What Sustainability Recession? – Tim Mohin

By SDG News

julio 29, 2025

12:15 pm

John Elkington dubbed this year the “sustainability recession.” One thing worth remembering is recessions always end. There are early signs that the sustainability recession is ending, and the practice is emerging more focused, agile, and pragmatic.

The majority of surveys and corporate research released this year have busted the myth that sustainability is ‘woke’ and an expense to shareholders. In a great post from Adam Elman this week, he shared some studies showing that sustainability budgets are being maintained or increasing, and that business leaders are seeing positive ROI on sustainability.

I have highlighted some of his evidence here, as well as some of my own favorites:

JP Morgan’s “Sustainable Signals: Corporates 2025” found that 88% of sustainability creates value for their companies’ long-term strategy, up 3% from last year.
Deloitte research found that 85% of companies have increased their sustainability investments this year.
An Economist survey of Chief Sustainability Officers found that 77% have had their budgets remain the same or increase this year.
While businesses have been slower to release their reports this year, a Workiva survey found that 85% of companies plan to continue reporting, 97% of executives say sustainability reporting will be a business advantage within two years, and 96% of investors agree it strengthens financial performance.

This is just a snapshot of the recent research showing that sustainability and business value are synonymous. But, in this moment, demonstrating the value of our work has never been more important.

In the public sphere, support for government action on climate change has never been stronger. In the UK, a recent survey found that 89% of the public support climate action. In the U.S., the Trump Administration plans to scrap programs like Energy Star (which helps consumers select energy efficient appliances) are meeting with resistance from the public and industry. Commercial building owners, in particular, are trying to save the program as it helps them save billions of dollars a year in energy efficiency.

There’s no denying that sustainability is going through a crisis, and the recession may not have bottomed out yet. Recent research from Trellis found that 70% of experts think the sustainability backlash is intensifying. However, the data shows that investment in corporate sustainability programs is continuing, and businesses won’t abandon it in the long run. We are closer to the bottom of the cycle than the top, and my view is that the sustainability industry will learn from this pullback to emerge stronger than ever.