeting the certification 
provisions are listed in the CA T24 Appliance 
Efficiency Database or Modernized Appliance 
Efficiency Database System.
DesignLights Consortium® (DLC) 
This non-profit organization is dedicated 
to accelerating the widespread adoption 
of high-performing commercial lighting 
solutions. The DLC promotes high-quality, 
energy-efficient lighting products in 
collaboration with utilities and energy 
efficiency program members, manufacturers, 
lighting designers, and federal, state and 
local entities. Through these partnerships, 
the DLC establishes product quality 
specifications, facilitates thought leadership, 
and provides information, education, tools 
and technical expertise.
Our portfolio includes over 46,000 DLC-
qualified products that appear in the DLC’s 
publicly available Qualified Products List.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  21
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

PARTNERSHIPS AND 
MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS
We are an active member of our industry. We meet with our peers on an ongoing basis to share 
best practices and discover new ways to save energy.
U.S. Green Building Council 
LEED, or Leadership in Energy and 
Environmental Design, is the most widely 
used green building rating system in the 
world. Like Acuity Brands, LEED is focused 
on continuous improvement and aims 
to improve energy performance while 
emphasizing human health and integrative 
building design.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  22
Acuity Brands, Inc.
Southface 
For the last 40 years, Southface Institute 
has been a leader in the research, design 
and implementation of a regenerative 
economy for the Southeast. The institute is 
a group of change makers with a laser-focus 
on generating the outcomes that lead to 
vibrant, healthy communities for all. We are 
proud that our Senior Vice President and 
General Counsel serves on the Southface 
Board of Directors.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

Social
We are dedicated to helping build a better, more connected world by 
positively impacting the health, well-being and safety of our associates and 
the communities in which we operate. We aspire to do more than just avoid 
harm—we want to improve, enrich and transform the lives of our people.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  23
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL 
GOVERNANCE
WE’RE PEOPLE 
PEOPLE
“When we fully engage our associates 
—when Acuity Brands is a community 
rather than just a workplace—we 
enhance the diversity of ideas and 
approaches that drive business growth 
and improved financial results. It also 
becomes more fun to come to work.”
    Karen J. Holcom 
Senior Vice President and 
Chief Financial Officer

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WORLD-CLASS PERFORMANCE
MANAGEMENT SYSTEM
Performance Monitoring of 
Safety Activities 
We prefer to focus on leading indicators in 
managing safety performance—identifying 
the events, conditions and behaviors 
leading up to a possible incident to 
proactively identify known or potential 
exposures that could cause harm to our 
people or property. Of course, we are still 
quite proud of our incident rate, which 
is 60% lower than the lighting fixture 
manufacturing industry average. 
Our relentless assessment and elimination 
of hazards and minimization of EH&S risks 
results in each Acuity Brands facility having 
a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) in this 
area. This KPI–unique to each facility–defines 
activities and establishes line accountability, 
ownership and participation opportunities 
for each associate and the facility as a whole. 
Furthermore, our system identifies and 
prioritizes addressing the most serious 
hazards first; and provides a platform for 
compliance with all relevant government 
requirements. It is a shining example of 
our culture of excellence and continuous 
improvement, making problems visible and 
enabling us to act swiftly to resolve them.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  24
Acuity Brands, Inc.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
At Acuity Brands, a core value is the health and safety of 
our associates. That is why we drive associate safety by 
providing a work environment that incorporates world-class 
health and safety management practices.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
3.40 
Total Recordable Incident Rate of our industry
1.34
Acuity Brands’ Incident Rate

ASSOCIATE 
WELL-BEING
We care about our associates and want to help them live healthy, 
active lives. To that end, we offer health and well-being education 
that strives to help associates find the ideal work/life balance.
A big part of being—and staying—healthy is preventive care. 
That is why we offer a suite of tools to encourage all associates 
to take good care of themselves. For example, we provide 
free company-wide wellness screenings, as well as annual 
breast cancer screenings for both associates and spouses at 
our Mexico locations. Associates can also access apps on their 
phones that gamify fitness and wellness, help predict health 
care costs and connect them with immediate care. We even 
offer timely health reminders and challenges to make preventive 
care fun and engaging.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  25
Acuity Brands, Inc.
1,150
Wellness screenings conducted at 12 Acuity 
Brands locations
2 X
We are committed to doubling the number of 
associates taking advantage of our preventive 
care offerings
 
2020Goal
Associate engagement 
score of 78
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
2022Goal
Associate engagement 
score of 85

AN EMPHASIS ON ASSOCIATES
We are continually working to make Acuity Brands a place where people want to work—from engagement initiatives such as Dress 
Your Way to affinity groups for our associates. Our most recent associate survey, conducted in 2019, was expanded to our hourly 
associates for the first time. This initiative has allowed us to move towards engaging with our entire workforce in order to identify 
potential development opportunities across the organization. The results show that this is having a positive effect: seventy-seven 
percent of associates responded to the survey and our engagement score for fiscal 2019 is ahead of the benchmark at 71.
Helping Associates Engage 
We believe our engagement work is effective because it offers associates ways to engage that fit their individual interests. From 
affinity groups to sports and fitness, we work to provide an environment where people can thrive.
MAGIC: Minorities Amplifying Growth, 
Inclusion and Community 
An associate saw a gap and created 
this group, which is designed to foster a 
supportive, nurturing environment to help 
minority associates realize their full potential 
at Acuity Brands. MAGIC, which embraces, 
celebrates and recognizes the power of 
diversity, is open to all associates.
Women’s Network 
This group organizes networking events, 
lunch-and-learns and an engaging guest 
speaker series. It also sponsors a Women’s 
Leadership Summit and a Women in 
Lighting Design education series. Women’s 
Network events are open to all associates.
Sports Leagues 
The Acuity sports leagues encourage 
our associates to get active together 
and connect with associates across the 
organization. We are pleased to offer 
company-paid registrations for intramural 
basketball, bowling, golf and kickball 
leagues at participating facilities. At our 
Mexico facilities, we support a robust 
soccer community consisting of over 850 
players on nearly 70 teams, all playing two 
seasons per year.
Fitness Programs 
Several of our locations offer an on-site 
fitness facility. For locations without an 
exercise area, we recently launched pilot 
programs that include on-site yoga, boot 
camp, a running club and Zumba.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  26
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
We believe that being connected to our 
communities is critical for our success as a 
company. We want our associates to feel 
connected too—both to each other and 
to their communities. That way, we can all 
make a positive impact in the communities 
where we work and live.
Part of that impact comes from the 
philanthropic initiatives we support, such as 
Finish the Ride, a charity run/walk/bike event 
in honor of a fallen colleague, supporting 
the American Heart Association, the Boys 
and Girls Clubs and other charities.
Other initiatives/causes include:
  •  American Red Cross® Blood Drive
  •  Dress for Success®
  •  Hands Across Rockdale
  •  Hospital Universitario, Monterrey, 
Mexico – Financial and Volunteer 
Contributions
  •  Kaiser Permanente® Corporate Run, 
Walk & Roll
  •  The Needy Family Fund – Feeding 
Families in need in Rockdale County, GA
  •  PAWS – Animal Shelter Drive
  •  Toys for Tots®
Light the Way: Helping Those in Need 
In October 2019, we partnered with 
Feeding America with a goal of fundraising, 
collecting canned goods and packing meals 
for needy families. We have significantly 
exceeded our goal, packing more than 
60,000 meals. We have now added a 
second Month of Service in April 2020, 
greatly increasing the impact we can have 
in our communities.
Getting Involved in Mexico 
Our associates in Mexico have developed 
a robust community engagement program. 
One partnership with local hospitals 
provides meals for the visiting families 
of patients, with money donated by 
associates, prepared by cafeteria staff 
and delivered by associates. Another 
partnership with Alianza Anticáncer Infantil 
takes deposit bottles and cans from our 
Monterrey plant and recycles them, with 
the proceeds benefitting cancer research. 
And their onboarding process includes time 
on the assembly line getting familiar with 
components and processes – regardless of 
position in the company.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  27
JIM H. MCCLUNG LIGHTING RESEARCH FOUNDATION
Acuity Brands helped establish the foundation 
in 2001 to honor Mr. McClung’s many 
contributions to the lighting industry and 
to create a permanent legacy to the former 
president of Lithonia Lighting. 
The first foundation of its kind, it provides 
grants to teachers, scientists and visionaries 
in the lighting industry who are working to 
improve the human condition through lighting 
research. Since its inception, the foundation 
has provided $1.3 million in grants. The 
foundation’s most recent research investigates 
the connections between indoor lighting and 
circadian rhythms, showing how lighting can 
lead to improved health outcomes.
1937-2019
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  28
Acuity Brands, Inc.
Public Safety & Security 
One of the core benefits of lighting is to 
support safe and secure buildings and 
public spaces. Emergency lighting and 
exit signs from Acuity Brands contribute to 
the protection of human life in emergency 
situations by directing occupants to areas 
of egress and providing temporary lighting 
if and when the power goes out. Designed 
and engineered by our industry experts 
with features like cutting-edge LED optics, 
self-diagnostics and the latest battery 
technology, we offer life safety products 
that deliver outstanding performance for 
interior and exterior applications.
Superior Optics 
Lighting solutions are often selected based 
on aesthetics and energy efficiency, but 
superior optical control is also critical to 
provide the right light, to the right location, 
at the right time. For interior lighting 
applications, Acuity Brands offers luminaires 
with superior optical performance, 
multiple light distributions and precise 
light placement to create visually pleasing 
and comfortable work, learning and 
entertainment environments. For outdoor 
lighting applications, superior glare control 
improves visibility and comfort while 
enhancing safety and security. 
Light Pollution & Trespass 
With an outdoor lighting application, 
a major consideration is how the 
lighting solution impacts the immediate 
environment, including the visibility of the 
nighttime sky as a result of light pollution, 
or light trespass of unwanted light onto 
neighboring properties. Several Acuity 
Brands outdoor lighting solutions are 
designed specifically to minimize light 
trespass and promote the preservation of 
the nighttime sky.
Humanistic Lighting 
Acuity Brands provides solutions that 
promote humanistic design criteria for 
healthcare, offices, education and other 
applications with the use of controls and 
color tuning. Using the tunable white 
feature, spaces can be designed to 
promote intellectually stimulating learning 
environments and promote alert and rest 
times in schools and healthcare facilities.
USING LIGHTING TO IMPROVE 
OUR COMMUNITIES
We strive to improve and enhance the well-being of the communities where we live and work, through 
thoughtful lighting and building management solutions.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

Governance
Simply put, our focus is on doing the right things, in the right way. We expect 
each of our associates, suppliers and business partners to do the same.
EarthLIGHT metrics for fiscal 2020 will form a portion of the personal 
performance factor for all of our associates, including senior leadership, and 
will influence compensation and other decisions.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  29
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
DOING IT RIGHT 
“How we do business really does 
matter for all of our stakeholders 
and helps us light the way to a 
better world. I am very proud of 
our EarthLIGHT program and our 
continued focus on keeping integrity, 
our people and the environment at the 
forefront of all that we do.” 
    Barry R. Goldman 
Senior Vice President and 
General Counsel

GOVERNANCE 
AND LEADERSHIP
Our Certificate of Incorporation, By-Laws, Corporate 
Governance Guidelines and various other governance 
documents can be found on our Corporate Governance 
page. These documents represent the primary governing 
principles under which the Board of Directors and 
Management of Acuity Brands fulfill their responsibilities to 
customers, associates and shareholders. The Governance 
Committee of our Board of Directors oversees our 
corporate environmental, social and governance strategy, 
policies and procedures.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  30
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE
Size of Board
10
Independent Directors
9
Lead Director
Yes
Average Age of Directors
66
Average Director Tenure
10
Annual Election of Directors
Yes
Majority Voting in Director Elections
Yes
Board Diversity Policy
Yes
Female & Minority Board Members
30%
Board of Directors as of November 1, 2019

BOARD SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
The Company seeks to maintain a Board comprised of talented and dedicated directors with a diverse mix of skills, 
backgrounds and expertise in areas that will foster the Company’s continued business success and that will reflect 
the diverse nature of the business environment in which the Company operates. For purposes of Board composition, 
“diversity” includes, but is not limited to, differences in business experience, age, gender, ethnicity, race, national origin 
and geographic background.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  31
Acuity Brands, Inc.
AREAS OF DIRECTOR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
DESCRIPTION
ACCOUNTING
4
Experience as a principal financial officer, principal accounting officer, controller, public 
accountant or auditor, or experience supervising such person(s)
FINANCIAL
6
Knowledge of finance or financial reporting, experience with debt/capital market 
transactions and/or mergers and acquisitions
GOVERNANCE
3
Understanding of public company operating responsibilities and with issues commonly 
faced by public companies
INDUSTRY
3
Experience in the Company’s businesses and industries, including innovative technology, 
electronics, lighting and system controls
LEADERSHIP
10
Significant leadership experience, including serving as a CEO, senior executive, division 
president or functional leader within a complex organization
MARKETING
4
Experience in branding strategy and customer relations
OPERATIONAL
5
Experience in operations in many different places and under varied conditions
STRATEGIC
10
Experience in strategic planning in a large multinational organization
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

DOING 
BUSINESS RIGHT
Our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct and related 
policies apply to all our associates and business partners, 
including our officers, agents, distributors and suppliers 
worldwide. We have achieved and will continue to achieve 
success by ensuring we conduct our business the right 
way. This includes awareness about our Ethics Helpline and 
encouraging associates to raise concerns.
Upon joining Acuity Brands, all salaried associates receive 
training on our Code of Ethics and Business Conduct and 
related policies. In addition, 100% of salaried associates 
receive annual training on our Code and re-certify their shared 
commitment to doing business the right way. In fiscal 2020, 
we plan to expand that to include hourly workers. 
Code of Ethics and Business Conduct
EH&S Policy Statement
Anti-Bribery and Anti-Corruption Program
Privacy and Security
Product Quality and Safety
Policy and Standards
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  32
Acuity Brands, Inc.
 
2022Goal
100% of associates - salaried and 
hourly - complete the required Code of 
Ethics modules
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

OUR PEOPLE
We value the ideas, innovation, contributions and diversity 
our associates bring to our organization. We do not tolerate 
discrimination or harassment and respect our associates’ 
rights to freely choose their employment, to join or not 
join unions or labor associations, and to work in a safe and 
healthy work environment.
Human Rights Policy
Whistleblower and Non-Retaliation Policy
Equal Employment Opportunity and Anti-Discrimination Policy
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  33
Acuity Brands, Inc.
OUR PARTNERS
Our values and commitment to doing business right 
extends to our business partners as well. Our business 
partners have obligations under our Code of Ethics and 
Business Conduct and related policies, as well as the 
additional policies listed here:
Supplier Code of Conduct
Conflict Minerals Policy
California Transparency in Supply Chains Act Statement
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  34
Acuity Brands, Inc.
PRIVACY AND 
DATA SECURITY
We strive to be a trusted partner to our customers – 
particularly when it comes to the privacy and data of 
our customers and their customers. Associates expect it 
and customers increasingly want it. That is why we have 
made privacy, data security and cyber security part of our 
governance program.
We have two security teams – one for enterprise systems 
and another for products and services. These teams 
aggressively identify opportunities to enhance the 
company’s security posture. They use tools including 
third-party penetration testing, application and network 
vulnerability scanning and architectural analysis to further 
enhance security, and they benchmark their results 
against industry standards (including CIS Controls and 
SAMM). Each team meets regularly with our legal and 
risk management teams and senior executives with 
management reporting on these issues at least annually 
to the Board of Directors.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  35
Acuity Brands, Inc.
ETHICS 
HELPLINE
Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, our Ethics Helpline 
enables our associates and third parties all over the world to 
ask questions or report concerns. In fiscal 2019 we simplified 
the process for an individual to submit a concern via the on-
line portal, which we expect to create a better associate or 
third-party experience and ease of reporting.
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT
We engage with our stakeholders throughout the year to improve our understanding of the types of 
environmental, social and governance issues that are most important to them.
EarthLIGHT Report 2019  36
Acuity Brands, Inc.
ASSOCIATES
CUSTOMERS
INVESTORS
COMMUNITY
HOW WE 
ENGAGE
Annual EH&S Conference
Periodic Surveys
Professional Development 
and Affinity Groups
Quarterly Town Halls
Social Media
Industry Conferences
Ongoing Continuing 
Education 
Onsite Customer Events 
Product Demonstrations
Social Media
Trade Shows
Voice of the Customer 
Roundtables
Annual Stockholders 
Meeting 
Conference Calls
On-Site and Off-Site 
Meetings 
Quarterly Earnings Calls
Philanthropy 
Volunteering
KEY ISSUES
Associate Engagement 
Career Development
Recognition and 
Appreciation
Safety and Well-being
Training 
Innovative Designs/
Solutions
Outstanding Service
Privacy and Data Security
Product Quality
Warranty
Capital Allocation
ESG Matters
Executive Compensation 
Financial Performance
Environmental Stewardship 
Financial Support
Vibrant Communities 
Volunteering
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

EarthLIGHT Report 2019  37
Acuity Brands, Inc.
CERTIFICATIONS AND AWARDS
We are honored for the recognition we have received from a wide variety of organizations. For example, recently 
Acuity Brands was named one of the best employers in the state of Georgia by Forbes.
Awards referenced above are limited to product specific categories. All trademarks displayed are the property of their respective owners. 
Content in this report may contain forward-looking statements, including statements incorporating terms such as expects, estimates, plans, or intends. This report is intended only to summarize certain 
of our efforts related to our EarthLIGHT program and is not intended to replace or supplement the company’s audited financial statements or filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and 
undue reliance should not be placed on this report. Actual results of these efforts could differ materially from the company’s summary of current plans goals and expectations. 
OVERVIEW
ENVIRONMENT
SOCIAL
GOVERNANCE

1170 Peachtree Street, NE, Suite 2300 
Atlanta, GA 30309-7676  
1-404-853-1400
acuitybrands.com