CLIMATE ACTION WEEK: Will H&M reach its climate targets and decouple emissions from financial growth?

The H&M Group, a STICA signatory, is by far the largest emitter of greenhouse gases among those companies participating in STICA’s Company Climate Action Program. From a sustainability perspective, H&M has been criticized for its business model, while in the context of climate action it has received praise for its climate leadership. Michael invited two of H&M’s climate experts, Henrik Sundberg and Kim Hellström, to provide an update on the H&M Group’s climate work to date. Henrik and Kim discuss their experience with climate calculations, including the challenges with primary data collection and carbon accounting, key insights and surprises on their climate journey, including their view on energy efficiency versus carbon intensity, and how H&M addresses user phase emissions and circular business models. Michael also asked them how they rate industry progress overall and what more needs to happen to ensure the industry meets its 2030 targets. 

“We spent years thinking energy efficiency would get us there. The real breakthrough was understanding it’s about carbon intensity—where the energy comes from.” 

“We can’t manage what we don’t measure. That’s why granular data has been such a game changer for us—on the ground, with real energy use.”  

For more information about this podcast and our guest experts, or to listen to other Climate Action Week 2025 podcast conversations, please visit: https://sustainablefashionacademy.org/stica/climate-action-week-2025/