Sustainability is now the top corporate priority for one in four organizations. Most are working toward net-zero goals: 80% aim to get there by 2050, and 72% plan to cut emissions by half by 2030.

These findings come from the Forbes Research 2025 State of Sustainability Survey, which was conducted between January and March and gathered insights from over 1,100 global executives across 10 industries as well as cities and communities. Respondents shared how their companies are addressing energy use, waste reduction and other pressing environmental issues.


Which industries are demonstrating the most commitment, and which are falling behind?

The energy sector leads. Most execs in the industry (82%) ranked sustainability among their top three priorities. Energy also showed the largest increase in commitment: Three years ago, just 26% of industry leaders flagged sustainability as a top-three focus.

Manufacturing (76%), healthcare/life Sciences (74%) and infrastructure/construction (74%) also indicated that sustainability is a high priority.



Which Industries Are Following Up On Their Commitments?

Just because industry executives say they’re putting a priority on sustainability doesn’t mean they’re following through. In fact, when it comes to progress on the oft-cited goal of eliminating net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a different set of leading industries emerges.



How Top Industries Are Tackling Sustainability

Among the industries taking the lead — whether by prioritizing sustainability or by following through on emissions reductions — several named water management as their top sustainability initiative. Seventy-four percent of infrastructure/construction and hotels/restaurant respondents listed water as their current focus, along with 70% from manufacturing and 68% from the energy sector.



Going forward, AI and analytics-based sustainability programs are expected to gain in popularity, with 65% of infrastructure/construction and 60% of manufacturing making those tech tools their top priority over the next year. AI and analytics already rank first among financial and healthcare/life sciences respondents, and are expected to remain their priority in the coming 12 months.