Inside HDR’s efforts to reduce emissions and inspire its people

HDR is a 100% employee-owned, global firm specialising in architecture, engineering, environmental and construction services.

The company is known for adding beauty and structure to communities through high-performance buildings and infrastructure. Its multidisciplinary teams include scientists, economists, builders, analysts and artists.

HDR joined CitySwitch in 2024. The team realised the company’s own corporate sustainability and well-being program aligns with CitySwitch goals.

We spoke with senior associate strategy and briefing specialist Cintia Misto. Like many people, she manages internal sustainability initiatives on top of her day-to-day job.

What actions have you introduced and how effective were they?

Energy: When we looked at our energy use, we noticed it was increasing.  We shared this information with our employees and ran an office-wide competition focused on reducing energy use. Reminders were tagged to random computers to switch off monitors and laptops. Notes in meeting rooms were placed to prompt people to switch off lights. Good behaviour was incentivised with the promise of an ice cream party. Energy use has decreased as a result.

Travel emissions: We supported Walk to Work Day and hosted a breakfast at the finish line. We encouraged employees to integrate walking into their daily routines and rewarded those who travelled the longest distances. Many employees experienced our building’s end-of-trip facilities for the first time that day. Some who had never considered walking to work enjoyed the experience so much they’re now doing it regularly.

Single-use plastic: We introduced a shared pool of reusable bags in the office. For events where we provide gifts to employees, we chose to give plastic-free items to build on that effort.

Waste: Our landlord Dexus ran an informative lunch and learn session about waste in our building. Waste is being weighed so we can track our progress and we’re looking at upgrading bins. We've also hosted a clothes swap event. Employees were invited to bring unwanted clothes and we set up a shop in the office for a week. People could take home any items they wanted. All items left were donated to a thrift store.

Community care: On Clean Up Australia Day, we dedicated time to clean a local park. This helped strengthen our collective commitment to environmental stewardship and helped build a culture of conservation and care among our people. One of our clients saw our team and contacted us to say they were really impressed. This made us feel very proud.

By running monthly events, we’ve found employees have become more connected. They’re now actively suggesting new ideas and expressing interest in upcoming events.

What’s been unexpected or surprising on your quest to reduce emissions?

The complexity around waste was surprising for me.

How has CitySwitch helped you? What have you found beneficial?

CitySwitch has given us extra motivation to act. We’ve found the travel emissions and waste guides useful. And the guides on power purchase agreements, GreenPower and Large Generation Certificates (LGCs) helped us understand the local energy market and explore better supplier options.

What are some of the challenges you face?

Travel emissions is a tricky area for us. We’re trying to find a good balance between the benefits of face-to-face meetings and reducing emissions from travel.

What’s next?

We’re looking to change over to renewable electricity.

What tips do you have for other businesses?

• You need a working group to make things happen.

• Start somewhere. Something may seem small, but everything adds up and builds momentum. It’s easy to underestimate the ripple effect.