Chaos, climate and corporate risk: What 2025 taught us about sustainability’s future

The Sustainable Views team discuss the chaos of 2025 and what to expect from the coming year in sustainability, litigation, technology and environmental policy.At the end of the year the full Sustainable Views editorial team gathered to talk about the biggest sustainability stories of 2025. From environmental rollbacks in the EU and US to climate attribution science in the courts, data centres’ energy use and tropical forests, the team runs through what they saw and what it means for businesses.Philippa, Elizabeth, Florence, Erin and Aniket also look ahead to 2026, detailing what they will be keeping an eye out for, where further deregulation is likely, and what businesses need to know as they kick off a new year.00:00 - Sustainability and policy making in 202506:13 - UK energy and nature debate11:58 - Litigation and AI trends17:50 - COP30 and the future outlookWant to learn more about #sustainability policy in 2025 and beyond? Subscribe to Sustainable Views here.Required reading:Companies need coherence — fragmentation is still a structural riskEU 2040 target deal sets the stage for carbon pricing reforms in 2026Can fiduciary reform close the gap between pension climate rhetoric and reality?Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As COP30 in Belém, Brazil comes to a close, Sustainable Views editor Philippa Nuttall sits down with reporter Florence Jones to unpack the key outcomes of this year’s pivotal climate summit. In this episode, they break down the biggest announcements, assess which climate commitments made headlines, and explore what was left out of the final COP30 agreement, from finance to fossil fuels.Philippa and Florence also look ahead to the future of COP negotiations, examining how the structure of the conference may evolve and which voices could shape global climate policy in the years to come.For deeper analysis on global climate diplomacy, sustainable finance and ESG regulation, visit Sustainable Views.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast — available on all major platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube — and catch new episodes every month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Sustainable Views, editor Philippa Nuttall is joined by acting deputy editor Elizabeth Meager and reporter Florence Jones to preview COP30, the next major UN climate conference set to take place in Brazil.They explore what’s at stake as world leaders, negotiators and activists gather to assess progress since the Paris Agreement and whether countries are on track to meet their 2030 climate goals. They also discuss the key themes expected to dominate the talks, from climate finance and adaptation to the role of emerging economies in the global energy transition.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast, available on all major platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. A new episode is released each month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Sustainable Views, editor Philippa Nuttall is joined by acting deputy editor Elizabeth Meager and reporter Florence Jones to discuss the rising trend of climate litigation. With the backlash in Europe and the US against more stringent climate regulations, individuals and activists are turning to the courts to fight for climate justice.This episode looks at some of the recent landmark cases brought against governments and companies as well as the emergence of attribution science and how that may help strengthen legal cases brought against polluters.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast, available on all major platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. A new episode is released each month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In September, Sustainable Views Acting Deputy Editor Elizabeth Meager attended New York Climate Week. In this episode she sits down with Sustainable Views editor Philippa Nuttall to discuss the key themes that emerged and what they reveal about the state of climate policy and finance.While corporate and political ambition was on display, many conversations focused on implementation gaps, financing difficulties, and the challenging political climate in the US when it comes to environmental and energy policy.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast, available on all major platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. A new episode is released each month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In July, Sustainable Views carried out a survey of sustainability professionals to understand how the sector has been evolving after a tumultuous 12 months.Sustainable Views editor Philippa Nuttall sits down with acting deputy editor Elizabeth Meager and data journalist Aniket Narawad to discuss the results of the survey and to drill down into how sustainability is being viewed in corporations in 2025 and how the role of sustainability officer is changing.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast, available on all major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. A new episode will be available each month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sustainable Views Editor, Philippa Nuttall joined the Let's Talk Sustainable Business Podcast earlier this week, a podcast from The Conference Board.Philippa Nuttall is the Editor of Sustainable Views - an ESG-focused service created by the Financial Times - which offers a daily newsletter, analysis and a policy tracker. In this episode, we talk about how the media landscape has evolved in the last 20 years - especially its digitalisation and focus on social media, how businesses have changed the way they talk about sustainability and the best way for companies to reach journalists when they are seeking media coverage.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sustainable Views Editor, Philippa Nuttall joined the Let's Talk Sustainable Business Podcast earlier this week, a podcast from The Conference Board.Philippa Nuttall is the Editor of Sustainable Views - an ESG-focused service created by the Financial Times - which offers a daily newsletter, analysis and a policy tracker. In this episode, we talk about how the media landscape has evolved in the last 20 years - especially its digitalisation and focus on social media, how businesses have changed the way they talk about sustainability and the best way for companies to reach journalists when they are seeking media coverage.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the aftermath of the devastating floods that hit central Texas in July, Sustainable Views editor Philippa Nuttall spoke to acting deputy editor Elizabeth Meager about US climate policy and the insurance industry.As the federal government aggressively deregulates on climate, the costs of natural disasters are continuing to increase, and climate change is making them both more frequent and more extreme.While insurance companies are ostensibly on the frontline, both they and market analysts insist the industry is well insulated, for a number of reasons. What many view as an insurance crisis may actually be a broader societal, systemic crisis.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast, available on all major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. A new episode will be available each month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A summer of high temperatures and more extreme storms has laid bare some of the issues within our global food system. But why is it so hard to enact reforms to improve what we eat and how we make our food?Sustainable Views' Elizabeth Meager speaks with Florence Jones about what steps the UK government is taking after high temperatures and unpredictable weather exacerbated food prices, with staples like potatoes increasing 22 per cent between January and February 2024. Florence also looks back on Leon restaurant founder Henry Dimbleby's food strategy review in 2021 and what has changed since one of the more punchy reviews seen in Westminster in the past few years.Editor Philippa Nuttall explains how the EU is facing the impact of climate change on farming, with the recently passed EU budget giving some sense of the direction of travel. But it is not just in the fields that climate change is being felt. Increasing drought is making transport along the Rhine and other key routes more difficult and changing consumers habits is the area no legislator seems to want to broach.Subscribe to the Sustainable Views podcast, available on all major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube. A new episode will be available each month.Sustainable Views is an intelligence service by the Financial Times Group. To stay up-to-date, subscribe to our newsletter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.