North America’s CSO Award 2025 Winners

illuminem is delighted to announce the winners of the North American Chief Sustainability Officer Awards 2025, organised by Futur/io. The award ceremony was held in New York City on the 22nd of September during Climate Week and the UN General Assembly.

Building on its European counterpart, held each year in Davos during the World Economic Forum, the CSO Awards are becoming a truly global platform.

This prestigious recognition, awarded by a Grand Jury of globally recognised sustainability leaders, celebrates exceptional individuals who have showcased outstanding leadership, ambition, and ingenuity in advancing sustainable practices within their organisations and beyond.

The 2025 Winners

• Gold Award: Erik Hansen, Chief Sustainability Officer, Workday

• Silver Award: Jackie Jung, VP Global Operations Strategy & Planning, Corporate Sustainability, Western Digital

• Bronze Award: Susan Uthayakumar, Chief Energy and Sustainability Officer, Prologis

The Grand Jury also conferred special distinctions:

• Special Honour Awards: Annika Dubrall, Tiffany & Co. and Ann Tracy, Colgate-Palmolive

• Sustainable Supply Chain Award: Ara Erickson, Weyerhaeuser

• Peer Award, chosen live by attendees: Jennifer Motles, Philip Morris International

A night of recognition

Speakers included Sandrine Dixson-Declève of the Club of Rome, Nina Eisenman of NASDAQ, and Raphael Gielgen of vitra, alongside members of the Grand Jury.

“Our mission is to shine a light on the role of Chief Sustainability Officers,” said Harald Neidhardt, CEO & Curator of the Futur/io Institute. “These winners and 20 nominees are exemplary in their commitment toward higher ambition on the Sustainable Development Goals and Net Zero — setting 2040 or earlier as their horizon.”

The role of the CSO has shifted decisively from compliance to strategy. In an era marked by geopolitical uncertainty, economic pressures, and the rise of “greenhushing,” corporate sustainability leaders must navigate not only regulation but also supply chains, investor expectations, and new frontiers in AI, energy, and finance.

By spotlighting individuals rather than frameworks, the CSO Awards elevate the human qualities behind transformation: courage, foresight, and the ability to mobilise organisations at scale.

The Grand Jury

The winners were selected by a distinguished Grand Jury including:

• John Elkington — often called the “Godfather of Sustainability”

• Sandrine Dixson-Declève — Co-President, Club of Rome

• Michael Kobori — former CSO of Starbucks, 2024 Gold Award Winner

• Nina Eisenman — VP Sustainability Strategy & Reporting, NASDAQ

• Vandinika Shukla — Deputy Director, Global Programs, Obama Foundation

• Niyanta Spelman — CEO, Rainforest Partnership

• Livio Scalvini — Co-Founder, Leonardo Centre, Imperial College London

• Daniel Erasmus — CEO, Erasmus.AI, Creator of ClimateGPT

• Harald Neidhardt — CEO & Curator, Futur/io Institute (Chair)

The North American edition of the CSO Awards underlines a growing international network of sustainability leaders, with a focus on shifting from measurement to leadership and aligning corporate ambition with the pace of the climate crisis.

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