Hispanic Heritage Month Spotlight: An Interview with Lorenzo Cardenas, VP of ESG at DRA Advisors

Hispanic Heritage Month Spotlight: An Interview with Lorenzo Cardenas, VP of ESG at DRA Advisors

As a company founded by Hispanic founders, Cambio is proud to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month by spotlighting leaders who are transforming real estate through innovation, sustainability, and inclusive leadership.

Today, we're honored to feature Lorenzo Cardenas, VP of ESG at DRA Advisors. Lorenzo's career journey reflects a unique ability to connect technical rigor with practical implementation. His perspective on sustainability combines sharp strategic thinking with the resourcefulness and creativity that comes from his Latino heritage, making him a powerful voice for the future of sustainable real estate.We sat down with Lorenzo to discuss his career journey and his vision for embedding decarbonization into operations.

You've built an impressive career from MSCI to DRA Advisors. What has your journey taught you about leadership, and what drives your passion for sustainability in real estate?

At MSCI, I learned to translate complexity into insight. At DRA Advisors, I've seen that true progress comes from connecting data with human decisions, how teams, tenants, and investors use that information to act.Right now, Capital is asking for climate data, resilience plans, and transparency. The current noise around sustainability doesn’t change the direction of the future; it just demands we be sharper, more creative, and more disciplined in how we get there.

How do you approach ESG in a way that drives real value?

When you measure what's already happening across your portfolio (energy, resilience, tenant satisfaction) you don't just collect data, you create direction. That's the kind of clarity that drives value and impact simultaneously.

What advice would you give to emerging professionals from underrepresented backgrounds who are entering real estate?

As a Latino in this field, I've realized that strength lies in resourcefulness, not in having all the answers. We grow up making do, adapting, finding solutions when the map doesn't exist. That kind of practical creativity, mixed with a bit of buen humor, is exactly what sustainability needs to move forward.

Looking ahead, what impact are you most proud of driving in real estate?

Looking ahead, I see the objective as very clear: embed decarbonization into what we call "operational efficiency." Cambio is built for that. It ties data, retrofit planning, and operational intelligence into one platform so that you can drive carbon reductions and operational performance hand in hand. (Spoiler: when you do it right, the financials respond.)

Thank you, Lorenzo, for showing us that the future of sustainable real estate lies in resourcefulness, strategic clarity, and making the business case impossible to ignore.