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Novata

November 2025

2025 State of Sustainability Report

Trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping sustainability leadership in a changing world.

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Executive Summary

The sustainability landscape is evolving fast. Expectations from investors, regulators, and stakeholders continue to rise, and organizations are under pressure to back commitments with credible, comparable data.

Novata’s 2025 State of Sustainability Report shares insights from nearly 250 sustainability professionals across industries and regions. The findings reveal a field that’s maturing quickly, building structure, and driving accountability, yet still tackling challenges in data quality, measurement, and resourcing.

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Report Highlights

1. Sustainability as a core business function is taking shape.

79%

of organizations now have a formal sustainability role or team, demonstrating market maturity and the mainstreaming of sustainability.

Written by

Image: 2025 State of Sustainability Report

Neil McCall

Senior ESG Analyst, Advisory, Novata

Laura Callaghan

Laura Callaghan

Head of EMEA Advisory, Novata

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2. Three clear priorities emerged as the backbone of current sustainability strategies:

  1. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions accounting and reduction planning
  2. Sustainability or ESG data management and data quality
  3. Regulatory compliance and reporting

40%

GHG emissions measurement and reduction

39%

ESG data management/data quality

33%

Regulatory compliance and reporting

3. Data management is the biggest hurdle.

60%

of survey respondents still rely on spreadsheets to track ESG data, highlighting the operational gap and need for digitization to improve data quality.

4. Regulation is driving progress.

38%
of organizations are preparing for or already complying with CSRD.
This is a notable figure given that only about one-quarter of respondents are headquartered in Europe with revenues over €50 million.

5. ROI remains the missing link.

47% of surveyed organizations say proving the business value of sustainability remains a roadblock. Data challenges and resource limitations lead to one overarching issue: demonstrating the business value of sustainability efforts.

"The next chapter of sustainability will be defined by value creation. Companies are no longer satisfied with checking the box; they want to see how sustainability drives efficiency, reduces risk, and builds resilience. That shift from compliance to performance is where real progress happens."

— Jessie Martin, Global Head of Advisory, Novata

ABOUT THE REPORT

The 2025 Sustainability Leaders Survey was fielded over six weeks, from August 20 to September 26, 2025. Novata gathered insights from 247 sustainability professionals to better understand their priorities, challenges, and the realities of how sustainability functions are structured today. Respondents represent a broad range of organizations, from early-stage companies to global enterprises, offering a diverse cross-section of perspectives across markets, company sizes, and sectors.

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Inside the State of Sustainability 2025

Unpack key findings from the report and get an in-depth look at how teams are defining and driving sustainability today, trends shaping the next phase of sustainability maturity, and practical insights for teams working to strengthen their sustainability programs.

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2025 State of Sustainability

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