Climate Week NYC 2025 Recap
Welcome to the new, monthly NuWave Talent newsletter. We’re kicking things off with a recap of Climate Week NYC 2025.
From trailblazing documentaries to discussions of AI for good to apps that enable empowered choices, this year’s events reminded us that climate action requires people as much as it does technology.
Mindset, Agency, & Technology
On the Nest Main Stage, leaders like Ryan Gellert of Patagonia and Jesper Brodin of Ingka Group | IKEA reminded us that “changing technology is easier than changing minds” but it is often the latter that determines whether transformation blooms.
Gellert noted that, “consumers hold the power to raise expectations and reward the brands driving sustainability forward.” While we shouldn’t neglect policy and community action, we can’t forget the power of our collective choices either. Through them, we may be able to help shift the mindset of more business leaders.
This theme of agency and people-powered change was echoed in what we heard from Michelle Waring of Tom’s of Maine and Sanchalo Pal of Commons at Planet Haus. More and more people are getting informed and looking for circular products. Resources like the Commons app can help them take action, leading to powerful outcomes from their everyday choices. Individual choices matter when they accumulate into collective action.
The Power of Storytelling
Storytelling emerged as a complementary theme to consumer agency over the course of last week. At the Kiss the Ground documentary panel on regenerative agriculture, activist Wawa Gatheru and filmmakers Rebecca and Josh Tickell emphasized that narratives not only shape how we understand the climate crisis but also whether we feel empowered to act.
While 80% of climate storytelling has leaned into despair, the panelists called for a new era of communication, rooted in hope and practical solutions. As Josh Tickell put it, “regenerative agriculture is the most powerful tool we have,” but it needs to be explained through stories that invite participation.
Across every workshop and discussion we attended, a set of shared threads materialized–stories, mindsets, and agency are key. Whether in boardrooms or grassroots gatherings, the call is to make climate solutions more hopeful and actionable.
Looking Ahead
We were truly inspired by last week’s convergence of leaders. The work ahead requires resilience, creativity, agency, and, most of all, people. We’re grateful to stand alongside this community and we look forward to helping more organizations grow teams ready to drive the next wave of sustainable impact.
