My name is Ester Baiget and I am the CEO of Denmark-based Biosolutions company Novonesis and vice-chair of The B Team, sitting alongside Jesper Brodin from whom you heard last month.

At Novonesis, sustainability and social responsibility form the foundation of everything we do: from how we work to how we run operations and bring our solutions to our customers. Being part of The B Team has connected us with like-minded organizations and individuals, inspiring us to contribute to a healthier planet and better lives for people.

As CEO, I thrive on learning from those around me, asking questions, co-creating, supporting diversity and sparring to drive positive change. I’m proud that we have turned our climate commitments into action, proving that profitability and sustainability can coexist.

But change is not always easy and often requires boldness and conviction. Less than 10 years have passed since the Paris Climate Agreement came into force and many practices we see today in the wider business community — net-zero commitments, transitioning away from fossil fuels, pricing carbon — were not always the norm.

Progress has faced challenges and the journey has been a complex one, with dialogue being as important as the decisions themselves. As we rethink economies and societies previously built around fossil fuels, we are still only at the beginning of a much longer journey.

Often, stakeholders have strong feelings about different pathways to reach the same climate goal. Having the courage to make and stand by difficult choices and decisions for the greater good is just as important. At COP28, The B Team worked with over 1,000 signatories — from business, finance, philanthropy, politics, academia and civil society — to urge countries to commit to limiting global warming to 1.5°C. We understand that climate action also means working within our own organizations as well as bringing a collective voice to the shared challenges we face.

We strive to do our part at Novonesis, too. Just this past month, at the annual Multi-Stakeholder Forum on Science, Technology, and Innovation for the SDGs at the United Nations in New York, we showcased cutting-edge science and climate action through our BioSolutions. At the same time, we championed organizations, including the UN Climate Technology Center and Network, who are driving implementation of climate technology projects in the Global South.

When it comes to climate change, we need to be ambitious on our own and on behalf of others. We need to accept that we won’t have all the answers. As we learn and grow as leaders, let’s remember that sustainability is more than just a goal; it must be the driving force embedded at every level of our companies and organizations. I invite you all to join us in being catalysts for change and leading the way towards a better future for our societies, environment, and climate. We have the solutions; now, we must work together to implement them.

"The Catalyst" is The B Team’s monthly newsletter which showcases ways in which leaders are advocating a better way of doing business. Subscribe to receive updates.