In this episode of Sustainability Matters podcast, host Alexis Gazzo brings together Global EY leaders Ruth Guevara and Bruno Sarda to explore whether the global climate conversation is genuinely moving from ambition to action. Recorded ahead of Climate Week NYC 2026, the discussion tackles how extreme weather events — from record heat waves to devastating wildfires — are shifting physical climate risk from a future scientific model to an immediate operational reality for global businesses.

The panel addresses the challenge of navigating a fragmented geopolitical landscape as companies prepare for COP31. The guests also examine the evolving reporting landscape, discussing whether frameworks such as the ISSB are creating real business value or simply making organizations busier.

In this episode of Sustainability Matters podcast, host Colin Tetreault, Managing Director, Climate Change and Sustainability Services, Ernst & Young LLP, explores the shifting environmental landscape of the sports industry. As North America enters an unprecedented era of mega events, a critical question emerges: Is the massive environmental footprint of sports a standard business liability, or can it become a powerful driver for operational resilience?

Colin is joined by Heather Watkins, co-founder of Bold Reuse, to break down the operational realities of tackling single-use waste at scale. The conversation confronts major logistical and economic challenges, mapping out the impact of rising supply-chain costs for single-use products and upcoming Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) legislation in the US.

The episode offers an inspiring look at how sports venues act as a "cultural beacon" for innovation. Heather explains how implementing reusable packaging systems not only cuts costs but also drives local jobs, community engagement and new corporate sponsorship revenue.

In this episode of Sustainability Matters podcast, host Christian Orth explores how Siemens is using sustainability reporting as a powerful management tool to help steer business performance. As new regulatory frameworks such as CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) roll out, he explores whether ESG disclosure is simply an administrative burden or a tool to drive real value.

Christian is joined by Thomas Knobloch from Siemens AG and Caroline Pfaff, Partner at EY Germany to break down the practical reality of ESG reporting. Together, they look at the challenge of complex global data, tracking how organizations can move past chasing "perfect" real-time metrics and instead prioritize immediate progress over perfection.

They discuss the real-world operational challenges, how Siemens successfully built a 360-degree target framework directly into its board-level decisions and how focusing on material KPIs, like carbon intensity and product carbon footprints, can simultaneously mitigate long-term risk while unlocking competitive advantages.

Through it all, Thomas and Caroline highlight that building a strong company culture is what can drive true organizational transformation as well as the opportunities to unlock real business value.

@2026 Ernst & Young LLP

In this episode of Sustainability Matters, host David Rae, EY Global Lead for Sustainability Technology and Innovation, explores the impact of AI on climate change. As AI companies build massive data centers worldwide, a critical question emerges: Will the skyrocketing resource footprint of AI push global grids past their limits, or will AI become a vital tool to help accelerate the energy transition?

David is joined by James Grabert from the UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and Michael Lepech from Stanford University to break down the duality of this digital megatrend. Together, they look at the physical reality behind "the cloud," tracking how AI is driving a massive surge in electricity demand while also leaving an extensive water footprint through data center cooling and the lifecycle of chip manufacturing.

However, they also identify areas of opportunity. The episode offers a hopeful look at "decision intelligence." The guests explain how AI is already delivering measurable climate benefits — from transforming early warning weather models in the Global South to balancing power grids and optimizing renewable energy.

In this episode of the EY Sustainability Matters podcast, Bruno Sarda hosts a discussion with Mark Greatrex, President of Cox Communications, and Tom Kiernan, CEO of American Rivers, about the pivotal role of water in supporting communities and businesses. The guests emphasize that, amid increasing challenges such as nature loss, pollution, drought, flooding and climate extremes, safeguarding rivers is now more critical than ever for commercial interests and economic health.

The dialogue explores how organizations can deepen their understanding of their reliance on healthy river systems, advance solutions through collaborative efforts, and promote water-positive and nature-positive practices.

Additionally, the speakers underscore the importance of strategic partnerships in achieving watershed-scale outcomes. Effective collaboration between businesses and nonprofit organizations facilitates data sharing, strategic alignment, and the development of practical projects that provide multifaceted benefits to communities, industry and ecosystems.

Both guests highlight the value of establishing relationships prior to crises, ensuring that trust and momentum are established when challenges inevitably arise.

In this episode of EY Sustainability Matters, David Rae, EY Global Lead for Technology, AI and Innovation at EY Climate Change and Sustainability Services, explores the complex intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and nature. The host poses the question: Can technology solve the nature loss crisis, or will its resource-heavy footprint only accelerate the problem?

Hear industry voices and activists debate whether AI is a necessary tool for nature's survival and offer holistic views on the risks and opportunities ahead, drawing on a hypothetical debate from The EY AI x Sustainability Exchange: from big questions to real solutions, where activists were asked to take opposing sides of the argument.

Gilad Goren of the Nature Tech Collective argues that reversing nature loss is impossible without AI, which is essential for de-risking private sector investment and closing the nature finance gap. We also hear how companies, such as SAP, IBM, Treefera and others, are leveraging real-time data to track deforestation and optimize crop yields in hard-to-abate sectors.

Conversely, activists Livia Pagoto and Fred Werner highlight the "shadow effect" — the skyrocketing energy and water demands of massive data centers. The conversation also explores ethical governance, questioning whether potentially biased algorithms can ever replicate human care required to protect the environment.

• AI is already accelerating nature protection, from monitoring deforestation and biodiversity to improving climate risk assessment, supply‑chain transparency and renewable energy optimization.
• However, AI's rapid growth is resource‑intensive, driving significant increases in energy and water use, and raising concerns about scalability, equity and environmental impact.
• Progress requires collective action, combining human wisdom, inclusive governance, Indigenous knowledge and responsible innovation, to ensure that AI strengthens — rather than replaces — our relationship with nature.

@2026 Ernst & Young LLP