AI & Sustainability: Opportunity, Risk and What Comes Next

AI was rapidly changing how businesses analysed information, made decisions and communicated sustainability. But alongside the opportunity came increasingly important questions around credibility, evidence, governance, risk and trust.

On Tuesday, 22 September 2026, during Climate Week NYC, we brought together twenty senior sustainability and communications leaders for a relaxed dinner.

Together, we explored the opportunities and challenges AI brought to sustainability, how it was shaping the future of the sector, and what leaders needed to be thinking about as its role continued to evolve.

There was no panel, no presentations, no press and no sponsors. Just a small group exchanging perspectives, challenging assumptions and having an honest conversation over good food.

attendees’ testimonials:

“Thanks for organizing the event. It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed the conversations.”

Monica Touesnard, Executive Director, Center for Sustainable Global Enterprise, Cornell University

“Thank you for a lovely evening. What a pleasure to be included. It was wonderful catching up with old friends and colleagues, meeting new sustainability leaders and sharing ideas and conversations that will lead to good things.”

Julie Davitz, CEO, Plus Media Solutions

“Thank you so much for the wonderful dinner, thoughtful questions, and your skillful facilitation. It was an honor to be included, the food was delicious, and the conversations were fulfilling.”

David Hopkins, Head of Partnerships, Sustainable Brands

“Thank you and your team for a lovely dinner last night. It was wonderful to meet you and the attendees. I had great conversations about the benefits and drawbacks of AI, how communicating impact has changed, and the exciting developments in the social entrepreneurship space.”

Alexander Landau, Sustainability Strategy & Marketing Professional

The Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (ECGT) rules apply from 27 September 2026. If your organisation operates in the EU or does business with EU consumers, the changes could affect the way you communicate environmental claims and sustainability messages.

Now is the time to understand what is changing and review how those claims are created, supported and approved.

But this is not intended to be another webinar filled with legal theory.

Join Helen Neal, CEO and Founder of HN Communications and award-winning sustainability communications expert, with legal insight from a special guest sustainability lawyer, for a practical live conversation about what the ECGT rules mean for the people writing, reviewing and approving sustainability communications.

During the webinar, we will explore:

• what the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (ECGT) rules mean for sustainability and environmental communications

• what is genuinely new and what businesses should already be doing

• the types of environmental claims and labels that may require closer review

• what the rules mean for sustainability, communications, marketing and legal teams

• how to build a more effective internal review process

• where AI can support a first-stage check and where human or legal review is still needed

Who is this for?

This webinar will be particularly useful for:

• sustainability and ESG professionals

• communications and corporate affairs teams

• marketing and brand professionals

• legal, risk and compliance teams

• product and packaging teams

• global businesses operating in or communicating with EU markets

We hosted another Climate Leaders’ Lunch in London on 14 May.

We brought together 13 women for a lovely opportunity to take a couple of hours at a slower pace and connect with inspiring women working across climate, sustainability and communications, all in the beautiful setting of Wild by Tart. No pitches, no presentations, just great food and great company.

PREVIOUS attendees’ testimonials:

“I absolutely loved today’s gathering, Helen. Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to join. So inspiring and nourishing in equal measure. And all made possible by you and your great team. ✨”

Rachel Boland, Head of Sustainability, Next 15 Group plc

“Thank you Helen Neal for such a wonderful lunch event. It came at a perfect time for me! Filled me with inspiration. I met some incredible women and came away feeling so positive. Thank you so much for organising!”

Oriele Frank, Co-Founder, ELEMIS

“Thanks for hosting us Helen. It was great to meet you and some other fellow women working in climate and sustainability and I look forward to staying in touch.”

Aleksandra Barnes, Director, Sustainability Comms & Reporting, Brunswick

“Hi Helen, Thank you so much for organising such a lovely lunch. I really enjoyed it and came away feeling genuinely uplifted by both the conversations and the inspiring group of women you brought together.

It really reinforced how worthwhile and important this work is, especially hearing everyone’s perspectives around sustainability, meaningful careers, and navigating the different stages of life and business.

I’d love to attend the London event in November. The overseas events sound wonderful too, although I probably can’t justify the travel at the moment, much as I’d love to!”

Julia Leask, Fractional CFO, Leask Advisory Solutions

“Hey Helen, Thank you so much for yesterday. Always great to connect with like minded people. And the location was very nice.”

Maria Anastase, Board director, Charity Bank

“It was nice, thank you for organising!”

Andrea Fernandez, Managing Director, Climate Finance, C40 Cities

“Hi Helen, lovely to meet you too and all the other fabulous ladies doing some really meaningful and interesting work! Look forward to catching up virtually”

Julia Jones, Head of Sustainability and Corporate Comms, Nestle

“Hi Helen! Thank you so much for hosting such a brilliant event - from the venue and food to inviting really lovely women and setting the right tone for meaningful conversations, you facilitated a really comfortable and open atmosphere, so thank you!”

Dominique Santini, Chief of Staff, The Impactors

“It was a wonderful opportunity to network with some amazing women. Thank you Helen Neal for hosting a lovely lunch.”

Mandy Simmons, International Events Director, Climate Group

“Great to meet everyone and have some really inspiring conversations, thanks for a wonderful event as always Helen Neal!”

Agnès Sadler, Senior Policy Advisor - Responsible Business, Department for Business and Trade

We hosted our first Climate Leaders’ Lunch of the year in Amsterdam on 18 March.

It was a lovely opportunity to take a couple of hours at a slower pace and connect with inspiring women working across climate, sustainability and communications, all in the beautiful setting of Kimpton De Witt Amsterdam. No pitches, no presentations, just great food and great company.

PREVIOUS attendees’ testimonials:

“I hope you got to enjoy the sun yesterday in Amsterdam. Thank you so much for the invitation, I really had a lovely time with a nice meal and great company. It was really so lovely to learn about these other ladies in the area, and learn more about them and you and your experiences as well.

I hope I can make it to a future event!”

Nichole Chan, Head of ESG

“Thanks again for a wonderful afternoon spent with a super interesting and diverse group of women. Time flew by!

I would definitely be interested in joining another session in October, and also passing along the invite to colleagues of mine in London.”

Laura van de Ven, Europe Marketing Associate Director, Carbon Trust

“Thank you Helen for the wonderful lunch meet up. ”

Beatrice Moulianitaki, Chair of the Board and Founder, WINCC - Women in Cocoa & Chocolate

“Helen, just wanted to say a big thank you for inviting me to the Climate Leaders lunch. It was such a lovely way to connect. Would love to stay connected and informed of all your lunches in the various locations.”

Cynthia Mouanda, Senior Communications & Corporate Affairs Manager, Unilever Foods Business Group

“Thank you, Helen, for bringing together such a wonderful group of female professionals. I made great new connections and had mind‑opening conversations about the future of sustainability in the corporate world.”

Beth Njeri, Communications Lead, LIPTON Teas and Infusions

“Loved the food, loved the people, loved the event. Thanks a lot for organizing this lunch Helen. I am looking forward to the coffee circularity factory tour! 🫶”

Roberta Bosu, Communication Expert, EETRA Consulenza ESG

“Great to be a part of this and meeting fellow women in the space! Thanks for bringing this group together Helen.”

Hedwig Rinsma, Business Consultant Sustainability, Conclusion Consulting

“It was a lovely day, thank you so much Helen.”

Ashton Egner, Marcoms Manager, Feelgroup

“Many thanks for this opportunity Helen Neal -- it was such a pleasure to meet all of you!”

Anna Yuryeva, ESG Research Lead Analyst, Morningstar Sustainalytics

We’ve learned over the years that when great people in the climate space come together, amazing connections and ideas can happen. No pitches, no presentations – just great food, great company, and the chance to meet inspiring leaders driving change.

Our last dinner for the year was held at Tendril – A (Mostly) Vegan Kitchen & Bar, 5 Princes Street, London on 27th November 2025.

attendees’ testimonials:

“Such a lovely evening - thank you for having us!”

Poppy Mason-Watts, Senior Advisor, Project Dandelion

“I loved meeting so many inspiring women and hearing different stories. Thanks for having me, I look forward to future events.”

Paisley Ashton Holt, Director, Sustainability, Strategy, PwC UK

“What a fab gathering of women leaders in sustainability! The evening was inspiring, educational and great for making new friends. I would love to see this event expand beyond an annual one! Thank you so much Helen and team!”

Eileen Wong, Innovation Consultant for Toyota North America

“Thank you so much for the invitation and for hosting such an inspiring Climate Leaders’ Dinner. It’s truly uplifting to be connected with women driving impact across diverse sectors.

Looking forward to subsequent gathering like this.”

Joy Osomiamhe-O, Partnership & Programmes Lead, G-SEL Network

After addressing the challenges in Webinar 1, this session makes the financial case for sustainability comms - helping attendees secure internal buy-in from leadership.

What we will cover:

✔ Why sustainability communications are a strategic business driver

✔ Five key commercial levers: from regulation and ROI to brand, investors, and stakeholders

✔ Why it pays to communicate - and the common pitfalls that hold companies back

✔ Practical takeaways you can implement today

This session validates the frustrations sustainability professionals face when communicating their work and provides strategic insights without giving away all the answers—encouraging attendees to engage further after the webinar.

What we will cover:

 ✔ The biggest frustrations sustainability teams face when communicating.
✔ Why most sustainability messages fail to stick, even when the work is real.
✔ What we can learn from brands that are getting it right (and those that aren’t).

Thanks to our work, we are uniquely positioned to bring together incredible women who are leading the way on climate and reaching net zero. For over a year, we have been doing this across London, Amsterdam and New York, with the sole purpose of building meaningful connections to support one another in this collective mission. No pitches, no presentation, just an enjoyable evening of great food and great company.

Our first dinner of the year was held at Kapara Soho, James Court, 14 Greek St, London on Thursday, 27th March.

attendees’ testimonials:

“A first-class gathering with good food and great conversation! We really appreciate the invite Helen, Emma and Hannah.”

Kisandka Moses, Senior Manager, Content Producer, Climate Group

“Such an enjoyable evening with great company and conversation, thank you again for hosting Helen”

Chantal-Lawren Welch, Marketing Manager, Silverstone Park

“Fab to attend and meet some magic women, thanks for hosting!”

Jess Silva, Co-Founder, Carbon Jacked & Second Nature Sisters

“What a lovely evening!! Thank you for hosting! Can’t wait for the next one.”

Tania Macri Badessich, Regional Head for Sustainable Business, EMEA Globant

“What a great evening Helen! Can’t wait for the next one! A real sisterhood for system change!”

Lara Tyrrell, Partner, Xynteo

“So great to meet everyone there and hear about such a diversity of work, thanks for hosting!”

Rosalind Chaston, Policy & Business Engagement Officer, Oxford Net Zero

“Thanks so much for making this happen!”

Margherita Douglas, Executive Director, Zinc Network

“Thanks for another wonderful evening Helen Emma Hannah!”

Holly Patten, Communications Assistant, Tilt Collective

“Thanks Helen for a wonderful evening!”

Hannah Eskell, VP Sustainability - Nature & Biodiversity, Barclays

“What a lovely evening and it was inspirational listening to some of the women’s stories and journeys so far. Thank you for having me there and hosting Helen Neal.”

Saloni Sanghrajk, Chief Financial Officer, MEE: My Eco Energy

Through our work with leading individuals across the climate space, we’ve come to realise that virtually limitless outcomes can be achieved by bringing these inspirational leaders together. Recognising this potential, we organise regular opportunities for climate leaders to get to know one another over dinner. No pitches, no presentations – just great food, great company, and an opportunity to make stronger connections and uncover tantalising prospects for collaboration.

Our last dinner for 2024 took place at Tendril - A (Mostly) Vegan Kitchen & Bar at 5 Princes Street, London W1B 2LQ on Wednesday, 27th November.

Previous attendees’ testimonials:

“Thanks so much for dinner – was lovely to see you all and meet new people too, I had a great time. And very delicious food.”

Helen Clarkson, CEO at The Climate Group

“It was indeed a great dinner. Lovely to meet all of you!”

Preeti Srivastav, Group Head of Sustainability at Asahi

“Thank you for inviting us and initiating this, I found it really good to meet like minded women. We did not have the chance to exchange with all. But, let us do another round soon. Take care all and have a great weekend and good Christmas break.”

Eman Martin-Vignerte, Director at Bosch UK

“Thank you so much for a wonderful evening with great company and delicious food, it was a real treat.”

Elizabeth Skerritt, Modelling and Data Analysis Group Lead at Ceres

“It was a great evening and a pleasure to spend time with you all. Thank you for being excellent company!”

Rachel Constable, Head of ESG at MKM Building Supplies

“I had such a great time with you all. Thanks Helen for inviting me! I have laughed to myself a few times thinking of our various conversations- and hope we can all meet again before too long.”

Elizabeth Kanter, Director Government Relations UK, Ireland, Netherlands & Israel at TikTok

“Thank you for hosting this session Helen Neal. I enjoyed the conversations.”

Vivian Acquah, Certified Diversity Executive /DEI Coach/Trainer/ Consultant (CDE®),

Founder at Amplify DEI

“Thank you Helen Neal, for both the invitation and the inspiring afternoon. It was great to meet so many like minded women, all leveraging their skills in Comms and Sustainability to make the world a better place.”

Carina van Vlerken, International Senior Communications Advisor

“Thanks Helen, it was lovely connecting with this amazing group of individuals.”

Anne-Ro Dubos-Klevant Groen, Marketing & Communications Director at Fashion For Good

“Thank you Helen Neal for organizing this event - it was great to talk to other communication professionals and get inspired on what we can do to elevate the way we talk about sustainability.”

Vihra Toneva, Senior Internal Communications Manager at Liberty Global

“Thank you Helen for bringing us together. Was lovely to connect with so many of you. Looking forward to continuing the conversation!”

Alejandra Meza Pena, Senior Internal Communications and Engagement Lead at Irdeto

“Thank you for hosting such a special and unique evening. It was good to connect with such brilliant women making their mark in the sustainability field, plus the food and venue were amazing! Sometimes it can feel isolating to work in this field, so it’s good to feel like you’re part of a community. Ps. Loved the water bottle!”

Francisca Sassetti, Ethical Trade Manager at Sainsbury’s

“There is nothing better than being in a room filled with impressive, female sustainability leaders. Thank you for extending the invitation, I had a wonderful time.”

Courtney Holm, Chair of the Board of Trustees at The Orchard Project (Cause) Ltd

“This was so much fun! Thank you for hosting.”

Nethra Rajendran, Manager, Corporate Sustainability at GreenBiz Group

“It was so lovely to connect with you and the team last week in New York! Thanks for a fantastic evening.”

Michelle Balderston, Assistant to the Executive Director at Student Energy

“I had a really lovely evening, thank you for a great networking event and an opportunity to meet other women working in sustainability.”

Marie Reynolds, Senior Manager, Climate Communications at Unilever

“Thanks Helen Neal for a great evening with wonderful food and fascinating conversations. It was everything most ‘networking’ events are usually not: human, interesting, honest, energising and fun thanks to all the wonderful women you invited who I really enjoyed chatting with.”

Lisa Merrick-lawless, Co-Founder at Purpose Disruptors

“Thank you again for this wonderful evening. I have never left an event feeling so re-energised, with my cup filled by the amazing women I spoke to and the dialogue that took place. Real magic.”

Giulia Jones, Associate Director - ESG Projects Lead at MAPP

“Helen Neal, thank you for organizing such an empowering event! It was truly inspiring to connect with women from diverse fields, all united by shared goals in sustainability. Excited to join the next event and meet inspiring women leaders in the field!”

Julia Veglesi, Vice President of Strategy & Partnerships at Richmond Global Sciences

“Thanks so much Helen, Hannah, and Emma for arranging this wonderful opportunity. Fun surprise to see unexpected familiar faces as well as meet many new ones. Great food and great conversation indeed!”

Sandra Roling, Interim Advocacy Director at Business for Nature

We hosted our Climate Leaders' Dinner for the first time in New York on 25 September during Climate Week NYC.

With it being such a busy week, it was great to take a few hours at a slower pace to connect with some brilliant individuals and enjoy the unbelievable plant-based food at Planta Queen NoMad NYC. No pitches, no presentations, just great food and great company.

attendees’ testimonials:

“This was so much fun! Thank you for hosting.”

Nethra Rajendran, Manager, Corporate Sustainability at GreenBiz Group

“It was so lovely to connect with you and the team last week in New York! Thanks for a fantastic evening.”

Michelle Balderston, Assistant to the Executive Director at Student Energy

We had the most amazing group of people join us for a relaxed lunch at Kimpton De Witt in Amsterdam. We adopted our usual approach of no pitches, no presentations, just good company, good food and good conversations.

We were in great company, bringing together those working in communications in the business and NGO communities who are building awareness and credibility for People, Planet and Profit.

attendees’ testimonials:

“Thank you for hosting this session Helen Neal. I enjoyed the conversations.”

Vivian Acquah, Certified Diversity Executive /DEI Coach/Trainer/ Consultant (CDE®),

Founder at Amplify DEI

“Thank you Helen Neal, for both the invitation and the inspiring afternoon. It was great to meet so many like minded women, all leveraging their skills in Comms and Sustainability to make the world a better place.”

Carina van Vlerken, International Senior Communications Advisor

“Thanks Helen, it was lovely connecting with this amazing group of individuals.”

Anne-Ro Dubos-Klevant Groen, Marketing & Communications Director at Fashion For Good

“Thank you Helen Neal for organizing this event - it was great to talk to other communication professionals and get inspired on what we can do to elevate the way we talk about sustainability.”

Vihra Toneva, Senior Internal Communications Manager at Liberty Global

“Thank you Helen for bringing us together. Was lovely to connect with so many of you. Looking forward to continuing the conversation!”

Alejandra Meza Pena, Senior Internal Communications and Engagement Lead at Irdeto

Our second Climate Leaders' Dinner at the amazing Oliveira Kitchen, a vegetarian, organic, no gas and no waste restaurant in the heart of Shoreditch.

This event goes to the heart of what we are about at HN Communications, bringing the business and NGO worlds together to enable business to be a force for good in the world. We do this in our daily work but wanted to do more to bring these brilliant leaders together.

So we will keep hosting these great moments to bring a community of sustainability leaders together, create the space to share challenges and new ideas and build new friendships along the way.

attendees’ testimonials:

“Thanks so much for dinner – was lovely to see you all and meet new people too, I had a great time. And very delicious food.”

Helen Clarkson, CEO at The Climate Group

“There is nothing better than being in a room filled with impressive, female sustainability leaders. Thank you for extending the invitation, I had a wonderful time.”

Courtney Holm, Chair of the Board of Trustees at The Orchard Project (Cause) Ltd

“Thank you for hosting such a special and unique evening. It was good to connect with such brilliant women making their mark in the sustainability field, plus the food and venue were amazing! Sometimes it can feel isolating to work in this field, so it’s good to feel like you’re part of a community. Ps. Loved the water bottle!”

Francisca Sassetti, Ethical Trade Manager at Sainsbury’s