Environment and Sustainability Consulting of the Future: Environment Analyst Sustainability Delivery Summit

Environment Analyst held an annual Sustainability Delivery Summit in June 2024, where some of our global team members attended along with the Sustainability Awards Ceremony. The purpose of this summit was to bring together the community of Environment and Sustainability consulting firms to collaborate and learn from each other to instigate an acceleration of momentum towards a more sustainable future with our clients and communities. 

The event covered a wide range of topics across multiple days including resilient infrastructure, future-ready workforces, embedding sustainability into day-to-day operations, digital and technology value adds, nature-based solutions, just energy transition, and more. We have gathered a few key insights from our team in attendance.

Meeting Companies Where They Are 

In this fast-paced evolution of sustainability goals, frameworks, and solutions it’s imperative that we meet companies where they are both on their sustainability journey but also physically where they are geographically. Many countries and regions are at different places in their regulations and expectations are evolving through supply chains and key stakeholders. The local understanding and cultural awareness is crucial in helping companies and communities to meet their goals.

Embracing the Ecosystem Model, Partner for Progress

To solve the complex problems we face, our clients of tomorrow are expecting a multidisciplinary approach using systems based thinking. Collaboration is key with embracing an ecosystem or partnership model to bring viable solutions to the table as the only way to progress many of these global goals. An advantage of an Alliance is that if the company doesn't have the exact expertise, they can learn from many other diverse partners who may have approached the challenge in a different way and bring innovative solutions to the end client. This could be in technology or digital solutions, technical approaches, or just in a very diverse different approach in thinking to come to a different solution in bringing together different geographies. Many times we need to partner with competitors to be able to make progress and deliver much needed results. This approach demands new ways of thinking and working to not just benefit a company but to benefit all for a better future.

Turning Lofty Sustainability Goals into Reality

The value environmental and sustainability consultants can often bring to stakeholders, clients or projects, is turning lofty goals and visions into action with technical expertise, boots on the ground and specific actions and plans that are science-based and data-led. We can figure out how to collect the data, simplify the process, audit to ensure compliance, and build a foundation of security that the goals that are set are being achieved and backed by data and financials to translate to real business momentum.

Preparing the Next Generation

With our current and prospective future need for action to meet net zero goals as climate change impacts become a local reality globally, there is a huge workforce gap. It was reported that 105k new experts are needed in this space of environment and sustainability services with 51% in North America. We will need more upcoming experts to be trained in these areas but also to bring new innovative ideas and understanding as our up and coming experts are also the ones who will be living with the results. It was said at the conference “the solutions are in the grey, if we focus on only black and white nothing will happen.” We need to be flexible in approaches, tailoring to different industries, cultures and geographies with solutions that are presented. While technology is needed to help solve global problems, human expertise still matters and technology will never replace the need for E&S consultants.

Angelique Dickson, President of Inogen Alliance, recaps her key takeaways and how we are positioned in this new future state:

The pace of change in the last few years has muddled the lines around what we do in the environment and sustainability consulting space.  As the ecosystem has responded to the urgent need to deliver sustainability in the marketplace, we, as have other industries rallied to respond to that call.  So, what makes us different, what value do we bring?   As an example, let me share a few recent experiences. I was in Dubai last week, meeting with our current Associate and talking with a potential new Associate on how to meet and navigate the flood of demand for sustainability services in the Middle East. This is not just what services we offer, but also how to successfully work in the region.  I was in Romania meeting with a new partner to discuss collaboration on data collection and support of a multinational client.  And I ended my week with our partners for central, southern and eastern Europe to hear their annual report on how they are helping clients protect and utilize biodiversity services and prepare for the CSRD requirements.  The Inogen Alliance believes that the value we offer is a global perspective with local implementation.  It is foundational.  When you look at our industry, although there is strength in the resources and power that comes from large environmental and sustainability consulting firms, we also believe that diversity brings value to this space. Small, local, diversly-led companies that are agile, responsive and can focus on bespoke solutions while partnering with some of the best-in-class to offer superior results.  The EA Sustainability Delivery Summit was an excellent opportunity to hear our values reflected, and be inspired by our peers and their impact on our collective journey.  

Some of our global teams were able to meet in person again at this Summit with Antea Group USA, denxpert, HPC AG, and Tonkin + Taylor. This included multiple short-listed award categories as well as one with for Transportation Project of the Year for Tonkin + Taylor, read more about the awards portion of the event and project submissions from Inogen Alliance here.

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