Honeywell’s ESI: 75% of organizations prioritize sustainability initiatives

22 / 04 / 2023

By Marwa Nassar - -

Honeywell’s quarterly Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI) said 75% of organizations are prioritizing sustainability initiatives, up 10% over past six months.

Honeywell, a global leader in energy and climate transition solutions, released its 2Q 2023 Environmental Sustainability Index (ESI), a quarterly indicator of key trends, sentiment, and progress on global climate change mitigation and other sustainability initiatives and produced in partnership with The Futurum Group.

The ESI surveyed more than 750 business leaders directly involved in their organization’s environmental sustainability initiatives, at a time when ESG-related regulations and global calls to action are mounting.

The third edition of the ESI revealed that sustainability continues to lead all other corporate initiatives, including digital transformation and market performance, and now by a 19-point gap. Across all geographies, Energy Evolution and Efficiency is the top sustainability priorities over the coming six months, followed by Emissions Reduction, Pollution Prevention, and Circularity/Recycling initiatives. This trend is aligned with the previous two quarters, but Circularity/Recycling is showing more growth than any other category, indicating that organizations may take a deeper look at their supply chains and flow of materials to elevate how products, services, or resources are renewed or regenerated, rather than wasted in the second half of 2023.

“Our data shows that companies aren’t wavering in their commitment to sustainability,” said Vimal Kapur, President and Chief Operating Officer of Honeywell. “Not only are leaders keeping it at the top of the priority list despite other looming challenges, but they are also increasingly taking actions.

“This upward trendline in optimism goes hand-in-hand with technology adoption — more organizations are turning to newer, more efficient, more sustainable technologies to help achieve their goals. Honeywell’s solutions are ready now to support ESG efforts and help organizations around the world reach their sustainability targets.”

In 2022, ESI data showed organizations were overwhelmingly focused on process-driven approaches to environmental and sustainability initiatives. In 1Q 2023, the ESI data shifted with more organizations taking a balanced approach to their initiatives.

A technology driven approach was also growing, albeit at a slower pace. However, this quarter, the shift towards tech driven approaches increased. 56% of respondents noted leveraging more technology for achieving environmental sustainability goals over the coming 12 months.

“More has changed in the past three months than we anticipated. The third release of Honeywell’s Environmental Sustainability Index provided new data showcasing an increasing commitment to technology that supports environmental sustainability activities,” said Daniel Newman, principal analyst and CEO of The Futurum Group. “This quarter we are seeing the shift move toward the tech driven approach with the number of organizations opting for a balanced approach decreasing, and organizations taking a process driven approach decreasing or remaining unchanged. As we move further into the decade and get closer to the 2030 target, we anticipate that the trend of a tech driven approach will continue.”

“Companies are continuing to invest in technology that helps them achieve their environmental sustainability goals,” said Evan van Hook, chief sustainability officer of Honeywell. “We are seeing firsthand our customers take action to achieve goals, whether it’s switching to sustainable aviation fuel, tracking and reducing carbon emissions from buildings, or increasing advanced circularity solutions, such as plastics recycling. With AI becoming more prevalent, technologies will only get smarter and more efficient, and make an outsized impact on sustainability efforts.”