With nearly 40% of on-the-job skills set to change by 2030, the organisations that will lead their industries are those investing in the humans who can navigate what technology cannot.
This is why the Sustainability Institute offers learning experiences and methodologies for professionals that enable them to explore the edges of change, stretch their thinking, and build the capacities that drive real transformation.
According to the WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025 there are disruptions in the way we work that will affect 22% of all jobs by 2030, with 170 million new roles created and 92 million displaced. Technology skills in AI, big data and cybersecurity are growing fast. But the same report shows that human skills like creative thinking, resilience, flexibility and leadership are paramount.
Sustainability is relevant and is identified as one of the key macrotrends reshaping labour markets. Its nuances in environmental, economic and social justice require human abilities that no algorithm can replicate: systems thinking, ethical reasoning, and the ability to lead organisations through deep, structural change.
Our Corporate Transitions for Sustainable Futures (CT4SF) course gives South African business professionals, entrepreneurs, and business leaders a deeper understanding of this complexity and the multiple environmental and social crises that shape our current reality. This understanding, paired with a set of practical tools helps participants better understand how they can contribute to solutions through their organisations, regardless of their department or role.
WHO IS THIS COURSE FOR?
- Business professionals who want to understand the core drivers of sustainability and discover innovative solutions to current and future threats.
- Entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs who want to solve systemic problems and build resilience into their products and services.
- Business leaders who want to take an evidence-based approach to embedding sustainability within their business and bring their organisations along with them.
We explore core issues and how they are playing out in South Africa today. Guided by industry experts and business leaders our course offers you unique perspectives and experiences.
We have seen graduates develop an expanded personal capacity to lead and influence others in their organisation or business environment, regardless of position or seniority. Take a look at how this course impacted Matthew Kensett, as a testimony of how his experience brings to life the intentions of this course.
Reframing regenerative agriculture and climate action as strategic opportunity, not compliance
“All in all, I can say this: Transforming agriculture means working at the intersection of multiple complex systems (e.g. political, environmental, behavioural, biological, and chemical) – nothing about it is simple. The CT4SF course equipped me with the tools to navigate this complexity with confidence, helping me turn sustainability from a ‘nice to have’ into a strategic driver of our business and enabling us to build climate-smart, regenerative solutions that deliver real impact for farmers and our organisation.” Matthew Kensett – Specialised Agri Solutions and Intelligence Lead – Africa, UPL Corporation Ltd.
Since completing the course, he has championed and implemented a range of projects that contribute to how UPL reimagines sustainability for farmers:
- Mainstreaming regenerative agriculture and sustainability within a corporate agribusiness
- Establishing and launching Smart Climate Ag® as a recognised climate‑smart service and value offering
- Scaling CarbonSmart from pilot to a commercial programme (now Smart Climate Ag®)
- Driving a transition‑oriented narrative internally and contributing globally
Matthew is on point when he noticed that “systemic change is non‑linear.” For him, “progress often shows up first as emergence points signalling that the system is shifting, then suddenly all at once (we’re not there yet, but there are green shoots coming out the ground which keeps me inspired). Our work calls for persistence and humility: keep acting, keep learning, and keep aligning the organisation to the long‑term transition and the realities of African farmers.
CT4SF gave me the language, tools, and confidence to recognise and work with this reality. For example systems mapping, power‑dynamics analysis, identifying leverage points, and adopting a multi‑horizon perspective. These tools, and a collaborative partner approach aligned to our values, helped me act even when the system seemed to move slowly.”
Some of his highs include when farmers adopt regenerative practices not only for carbon revenue but for soil, yield, sustainability, and resilience gains; and when colleagues shift from uncertainty to genuine advocacy in their roles.
The development of their Smart Climate Ag® programme is a living example of how learnings from CT4SF contributed to the design of a programme that is now pivotal to their corporate sustainability transition. And the proof is in how the farmers, and the earth, benefit from programmes such as this.
Join our next course
Take a look at our course page to see when the next one will start: https://thesiacademy.org/product/corporate-transitions-for-sustainable-futures/