From methane-reducing seaweed in Australia to renewable energy from food waste in the Maldives, this year’s 25 winners demonstrate how businesses can combine profitability with environmental and social responsibility
Twenty-five projects spanning 13 industries and making an impact across 19 geographies have been recognised in the 2026 Steward Leadership 25 (SL25) awards, highlighting the growing role of commercially viable solutions in addressing environmental and social challenges.
Announced on Oct 28, 2026, the fifth edition of the annual awards marks a significant expansion in geographical reach, with the Maldives, Taiwan, Palestine, Qatar and Tanzania appearing among the impact geographies for the first time.
The number of geographies represented has grown from 11 in the inaugural year to 19 in 2026, reflecting increasing interest in business models that combine financial sustainability with positive social and environmental outcomes.
SL25 is curated by four founding partners: the Steward Leadership Institute (SLI), INSEAD Hoffmann Institute, The Straits Times and WTW.
This year’s winning projects cover five impact areas, with Climate & Nature accounting for eight initiatives, followed by Waste & Circularity with seven.
The Climate & Nature projects include harnessing geothermal energy in the Philippines, using red seaweed to reduce methane emissions from cattle in Australia, and developing a localised electric vehicle ecosystem in India.
Other initiatives focus on improving battery monitoring for electric fleets in Singapore, capturing carbon emissions from diesel generators and regenerating rural land through women-led agroforestry in Indonesia.
Coastal conservation also features prominently, with projects developing financially sustainable marine protected areas and community-led sanitation solutions.
In the Waste & Circularity category, winners are transforming discarded materials into commercially useful resources.
Projects include converting food waste into renewable energy in the Maldives, turning agricultural waste into biochar in Cambodia and generating clean energy from municipal waste in Malaysia.
Other innovations transform ocean-bound plastic into roofing tiles, manufacture durable materials from waste in Indonesia, encourage bottle recycling in Taiwan and provide purified water to underserved communities.
Six projects under Empowering Communities focus on expanding economic opportunities and improving livelihoods.
These include digital financial services for rural women in Indonesia and dairy farmers in India, employment opportunities for persons with disabilities in Thailand, and programmes that train women as ocean conservation leaders.
Two Health projects address menstrual stigma in Sri Lanka and early breast cancer detection among Indonesian women.
Another two initiatives under Digital Wellbeing & Access provide affordable AI-powered smart glasses for visually impaired students across South Asia and Thailand, and accredited training to improve employment opportunities for neurodivergent individuals in Thailand.
Energy and agribusiness are the most represented industries this year, with four winning projects each, followed by commercial and professional services and education, with three apiece.
Indonesia leads the geographical impact rankings, featuring in 10 of the 25 projects. Singapore and Indonesia are also home to the largest number of winning organisations, with five each.
Across five years of applications, financial services has been the most represented industry, followed by education, commercial and professional services, and energy.
Rajeev Peshawaria, Chief Executive Officer of SLI, said the awards demonstrate that profitability and social responsibility need not be competing priorities.
“Over the five years since we established the SL25 awards, we have seen hundreds of business leaders who reject the notion that there is a trade-off between purpose and profit. Instead, they proactively choose to do well by doing good,” he said.
He added that the expanding geographical footprint demonstrates how commercially viable solutions can benefit communities and the environment.
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Shai Ganu, Senior Managing Director and Global Leader, Executive Compensation & Board Advisory at WTW, said the winners offer practical lessons for businesses navigating increasingly complex environmental and social risks.
“The SL25 winners show that tackling environmental and social challenges is not a cost to business but a source of resilience and long-term value,” he said.
Dr Vinika Rao, Director of the INSEAD Hoffmann Institute & Africa Initiative, said the diversity of winning projects demonstrates the value of integrating purpose into business strategy.
She said the experiences of organisations across 13 industries offer important lessons for business leaders and educators worldwide.
Part of the Temasek Trust Collective, SLI promotes research, education and advisory initiatives focused on achieving profitable growth while addressing environmental and social challenges.
The annual SL25 awards recognise organisations that demonstrate this approach through practical, financially sustainable projects, reinforcing the idea that successful businesses can also be powerful drivers of positive change.
