The 2026 World Sustainability Awards shortlist celebrates organisations, teams and individuals turning sustainability ambition into measurable environmental, social and business impact across 11 categories.
The World Sustainability Awards 2026 have revealed this year’s finalists, recognising organisations, teams and individuals turning sustainability ambition into measurable environmental, social and business impact. The shortlist spans 11 categories, covering carbon reduction, communication and stakeholder engagement, digital innovation, external collaboration, nature, rising talent, social impact, sustainability excellence, leadership, teams and sustainable innovation.
Finalists will be celebrated and winners announced on 22 October at The Garden of Amsterdam, at the conclusion of the World Sustainability Congress. Judged by a panel of chief sustainability officers and senior sustainability executives, the awards recognise both sustainability performance and business impact as organisations face growing pressure to demonstrate measurable progress rather than rely solely on long-term commitments.
2026 WORLD SUSTAINABILITY AWARDS FINALISTS
The finalists of this year’s World Sustainability Awards, by category, include:
Carbon Reduction
The Carbon Reduction category recognises organisations shifting towards renewable energy, improving infrastructure efficiency and reducing dependence on fossil fuels. Finalists include:
- Ardagh Glass Packaging
- BOKSER
- CBRE
- Diageo
- Drylock Technologies
- Foxconn Industrial Internet
- Henkel
- Hirdaramani
- International Flavors & Fragrances
- Lidl Netherlands
- Singapore EXPO
The category reflects the growing connection between decarbonisation, resilience and commercial performance.
Communication & Stakeholder Engagement
The Communication & Stakeholder Engagement category recognises campaigns and reporting that build trust, influence behaviour and communicate sustainability progress credibly. Finalists include:
- Axpo
- City Developments
- HH Global
- Hilti
- Mölnlycke Health Care
- PGESCO
- SGS
- TELUS
- Ultra Music Festival
The category comes amid intensifying scrutiny of environmental claims. Severe greenwashing cases have risen even as overall incidents have declined, while some organisations have responded by communicating less – a trend often described as greenhushing.
Digital Provider
The Digital Provider category recognises impactful uses of data, AI and software to help organisations achieve measurable sustainability goals. Finalists include:
- FincoEnergies
- Greater Than
- HEINEKEN Global Procurement
- Hilti
- KBC (A Yokogawa Company)
- Kyndryl
- osapiens
- SDEA
- ZeroNorth
Digital tools are playing an increasingly important role in carbon accounting, Scope 3 measurement, energy optimisation and supply-chain traceability.
External Collaboration
The External Collaboration category recognises partnerships delivering lasting sustainability impact across businesses, suppliers, governments, communities and NGOs. Finalists include:
- AstraZeneca
- Diageo
- dsm-firmenich
- Foresight Canada
- HH Global and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
- Hirdaramani
- Nynas
- Pentair
- Schneider Electric
- Syngenta
- Talawakelle Tea Estates
- Teva Pharmaceutical Industries
- The Good Rice Alliance
The category reflects the reality that challenges such as circularity, biodiversity and supply-chain emissions are often too complex for organisations to address alone.
Nature
The Nature award recognises organisations protecting and restoring biodiversity, water, forests and land. Finalists include:
- Barilla
- China Communications Construction Company
- EcoAct Tanzania
- Grassroots Carbon
- HEINEKEN Global Procurement
- Klong Phai Farm
- Syngenta
The category reflects growing recognition that climate strategy cannot be separated from nature, particularly for organisations exposed to biodiversity loss, water scarcity and ecosystem degradation.
Rising Star
The Rising Star category recognises emerging talent making a significant sustainability impact and demonstrating future C-suite potential. Finalists include:
- Toufica Ahmed, Bayer
- Nicolas Schnebelen, dsm-firmenich
- Krystel Araneda, DuPont
- Vaila Cameron, Glasgow City Council
- Erika Rumiche, Green Initiative International
- Marcos Burgos, HH Global
The category highlights the next generation of sustainability leaders expected to combine technical knowledge with influence, communication and commercial understanding.
Social Impact
The Social Impact category recognises organisations transforming people’s lives through their operations, products, services or supply chains. Finalists include:
- Bayer
- CBRE
- Diversey, a Solenis company
- Hilti
- IHS Towers
- Ingenio San Antonio
- Kelani Valley Plantations
- Siloam International Hospitals
- Sahan Cares
- Schneider Electric
- Sodexo Stop Hunger
- Suzano
- TE Connectivity
- TELUS
The category broadens sustainability beyond environmental performance to include workers, communities and wider social outcomes.
Sustainability Excellence
The flagship Sustainability Excellence award recognises organisations demonstrating strong performance across both environmental and social sustainability. Finalists include:
- Asahi Global Procurement
- ASM
- Henkel
- Hitachi Energy
- Intel
- Jabil
- Merck KGaA
- Natura
- Outokumpu
- Sodexo
- TELUS
- Ülker
- Waste to Wonder Worldwide
The category reflects the growing expectation that sustainability should be embedded into core business strategy rather than treated as a standalone programme. That direction is consistent with recent research showing sustainability investment is increasingly shifting towards projects that deliver direct business value.
Sustainability Leader
The Sustainability Leader category celebrates senior sustainability executives who empower teams, drive progress and embed sustainable growth into organisational strategy. Finalists include:
- Piril Kadibesegil Yasar, Allianz Trade
- Robert Trebus, d&b audiotechnik
- Scott Collick, DuPont
- Bertrand Conquéret, Henkel
- Madison West, Intel
- Lael Giebel, KnowBe4
- Oriana Raabe, Pentair
- Corina Grünenfelder, Schindler
- Kim Rapagna, TELUS
- Amalia Adler-Waxman, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries
The category reflects the increasingly strategic role played by chief sustainability officers and other senior ESG leaders across operations, investment, procurement and growth.
Sustainability Team
The Sustainability Team award recognises teams demonstrating shared purpose, collaboration, creativity and resilience in driving measurable progress. Finalists include:
- Allianz Trade
- AstraZeneca
- Boston Children’s Hospital
- HEINEKEN
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise
- KnowBe4
- Mars Food & Nutrition
- McCormick
- Merck KGaA
- Schneider Electric
- TE Connectivity
- TELUS
- Ülker
The shortlist reflects how sustainability increasingly depends on cross-functional collaboration across finance, procurement, HR, operations, technology and supply chains.
Sustainable Innovation
The Sustainable Innovation category celebrates newly launched products, services and business models designed to reduce resource intensity while supporting growth. Finalists include:
- Arclin – Nomex® EcoForce™
- ASM – Complete Kit Management
- HappyPower – Human-powered energy systems
- Hayleys Fabric – FlemFlexTex
- Hilti – Battery reuse programme
- Lidl Netherlands – Hybrid beef mince
- NantBioRenewables – Wave Ware straw
- Pentair – Xcentric Impeller
- Schindler – Low-emission steel elevator
- Siegwerk – Cirkit Oxybar White
- TELUS – Circular device strategy
- Universal Music Group – Tees Reborn
The category focuses on practical innovation outside the software space, particularly solutions built around efficiency, reuse, durability and circularity.
SUSTAINABILITY MOVES CLOSER TO CORE BUSINESS
Taken together, the shortlist reflects how the sustainability agenda is broadening. Environmental impact remains central, but organisations are increasingly being judged on how sustainability connects with:
- operational efficiency;
- supply-chain resilience;
- innovation;
- social impact;
- leadership;
- reputation and trust;
- regulatory readiness; and
- long-term commercial value.
The focus is shifting from ambition alone towards evidence of what organisations are actually changing.
FINALISTS TO BE CELEBRATED IN AMSTERDAM
All finalists will be celebrated live on 22 October at The Garden of Amsterdam, where the winners will be announced at the conclusion of the World Sustainability Congress. With categories spanning carbon reduction, nature, social impact, leadership, collaboration, digitalisation and sustainable products, the 2026 shortlist demonstrates how far the sustainability agenda has expanded.
Increasingly, organisations are being judged not just on environmental promises, but on whether sustainability is embedded into how they operate, innovate, lead and create value for people and planet.
Read more about the awards ceremony and shortlist here.
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