Empowered To Act: How Businesses Can Help Employees Lead The Charge On Climate Change

Julie Starr • May 31, 2025

Climate change is no longer a distant threat. It’s here, and it’s affecting the way we live, work, and plan for the future. While governments and industries shape policy and innovation, the real force for sustainable change often lies in the collective action of everyday people. And where do most of us spend a significant portion of our time? At work. Business leaders today have a powerful opportunity, not just to reduce their organization’s carbon footprint, but to inspire their teams to become informed, empowered agents of environmental change. This doesn’t require mandates or grandstanding. It requires creating space, providing tools, and nurturing a culture of ownership and purpose. Here’s how businesses can help employees build agency to tackle climate change, genuinely and sustainably.


Start With Values, Not Directives

Agency starts with alignment. When employees understand that their company’s sustainability goals are tied to shared values, like community well-being, health, and future resilience, they’re more likely to engage on a personal level. Instead of rolling out top-down rules or guilt-driven campaigns, bring your team into the conversation. Share why sustainability matters to your business and how it connects to broader human goals, like clean air, secure food systems, or thriving local economies. Make it about people, not just emissions. Use internal communication channels, leadership messages, and real-world storytelling to link climate action to shared values. When employees see climate action as a part of who they are, not just what you do, it becomes meaningful—and motivation follows naturally.


Create Learning Opportunities, Not Just Compliance Training

If your climate initiatives are hidden in policy manuals or one-time eLearning modules, they’re unlikely to spark change. Education is key, but it must be experiential, relevant, and ongoing. Consider lunch-and-learn sessions with environmental experts, interactive carbon footprint calculators for daily life, or documentary screening nights followed by open discussions. Think beyond the office too, offer book clubs focused on climate-related reads, or partner with local organizations for employee volunteer opportunities. Better yet, invite employees to lead the learning. Give space for those passionate about sustainability to share what they know. Peer learning builds community and creates a ripple effect that spreads across departments organically.


Connect Individual Actions To Bigger Impact

One of the most disempowering aspects of climate change is the feeling that individual actions are just a drop in the ocean. Businesses can change this narrative by connecting small choices to larger collective impact. Set up systems that track and report collective wins: pounds of waste diverted, miles of carpooling saved, or gallons of water conserved. Then celebrate those achievements, not as corporate milestones, but as team victories. Use dashboards, office signage, or intranet features to make the invisible visible. Seeing tangible outcomes from everyday actions builds a sense of contribution—and with it, the desire to do more.


Give Employees A Say In The Sustainability Journey

Employee agency grows when people feel they have a voice. Instead of dictating a sustainability plan, co-create one. Hold climate idea challenges or “green hackathons” where employees pitch solutions. Whether it’s optimizing energy use, reducing packaging, or reinventing business travel policies. Reward creativity and follow through on the best ideas. You could also form a cross-functional sustainability council, with real influence over decision-making. This gives team members an active role in shaping initiatives, while creating a feedback loop that keeps strategies grounded in reality. When employees are part of the design process, they’re far more likely to become ambassadors of change.


Empower Everyday Decision-Making

Sustainability shouldn’t be a side project, it should be embedded in everyday workflows. This means equipping employees with the autonomy and tools to make eco-friendly choices in real time. For instance reaching out to a micro market vending provider could help you influence your team’s footprint by controlling the offering. A vending space filled with locally sourced, low-waste snacks sends a clear message: “We care, and we’re helping you care too.” Similarly, empower team leads to make sustainable choices in how they host meetings, manage print resources, or design events. Encourage departments to set their own sustainability goals aligned with the company’s mission, giving them ownership of their climate journey.

The more decisions employees can make sustainably without bureaucratic friction, the more natural and authentic their climate action becomes.


Offer Climate-Friendly Benefits

One of the most impactful ways businesses can support climate agency is through thoughtful benefits that align with a lower-carbon lifestyle. Consider incentives for public transit, biking, or EV usage. Provide reimbursement for energy-efficient home office upgrades. Offer paid volunteer days for environmental projects, or match donations to climate-focused nonprofits. Even offering flexibility in remote work can significantly reduce commuting emissions, while also boosting employee satisfaction and retention. When the structure of work supports sustainable living, employees don’t have to choose between personal values and professional life. Instead, the two can harmonize.


Lead By Example, But Stay Human

Leadership’s behavior matters. If executives say one thing and do another, like flying first-class to climate conferences while pushing paperless policies, it erodes trust and diminishes morale. But leadership doesn’t have to mean perfection. Transparency and sincerity go a long way. Share your own climate learning curve. Talk about the changes you’re making, the challenges you face, and why it matters to you personally. This creates a culture of progress, not perfection. One where employees feel safe to try, fail, and grow in their own climate journey.


Highlight Purpose Over Pressure

Tackling climate change can feel overwhelming. Instead of stressing urgency through fear, focus on opportunity through purpose. Position climate action as a chance to be part of something meaningful: to innovate, to lead, to protect what we love. Show how employees’ actions support something bigger than themselves. Whether that’s cleaner communities, healthier families, or a thriving planet. This purpose-driven approach motivates far more deeply than doom-driven appeals. It taps into the human desire to contribute and connect—core ingredients of true agency.


Make Sustainability Fun And Creative

Sustainability doesn’t have to be serious all the time. Creative, playful engagement builds energy and makes climate action feel approachable. Host “green your desk” competitions. Run upcycling workshops during team-building days. Encourage departments to compete for the lowest energy use or create art from recycled materials.Gamify environmental goals with rewards that reinforce the message (like reusable swag or tree-planting donations). When climate action is fun, it stops being a burden, and starts being something people want to do.


Build A Legacy

Ultimately, the most powerful way to build employee agency around climate change is to invite them into something bigger than themselves, a legacy worth building. Frame your organization’s climate journey as a shared adventure. What kind of future do you want to help create together? What kind of company do you want to be remembered as? Give people something to belong to. Something they can be proud of. Because at the end of the day, most employees don’t want to just clock in and clock out. They want to be part of something meaningful. And helping to shape a more sustainable, just, and resilient world? That’s about as meaningful as it gets.


Supporting employees to lead on climate doesn’t mean preaching or pressuring. It means cultivating a workplace where values, purpose, and action are in sync. Where every person feels they matter, and that what they do makes a difference. This kind of cultural shift isn’t just good for the planet. It builds trust, strengthens engagement, and sets your business apart as a place where people, and the future can thrive. Let’s move beyond mandates and toward movements. Your employees are ready. Let’s help them lead.

By Julie Starr May 26, 2025
At Taiga Company, we’re committed to helping organizations stay ahead of the curve where sustainability meets innovation. In May, our blog posts explored emerging trends, practical strategies, and forward-thinking tools that businesses and communities can use to drive meaningful progress. From AI and Web3 to smarter supply chains and better communication, May’s content spotlighted the growing opportunities to align purpose with performance. Here’s a quick recap of the blog posts we published this month: Can AI Support Environmental Sustainability? 5 Ways It's Already Making an Impact We explored how artificial intelligence is being used to advance sustainability, from optimizing energy use to enhancing predictive analytics for climate impact. A Greener Supply Chain with Micro Fulfillment This post looked at the role of micro fulfillment centers in reducing last-mile emissions, improving local access, and minimizing waste in ecommerce logistics. Sustainability in Ecommerce: 3 Ways to Make Progress Where It Matters We identified the highest-impact opportunities for ecommerce brands to improve sustainability, including packaging, shipping, and supply chain visibility. Integrating Sustainability in the Age of AI: Why Communications Matter More Than Ever In this post, we emphasized how clear, credible communication can strengthen sustainability outcomes, especially as AI tools become more prominent in decision-making and reporting. Building a Greener Community: 5 Smart Strategies We shared practical ideas for creating local impact, highlighting collaborative efforts that bring together individuals, businesses, and municipalities. Web3 and the Future of ESG: A New Frontier for Sustainability Storytelling This forward-looking post unpacked how decentralized technologies are reshaping transparency, engagement, and authenticity in ESG narratives. Common Themes Across each of these articles, several powerful themes emerged: Technology as a sustainability enabler: From AI to Web3, innovation is proving essential in driving efficiency, traceability, and engagement. Local action, global impact : Whether it’s micro fulfillment or community partnerships, scaling down can often lead to scaled-up results. Communication as a catalyst : With growing complexity in tools and expectations, the way we talk about sustainability is just as important as what we do. As we look ahead to June, we remain focused on equipping our clients and readers with tools, insights, and strategies that help drive change—intentionally, transparently, and impactfully. Explore more on our blog and get in touch if you’re ready to elevate your sustainability communications.
By Julie Starr May 23, 2025
A sustainable supply chain is made possible with some major shifts and minor changes that you may not consider at first. One of these is micro fulfillment, where strategically placed warehouses provide streamlined services to a smaller area. So, what are some of the benefits of changing your logistics? From consolidated deliveries to minimal eco-impact, here are a few. Closer Customer Proximity There are a few ways that micro fulfillment centers are revolutionizing the courier industry. Reduced emissions, local sourcing, and support for urban stability are just three of the many examples. Compact logistics are quickly becoming a solution for businesses that want to make a difference, and through small warehouse space for rent , as and when needed, environmental footprints are diminishing as companies deliver services and goods to a smaller customer area. Consolidated Delivery Options Efficiency is everything in business, but it is even more critical when a company is looking to reduce the environmental impact of its operations. Through a micro-fulfillment system, a business is able to reduce the overall number of trips that a courier has to make. With consolidated deliveries concentrated in a smaller geographic area, there are many more options available that contribute to a lower impact, including efficient use of fuel for lower emissions. A Greener Supply Chain with Route Efficiency A company can make many changes when becoming the green link in the supply chain for a healthier logistical operation. However, an average home delivery round for a standard courier service is 50 miles, with 0.42 miles between each drop-off, producing 181g of carbon each. Focusing on a smaller area through micro fulfillment reduce the associated issues with couriers: Being closer to delivery routes reduces the need for extra shipping options. Electric delivery vehicles can be used as there is no need to recharge them. Knowledge of the area helps with routes as drivers can avoid congested areas. Lower Environmental Impact Of course, all efforts to go green and become more sustainable through logistics are to reduce the environmental impact that a business has on the area. Micro fulfillment contributes to this in a way that a wider operation cannot. Shorter routes and enhanced inventory management actively reduce waste. There is also much less energy used, as micro fulfillment centers are designed to be energy-efficient, and EVs and less transport contribute to emission reduction. Enhanced Socioeconomic Benefits There is also a social and economic impact of a business. An enhanced and more sustainable business using local micro fulfillment centers instantly creates more jobs, helping to prop up the local economy. Of course, the efficiency of this type of logistical operation also results in happier customers, increasing the chance of repeat business. From a business perspective, you demonstrate a commitment to ongoing sustainability , appealing to eco-conscious customers. Summary Being closer to customers for delivery helps create a greener supply chain when used with micro fulfillment centers. Local couriers and employees also know the area and can avoid congested areas for streamlined operations. However, there are also social and economic benefits such as job creation, improved customer experiences, and enhanced brand reputation.