“Sustainability must move from policy to project.” That was one of the key messages that emerged during the PM² Alliance Open Discussion on Sustainability in Project Management, held online on Tuesday, May 27, 2025. The event, hosted by Agustín Moya Colorado, Nicos Kourounakis, and Torsten Hohe, gathered participants from across Europe to exchange views on embedding sustainability into real-world project practice.
The discussion also served as an interactive dissemination moment for the SPM² Erasmus+ project, offering participants a chance to explore its key features while contributing valuable feedback on certification, learning formats, and the current state of sustainable project management.
Webinar Highlights: Beyond Green Rhetoric
With 81 registered participants and 26 attending live, the event created space for a rich exchange of perspectives from professionals, trainers, and academic experts. Despite the absence of detailed demographic data, the diversity of backgrounds was evident in the quality and range of contributions.
Key topics included:
- The evolving concept of sustainability in project environments
- Opportunities and challenges in aligning project delivery with environmental and social goals
- The role of training, credentials, and micro-certifications in supporting a sustainability mindset
- Barriers to adoption—from lack of time to organizational inertia
“Awareness exists, but implementation still lags behind,” noted one participant, pointing to time constraints and unclear mandates as persistent obstacles.
SPM² in the Spotlight: Bridging Knowledge and Practice
As part of the session, Agustín Moya Colorado introduced the Sustainable PM² project, outlining its ambition to integrate sustainability principles into PM² project methodology through:
- A practical guide and resource library
- The development of micro-credentials and certification pathways
- Training formats adapted to real user needs—whether online, blended, or on-site
Participants were encouraged to share their preferences regarding training delivery, with blended learning and modular formats emerging as key areas of interest.
Expert Perspectives: From Forestry to ESG Compliance
Nicos Kourounakis, a long-standing PM² expert, emphasized that sustainability isn’t just environmental—it’s also social and governance-related. He introduced accessible concepts like “sustainability debt” and “sustainability planting,”designed to help project teams understand how small, cumulative steps shape long-term impact.
Meanwhile, Torsten Hohe offered a historical lens, tracing sustainability from 18th-century forestry to EU ESG reporting obligations under the Green Deal. He also shared critical insights on the rollback of EU reporting thresholds, now reduced from 50,000 to fewer than 10,000 companies—prompting concern among participants.
Participant Reflections: A Need for Tools, Not Just Talk
One recurring theme throughout the session was the gap between sustainability awareness and practical implementation. Participants discussed the risk of greenwashing, the need for reliable metrics, and the importance of organizational alignment.
Suggestions included:
- Embedding checklists and logs into everyday project workflows
- Linking sustainability actions to project governance structures
- Aligning new tools with standards like ISO 14000
- Advocating for sector-specific certifications backed by recognized frameworks
As one trainer put it, “We don’t need more sustainability statements—we need toolkits that teams can apply tomorrow.”
What’s Next?
The discussion closed with agreement to compile and share an internal report capturing key insights. A summary of findings will be published via the SPM² project blog, inviting further community input and debate.
📩 Stay tuned to the SPM² Newsroom and the PM² Alliance news & events for updates.
