The Sustainability
Issues That Can't Wait.
Sustainability compliance is no longer industry-agnostic. Whether you're moving product, managing assets, or scaling technology, the regulatory landscape just got specific.
Here's what's urgent for your sector right now.
Three sectors. Three sets of pressures. One question that ties them all together:
Do you have a strategy, or are you reacting?
We help you get ahead of what's coming, before it becomes a crisis.
Consumer Products
Two landmark regulations are converging in 2026 and most consumer brands aren't ready for either. Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) makes you financially responsible for your packaging's end of life. SB 343 makes you prove you weren't lying about what that end of life looks like.
Where brands are getting stuck:
"We don't know which EPR states we're in scope for."
"Our recycling claims haven't been audited against new criteria."
"Marketing, legal, and sustainability aren't aligned."
Your Packaging Is Now a Legal Document.
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Consumer Products
Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
EPR is now law in seven U.S. states — California, Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon, and Washington — with more actively considering legislation. Companies placing goods on the U.S. market are now financially and operationally responsible for collecting, recycling, or properly disposing of their products once consumers are done with them.
That means mandatory registration with Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs), packaging data reporting, and fee payments — by state, on a schedule that has already started. Missing deadlines or submitting inaccurate data doesn't just create headaches — it can trigger financial penalties, audits, and reputational risk with retailers.
California SB 343 — Truth in Recycling
The chasing-arrows recycling symbol is no longer a design choice — it's a legal representation. With enforcement beginning October 4, 2026, SB 343 restricts use of the recycling symbol and any recyclability claims on packaging sold in California unless the material meets strict statewide criteria.
Only about 35 materials passed California's criteria. Common failures include flexible plastics, multilayer film, PVC, and fiber with coatings. Violations can result in civil penalties up to $2,500 per violation — and unlike some other regulations, this one applies to e-commerce sold into California too.
These two laws work in tandem: EPR makes you responsible for your packaging's end of life. SB 343 makes you prove you weren't lying about what that end of life looks like.
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DescriptioWhat a compliance strategy actually requires
Determine which EPR states you're in scope for based on revenue, volume, and product category
Register with the appropriate PRO in each applicable state — several deadlines have already passed
Audit all packaging against California's CalRecycle Final Findings Report (2025)
Remove or revise any non-compliant recyclability claims or symbols from artwork
Build documentation systems to substantiate any claims you keep — California requires written records on request
Align marketing, legal, and sustainability teams on what can and cannot be said
Model EPR fee exposure by state to inform packaging redesign decisions
Key SB 343 Deadline
October 4, 2026
All packaging manufactured after this date must comply. Act now — artwork changes take time.n text goes here
Financial Services
Your ESG Disclosures Are Under a Microscope.
For financial institutions and asset managers, the era of aspirational sustainability language is over. Greenwashing enforcement is intensifying and regulators are now framing inaccurate sustainability statements as potential securities violations, not just consumer protection issues.
Where firms are getting stuck:
"Our sustainability data lives in spreadsheets, not reporting systems."
"We have greenwashing exposure in our fund marketing language."
"No one owns ESG disclosure across legal, finance, and sustainability."
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For financial institutions, asset managers, and investment firms, 2026 marks a decisive shift: ESG compliance has moved onto the same risk register as financial crime, sanctions, and data privacy. Regulators are no longer just watching — they're enforcing.
The pressure is coming from multiple directions. California's climate disclosure laws (SB 253 and SB 261) are pulling large private companies into mandatory Scope 1, 2, and 3 reporting — even without a federal SEC mandate. Globally, 86% of large companies are now disclosing sustainability information, hardening investor expectations across the board.
Greenwashing enforcement is intensifying. The SEC fined Keurig Dr Pepper $1.5 million in 2024 for inaccurate recyclability claims — framing it as a securities violation, not just a consumer protection issue. ESG funds are under intensified scrutiny, and inaccurate sustainability statements in client communications are increasingly treated as governance failures.
The firms navigating this well aren't just building compliance infrastructure — they're turning sustainability data into a strategic asset, using it to sharpen investment decisions, strengthen client trust, and future-proof against the next wave of disclosure requirements.ription text goes here
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Assess your scope under California SB 253 ($1B+ revenue) and SB 261 ($500M+ revenue) disclosure requirements
Audit fund marketing language and client communications for unsupported sustainability claims
Move sustainability data out of spreadsheets and into systems that connect to financial reporting
Establish clear cross-functional ownership of ESG disclosure across legal, finance, and sustainability
Align internal governance with ISSB S1/S2 standards and relevant state-level frameworks
Build audit trails for all material sustainability claims — regulators are demanding documentation
Develop a transition plan that can withstand investor and regulatory scrutiny
AI & Technology
Most organizations are adopting AI faster than they're managing its sustainability and social implications. AI has a real environmental and social footprint in energy, water, carbon, and its impact on local communities. These belong in your KPIs. But used strategically, AI is also your most powerful tool for managing the compliance pressures above.
Where organizations are getting stuck:
"We use AI tools but haven't accounted for their emissions impact."
"Sustainability and technology teams operate in separate silos."
"Leadership is asking about AI governance but we have no answer."
You're Scaling AI. Have You Accounted For The Risks?
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Most companies are using AI. Very few have built a strategy around what that means for their sustainability commitments. That gap is becoming a measurable liability — and in 2026, it's showing up in Scope 3 reporting, investor questions, and ESG audits.
The challenge has two distinct sides. First, AI has a real environmental footprint: energy consumption, water use for data center cooling, and carbon emissions from training and inference. These belong in your emissions accounting and your sustainability reporting — not as a footnote, but as a material line item.
Second, AI used intentionally is one of the most powerful tools available for managing the compliance pressures in the other two sectors. It can automate packaging data collection for EPR, model fee scenarios by SKU, stress-test ESG disclosures, and track supply chain risk in real time. The organizations getting ahead aren't avoiding AI — they're governing it deliberately.
Sustainability leaders across sectors are reporting an "AI literacy gap" — teams are eager but often have only surface-level understanding of how the technology can actually augment their work. The opportunity in 2026 is to close that gap before regulators, investors, or your own reporting obligations close it for you.
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What a sustainable AI strategy requires
Inventory all AI tools in use across the organization and map their energy, water, and carbon footprint
Include AI-related emissions in Scope 3 reporting — cloud workloads and data center usage count
Establish AI governance that keeps environmental performance visible and accountable
Identify high-impact use cases where AI can accelerate sustainability compliance (reporting, EPR data, ESG disclosure)
Build cross-functional literacy: sustainability and technology teams need a shared strategic language
Develop board-level talking points on AI and sustainability that hold up to investor scrutiny
Create a governance framework that can evolve as AI use scales
Ready to stop
reacting and start leading?
We can't wait to help you do better by doing good.
Let's figure out where you are and build a strategy that actually works for your organization.