Companies and professionals looking to manage sustainability goals and ESG risks had to manage a variety of regulatory and policy changes in the first half of this year. Regional fragmentation emerged in the U.S. and abroad as states introduced their own climate disclosure rules while the Securities and Exchange Commission reversed course on climate risk disclosures at the federal level, and the European Union finalized simplification of its landmark corporate sustainability disclosures.
Sustainability executives navigating this uncertainty will continue to look to their peers and industry leaders to share insights that can aid decision-making at their own organizations. The calendar of events scheduled for the second half of 2026 focus on navigating policy turbulence and the ongoing energy transition, as well as advancing circularity and decarbonization. Artificial intelligence — both in terms of its energy resource needs and potential sustainability applications — also remains a hot topic.
Here are some of the notable ESG and sustainability conferences that are still to come in 2026. We’ve also included a look back at the top events from the first half of this year.
Top ESG and sustainability conferences in 2026
Frame Conference
Sept. 17
London, England
The FRAME conference is a global event held exclusively for venture capitalists and limited partners that focuses on responsible investing, regulatory compliance and collective engagement around ESG. The conference is hosted by sustainable investing nonprofit Reframe Venture, formerly known as VentureESG. This year’s speaker lineup includes JPMorgan’s global head of climate advisory and managing director Sarah Kapnick, StepStone Group’s Head of Responsible Investment Suzanne Tavill and KfW Capital CEO and Cofounder Jörg Goschin.
Climate Week NYC
Sept. 20-27
New York
Climate Week NYC’s 2025 iteration centered around the theme “Power On” and hosted more than 1,000 events around New York City. This year’s annual climate event, like previous editions, is timed to coincide with the week of high-level discussions taking place at the United Nations General Assembly. The agenda that has been unveiled for 2026, so far, includes panels on the energy security crisis spurred by closing of the Strait of Hormuz, the clean energy transition, business resilience in the face of climate change and more.
Net Zero USA 2026
October
California
Net Zero USA 2026, hosted by Reuters, will gather over 200 sustainability leaders with the aim of initiating meaningful discussions on how companies can slash scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions across operations. The event will also focus on how companies can collaborate with suppliers to decarbonize their supply chains and leverage green tech to transition to a low-carbon economy. The dates haven’t been finalized yet, but NZUSA 2026 is slated to take place next October.
Speakers for last year’s iteration included Cisco CSO Mary de Wysocki, Compass Group Vice President of Sustainability Gwenyth Rampton and Everlane Director of Sustainability Katina Boutis.
UN 2026 Climate Change Conference (COP31)
Nov. 9-20
Antalya, Türkiye
The United Nations’ annual climate change conference, COP31, is set to take place in Türkiye, under a unique agreement. Türkiye and Australia have agreed to share the COP 31 presidency, with Australia designated as the “President of negotiations.” However, the conference is likely to happen without the United States’ involvement. President Donald Trump has pulled the U.S. from the Paris Agreement and several international cooperation initiatives on climate change broadly, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which convenes the annual global climate event.
A look back at ESG conferences from the first half of 2026
Cleantech Forum North America
Jan. 26-28
Paradise Point Resort & Spa
San Diego
Cleantech Forum North America brought together up to 700 corporates, entrepreneurs and professional services, government, academic and nonprofit experts. The event focused on sustainable innovation and connecting corporations and investors to increase business growth and impact. The 2026 agenda featured sessions focused on navigating market disruptions and climate capital needs in the U.S., in addition to artificial intelligence and its role in clean tech.
Greenbiz26
Feb. 17-19
JW Marriott Desert Ridge
Phoenix
Greenbiz26 was for sustainable business professionals and leaders from all sectors and job functions, including chief executive officers, chief financial officers, chief operating officers, heads of legal, supply chain, human resources and investor relations. The conference, hosted by climate-focused media and events company Trellis, included experts from a variety of sectors sharing sustainability strategies and insights for decarbonization, disclosure, nature and more. This 2026 iteration of the conference featured themes on advancing circularity, decarbonization, transition finance, scope 3 emissions and more.
Here is a roundup of ESG Dive’s coverage from Greenbiz26.
Wall Street Green Summit
March 10-11
Cornell Club
New York
Climate activist Peter Fusaro’s Wall Street Green Summit returned this year for its 25th anniversary, making it one of the longest running sustainable finance events in the world. This year’s agenda focused on climate tech investments, energy security and the transition, carbon markets, clean energy solutions and more.
Responsible Investment Forum: New York
March 18-19
New York
The Responsible Investment Forum, hosted by business intelligence firm PEI Group, brought together around 500 sustainable finance professionals and institutional investors for conversations on decarbonizing portfolios, moving from sustainability strategies from “ESG to ROI” and the evolving regulatory landscape. The two-day conference drew a crowd of institutional investors, fund managers and other industry experts.
DC Climate Week
April 20-26
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C. held its first-ever climate week last year, and the event returned to the nation’s capital for its second iteration in April. ESG Dive was on the ground covering the conference earlier this year. You can take a look at our coverage of panels that focused on the clean energy economy, in addition to an exclusive conversation we had with the CEO of Corporate Energy Buyers Association.
Engage for Good 2026
April 21-24
Palm Springs, California
The Engage for Good conference gathered corporate leaders, nonprofits, consultancies and tech providers to deal with shifting expectations and ongoing scrutiny on “the role of business in driving social impact.” The event pulled in professionals working on corporate social responsibility, ESG and DEI at their companies, with announced speakers including B Lab U.S. & Canada CEO Jorge Fontanez, Walmart Foundation President Julie Gehrki and ESPN Vice President of Corporate Sponsorship Kevin Martinez.
2026 Corporate Citizenship Summit
April 23-24
New York Marriott Marquis
New York
The Conference Board hosted a sustainable impact-focused conference, the Corporate Citizenship Summit, in April “to explore how business can lead with purpose and drive positive change,” according to its website. The event convened professionals focused on sustainability, governance, ESG strategy, corporate citizenship and employee engagement for two days of discussions in New York City. The summit focused on global regulatory shifts, increased AI adoption, decarbonization and nature-related risks, among other trends.
Responsible Business USA 2026
May 5-6
Boston
Responsible Business USA 2026, hosted by Reuters, moved its annual gathering of CEOs, senior sustainability, legal, communications and finance executives to Boston, Massachusetts, this year. The event convened sustainability-focused executives across a wide range of sectors and industries and talked about corporate compliance with a myriad of ESG regulations, advancements in circularity, collaboration across departments to maximize decarbonization and leveraging AI for reporting. Speakers included Crocs Chief Sustainability Officer Deanna Bratter, Michelin Director of Sustainability Kara Fulcher and Ceres CEO Mindy Lubber..
Sustainable Brands 2026
June 8-11
Town and Country Resort
San Diego
Sustainable Brands shifted its annual San Diego conference from the fall to summer this year, which the company said was designed to give attendees “more time to integrate key insights into their annual planning cycles.” The theme for this year’s event was “All Rise,” representing a call to work collaboratively on sustainability issues.The conference gathered corporate sustainability, brand and innovation leaders from the C-suite and down.
Trellis Impact 26
June 23-26
Moscone Center
San Francisco
In 2025, Trellis combined three of its annual conferences — Bloom, Verge and GreenFin — into a singular event, Trellis Impact. The typically siloed conferences on corporate biodiversity (Bloom), climate tech (Verge) and sustainable finance (GreenFin) gathered more than 4,000 industry professionals, collectively. Trellis also added its annual conference on circular supply chains — Circularity — into the mix this year.
