IFC’s facilities make up one quarter of IFC’s carbon footprint and contributes to the environmental footprint through energy, water, and waste
impacts. That is why IFC is committed to improving the sustainability of all its office spaces in the Washington, DC headquarters and country offices.

HEADQUATER INITIATIVESIFC is a global institution with more than 100 offices worldwide HQ
office buildings in Washington, DC account for half of IFC’s officespace with over 1 million square feet and over 3,000 workstations.
IFC’s Corporate Real Estate team works to create bothtechnological and behavioral adjustments to the way the HQ office
functions to save energy, reduce waste to landfill, and conservewater.
Meeting Sustainability Standards:
The two buildings comprising IFC’s HQ are both certified LEED
Platinum for Existing Buildings by the United States Green Building
Council (USGBC). LEED, or Leadership in Energy andEnvironmental Design, is the most widely used green building
rating system in the world and is especially prevalent in developed
economies such as the United States. Practices that contribute toLEED certification include energy efficient lighting, lightingsensors, and efficient cooling systems.
IFC HQ has achieved the United States Environmental Protection
Agency’s EnergyStar certification for existing buildings nearly 20times since 1999. The EnergyStar label is awarded to buildingsthat are rated in the top 25% of energy efficient buildings acrossthe country, meaning that year-on-year IFC’s HQ remains one of
the most energy-efficient buildings in Washington, DC.
In FY19, 70 solar panels were added to the rooftop providing
renewable power to the facility. The panels generated 22,070 kWhof energy in FY21 saving 15.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent. This is the same as saving 38,823 miles of emissions
from a gasoline powered vehicle or powering 3 average U.S.
houses for one year.
Reducing and Recycling Waste at All Stages:
IFC has introduced several programs to reduce landfill waste
including paper-saving towel and napkin dispensers, managed
print services, and office supply reuse programs. In addition, thecollection and recycling of multiple waste streams – including
electronic waste - is available at many office locations.
HQ is planning a return to compost collection after discontinuing
service due to contamination levels. While composting, HQ
achieved landfill diversion rates of 87% (FY14). In recent years
without compost collection, diversion rates dipped down to 62%(FY20) as food waste is sent to landfill. FY21 data reflects an 20%
diversion rate as most waste operations ceased during pandemic
era home-based work. As IFC works to resume its compostcollection, it has an opportunity to return to diversion levels
upwards of 90%.
IFC requires construction contractors and subcontractors torecycle as much building material as possible. Contractors arealso responsible for recycling of construction materials (i.e.,carpet tiles, acoustic ceiling tiles, metals, etc.). When interiorrenovations are made, IFC’s Corporate Real Estate team seeks
to repurpose and reuse office furniture. In situations where this is
not possible or feasible, IFC donates office furniture including
desks, tables, chairs, and bookcases to local charitableorganizations.
IFC’s HQ has replaced all plastic bottles sold on-site with glass,aluminum, or cardboard packaging, and all drinking fountains
provide filtered tap water to reduce bottled water purchases. All
catered meetings at HQ default to pitchers of filtered water tofurther reduce unnecessary bottled water. Additionally, sensorbased water fountains were installed to promote increased use ofreusable containers.
Cutting Water Use:
Water efficiency measures save over 4 million gallons of water
annually and include low-flow toilet flush valves and urinals, lowflow sink faucets in bathrooms and pantries, low-flow shower
heads in fitness center locker rooms, and rain sensors to allow
watering of landscaped vegetation to be based on actual rainfall.
HQ conducts water audits to examine additional opportunities forwater reduction and to ensure water is not wasted throughleakage.
Sustainable Food:
IFC implements several food sustainability measures to ensuresustainable sourcing and proactive waste efficiency. The foodoutlets at HQ follow sourcing standards such as purchasing cage
free eggs, rBGH-free milk and yogurt, and reduced antibiotic
chicken and turkey. Additionally, all seafood purchased isapproved by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch
Program.
As of FY20, IFC reports HQ food sourcing related emissions tothe Cool Food Pledge - a collaborative initiative with World
Resources Institute - to track and report this type of emissions
with the aim of WBG-wide reduction of 25% by 2030.
In FY21, HQ installed a rooftop garden which grows herbs andvegetables including collard greens, okra, chard, peppers,rosemary, sage, and thyme. There are several co-benefits
associated with rooftop gardens. They capture stormwater andreduce heat island effects which help reduce energy consumption

For HQ water and waste data, please see tables below. For ourelectricity use data, please view the IFC Carbon Neutrality
Commitment factsheet found hereby cooling the surface of the roof. A beehive was placed next tothe garden to aid pollination, provide a safe habitat for bees, andhelp the local ecology. IFC donated over 400 pounds of produce
from the garden to a local nonprofit from two seasons ofharvesting.
HQ Waste Diversion

IFC HQ

FY14

FY15

FY16*

FY17

FY18

FY19

FY20

FY21**

Compost20%

17%

3%

Recycling

67%

68%

63%

61%

60%

66%

62%

20%

Landfill13%

15%

34%

39%

40%

34%

38%

80%

Diversion
Rate

87%

85%

66%

61%

60%

66%

62%

20%

*- Compost collection discontinued due to contamination. Plans to return composting in development.
**- Switch to home-based work had significant impact on waste diversion.

HQ Water Use
IFC HQ(gallons)

FY16

FY17

FY18

FY19*

FY20**

FY21***

Water

12,284,509

10,924,551

12,253,794

13,729,888

10,701,998

6,596,823

Wastewater

8,985,600

6,872,353

8,252,128

7,996,533

7,064,101

2,915,518

Total

21,270,109

17,796,904

20,505,922

21,726,421

17,766,099

9,512,341*- Water use increased with the addition of added office space from our 2nd HQ building.
** - Water use dropped in FY20 due to switch to home-based work in Q4.
***- Water use dropped significantly in FY21 due to switch to home-based work for entire year.

COUNTRY OFFICE INITIATIVES
Most of IFC’s Country Offices are in buildings that IFC does notown. While this limits improvements which can be made to theexterior envelope, we continue to design more environmentallyfriendly interiors. Water and energy efficiency are particularly
important given that IFC operates in areas where resources areoften strained. For example, about 20% of countries in which IFC
operates are located in countries characterized by high toextremely high-water stress, as defined by the World Resources
Institute. Furthermore, IFC aims to locate offices in buildings thatare sustainably certified. Whether IFC’s own EDGE standard,
LEED, BREEAM, or other local standards, IFC makes the best
efforts to find buildings that perform better than business asusual.
When IFC owns its office, it has more latitude to make
improvements from the start. For example, IFC’s office in Accra,
Ghana, which is shared with the World Bank, was constructedusing green building design criteria and achieved EDGE
certification. The building features a green rooftop, rainwater
harvesting, and natural lighting. As a nod to the regional culture
and environmental preservation, a decades old Nim Tree was left
intact in the middle of the grounds,
surrounded by the four-story office structure. According toEDGE’s assessment, the building is 36% more energy efficientand 72% more water efficient due to its resource saving
initiatives.

IFC’s Corporate Real Estate team works to improve our offices
with efficiency projects. Heating and cooling spaces makes up a
great percentage of a building’s energy consumption. In FY20,
the Sao Paulo, Brazil location completed a HVAC system
upgrade to increase its efficiency. More HVAC system upgrades
have been identified for other office location improvements.
Additionally, on FY21, the Accra office completed mechanicalupgrades and added more efficient sump pumps.
All offices, whether leased or owned, can reduce waste anddivert more materials from landfill. Many offices have eliminatedplastic water bottles, many have recycling available within thelimitations of local infrastructure, and where possible, offices
participate in toner recycling schemes offered by manufacturers.
All offices also work to reduce paper waste by eliminating
redundant printers and preparing electronic meeting materials.
Finally, the World Bank Group, including IFC, uses EPEAT as astandard for IT procurement. This reduces not only energy use
but also a wide range of environmental hazards. WBG has been
awarded the EPEAT Purchaser Award for committing topurchase Laptops/Desktops/Monitors/Printers that are EPEAT
certified.
For inquiries, please contact Nicolas Douillet atndouillet@ifc.org.