Getting Sustainability Help in Australia
by Sustainability Tracker 03/07/2026
Guide, Thought Starters
by Sustainability Tracker 03/07/2026
Guide, Thought Starters
This article was contributed by Sustainability Tracker.
If you’ve typed “sustainability consultant Australia” into Google recently, you’re not alone. The results probably felt overwhelming. Large professional services firms promising end-to-end ESG programs sit alongside boutique specialists, freelance advisors, certification bodies, and platforms. The price ranges vary enormously. So does the scope of what’s on offer.
This article is for brand leaders and marketers who are trying to figure out what kind of sustainability help they actually need, and how to make a good decision about where to find it.
The pressure to act on sustainability has shifted from reputational to regulatory in the space of a few years.
Australia’s mandatory sustainability reporting laws (passed by Parliament in September 2024 and effective from 1 January 2025) require large companies (500+ employees, $500m+ revenue, or $1b+ assets) to formally disclose climate-related risks, emissions, and strategies as part of their annual financial reporting. Medium-sized businesses follow from July 2026, and smaller companies from 2027-28.
Even businesses that fall below those thresholds are feeling it. If you supply to a large retailer, manufacturer, or financial institution that is in scope, they are likely already asking you for emissions data and supply chain information to help them meet their own Scope 3 (emissions from a company’s entire supply chain and product use, beyond its own operations) reporting obligations. That indirect pressure is hitting consumer brands, small manufacturers, and service businesses well ahead of the formal compliance timelines.
At the same time, the ACCC’s enforcement of greenwashing under Australian Consumer Law (with penalties now reaching $100 million per violation) means the risk of saying the wrong thing about sustainability is also higher than it has ever been.
The result: businesses that were managing sustainability casually are now looking for structured help.
“Sustainability consultant” covers a wide range of work, and picking the wrong type for your problem is one of the most common reasons businesses feel like they didn’t get value from the engagement.
The categories below map to the service areas available in the Sustainability Tracker consultant directory, where you can filter by service type and location to find verified providers suited to your needs.
This is where most businesses start. A good strategy consultant will help you identify your most material sustainability risks and opportunities, set measurable goals, and build a plan that connects to how your business actually operates. Australian-based firms listed on Sustainability Tracker in this category include Rewild Agency (a B Corp-certified strategic advisory team), Green Moves (an independent consulting firm and multiple Sustainability Tracker Impact Award winner), Edge Impact (a B Corp combining science, strategy, and communications), and Cool Planet (an impact agency with a B Corp certification focused on commercialising sustainability for clients). WolfPeak and Tamarack Consulting also offer broad strategy services for Australian businesses.
Preparing reports aligned to Australia’s new mandatory standards (AASB S1/S2), GRI, or investor frameworks is technical work. It requires people who know reporting standards, data systems, and increasingly, assurance requirements.
Losee Consulting is a B Corp and Climate Active certified Australian firm (founded 2013) that prepares reporting under GRI, ISO 26000, and AASB S2, covering climate risk assessment, GHG reporting, and climate disclosures support. Linden Sustainability also operates in this space in Australia, as does auverde, which focuses on turning climate reporting into a competitive business advantage. STSG Consulting specialises specifically in integrating climate considerations into financial and risk decision-making, which is directly relevant to the new AASB S2 requirements.
Measuring your Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, building a carbon baseline, and developing a credible reduction pathway. Climate Zero has more than 15 years of experience helping Australian businesses measure and manage carbon, and is listed on Sustainability Tracker as a verified provider. South Pole Australia (B Corp, UN Global Compact signatory, Sustainability Tracker Impact Award winner) brings global scale to this work. Climate Logic is an Australian impact strategy studio focused specifically on helping businesses navigate the climate landscape.
If your priority is packaging design, supply chain transparency, or reducing product lifecycle impact, you need specialists in this area rather than a generalist strategy firm. philo & co is an award-winning circular economy and sustainable packaging consultancy listed on Sustainability Tracker.
The firm works with FMCG brands and packaging design agencies on packaging strategy, compliance, impact assessment, and circularity, with specific expertise in APCO reporting and readiness for Australia’s Extended Producer Responsibility framework. For brands navigating packaging complexity while trying to build genuine sustainability credentials, philo & co bridges the gap between design thinking and regulatory requirement.
Pursuing B Corp, Climate Active, or another formal certification requires an advisor who knows that specific assessment process well. The Growth Activists is a B Corp-certified Australian firm that specialises in ESG transformation and B Corp certification support. Losee Consulting is a Climate Active and B Corp-certified Australian firm working across strategy and certification pathways.
Translating your sustainability work into credible, compliant consumer-facing content, navigating greenwashing risk, and building your public sustainability presence. Fair And Forward is an Australian firm specialising in strategic consulting, sustainability communications, and capability building.
Horizon Communication Group brings years of experience in sustainability communications through its dedicated division greenHorizon, working with brands on PR, stakeholder engagement, and behaviour change campaigns across issues including packaging circularity, the energy transition, and sustainable food systems. The team are UN Global Compact signatories and on the path to B Corp certification.
Many sustainability firms are built for large corporates. Small Mighty CSR is specifically designed for small businesses, offering practical advice, tools, and courses that make sustainability accessible without requiring enterprise-level budgets.
Browse the full Sustainability Tracker directory of sustainability service providers in Australia
Most businesses hire for the problem they’ve already diagnosed, rather than stepping back to identify the problem they actually have.
A brand team that feels exposed to greenwashing risk might hire a marketing consultant to rewrite their claims, when what they need first is an evidence audit to understand what they can and can’t credibly say.
A CEO preparing for a retail partner’s sustainability questionnaire might engage an ESG strategy firm, when the more immediate need is a structured place to store and present existing credentials.
Before briefing anyone, it’s worth being precise about which of these categories your problem falls into:
These are genuinely different problems requiring different types of support. A large ESG strategy firm is not the right answer to problem five. A communications consultant is not the right answer to problem two.
Once you’ve defined what you need, here’s what to look for when assessing who to work with.
Relevant sector experience matters. Sustainability challenges differ meaningfully across fashion, food, consumer products, built environment, and financial services. A consultant who has helped FMCG brands navigate greenwashing risk will be more useful to a consumer brand than one whose practice is built around mining or infrastructure. Ask for specific examples in your sector, not general case studies.
Ask what they’ll produce, not just what they’ll do. The output of a consulting engagement should be something your team can use after the engagement ends. That means a documented evidence base, a set of structured claims with substantiation, a certification that holds up, or a report you can publish with confidence. If a consultant can’t describe the deliverable clearly, the scope isn’t clear enough to proceed.
Check their knowledge of the Australian regulatory environment. The ACCC’s greenwashing enforcement, the AANA Environmental Claims Code (effective March 2025), and Australia’s mandatory reporting standards (AASB S1/S2) are all live and active. Any advisor working with Australian consumer brands on sustainability communication needs current, specific knowledge of these. General awareness is not enough.
Verify certifications and affiliations. Sustainability professionals in Australia specifically may hold qualifications. For B Corp advisory specifically, look for advisors with direct B Corp assessment experience or B Consultant training. Credentials matter less than track record, but the absence of any verifiable professional grounding is worth noting.
Ask who else they’ve worked with and talk to those clients. References are the most reliable signal in a market where anyone can position themselves as a sustainability expert. A question worth asking referees: did the work hold up when it was tested, whether by a retail partner, a journalist, a regulatory inquiry, or a sceptical consumer?
A good consultant will answer these questions directly. Vague answers to specific questions about deliverables and evidence could be a red flag.
If you’re reading this and still not certain which category your problem falls into, the quickest way to get clarity is Sustainability Tracker’s priority roadmap quiz. It takes under a minute and gives you a top-level view of where your business should focus its sustainability efforts to make the biggest impact, based on your specific situation.
It’s a practical starting point before you speak to any consultant. Rather than arriving at an initial conversation cold, you’ll have a clearer sense of your priorities, which makes those conversations faster and more productive. You’ll also be less likely to be sold a service you don’t actually need.
The sustainability consulting market in Australia is broad, active, and growing fast in response to real regulatory pressure. Mandatory climate reporting is now law for large companies, greenwashing enforcement is expanding, and supply chain transparency expectations are moving down to smaller businesses well ahead of formal compliance timelines.
The most important step before engaging anyone is being precise about which problem you’re actually trying to solve. Strategy, measurement, reporting, certification, and communication are genuinely different disciplines requiring different types of support. A firm that excels at climate disclosures for infrastructure clients is not the right fit for a consumer brand that needs to clean up its packaging claims. Getting that match right at the start saves significant time and money.
The second thing worth internalising: getting help is not a one-and-done exercise. The regulatory environment is moving quickly, consumer expectations are rising, and what counts as credible sustainability communication in 2026 is meaningfully different from what was acceptable two years ago. The businesses building real resilience are the ones treating sustainability as an ongoing discipline, with structured evidence, regular review, and a consistent source of truth their whole team can work from.
If you’re not sure where to start, the Sustainability Tracker priority quiz takes under a minute and gives you a practical first read on where your business should focus. From there, the verified consultant directory helps you find the right type of support for your specific situation, without having to sift through hundreds of generalist options.
What does a sustainability consultant do in Australia?
A sustainability consultant helps businesses measure, manage, and communicate their environmental and social impact. In Australia, this typically covers materiality assessments, emissions measurement and carbon accounting, sustainability reporting aligned to Australian standards (AASB S1/S2) or frameworks like GRI, certification support for programs including B Corp and Climate Active, supply chain and packaging audits, and advice on environmental claims compliance under the ACCC’s guidelines and the AANA Environmental Claims Code. The scope varies significantly depending on business size, industry, and where the business is in its sustainability journey.
Do small businesses in Australia need a sustainability consultant?
Small businesses are not directly subject to Australia’s mandatory sustainability reporting requirements. However, many small businesses are already feeling the pressure indirectly.
Large retail, manufacturing, and financial services clients are required to report on Scope 3 emissions, which includes data from their suppliers. Small businesses that supply large companies may be asked to provide emissions and supply chain information to help those clients meet their own reporting obligations. A sustainability consultant or platform can help small businesses prepare for those requests and build credible communication for their own customers.
How much does a sustainability consultant cost in Australia?
Costs vary widely depending on scope and firm type. Large professional services firms typically charge project-based fees ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars for comprehensive ESG strategy and reporting work. Boutique specialists and independent advisors are more accessible for small to medium businesses, with hourly rates typically ranging from $150 to $500 and project fees from $2,500 upward depending on complexity. Getting specific about what deliverable you need before requesting quotes will produce more useful and comparable proposals than a vague brief.
What is the difference between a sustainability consultant and an ESG consultant in Australia?
The terms are often used interchangeably, but they have a different emphasis in practice. ESG (environmental, social, governance) is primarily a framework used by investors, financial institutions, and regulators to assess business risk and performance, and ESG consulting tends to focus on reporting, disclosure, and investor-facing communications.
Sustainability consulting in the broader sense covers ESG but also extends to product lifecycle, consumer-facing communication, certification, packaging, and operational practices. For consumer brands, sustainability is usually the more relevant frame. For listed companies or those dealing with investor or lender requirements, ESG is often the lens that matters most. But some companies and consultants might call themselves both and even do both.
What should I look for when choosing a sustainability consultant in Australia?
The most important factors are sector experience, clarity about deliverables, and current knowledge of the Australian regulatory environment (including the ACCC’s environmental claims guidance, the AANA Environmental Claims Code effective March 2025, and Australia’s mandatory reporting standards AASB S1/S2).
Ask for specific examples from your industry rather than general case studies, ask what you will have in your hands at the end of the engagement, and speak to at least one past client before committing. Track record and references are more reliable signals than credentials alone in this market.
How do I find a verified sustainability consultant in Australia?
Sustainability Tracker maintains a directory of verified sustainability service providers, searchable by service category and location.
Categories cover general sustainability strategy, reporting and climate disclosures, carbon accounting and emissions reduction, environmental certifications, sustainable packaging and supply chain, sustainability communications and marketing, energy management, green finance, biodiversity, and social responsibility.
If you’re unsure which category fits your situation, the Sustainability Tracker priority roadmap quiz takes under a minute and gives you a top-level view of where your business should focus before you start searching.