Why 2025 became the year sustainability stopped being optional for big business

How the UN Global Compact says 2025 proved change was possible — and why it matters

The UN Global Compact’s wrap-up of 2025 makes a bold claim: last year turned a long-standing promise into visible progress. After years of slow movement and missed targets, the group argues that businesses moved from talking about sustainability to taking repeatable, measurable steps. That change matters because it means climate and social goals started to shape investment, hiring, procurement and regulation in ways that look durable rather than temporary.

That doesn’t mean every firm suddenly became green. Instead, the UN Global Compact points to a set of linked developments — clearer policy signals, bigger corporate commitments, and new cross-industry coalitions — that together pushed sustainability from the margins into core business planning. For customers, workers and citizens, the difference in 2025 was that commitments began to produce day-to-day results, not just glossy reports.

Policy moves, corporate pledges and coalitions: the shifts that sped change

Several big forces converged in 2025. Governments in many regions tightened rules and set clearer targets, which reduced the uncertainty companies had long blamed for slow action. At the same time, large companies made bolder public commitments on emissions, supply chains and worker standards — often linked to deadlines and external verification. Those pledges were no longer mostly marketing gestures; they were tied to contracts, financing and executive pay in more cases than before.

Another new element was the rise of cross-sector coalitions. Corporations, financial firms and civil-society groups began forming issue-specific alliances to solve practical problems — for example, decarbonizing particular industrial supply chains or improving traceability for raw materials. These coalitions brought technical help, pooled demand and created shared roadmaps that smaller suppliers could realistically follow.

Finally, markets responded. Sustainability-linked loans and other finance tools became simpler and more common, making it cheaper for companies to fund transitions and nudging suppliers to meet standards. Together, these trends created reinforcing incentives: policy nudges, corporate demand, and finance came together in ways that accelerated real change.

Numbers and real-world examples that backed the UN Global Compact’s claims

The UN Global Compact’s review leans on several concrete outcomes to make its case. It points to faster adoption of low-emissions technologies in energy-intensive sectors and to pilot programs that showed measurable cuts in supply-chain emissions. In retail and food supply chains, for example, coordinated procurement pushes helped shift buying toward lower-impact suppliers, creating clear signals for commodity producers.

Other examples involve workforce and human-rights steps that moved from policy to practice. Firms reporting progress on worker safety, living wages and gender equity said those changes reduced turnover and improved productivity in pilot markets. Where companies committed to verified traceability for key materials, audits showed fewer violations and clearer paths for corrective action.

On finance, the report highlights that more loans and bonds were tied to sustainability metrics and that those products increasingly used independent verification. That made it harder for companies to claim progress without producing measurable evidence.

What leaders and partners said about the momentum in 2025

Representatives of the UN Global Compact described 2025 as a turning point where ambition met implementation. A spokesperson emphasized that the focus shifted to “scalable solutions” and “shared action” across sectors. Corporate partners celebrated the clearer policy and market signals that made long-term investments less risky.

Not everyone was wholly upbeat. Some NGOs warned that progress was uneven and that strong outcomes depended on independent oversight. Policymakers acknowledged the gains but stressed that tougher enforcement and better data will be needed to avoid backsliding. Those differing perspectives underscore that momentum exists, but it is not yet automatic or universal.

What 2025’s momentum means for companies, regulators and civil society in 2026

For companies, the practical takeaway is that sustainability is increasingly baked into regular business choices. Procurement, capital allocation and talent strategies now respond to sustainability benchmarks. That creates both opportunity and pressure: firms that move early can win market share, while laggards risk being priced out of important supply chains or facing tougher regulation.

For regulators, the lesson is that clearer rules and predictable signals work. Policymakers who set consistent standards and enforcement frameworks increase the chances that corporate commitments deliver results. Civil-society groups will likely focus on strengthening verification and protecting vulnerable communities from unintended harms as the pace of change picks up.

Risks remain. Progress can stall if political support wanes, if data quality lags, or if supply-chain bottlenecks make transitions costly for small suppliers. But the broad arc in 2025 suggested a higher chance that sustainability goals will be met through a mix of policy, corporate action and finance — rather than through voluntary reporting alone.

How organizations can act now — practical resources and next steps

The UN Global Compact and partner groups point to several practical steps organizations can take to build on last year’s momentum: set clear, time-bound targets; tie progress to procurement and finance; join or form sector coalitions to solve technical barriers; and invest in third-party verification so claims are credible. Updated sector roadmaps, verification frameworks and guidance documents released in 2025 can make these steps easier for companies of any size.

In short, 2025 didn’t finish the job. It did, however, show that sustained progress is possible when policy, markets and civil society move together — and that practical, scalable steps now will matter more in 2026 than ever before.