Kara Hurst, VP of Worldwide Sustainability at Amazon
As Vice President of Worldwide Sustainability at Amazon, Kara Hurst is leading the company’s ambitious efforts to drive sustainability across its vast global operations.
Under her leadership, Amazon has made significant strides in renewable energy investments, supply chain decarbonisation and circular economy initiatives, reinforcing its commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040.
Kara’s career journey
With an extensive background in corporate sustainability and social impact, Kara joined Amazon in 2014 to oversee the company’s sustainability strategy.
Before Amazon, she served as CEO of The Sustainability Consortium, where she worked with businesses, NGOs and governments to advance sustainability in global supply chains.
Her experience in ESG leadership and responsible business practices has shaped Amazon’s approach to embedding sustainability into its operations.
Industry influence
Kara’s leadership is defined by a bold, results-driven approach to tackling environmental challenges at scale.
She has played a critical role in launching The Climate Pledge, Amazon’s commitment to reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2040—10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement.
Under her guidance, Amazon has become the world’s largest corporate buyer of renewable energy and has expanded its fleet of electric delivery vehicles to reduce emissions. She also oversees the company’s sustainable packaging initiatives, including the reduction of single-use plastics and investment in circular economy solutions.
A respected leader in corporate sustainability, Kara frequently speaks at global forums such as COP and the World Economic Forum. She collaborates with policymakers, industry leaders and environmental organisations to accelerate systemic change in sustainable business practices.
Through The Climate Pledge, she has brought together more than 400 companies committed to ambitious decarbonisation goals, creating a ripple effect across industries.
I have spent my career in sustainability, starting out in politics, then moving into community development and working through many different industries — which turns out was great training for a company like Amazon that’s in so many different industries. I’m a builder; I like to come in and create, so I thought this is a place where we really could begin to transform consumption, truly for the world.
The impact that we could have if we were able to integrate sustainability into all of the operations of Amazon, would be tremendous. And so that’s what we’ve been building with our teams and trying to integrate throughout the company since I started.
Vision for the future
Kara envisions a future where businesses leverage technology and innovation to scale climate solutions and drive meaningful impact. She champions Amazon’s commitment to nature-based solutions, supply chain transparency and AI-powered sustainability tools.
Through her leadership, Kara is transforming Amazon into a sustainability leader, proving that large-scale business operations and environmental responsibility can go hand in hand.
Her commitment to renewable energy, carbon neutrality and sustainable innovation ensures Amazon remains at the forefront of corporate climate action.
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