C-Suite Remains Committed to Sustainability as a Top Priority Heading into 2026

While regulatory uncertainty and anti-ESG backlash dominated headlines in 2025, surveys of global C-suite leaders reported an increased commitment to sustainability. In our Top Stories this issue, SustainabilityOnline.com said a new report from Reuters found that 75% of C-suite leaders rate sustainability as a ‘top priority,’ an increase of six percentage points from six months ago.

The Reuters IMPACT: Global Sustainability Report 2025 also found that close to two-thirds (64%) of organizations remain committed to net zero and have not altered their targets. The full Reuters report, which gathered insights from more than 500 global decision-makers, is available for download at the link in our Top Stories below. Among the key findings from the report are:

• 61% of C-suite leaders cited emerging sustainability-related risks as a main factor for prioritizing sustainability, including risks from climate impacts, supply chain vulnerabilities, and resource constraints.
• Other operational risks cited include customer expectations, reputational risk, and regulatory changes.
• Organizations are adapting their strategies including reframing sustainability messaging, with 39% of organizations emphasizing terms like “efficiency” and “resilience” rather than more traditional sustainability terminology.
• 34% of C-suite leaders reported making no changes to sustainability strategy or communications.
• Organizations scaling up sustainability goals (30%) outnumbered those scaling down (9%) by more than three to one.

The Reuters report closely tracked the findings of the UN Global Compact’s 2025 CEO Study published in September 2025, in which 88% of CEOs said that the business case for sustainability is stronger now than it was five years ago. This study, conducted in partnership with the global professional services firm Accenture, is based on a quantitative assessment of nearly 2,000 CEOs across 128 countries, as well as in-depth one-to-one interviews with CEOs, chairpersons, and presidents of UN Global Compact member companies.

In another of our Top Stories, BusinessChief.com highlights the findings of the UN Global Compact’s report along with Deloitte Global’s 2025 C-Suite Sustainability Report, which for the fourth year surveyed more than 2,100 executives across 27 countries. The results of Deloitte’s report also indicated that sustainability remains a top-three priority on the C-suite agenda, alongside technology adoption and artificial intelligence (AI).

The full Deloitte report is available for download at the link in our Top Stories below. Key findings include:

• 83% of companies increased sustainability investments in the last year.
• 66% said their priority actions have a positive impact on revenue generation.
• 79% are transforming their business model or embedding sustainability throughout their organization.
• 81% are already using AI to support their sustainability efforts.

As we head into 2026, companies are focused on ensuring that their sustainability investments and strategies are delivering tangible results for stakeholders. The G&A team is available to provide counsel to CEOs and the entire C-suite to help your company move your sustainability programs forward. Reach out to us at info@ga-institute.com.