ERM, the world’s largest specialist sustainability consultancy, has unveiled its annual Sustainability Report, shedding light on the firm’s substantial sustainability impact and performance over the past year while outlining its priorities for fiscal year 2025. The report highlights ERM’s intensified efforts to tackle the pressing global challenges of climate change, nature loss, and social inequality through its collaborations with clients, partners, and its own operational strategies.
During fiscal year 2024, ERM’s contributions to sustainability were notably significant. The consultancy worked on over 1,000 projects, leading to the installation of more than 200 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity and over 10 gigawatts of energy storage. This marks a tripling of ERM’s contribution to renewable development in just three years, underscoring the firm’s commitment to accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy. Additionally, ERM treated over 2.4 billion liters of water and addressed water risks at 81 sites within 21 of the 100 priority water-stressed basins globally. The firm also managed to treat, destroy, or remove more than 12.8 million kilograms of contaminants, highlighting its role in mitigating environmental pollution.
ERM’s financial performance in sustainability projects also saw a remarkable uptick, with sales from low-carbon economy transition projects increasing by 28% from the previous year. Beyond its commercial endeavors, ERM supported 49 non-governmental organizations and social enterprises across 29 countries through the ERM Foundation, demonstrating its commitment to social responsibility and community engagement.
The report also introduces four updated strategies aimed at addressing key sustainability imperatives. These strategies are aligned with ERM’s four key operational programs—Decarbonization, Human Rights, Nature, and Supply Chain—and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Notably, ERM’s Decarbonization Strategy is aligned with net-zero science-based targets approved under the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) Net-Zero Standard, committing the firm to achieving net-zero emissions by 2040.
Tom Reichert, Group CEO at ERM, expressed pride in the firm’s achievements, stating, “For more than 50 years, ERM has helped clients to operationalize sustainability throughout their organizations. I’m proud of the achievements set out in this report, which demonstrate how our unique combination of strategic transformation and technical delivery capabilities is making a real impact across industries.”
Reichert emphasized the urgency of stepping up actions to meet the growing sustainability challenges, adding, “Today, as the scale of the sustainability challenges facing the world increases, we are stepping up our actions to help deliver change at the pace required. Working with clients, partners, and the broader sustainability ecosystem, we are committed to helping organizations build resilience and translate sustainability strategies into commercial success.”
The publication of ERM’s Sustainability Report comes at a crucial time, as the world grapples with the intertwined crises of climate change, biodiversity loss, and social inequality. The firm’s comprehensive approach, which integrates strategic transformation and technical delivery, positions it as a pivotal player in the global sustainability landscape.
In an upcoming engagement, ERM will be present at the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London this September, alongside Nature Tech Alliance partners Salesforce and Naturemetrics. This event will provide an opportunity for stakeholders to connect with the ERM team and learn more about their sustainability partnerships and initiatives.
For those interested in a deeper dive into ERM’s sustainability efforts and future plans, the full Sustainability Report is available for download.