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Strategic Partner, METAGNOSIS Consulting Inc: The SustainabilityX® Magazine's Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ 2024 Awardee
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"Being bold is not about being reckless or impulsive but about having the courage to take calculated risks and make tough decisions. Leaders who cultivate this trait can differentiate themselves and their organizations and create the conditions for long-term success." - Isobel O'Connell, Strategic Partner, METAGNOSIS Consulting Inc, Canada & The SustainabilityX® Magazine Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards 2024 (#SustXGlobal50) Awardee
Isobel O’Connell is an internationally acclaimed leader in Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) strategy, with over 25 years of experience in driving sustainability transformation across global industries. Known for her ability to build strong relationships and foster open communication with diverse stakeholder groups, Isobel has dedicated her career to advancing social and environmental impact. Her expertise spans the energy, infrastructure, and international consulting sectors, where she has held leadership roles and contributed to national and international dialogues on sustainability management.
Since 2019, Isobel has served as a Strategic Partner at Metagnosis Consulting, providing expert guidance to companies and non-profit organizations on ESG strategy performance, change management, policy development, and stakeholder engagement. Her work with major global corporations such as LNG Canada, DP World, Qatar Energy, ERM, and Deloitte has centered on implementing sustainability strategies during times of significant growth and organizational change. During her tenure at DP World, Isobel was instrumental in the strategic development and execution of their global sustainability agenda, Our World, Our Future, which focused on aligning the company’s operations with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). She also facilitated the company’s partnerships and community engagement efforts, ensuring the integration of sustainability into core business practices.
Isobel’s bold leadership has been widely recognized. In 2021, she was honored with the Canadian Women in Sustainability, International Women’s Day Recognition for her exemplary work in advancing sustainability goals. The previous year, she was named among Bloomberg’s Thinkers360 Top 100 Women Thought Leaders, and nominated for the Women Who Dare Leadership Seminar Award for her trailblazing efforts in the ESG space. Her global experience, having lived and worked in regions such as the Middle East, Central and South America, Europe, Asia, and Russia, has provided her with a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities faced by organizations seeking to create lasting social and environmental value.
Isobel's philosophy of bold leadership in sustainability is rooted in collaboration and calculated risk-taking. She emphasizes that being bold is not about impulsivity, but rather having the courage to take tough decisions and implement innovative solutions that foster long-term success. In the energy sector, for example, Isobel has seen firsthand how developing win-win strategies—where both the company and external stakeholders benefit—creates robust, lasting relationships built on mutual respect, trust, and goodwill.
Her ability to inspire bold action extends beyond leadership teams to employees and operational staff, recognizing that successful sustainability initiatives require the collective support of everyone within an organization. Isobel encourages all employees, regardless of their position, to contribute their ideas and insights, ensuring that sustainability goals are met with innovation and collaboration.
Throughout her career, Isobel has navigated significant challenges, including overcoming resistance to sustainability initiatives within organizations and industries that were slow to adapt to changing environmental expectations. Her ability to build alliances and gain buy-in from key stakeholders has been a critical factor in her success. Her story of Bill Ford Jr., CEO of Ford Motor Company, illustrates the need for sustainability leadership to include allies and supporters who can help bring about meaningful change, a lesson she has applied to her own work.
For Isobel, receiving the Global 50 Women in Sustainability Award™ represents not just personal recognition, but a celebration of the collaborative approach she has championed throughout her career. She believes that this award symbolizes the need for leaders to think beyond immediate business gains and create lasting impacts for future generations. By fostering a culture of sustainability, trust, and inclusion, Isobel continues to leave a legacy that will influence businesses and communities for years to come.
The SustainabilityX® Magazine Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ 2024
The SustainabilityX® Magazine proudly presents its third edition of the Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ for 2024. This annual recognition celebrates extraordinary female leaders who embrace boldness in their pursuit of groundbreaking sustainability initiatives, reshaping industries, and driving transformative change towards a more just, inclusive, and sustainable future.
This year also marks a broader strategic mission expansion for The SustainabilityX® Magazine, with a stronger focus on aligning with the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs) in addition to the original foundation of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This evolutionary expansion reflects the magazine’s ongoing commitment to advancing women's leadership in sustainability while championing social equity, environmental stewardship, and inclusive growth.
“Empowering women to lead in sustainability is at the heart of our mission,” says Supriya Verma, founder of The SustainabilityX® Magazine and one of Corporate Knights' Canada’s Top 30 Under 30 in Sustainability Leadership and one of The Peak's Emerging Leaders. “These trailblazers are breaking barriers and redefining what sustainable leadership looks like—showing that it’s about more than policies and practices, but also about social justice, economic resilience, and a regenerative future.”
Rooted in the magazine's guiding pillars of environmental protection, economic prosperity, social inclusion, and ethical governance, The SustainabilityX® Magazine's Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ showcases women from all sectors, industries, and regions, igniting crucial conversations on the intersection of gender equality and sustainable development.
Amidst global challenges and uncertainties, this year’s awards highlight the critical role of women in steering the world towards a more resilient, equitable future. With a continued digital format, the awards amplify voices across borders, bridging the gap between global sustainability efforts and local impact.
As Verma states, “The future of sustainability hinges on bold, inclusive leadership, and these women exemplify the courage and vision needed to transform our world. The SustainabilityX® Magazine remains steadfast in our mission to celebrate and elevate those who are shaping a future where every voice counts and every effort contributes to a thriving, sustainable world.”
View the full list: The SustainabilityX® Magazine Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards 2024
Read the full press release: The SustainabilityX® Magazine Announces 3rd Annual Global 50 Women In Sustainability Awards™ Under the Theme "Embrace Boldness"
About The SustainabilityX® Magazine
The SustainabilityX® Magazine is an award-winning, digital, female-founded, and female-led non-profit initiative bringing the environment and economy together for a sustainable future through dialogue, and now transforming the environment and economy for a sustainable future through the power of women's leadership. Founded on May 8, 2016, and inspired by the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals by Canada's Top 30 Under 30 in Sustainability Leadership awardee, Supriya Verma, the digital media initiative focuses on approaching the world's most pressing challenges with a holistic, integrated, systems-based perspective as opposed to the traditional and ineffective siloed approach with a single lens on interdisciplinary topics like climate and energy. This initiative ultimately seeks to explore how to effectively bring the environment and economy together through intellectual, insightful dialogue and thought-provoking discussion amongst individuals across sectors taking an interdisciplinary and integrated approach to untangling the intricate web of sustainability while championing women's leadership in sustainability.
The SustainabilityX® Magazine is built upon the four foundational pillars of sustainability: Environmental Stewardship, which emphasizes the importance of improving environmental health; Economic Prosperity, which promotes sustainable economic growth that transcends traditional capitalist models; Social Inclusion, which focuses on equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) for BIPOC, LGBTQ, and other marginalized or vulnerable communities; and Just Governance, which highlights responsible leadership, the equal application of the rule of law, and the creation of fair systems for all.
As we expand our mission to align with the Women's Empowerment Principles (WEPs), we continue to explore the diverse and interconnected factors that influence sustainability. By recognizing how these elements interact across local, national, and international levels, we aim to accelerate progress toward sustainability goals. In essence, this aligns with The SustainabilityX® Magazine's vision of integrating environmental and economic progress for a more just, inclusive, and sustainable future through thoughtful dialogue.
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The SustainabilityX® Magazine is a proud member of the Sustainable Journalism Partnership, serves as a cause-based media partner for various events such as WIRED Impact, and officially delivers remarks at international conferences such as UNESCO's annual World Press Freedom Day Conference.
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