Sustainability consultants are eschewing regulation in favor of presidency incentives as a option to drive sustainability progress.
In a survey performed by Trellis information accomplice GlobeScan, in collaboration with ERM and Volans, sustainability professionals mentioned monetary incentives and market mechanisms are broadly seen as essentially the most highly effective instruments for governments to advance sustainability within the subsequent 5 years.
Subsidies selling sustainable behaviors tops the record, with 72 p.c of consultants score them as high-impact. That is adopted by:
- Carbon pricing mechanisms (65 p.c)
- City sustainability initiatives (63 p.c)
- Worldwide commerce insurance policies with sustainability requirements (63 p.c)
Whereas regulatory and compliance-focused instruments reminiscent of necessary due diligence (57 p.c) and company reporting frameworks such because the EU CSRD (40 p.c) are additionally seen as a part of the answer, they’re seen as much less efficient with out complementary monetary drivers.
What this implies
The message to policymakers is evident: align financial incentives with environmental targets to attain sooner, broader progress. Regulatory frameworks nonetheless matter, however their influence is restricted until they’re paired with scalable monetary levers that change conduct and enterprise fashions at tempo. As we strategy 2030, the simplest technique will possible be a hybrid strategy that mixes sensible regulation with sturdy market-based incentives. This alerts an essential shift in how governments ought to construction sustainability coverage to drive measurable influence.
Primarily based on a survey of 844 sustainability practitioners throughout 72 international locations performed April-Might 2025.
