Andreea Ciobanu, Hagag Development Europe takes the stage at Environmental & Sustainability Summit 2023

Andreea Ciobanu, Chief Marketing Officer at Hagag Development Europe, takes the stage as a speaker in Panel 3 of Day 1 at the Environmental & Sustainability Summit 2023. The event, hosted at The Marmorosch Bucharest, Autograph Collection, will take place on October 4-5 and will discuss relevant topics such as sustainable food and water consumption, eco-communities, renewable energy sources, and circular economy.

With nearly 13 years of professional experience in the MARCOMM industry, Andreea Ciobanu has been building, marketing, communicating and inspiring brands – both commercial and personal – since 2010. Between 2018 and 2021 she acted as an external Communications Consultant for Hagag Development Europe, officially joining the company in early 2022.

Andreea took over the Chief Marketing Officer role a few months later, and is now responsible for all the marketing and communications initiatives within the company, developing and managing the marketing strategies for a portfolio currently comprising 9 real estate developments spanning multiple industry segments, a serviced offices product, and the brand communication efforts, constantly measuring and optimizing the marketing funnel and programs to ensure that all activities are effective, efficient, and demonstrate ROI.

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Prior to the event, Andreea Ciobanu sat down with Business Review to preview the topics she will explore at #ESS2023 in an exclusive interview:

How do you feel about Romania’s progress in terms of sustainability and energy efficiency in the real estate sector?

There is a lot of talk about sustainability and energy efficiency lately, though Romania, compared to some other EU member countries is far behind on this chapter. In reality, if we are going to move the needle, one cannot ignore the real estate sector. Statistics show that 75% of the buildings in the EU were built before 1990. In Romania this percentage goes up to 88%. Considering the EU’s ambitions to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, maybe we should all recognize, appraise, and focus more on the added-value that the real estate industry – through its new, modern, energy efficient developments and its urban renewal efforts – brings to circular economy, to the environment, to the urban fabric, as well as to the urban communities and to local economies. Moreover, when it comes to the “E” factor, let’s not neglect the fact that ambitious circular renovation strategies are estimated to save up significant amounts of greenhouse gas emissions between 2020 and 2050, depending on the scale of renovation. To this, the further development of nZEB-compliant buildings and the redevelopment of former industrial platforms are added.

Can you share specific initiatives or projects that your company has developed, that promote sustainability?

As real estate developers, we are partially responsible for the quality of living within the cities we operate in. And for us, at Hagag Europe, the aim is to develop and build durable projects for both the current and future generations to enjoy. Projects that comply to the current international standards and anticipate future trends. Projects that transcend time. Accordingly, whether we are “recycling” and reviving old buildings, thus preserving the city’s heritage architecture, and safeguarding the environment, or redeveloping disaffected land plots with visible potential for quality living, and regardless of whether we are talking residential or commercial, our company commits to all sustainability facets: social, economic, and environmental. All the projects we delivered so far – H Victoriei 109, H Victoriei 139, H Tudor Arghezi 21 and phase I of H Pipera Lake – are good examples of sustainable practices in our industry.  

In the context of urbanization VS social well-being, how does your company contribute to the social dimension of sustainability?

If we take into consideration that over half of the world’s population is currently living in urban areas, it is safe to emphasize that there is still much to say and do about the social facet of sustainability. Especially in Romania, where 56,3% of the country’s inhabitants are living in urban areas, and over 10% (2,26 MLN) in Bucharest and Iflov. Of course, we cannot neglect the rapid urbanization trend happening across the main cities in the country, neither we can oversee the fact that the public authorities together with the private business environment are making visible progress (a quick look to Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Iasi, or Alba-Iulia can confirm) in terms of planning the development of smart, connected cities and in encouraging the ongoing development of sustainable communities. Here is where we, as investors and developers, come in to close the circle. Because we create social value by taking into consideration not just profits or the market value of a property, but the benefits that our work can bring to society by promoting and delivering novel projects with positive social and environmental outcomes, creating new jobs, and building qualitative, long-lasting assets.

What lays the foundation for your choices when it comes to the development of new projects?

As we see it, context is everything. Our projects are designed to connect people and places. Every time we start working on something new, we ask ourselves ‘who benefits?’ and ‘what does this project bring to the table?’. Ultimately, our purpose is to maximize the social & economic value across the lifecycle of our projects, from planning to occupancy, to develop a building that is not only functional and useful, but that also generates social change for the better. As a plus, real estate development is not just about the built environment or about social well-being, it is also about preserving the historical buildings of a city, about creating new ones, about contributing to economic welfare, and about sustainable urban renewal.

Join Andreea Ciobanu and a roster of key industry players at the Environmental & Sustainability Summit 2023. Join us at The Marmorosch Bucharest, Autograph Collection, on October 4-5, and take an inside look at what the top speaking guests have to say about creating a new normality through sustainable means.