2025 marks the one quarter milestone of the 21st century, and the stakes could not be higher.

According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), 2024 was once again the warmest on record, capping a decade of unprecedented heat fuelled by human activities. It is the first-year global temperature passed 1.5C.  Climate impacts are becoming more widespread and devastating, intertwined with evolving crises in nature and conflicts worldwide.

“Today I can officially report that we have just endured a decade of deadly heat. The top ten hottest years on record have happened in the last ten years, including 2024,” said Secretary-General António Guterres in his message for the New Year and gravely emphasised, “This is climate breakdown — in real time. We must exit this road to ruin — and we have no time to lose.”

In 2025, Sustainability Magazine identified 10 Sustainability Trends that can help shape a more sustainable future across industries and geographies.

1. Reporting and regulation

As digital transformation accelerates, 2025 will see sustainability reporting and disclosure processes advance.

As sustainability disclosure requirements become more stringent and standardised globally, companies will face increased scrutiny – from stakeholders, consumers and employees – and potential penalties for greenwashing. Long-term sustainability goals, beyond 2030, will become more common, with companies adopting strategic foresight approaches.

2. Carbon

In 2025, carbon tracking and optimisation will become mainstream, with companies adopting AI-driven technologies to measure and reduce their carbon footprints.

The voluntary carbon market (VCM) is poised for significant expansion, driven by corporate Net-Zero commitments and strengthened climate policies.

Carbon capture technologies, including Direct Air Capture (DAC), will see increased efficiency and cost-effectiveness, leading to wider adoption and blockchain technology will revolutionise carbon credit markets, enhancing transparency, traceability and security. AI and big data analytics will optimise carbon sequestration projects and trading strategies. International collaboration will lead to standardised carbon credit methodologies and verification processes, facilitating cross-border trading. These trends will collectively accelerate efforts to combat climate change and transition to a low-carbon economy.

3. Sustainable finance

In 2025, sustainable finance is poised for significant growth, with ESG-linked financial products and green bonds taking centre stage.

The green bond market is projected to expand rapidly, potentially reaching US$2tn by 2025, with a compound annual growth rate of 25%. ESG investing is expected to surge as investors increasingly prioritise sustainable and ethical products. Green bonds and other sustainable finance instruments will continue to mobilise capital for climate change solutions, with governments and large companies using these tools to fund sustainability initiatives. Additionally, sustainability-linked loans will gain popularity, linking interest rates to desired ESG outcomes and encouraging companies to integrate sustainability into their operations.

4. Diversity, equity and inclusion

In 2025, diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts are intensifying, with companies setting more ambitious targets.

Practices will become more data-driven and technologically advanced. Organisations will leverage AI and analytics to identify biases, measure inclusion efforts and track progress in real-time. Intersectionality will take centre stage, with companies adopting more nuanced approaches to address overlapping identities. Inclusive leadership will be recognised as a core competency, with leaders trained to foster environments where all employees feel valued. Neurodiversity initiatives will gain prominence, supporting neurodivergent employees through tailored recruitment processes and career development programmes. Additionally, regulatory scrutiny is expected to increase, requiring businesses to report on diversity metrics and pay gaps, making transparency and actionable DEI efforts critical for success.

5. ESG

ESG metrics are rapidly becoming standard KPIs for C-suite executives, directly impacting their compensation. By 2025, this trend is expected to intensify.

Currently, 81% of companies globally use ESG metrics in executive incentive plans, up from 68% in 2020. In the US, the adoption rates surged from 52% in 2020 to 76% in 2023. Environmental metrics, particularly carbon emissions reduction, have seen the fastest growth as companies are increasingly tying these metrics to both short-term and long-term incentive plans. This shift reflects a growing commitment to sustainability, diversity and ethical governance, as well as a response to investor expectations and regulatory pressures.

6. Water stewardship

Water stewardship initiatives will become critical by 2025, particularly in regions facing scarcity.

With 1.8 billion people expected to face absolute water scarcity and two-thirds of the global population grappling with water stress, urgent action is needed. Countries like Lebanon, Pakistan and Afghanistan are already experiencing severe water shortages and industries are responding with ambitious targets, such as PepsiCo’s goal to replenish more than 100% of water used in high-risk areas by 2030. Governments and businesses are implementing water management plans, focusing on reducing water use, improving irrigation techniques and preserving ecosystems.

7. Circular economy

Circular economy models will be widely adopted in 2025, focusing on product life extension, reuse and recycling. Sustainable packaging innovations will accelerate, with companies moving away from single-use plastics.

8. Nature

Nature-based solutions (NbS) will gain significant prominence in 2025, with businesses ramping up investments in ecosystem restoration and conservation projects.

Annual investments in NbS are projected to reach US$384bn by 2025, more than doubling the current US$154bn. This surge is driven by the urgent need to address climate change, biodiversity loss and land degradation.  Private sector involvement is expected to increase dramatically over the coming years, rising from the current 17% of total NbS investments. Companies will integrate NbS into their operations, focusing on sustainable supply chains and offsetting unavoidable impacts through high-integrity nature markets.

This shift will be crucial in harnessing nature’s power to reduce emissions, restore degraded landscapes and halt biodiversity loss.

9. Energy

Investments in renewable energy will surge in 2025 as costs continue to decrease, with more companies committing to 100% renewable energy goals.

The numbers tell the story. The International Energy Agency (IEA) projected that investments in cleantech and infrastructure will hit US$2tn in 2024, roughly double the investment in fossil fuels.

10. Artificial Intelligence

AI has seen an incredible rise to global prominence in 2024, and that is going to continue into 2025 as AI and big data analytics will optimise sustainability efforts across operations and supply chains.

NOW CALLS ON GAME CHANGERS IN HOSPITALITY

ON REPORTING & REGULATIONS … NOW calls on game changers to change their game and gear up to regulatory scrutiny to avoid reputation damage and penalties.

– Strict EU regulations impacts the hospitality industry.

– Is your sustainability certification is legit?

– Three questions to ask your sustainability certification scheme provider.

ON CARBON … NOW help hospitality businesses to advance sustainability and transition to NET ZERO or better – NET NEGATIVE CARBON EMISSIONS with accountability, compliance and transparency. In tandem with reducing Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, carbon offsetting is a useful transition tool in the fight against global warming, but the carbon project must be high integrity, supporting 3+ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the carbon credits must be high-quality.  It buys us more time, helps preserve ecosystems and biodiversity, drives innovation and economic growth, enhances energy security and protects human health.

The NOW Force for Good Leaders offer to hotels provides access to high integrity carbon projects with high-quality carbon credits to manage risks and drive finance towards climate action activities that support 3+ SDGs. Hotels receive a rebate of up to 10,000 EUR with purchase to supplement sustainability budgets. Today, companies purchasing these high-quality credits are going beyond what they are required to do legally to tackle climate change. As leaders on climate action, they are responding to stakeholder demand and aligning with the SDGs on climate action and safeguarding the rights of the most vulnerable.

ON DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION … NOW has been tracking Gender Equity and Equality in the last decade and the rate of slow progress continues. The 2022 Gender Snapshot Report reveal that it would take up to 286 years to gain gender equity and equality. The 2024 Gender Snapshot Report revealed the overall progress is insufficient and discriminatory laws and other structural barriers dim prospects. Just six years before the 2030 deadline for the SDGs and not a single indicator under Goal 5, gender equality, has been fully achieved.

TODAY WE HAVE NO EXCUSE

In 1798, Thomas Malthus published an ‘Essay on the Principle of Population’ which states that the population tends to grow quicker than resources.

In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), which had been set up in 1983, published a report entitled “Our Common Future”. The document came to be known as the “Brundtland Report” after the Commission’s chairwoman, Gro Harlem Brundtland. It developed guiding principles for sustainable development which relates to the need to manage resources and framing it in the economic and social context of human development.

It has been 227 years since we learned that the global population outgrowing available resources and 38 years since the term sustainable development first appeared.

Back then, people could be excused for not knowing much or doing much about climate change. Today we have no excuse.

IT MUST BE NOW!