Climate Week: A Turning Point for Business
Climate Week was the best I have ever known.
I do not say that lightly, or to talk up a moment simply because it has been a challenging year. I mean it.
Something changed in the climate community this week. It felt as if the gloves were coming off, and the chill of corporate silence was beginning to thaw.
We are still heading toward the same destination, but the path to how we talk about getting there has shifted.
In climate communications, the work often demands complex navigation, patience, and at times, nerves of steel. The U.S. is bruised and nervous after the election. It sent ripple effects through the global business community, leaving many uncertain about their next step. Yet in the discussions I joined this week, I left with something I had not felt for some time: a sense of determination and, above all, fight.
At the start of the week, we delivered an event attended by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. She was unequivocal in her call to remain focused on renewables. Businesses were there, but a little less visible. The conversations were being had behind closed doors rather than on stages. But in those side room conversations it was clear global corporates were getting on with their sustainability plans, just less visibly. Does this matter? Does this impact progress on sustainability overall?
For a while now, I have believed that, from a communications perspective, the new US administration has unwittingly provided the reset that was needed, though we did not recognise it at the time. Yes, in the US and parts of Europe the communications on businesses working on climate has gone quiet. But there is also another shift at play. Since the new US administration came to power, there has been a growing imperative that climate initiatives must make business sense. It is not enough to say we should act simply because it is the right thing to do. As we have seen, this sentiment alone does not shift boardrooms into action.
Unless we can show boards and investors the ROI of sustainability in these twin terms, we will not change the way decisions are made. The solutions that endure must deliver a net-net benefit: sustainable, profitable, and desirable. That is the sweet spot. And reaching it will demand more sophistication, more discipline, and more urgency than we have shown so far.
The We Mean Business Women Leaders event and Project Dandelion showed a fighting spirit that has been lacking somewhat in recent months, reminding us that while the challenges are immense, so too is the collective will to meet them. We need more voices, more proof, and more compelling business cases that make business sense. Silence is not the answer. We need to take ownership of the intersection of business and climate and make it a boardroom imperative.
Communications must get sharper, more business-focused, and more attuned to the questions boards and investors are really asking. We cannot leave them room to debate whether sustainability matters. For every decision, leaders must ask: will this deliver profit, is it sustainable, and is this an improvement for the customers? Only when all three answers align can we be confident we are building businesses fit for the future.
Climate Week New York turned out to be the biggest yet in terms of events on the ground. It might not have been the loudest, but the conversations behind closed doors were happening across the city. These discussions were less about ambition and more about practicality. We are moving into a new era of climate and business convergence, one that does not put sustainability in isolation, but where overall business decisions are driven by a balance of economic advantage, risk reduction, and long-term legacy building.
Get Ahead on Climate in 2026
Planning where to be and what to say on climate in 2026? We are launching a 45-minute strategy session for clients and friends, you can contact me here and I'll follow up with you directly.
