Back to the Blueprint

Acre's Headline Report into how 2025 is Redefining Global Sustainability Strategy 

Back to the Blueprint Report

A Global Outlook on the Future of Sustainability Leadership

As the sustainability profession stands at a pivotal crossroads, Back to the Blueprint explores what’s next. This forward-looking report brings together insights from global industry leaders and Acre’s own experts to examine the changes in the sustainability industry. This spans political and regulatory headwinds to sector-specific shifts and future talent demands.

Through commentary from leading voices across EMEA, APAC, and the Americas, the report offers a sharp, honest look at the barriers and breakthroughs shaping the profession. Whether you’re navigating the complexities of ESG regulation, building teams equipped for systemic change, or striving for real-world impact in decarbonisation and nature-based solutions, this is essential reading.

Why download?

  • Understand how shifting policies and investor expectations are redefining sustainability leadership.

  • Learn where industries like energy, automotive, and consumer goods are making the biggest strides, and where the gaps remain.

  • Get ahead of emerging talent demands, from commercial fluency to cross-functional influence and systems thinking.

Back to the Blueprint is a strategic tool and consultative forum for anyone serious about shaping the future of sustainable business.

The biggest challenge is avoiding a defeatist attitude. The collective feeling of ‘our work is going to be set back,’ is probably the most damaging thing that could happen in the coming year or even few years… Resistance movements through history have often achieved a lot more than officially endorsed societal movements.

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James Schaffer

Meet the collaborators

Alison Taylor

Clinical Associate Professor at NYU & Member of Unilever's Sustainability Advisory Council

Anthony Watanabe

CSO at Indorama Ventures PCL and Adjunct Professor at the Asian Institute of Technology

Michael Kobori

Independent Board Director of Bunge Global SA and  Ex-CSO of Starbucks

James Schaffer

Chief Strategy Officer at Wordly & Executive Leader in Tech and Sustainability

Mike Barry

Strategic Advisor on Sustainable Business and Co-founder of Planetary Alliance

Catherine Harris

Executive Director, Sustainable Business for Acre's Americas Region

Greg Brittian

Director of Sustainable Business for Acre's Asia & Pacific Region

Dan Bond

Head of Natural Resources and Manufacturing for Acre's Europe, Middle East & Africa Region

Andrew Cartland

Founder & Chief Impact Officer of Acre

More Thought Leadership from Acre

The Future of the Sustainability Profession 

Acre convened 150+ CSOs and senior sustainability executives for a digital event in April that explored the future of our profession and what it will take to thrive in it. Now we’ve distilled those insights into a free resource designed to equip sustainability professionals and leaders with practical foresight and perspective.
Our panel of leading experts - John Elkington, Angela Jhanji, Michael Kobori (he/him), and Catherine Harris - tackled some of the most urgent and complex topics facing the sector today. From the shifting role of sustainability functions and the impact of AI, to leadership in the face of global uncertainty, the conversation was both candid and catalytic.

We've got the world's best talent pool of sustainability professionals to unlock and explore.

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Future of the Sustainability Professional

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