Climate Week 2025: The World Shows Up at A Critical Time
This year’s Climate Week was the biggest in its 16-year history, with more than 1,000 events, a high level of government participation, and a noteworthy level of business engagement. BSR President and CEO Aron Cramer shares four takeaways from the event.
Foto: Photo by SeanXu on iStock.
2025 has been a roller coaster ride for sustainable business, and for action on climate in particular. With so many questions swirling, many of us wondered a few months ago who would come to Climate Week NYC and what level of commitment they would bring.
While Climate Week did not magically solve the many economic, policy, cultural, technological challenges we face, it did deliver a solid rejoinder to those who have declared the end to the energy and ambition that has laid the foundation for progress over the past several years. As we’ve heard from our partners at The Climate Group, this year’s Climate Week was the biggest in its 16-year history, with more than 1,000 events, a high level of government participation, and a noteworthy level of business engagement. Many of us are walking away from this year’s edition of Climate Week with more cause for optimism and hope than we entered it.
First of all, the world showed up. In the spring, many people responded to political changes in the U.S. by expressing their reservations about coming to New York. Some preferred to show up—and they did!—at other events, such as London Climate Action Week. For those of us who felt it was important for the world to show its commitment to climate action on U.S. soil, it was gratifying to see participants from so many corners of the world. Going solely by the diverse turnout at the CSO dinner BSR hosted for its members, representing companies from Asia, Europe, and the U.S., the worries that people would stay away (mostly) didn’t come to pass.
Second, the dialogues were more candid than in past years. At past Climate Weeks, companies, non-profits, investors, and governments expressed optimism bordering on triumphalism. Events suggested unstoppable progress, and a “What, me worry?” mindset that often minimized or ignored the thorny challenges to achieving a Paris-aligned future. Not this year. CSOs, journalists, BSR, and our peer organizations stepped right into the hard questions about why momentum has stalled and why progress toward a 1.5°C future was looking far more challenging. This is mostly a function of the realities of the world in 2025, but it felt far more “real” than in past years.
Third, the hard questions were tackled. With fewer splashy public events, there was considerably more effort put into quiet dialogues that addressed the hardest questions head on. I welcomed the opportunity, for example, to engage with a diverse group discussing how to address climate in a way that can be supported across the political spectrum. I also had numerous discussions with CSOs about how they are navigating a less forgiving environment inside their companies, with budgets shrinking and executive support declining or distracted. The impact of AI—positive and negative—was taken up frequently by both developers and deployers. Continuing a theme from throughout 2025, the sustainable business community is tackling the need to paint a picture for the public that emphasizes the way sustainability makes life better in tangible ways. Too often, we’ve fallen short of that mark. It is high time we look in the mirror and start to communicate in ways that more people can appreciate and embrace.
Finally, the world is accepting the challenge of making progress on climate change without the support of the U.S. government and with global cooperation fragmenting. The macropolitical situation has changed. The world cannot take for granted a fully functioning multilateral system. The fate of COP30—and the COP system generally—is highly uncertain. Geopolitics have transformed global energy priorities from climate action to energy security. The slow but steady drive to convergence in rules and regulations has lost its momentum, and in many ways has gone into reverse. Last but not least, the U.S. government, at least at the federal level, has resolutely walked away from climate action in both rhetoric and policy, while seeking to dismantle the tools needed for future administrations to respond to climate change. While all these developments are regrettable (or worse), it was very clear that most businesses are getting on with things. And in some corners, there is a growing acknowledgement that while the world may have become disillusioned with climate politics, it has pivoted to being more concerned with the climate economy.
In retrospect, perhaps the past Climate Week gatherings suffered from the “irrational exuberance” that former U.S. Chair of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan famously used to describe a frothy stock market. This year, while there were reasons for optimism, it would be a mistake to glide past the very real challenges facing more rapid progress on climate. That said, everyone was more clear-eyed about the challenges we face—and dedicated to keep pushing forward with determination to make the progress we need in spite of the conditions we face. This may just reflect a necessary maturation that will deliver more of the results that we all need.
