The Reuters Global Sustainability Report 2025 provides one of the clearest pictures yet of how organisations are navigating a rapidly shifting sustainability landscape – one defined by political challenge, regulatory complexity and rising operational risk. Despite the PR noise, the report shows something important: business isn’t rowing back on sustainability. Instead, leaders are reframing and
operationalising their commitments.
The survey covered sustainability professionals from organisations operating in Europe, North America, Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East and Australasia. Overall, sustainability is now being justified much less in terms of virtue and more linked to efficiency, resilience and risk management. This shift matters because it keeps sustainability at the heart of corporate strategy even when political headwinds seem to blow against.
Energy and decarbonisation
Across geographies, sectors and company sizes, energy and decarbonisation remain the top global priority, selected as the leading issue by more organisations than all other domains. Businesses are focusing on what delivers immediate returns:
- Operational efficiency improvements (46%)
- Investment in renewable energy (42%)
These approaches reflect a pragmatic turn: leaders are pursuing reductions that cut costs today while reducing emissions tomorrow. Importantly, Scope 1 and 2 emissions remain the primary measures of success, tracked by 68% and 62% of organisations respectively. But perhaps the most significant development is the rise in Scope 3 action, with more companies now engaging suppliers and recognising the strategic need to understand their full emissions footprint.
Skills and people
A major theme in the report is a decisive shift towards developing internal capability. Most organisations are choosing to train, reskill and upskill existing employees rather than hire outside expertise. This reflects two realities:
- Sustainability is becoming a core competency across all job roles
- Tight labour markets and budget pressures make internal development more viable
Waste and circular economy
The circular economy remains anchored in operational essentials: recycling waste from existing operations is the dominant strategy, prioritised by 45% of organisations.
Close behind are:
- Using recycled raw materials (35%)
- Reducing landfill waste (35%)
- Driving employee engagement in waste management (34%)
This suggests a maturing agenda: organisations are moving beyond slogans to practical, measurable resource-efficient action.
Human rights and DEI
Despite political pushback in some markets, DEI remains the leading strategy in the social domain, with 45% prioritising workforce DEI targets. Importantly, 54% of organisations have made no changes to their DEI programmes, and 20% have even expanded them. This is a powerful message: businesses continue to see DEI as a driver of talent attraction, innovation and competitive advantage – regardless of political rhetoric.
Nature, biodiversity and water
Unlike other domains, biodiversity strategies are highly diverse, with no single approach dominating. The most common is responsible sourcing (38%), followed by monitoring biodiversity risks (34%). Water is clearer:
- Water recycling/treatment leads at 70%
- Reducing consumption follows at 60%
Sustainability as business discipline
The report shows that sustainability is no longer an ethical add-on – it’s becoming a strategic management issue addressing efficiency, resilience and risk. Organisations making the most progress are those embracing sustainability in their strategies and business models and treating it as a source of competitive advantage.
The report contains clear actionable insights for business leaders:
- Treat decarbonisation as a productivity issue. Efficiency gains, energy savings and reduced exposure to volatile energy markets provide quick wins with strong board appeal
- Invest in workforce capability now. Create internal ‘sustainability fluency’ – from procurement to finance to operations – to reduce reliance on external consultants and accelerate delivery
- Build circular economy strategies from the ground up. Focus first on recycling, material efficiency and behavioural change – these deliver savings and build momentum
- Stay the course on DEI. Treat it as a strategic workforce investment, not a political battleground
- Expect increasing regulatory pressure around nature. Begin integrating biodiversity into procurement and risk frameworks before rules become mandatory
Contact Adrian Pryce on 07720 297402 or email adrian.pryce@northampton.ac.uk to discuss the report
Associate Professor
University of Northampton
Chair
Be. Partners Ltd
Chair
IOD National
Sustainability Group
