By Elisabeth Brier,Forbes Staff

Copyright forbes

Selecting the 50 global leaders driving a more sustainable future is no simple task—here’s how Forbes identified this year’s honorees.

The annual Forbes Sustainability Leaders list honors 50 individuals whose recent achievements are shaping the fight against the climate crisis with real, scalable solutions. The process begins with an open call for nominations. Applicants are asked to detail the contributions they—or the people they are nominating—have made in recent years, with an emphasis on innovation and measurable impact supported by metrics or data when possible. There is no fee to apply.

Eligibility spans sectors: founders, scientists, researchers, policymakers, executives, investors, activists and artists are all eligible. From there, Forbes staff conduct an initial vetting process. We look for candidates whose work shows discernible impact, pioneering approaches and a credible plan to scale. Because this list does not repeat honorees, we focus on recent achievements rather than legacy recognition, weighing why each nominee is a strong fit for this particular year.

Finalists are then asked to complete detailed surveys tailored to their sector. These forms dig into specifics such as: fundraising, valuation and revenue history from founders; patents and peer-reviewed publications from scientists; and assets under management from investors. All finalists also elaborate on their recent accomplishments, strategies for scaling and long-term goals. In addition to the general pool, Forbes conducts targeted outreach to standout leaders who may not have applied as part of the open call but whose work still caught our attention.

The top 120 candidates advance to review by a panel of external judges spanning science, finance, advocacy and policy. In cases of conflict of interest—such as a judge having invested directly in a candidate—judges are recused. In addition to impact, the panel and Forbes editors consider diversity of geography, industry and discipline to reflect the coalition of voices required for a sustainable global economy.

Following a thorough due diligence process where we’re paying particular attention to instances of greenwashing, Forbes editors compile the 50 most compelling leaders into the final list, presented alphabetically.

This year’s honorees will be recognized at the Forbes Sustainability Leaders Summit on September 22, during New York Climate Week, featuring headline conversations with Dr. Jane Goodall, DBE, UN Messenger of Peace and founder of the Jane Goodall Institute, Former U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and NASA climate scientist Peter Kalmus.

Expert Judge Panel

Laurene Powell Jobs

Laurene Powell Jobs

Laurene Powell Jobs is the founder and president of Emerson Collective, which combines venture investing and philanthropic grant-making to address challenges in education, economic mobility, immigration and the environment. She created the Waverley Street Foundation, a fund supporting climate solutions developed in and for communities most affected by climate change. Powell Jobs is the founder and board chair of College Track, which helps first-generation students complete college, and cofounder and board chair of the XQ Institute, which supports high school redesign. She is lead investor and board chair of The Atlantic and serves on the boards of Chicago CRED, Elemental Excelerator, the Council on Foreign Relations and the Ford Foundation.

Jane Fonda is a two-time Academy Award–winning actor, producer, author, activist and fitness icon whose career spans more than 50 films and five decades. In 2022 she founded the Jane Fonda Climate PAC to help elect leaders willing to challenge the fossil-fuel industry. Her book What Can I Do? My Path from Climate Despair to Action chronicles her journey into climate activism and offers community-level solutions. In April of 2024, Fonda accepted the TIME Magazine Earth Award. She also recently received the SAG Life Achievement Award in February 2025. She continues to use her platform to spotlight the climate emergency and mobilize public engagement.

Tom Steyer is co-executive chair of Galvanize Climate Solutions, a global investment firm focused on energy and decarbonization. He founded Farallon Capital Management in 1986 and built it into a multibillion-dollar hedge fund before leaving in 2012 to focus on climate action. Steyer helped make California the largest jurisdiction with a 100% clean-energy law and cofounded Beneficial State Bank, a community development bank dedicated to environmental and economic justice. He also founded NextGen America, the nation’s largest youth voter-engagement organization, and NextGen Policy, which has helped secure major state funding for climate and equity priorities. Steyer later co-chaired California Governor Gavin Newsom’s Business and Jobs Recovery Task Force and served on Vice President Biden’s Climate Engagement Advisory Council.

Jigar Shah is an energy entrepreneur, investor and strategist. He most recently served as director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office, where he oversaw a tenfold increase in loans and deployed more than $100 billion in financing for clean energy and advanced transportation projects. Shah previously cofounded and led Generate Capital, which pioneered infrastructure-as-a-service financing, and founded SunEdison, where he popularized third-party solar power-purchase agreements. He was the founding CEO of the Carbon War Room, a nonprofit launched by Sir Richard Branson to accelerate market-based climate solutions. Shah now co-leads Multiplier LLC, an advisory firm for clean-energy and climate-tech companies, and co-hosts the “Open Circuit” podcast from Latitude Media.

Charlot Magayi

Charlot Magayi

Charlot Magayi is the founder and CEO of Mukuru Clean Stoves, a Kenya-based social enterprise providing affordable, clean-burning cookstoves that reduce household air pollution and improve health outcomes. Her company has sold hundreds of thousands of stoves across East Africa, lowering fuel costs for families and cutting emissions linked to respiratory disease. Magayi, who grew up in Nairobi’s informal settlements, launched the venture after her daughter was injured by a traditional charcoal stove. Mukuru Clean Stoves reaches customers in both urban and rural communities through local sales networks. Magayi was named to the 2024 Forbes Sustainability Leaders list for bringing cleaner cooking solutions to underserved communities.

Ester Baiget

Ester Baiget is president and CEO of Novonesis and has more than 25 years of international experience in manufacturing, technical, commercial and strategic roles. She leads the merged industrial biotech company formed from Novozymes and Chr. Hansen, which develops biologically based alternatives to industrial products and processes across food, animal health, energy and plastics. In 2024 Novonesis partnered with Carbios to build a facility to recycle 50,000 tons of PET waste annually. Baiget serves on the board of Akzo Nobel and holds a chemical engineering degree and an MBA from the University of Tarragona in Spain. She was named to the 2024 Forbes Sustainability Leaders list for advancing science-driven climate solutions.

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