S&P Global's Top 10 Sustainability Trends to Watch in 2026

S&P Global’s sustainability, climate and energy transition leaders and analysts were surveyed about the areas expected to most influence sustainability strategy and decision-making in 2026. This article lays out 10 key trends for the year, along with links to datasets, research and further reading.

Sustainability in 2026 will be a story of how stakeholders balance near-term priorities with long-term realities. Businesses will seek strategies to navigate the current political environment even as many of their projects and investments extend beyond election cycles. Governments will be increasingly engaged with balancing immediate needs — such as energy security, affordability and availability — with climate change and nature loss. Addressing these urgent and sometimes competing demands will require coordinated action at a time when multilateralism is giving way to fragmentation and multiregionalism.

Listen: Scaling Businesses for Long Term Success (With Mark Sotir, President at Equity Group Investments)

In this episode of the “Private Markets 360°” podcast, Mark Sotir, president of Equity Group Investments, joined hosts Chris Sparenberg and Jocelyn Lewis to discuss the firm’s investment approach and how it drives long-term value creation. Sotir shared insights on the company’s strategy for scaling businesses into multibillion-dollar enterprises, the importance of understanding your audience when seeking investment, and why risk management and strong leadership are crucial for sustainable growth in private markets.