Voices of Sustainability: Best practices from sustainability professionals

Since Plan A was founded, in 2017, we have been engaging with sustainability professionals of diverse seniorities, backgrounds and industries on a daily basis. We know the work that goes into the reports and the decarbonisation activities happening in all those companies taking an active stance.

This initiative, the part one of "Voices of Sustainability," seeks to recognise the professionals dedicating their careers to accelerate the decarbonisation of the economy. We want to thank all the sustainability professionals who have contributed to the creation of this e-book, and all the readers with whom those stories will resonate.

We have selected testimonials collected over the years that capture the best practices and inspire meaningful actions within their professional environments and industries.

Throughout these testimonials, several common themes emerge. 

1. Effective communication, using concise and engaging formats for internal support and tailored messaging for various stakeholders, is essential for sustainability efforts.
2. Embedding sustainability within an organisation rather than isolating it within a single department stands out as a key to success. 
3. An entire network of experts, knowledge centres and forums have emerged organically. Sharing information and finding the right partners to support both sustainability and bottomline allows smaller teams to come to life and do more with less.

From innovative supplier engagement frameworks and impactful carbon management strategies to embedding circular economy principles and harnessing agile methodologies, the collected experiences provide a wide range of insights, applicable to businesses across the board.

These voices reflect the many women and men that work, often in the shadow, in sustainability management. Decoupling growth from carbon will not happen overnight. These voices remind us that this transformation will only happen through our will power and power of imagination. 

We hope that you will find inspiration and practical support in this resource. You are not alone in this work.