Don’t Let the Words Get in the Way of the Work

Teams are facing a battle they never expected: getting legal and the C-suite comfortable with how to discuss key sustainability concepts. The challenge is real, from handling internal anxiety about attracting the wrong kind of attention to still meeting the needs of audiences who want detailed information, all while avoiding criticism.

This creates a complex communication challenge. You need aligned, consistent messages across channels, but your audiences span from employees to customers to those who expect comprehensive data to geographic regions where certain terminology triggers polarized responses. You can’t call the same initiative by different names to different groups—especially when “internal” communications aren’t solely internal.

How do you navigate the tension: organizational fear of backlash versus the need to satisfy audiences who demand transparency and specificity?

Navigate the Internal Alignment Challenge

Legal teams worry about regulatory, legal, and proxy voting implications. CEOs want language that won’t alienate customers or shareholders. Communications teams need consistent messaging that works across diverse audiences and geographic markets, including employees.

We’ve seen companies shift from “climate change” to “resilience,” return to “CSR” and “Impact” from “ESG,” or avoid certain terms entirely. The question isn’t what words to use. The question is: can your work stand up to scrutiny from all your stakeholders? Do your audiences—from your CFO to regulators to regional customers—understand what you’re doing and why it matters?

What Are You Really Protecting?

When your internal teams debate language choices, ask what you’re protecting. Is it the substance of your work or the comfort of the familiar? Strategic language adjustments can help if they enable you to continue meaningful work without unnecessary friction. You might find you have more allies by widening your lens.

Here’s what matters more than the label: sustainability done right is strategy. It drives innovation, creates value, and positions organizations for long-term growth. The work itself—climate resilience, operational efficiency, community engagement, risk management—remains essential regardless of what you call it.

Meet Your Audiences Where They Are

Smart sustainability communication requires message alignment across your organization while acknowledging that audience and regional context matter. Your core narrative must remain consistent—you can’t call the same initiative “resilience planning” to one group and “climate adaptation” to another. But you can emphasize different benefits and frame impacts in ways that resonate.

People want relatable stories that make the work you are doing real to them. Regulators and investors want comprehensive, comparable data and clear commitments. Some audiences may connect more readily with economic benefits and operational improvements than abstract climate goals. Polarization means the same message lands differently across markets.

The key is maintaining authenticity while adapting your emphasis. Focus on shared values—economic resilience, innovation, risk management, community strength—that transcend political divides.

Keep the Focus on Substance

The most effective sustainability communications focus on:

• Real impact: Document your actual work rather than relying on generic claims and clichés. Show renewable energy installations, efficiency improvements, community programs, and innovation initiatives.
• Measurable progress: Use infographics, data and visual storytelling to demonstrate concrete results toward specific goals.
• Business value: Connect sustainability efforts to operational improvements, cost savings, risk mitigation, and new opportunities.
• Future readiness: Frame your work as positioning the organization for long-term success in a changing world.

Reframe the Narrative

Shift the conversation from cost and burden to opportunity and value creation. When sustainability is positioned as strategic business practice rather than regulatory requirement, your work speaks for itself.

The most successful organizations maintain focus on the substance while adapting their communication approach to current realities. They avoid visual clichés, use clear messaging, and ensure their digital presence supports their credibility.

The Takeaway

Don’t be precious about terminology. Be strategic about communication. Focus on doing meaningful work that creates value, manages risk, and positions your organization for the future. Then communicate that work in ways your audiences understand and appreciate.

The goal isn’t to win language wars—it’s to advance important work while building trust with stakeholders. When you focus on substance over semantics, you keep sustainability professionals in their roles doing the work that matters.

Your language choices should serve your mission, not the other way around. In these interesting times, clarity trumps purity every time.

Ideas On Purpose Can Help

Struggling to communicate your sustainability work effectively in today’s environment? We specialize in helping organizations develop and align authentic sustainability messaging that resonates across diverse audiences while maintaining focus on the work itself. And, we bring those messages to life.

For over 25 years, IOP has helped companies navigate complex communication challenges and delivering design-driven Sustainability Communications and Reporting, Campaigns, and Websites. Email us to discuss how we can help you communicate more effectively about your sustainability initiatives, regardless of what you call them.

June 2025
Photo by Reanimated Man X on Unsplash