Why businesses are going ‘back to basics’ in sustainability strategies

In the current landscape of geopolitical volatility and policy uncertainty, we’re hearing stakeholders use the term “back to basics” to describe their approach to sustainability. In this episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast, we bring you interviews with three speakers from the annual S&P Global Sustainable1 Summit who describe how businesses are navigating this environment.  

We sit down with Jessica Fries, executive chair of accounting for Sustainability (A4S), a not-for-profit that works with finance leaders to drive resilient business models and achieve a sustainable economy. She explains how financial decisionmakers are balancing near-term financial pressures with longer-term sustainability goals.  

“We don't see business leaders and finance leaders backing down from those long-term goals. I think everyone is very clear of the consequences of a failure to act with the kind of scale and speed that we need on climate and nature,” she says. 

We talk to Min Guan about how some companies are taking a pragmatic approach to balancing different energy sources and supply chains in the transition to a low-carbon economy. Min is head of systems insights at the Energy Transitions Commission, a global coalition of leaders across business, finance and the NGO space committed to reaching net-zero by 2050. She is also a director at sustainability consultancy and investment firm Systemiq. 

And we hear directly from an energy company grappling with this balancing act in an interview with Alex Grant, UK country manager for Norway-based Equinor. The company is the largest supplier of energy to Europe and has a portfolio that includes oil and gas, renewables and low-carbon solutions. Alex calls net-zero by 2050 the company’s “guiding star” but says the path won’t be straightforward.   

“The energy transition is going to be bumpy,” he says. “What does that mean in practicalities? It means investing across the energy space.” 

Listen to podcast coverage of the 2025 CERAWeek conference hosted by S&P Global here: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/podcasts/energy-transition-discussions-shift-to-pragmatism-amid-policy-uncertainty  

Learn more about the S&P Global Sustainable1 Summit in Singapore June 26, 2025: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/events/sustainable1-summit-2025    

Learn more about S&P Global’s Energy Transition data here: https://www.spglobal.com/esg/solutions/energy-transition?utm_source=All+Things+Sustainable+podcast&utm_medium=libsyn&utm_campaign=HSBCS1Summit&utm_id=All+Things+Sustainable+podcast  

This piece was published by S&P Global Sustainable1 and not by S&P Global Ratings, which is a separately managed division of S&P Global.   

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