How to lead on sustainability in the rise of greenhushing
Sustainability leaders have been navigating a period of uncertainty. While they work to keep their initiatives afloat, they can also prepare for a more stable future.
The tides are turning for environmental, social and governance initiatives.
Since its inception, ESG has experienced waves of interest among businesses. The most recent wave of sustainability focused on regulatory requirements and compliance, and on how they can help build a business case. Last year, that wave started to break.
After years of sustainability professionals developing and shaping environmental regulations in the U.S. and globally, the Trump Administration rolled back many of them, fostering a culture of distance from ESG rather than support. This has led to an influx of greenhushing, which is a silencing of businesses' environmental efforts. And sustainability teams are still standing -- even if they're a little shaky.
So, what's next? Amid uncertainty, sustainability leaders are prioritizing value creation, risk management and resilience, preparing for the tides to turn once again.
"This down wave will pass. … The other thing to know about waves is that they are growing, so the next wave up will be bigger than the previous wave," said Solitaire Townsend, co-founder and chief solutionist at Futerra, a sustainability consulting and professional services firm, in a session at the GreenBiz conference in Phoenix.
Where does greenhushing come from?
Part of the rise in greenhushing comes as the Trump Administration pushes for deregulation of sustainability acts, making these initiatives less time-sensitive and no longer legal obligations.
Additionally, many businesses that have invested in sustainability over the last decade or so might have executive teams that don't realize this is a down wave, Townsend said. Without a strong brand identity or foundation around sustainability, many organizations may retreat from or abandon these strategies, said Dylan Siegler, senior vice president and head of sustainability at Universal Music Group, in a session at GreenBiz.
However, any organization with global operations must still adhere to the sustainability regulations of countries outside the U.S., and these policies might change again under a future U.S. president. Hence, greenhushing: Organizations aren't stopping their sustainability efforts, but they also aren't shouting them from the rooftops.
For sustainability leaders in those organizations, this down wave doesn't mean their jobs will be nonexistent in the near future. Instead, the present moment can represent a time to step back and refocus their efforts more efficiently.
How to prepare for the future during volatile times
Volatility presents sustainability leaders with the opportunity to return to basics and get to the heart of ESG's value to the company, said Dr. Matt Gardner, founder and managing partner of Sustainserv, a sustainability consultancy.
"Draw straight line connections between the activities you're doing and the business value that the company is interested in creating. … It raises a really interesting question, which is really fun to have with boards and C-suites, and that is, 'For you, what is value?'" he said in an interview.
Most often, this value comes back to financial performance. Yet, organizations can benefit from other forms of value, with straight or dotted lines back to finance, Gardner said.
For example, any ESG framework involves investments in people. Whether this is training for sustainability best practices, employee health and safety programs, or diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, these investments often directly lead to improved employee experience. When employees feel and perform better, the business also performs better.
"It immunizes you … You can simply say, 'Listen, I'm a CEO of a publicly traded company. I have a fiduciary responsibility to maximize value creation for my shareholders. And we have determined that if we invest in training our people well … we have data that shows this is better for our business. Aren't we obligated to do that then? And to be rigorous in that?'" Gardner said.
This investment in communication is essential, as sustainability leaders are used to being the underdog in their businesses, Siegler said. During previous times of uncertainty, sustainability leaders may have backed off from being rigorous if their business didn't prioritize ESG, and waited for the next up wave to dive back in. This time, sustainability leaders can't roll over.
"Stop being so apologetic about what we believe and about what we know to be true," Siegler said.
Additionally, sustainability leaders are investing in risk management and resilience. Investors who see sustainability-related issues as a potential risk or opportunity want to know that the business they partner with understands the risks and is mitigating them, because that's a better investment for them. It also benefits the business and prepares it for future volatility.
What's next for sustainability?
Sustainability professionals haven't lost hope. These waves have peaked and crashed before. As the seas start to settle, the work that sustainability leaders do now will help them prepare for the next up wave.
And the next up wave might come sooner than anticipated and be bigger than ever before, Townsend said. For now, sustainability leaders can focus on investments that deliver the greatest value for their businesses and shape the narrative for sustainability's next up wave.
"We'll continue to see the settling of the stormy seas. … The business community is going to continue to settle down and realize we need to keep doing this stuff … in a way that is not going to cause macro problems that many people thought it would. It's still going to be that settling out and clarification of messages and the motivations behind why companies are doing this," Gardner said.
Michaela Goss is a senior site editor for the IT Strategy team at TechTarget.
