Empowering the next generation of Canada’s sustainability talent

Contributing authors: Dmitry Sidorov, Syndy Shi, Isabel de Verteuil, Ellen Ferguson, Johanna Fernandes, Brendan Gray, Zitin Munshi, Prashant Patel, Diwei Zhong

Young people are deeply concerned about climate change. Yet KPMG in the UK's 'climate quitting' research indicated that 64 per-cent of young professionals surveyed in the UK feel organizations lack appropriate mechanisms to incorporate young voices into strategic decision-making, particularly as it relates to climate and ESG ambition setting.¹ Leaders 2050 – a professional network led by KPMG for future leaders who have an interest in net zero, clean growth, and sustainability with a focus on diversity and inclusion – is stepping up to amplify the voices of young professionals across Canada. We host events across the country to give young professionals the opportunity to build connections, share experiences, and learn about work being done across industry.

The insights below were captured from discussions with participants attending our inaugural Leaders 2050 events in Canada² and represent challenges and opportunities for organizations looking to realize the potential of their future leaders.

Young professionals are pivotal in driving sustainability initiatives within their organizations and do so through various avenues.

• Young professionals play a crucial role in sustainability initiatives by organizing sustainability days and participating in programs which educate personnel on sustainability issues and offer training in ESG and finance, allowing them to creatively address environmental concerns and influence leadership on issues such as waste management. Overall, these programs that offer training and an opportunity to bring issues to leadership are still relatively new.
• The involvement of young professionals is essential for fostering diversity and innovation in sustainability efforts, as they can provide fresh perspectives and are encouraged to voice their opinions through platforms like conferences and sustainability days.
• Talent attraction and retention of young professionals is increasingly dependent on companies' ESG performance. Because of this, companies are increasingly recognizing the importance of sustainability, driven by government incentives and the need for innovative ideas, yet more efforts are needed to integrate sustainability into operations, such as in the procurement processes, across various sectors.
• There are numerous conferences and case competitions in academic institutions. Companies should consider these events as platforms for generating innovative ideas and potential collaborations.

Young professionals seek opportunities to develop quantitative and communication skills to support data-driven decision making and to advocate for action across their organization. 

• Young professionals want formal training around quantitative and technical skills and to be provided with opportunities to apply data analysis and impact measurement for sustainability use cases. Developing these skills can strengthen a young professional's ability to build an informed case around designing and implementing effective sustainability strategies and promoting data-driven decision making.
• Young professionals seek practical training in soft skills, such as public speaking, leadership, resilience, and adaptability, to effectively advocate for sustainability within their organizations. These skills will provide them with the confidence needed to engage with decision-makers, especially in organizations where leadership buy-in is challenging. By mastering the language of leadership, young professionals can demonstrate alignment with their organization's values and objectives and help bring to fruition more practical solutions.
• Young professionals want to see sustainability-related training and mentorship offered across their organization, including to individuals outside of sustainability and climate-related fields, to promote cross-collaboration and action across every function as well as provide guidance on their career in sustainability. Given that 53 per-cent of Canadian sustainability leaders cite a lack of talent as a significant barrier to achieve their organizations' sustainability goals, organizations should consider offering education and training in skills supporting all-round sustainability transformations.³

Young professionals seek opportunities for active discussion and knowledge sharing across all levels.

• Young professionals want their voices bolstered across their organization and to be provided with opportunities to express their ideas, concerns, and aspirations. 72 per-cent of young professionals feel their voices are not heard at leadership levels and 95 per-cent believe organizations need to improve the integration of young voices in decision making.¹ Activities, such as brainstorming sessions, working groups, leadership opportunities, and industry events can foster creativity, encourage critical thinking, promote active participation in sustainability issues and help them understand how they can truly make a meaningful difference. They can serve as a medium for young professionals to engage in dialogue with leaders and decision-makers and thereby influence policies and practices directly.
• Young professionals want a supportive working culture, where individuals earlier in their career are comfortable to share ideas and take risks. Young professionals identified having supportive mentors and senior buy-in as key factors which influence their comfort–level around speaking up and participating in activities to drive organizational change.

Young professionals identify greenwashing, regulatory, and physical risks as key sustainability-related risks for organizations.

• Young professionals are concerned about how organizations are communicating sustainability claims and sustainability targets and believe organizations should strive for ambitious goals while implementing proper compliance and risk management. Bill C-59 came into force on June 20, 2024, introducing anti-greenwashing provisions related to misrepresenting environmental and social claims. This concern is shared widely, as 81 per-cent of Canadian organizations victimized by fraud fear accidental ESG fraud which involves exaggeration or distortion of a company's environmental, social, and governance efforts.⁴
• Young professionals also believe emerging regulations will introduce unique challenges across industries as they determine reporting structures and navigate complex requirements. Specifically, these regulations include the EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the emerging Canadian Sustainability Disclosure Standards (CSDS) from the CSSB. When it comes to people's choices and habits, these are impacted by extent of government involvement in funding and regulatory approval as well.
• Young professionals believe that organizations should prioritize addressing climate-related physical risks, as they pose direct threats to organizations' operations. For instance, many sectors have been significantly impacted across Canada by the increasing frequency and severity of hurricanes, wildfires, and thunderstorms. Young professionals believe that identifying and mitigating physical risks within operations is critical and will require collaboration among members of both the private and public sector on broader climate adaptation work. 

Young professionals identify resource availability, organizational silos and ineffective measurement as key gaps that exist across industries.

• Young professionals identify the lack of financial resources as a barrier to integrating sustainability effectively into corporate strategy and across functions. 44 per-cent of organizations have identified insufficient resources and capacity as a top challenge to sustainability integration.⁵ Young professionals often see their organizations devoting money to operational needs rather than investing in long-term sustainability, as the longer horizon of sustainability makes it difficult for organizations to realize short term value in allocating resources. Aligning the ESG agenda with financial objectives is essential although it is seen as a key challenge. KPMG research shows that 21 per-cent of organizations identify that the difficulty of measuring the return on investment for ESG is a top challenge in allocating sufficient financial resources for ESG programs.⁵
• Young professionals believe sustainability issues are kept separate from the organization's broader strategic priorities, creating counter-productive silos. Silos are a challenge for sustainability integration among organizations, with 41 per-cent of organizations identifying internal silos and limited inter-departmental communication as a primary issue impeding cross-functional collaboration on sustainability matters.⁵ For those outside of sustainability teams, this means it's difficult to learn about and support sustainability efforts. For those within sustainability teams, this means sustainability ambitions often go unrealized or feel disconnected from the organizations overarching strategy.
• There is a sense that organizations' leadership lack awareness or understanding sustainability issues, their interrelatedness, and how they may impact the business. Some organizations lack the knowledge to meaningfully engage with relevant sustainability issues and understanding how action may positively influence their bottom line. Additionally, while environmental metrics have evolved significantly in recent years, participants identified that social metrics have not developed at the same rate. Insufficient social impact metrics often lead companies to hyper-focus on environmental and climate targets, overlooking any potential associated social impacts, which could result in negative impacts on overall well-being of individuals and communities. 

Both events underscore the critical role of young professionals in shaping sustainable practices within organizations. By providing them with the necessary skills, empowering their voices, and addressing the gaps in resources and organizational culture, companies can harness the potential of this generation to drive meaningful change in sustainability efforts.

The inaugural Leaders 2050 events in Toronto and Calgary are the first of many, bringing together a diverse group of young sustainability professionals from various industries to generate discussion and help participants build a deeper understanding of sustainability challenges and opportunities.