Culture Is Not a Campaign: Embedding Sustainability as a Way of Life
Imagine an office where the biggest decision of the day isn’t whether to close a deal – but whether to print it out. A place where asking, “Did you turn off the lights?” is not micromanagement, but culture. Where values are not just painted on the wall but practised in how team members greet the janitor, manage budgets, or speak up in meetings. This is the unseen architecture of a sustainable organization – built not in boardrooms but in break rooms, hiring choices, and daily emails.
Now picture a clay pot slowly being formed on a potter’s wheel. With each rotation, the hands shaping it make slight adjustments – sometimes smoothing, sometimes applying gentle pressure, other times correcting a flaw. The pot doesn’t take its shape from one grand gesture but from continuous, intentional touch. If the potter is focused and consistent, the vessel becomes strong, beautiful, and useful. But if the hands are distracted or careless, the clay collapses.
This is how culture is shaped in business. Not by flashy mission statements or glossy sustainability reports. Not by once-a-year CSR drives or branded T-shirts at tree-planting events. But through the quiet, persistent decisions made daily: who is promoted, how conflicts are resolved, how teams allocate time, who gets to speak – and who is interrupted.
In Kenya, where social, economic, and environmental pressures converge in real-time, the future of sustainability will not be shaped in vision documents alone. It will be shaped in the everyday – by how teams decide what’s worth reusing, who they source from, how they treat dissenting voices, and how they tell their stories. Culture is not an event. It is the air an organization breathes – and the soil in which its sustainability efforts either bloom or wither.
This article offers a practical roadmap for how organizations can build a culture where sustainability is not a side conversation but a way of life. If you’re wondering where to begin, the answer is: right where you are. In the choices you make every day. Because culture is not a campaign. It’s what happens when no one is looking.
Practitioners’ Guidance
Reflecting on the RBC Susty Dialogue Series V, held on May 15th, 2025, at the Baraza Media Lab, the event explored the often-invisible force that sustains sustainability: culture. Held under the theme, “Embedding a Culture of Sustainability in Business – Walking the Talk,” the evening convened voices across sectors to interrogate how businesses move beyond policy into the practical – embedding sustainability as a lived, daily behavior.
In her opening remarks, moderator Susan Njoroge reframed the conversation using the iceberg model – reminding attendees that while companies often highlight the visible tip of sustainability (strategy, reports, CSR), true change lies beneath the surface. “Culture,” she emphasized, “isn’t a campaign – it’s the water we swim in.” Participants from large corporations to early-stage startups reflected on how to align their internal cultures with the sustainable futures they hope to build.
The event was guided by a central question: How can businesses make sustainability second nature rather than second priority? Panelists, including Evelyne Serro from Safaricom PLC, Doris Muigei from Qazi Works, and Brian Munene from Africa Renewables Katalyst, explored topics ranging from how to align internal values with SDGs, to how small, consistent actions shape sustainability far more than grand external gestures. Through curated breakout sessions, attendees explored how to empower culture carriers, champion shared responsibility, and integrate sustainability into hiring, procurement, team dynamics, and leadership behavior.
Evelyne Serro
Senior Manager – Sustainability, Safaricom PLC
“At Safaricom, sustainability is not a project sitting on the fifth floor. It’s in our day-to-day – from finance to HR to reception. Whether you’re leading a strategy or managing the front desk, your work transforms lives. And that belief doesn’t change when leadership changes, because our purpose remains constant. We’ve embedded sustainability into our strategy, our KPIs, and even our performance reviews. We train champions in every department – not to carry a brand, but to carry belief. That’s how culture becomes the soil, not the flower.”
Doris Muigei
Principal Consultant, Qazi Works
“Organizational culture isn’t your logo or strategy – it’s the scent that lingers after the soup bowl is finished. It’s who gets celebrated, who gets side-eyed, who gets the corner office, who speaks up and who stays silent. Culture lives in the micro-moments: who you hire, who you forgive, what you reward. Sustainability must live in these spaces – not in boardroom speeches. And if we want sustainability to stick, we must identify our culture carriers – the janitor, the intern, the logistics guy – because they’re the ones who live the values daily. Not just the ones with titles.”
Brian Munene
Co-founder, Africa Renewables Katalyst
“When I started this business, I realized something quickly: I am the culture. If I waste energy at home, my team will do it at work. If I cut corners, they’ll normalize it. So we built our culture around a single question – what are the unintended consequences of our actions? We question everything: how we spend, who we hire, even how long we leave the lights on at an event. Because if we’re building something that should last, then it must be rooted in consciousness – not compliance. For us, sustainability isn’t a checklist – it’s a way of being.”
Susan Njoroge
Managing Director, Responsible Business Consulting
“Culture isn’t what’s written on a policy or shown in a report – it’s what people do when no one is watching. It’s in the jokes we let slide, the bins we ignore, the behavior we excuse. Sustainability cannot thrive on visibility alone – it must be rooted in the unseen. And just like the iceberg model, if we only focus on what’s above the surface – campaigns, branding, nice words – we’ll miss the real work: shifting mindsets, habits, and daily decisions. Culture is not a campaign. It’s the water we swim in.”
This highlights the need for deliberate, internal alignment to embed sustainability as a way of life – starting from within.
CULTURE IS WHAT YOU CURATE: HOW TO INTENTIONALLY SHAPE SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS HABITS
In a garden – not the kind with perfectly spaced hedges, but one that grows wild with purpose; the gardener doesn’t plant once and walk away. They return daily, weeding here, watering there, checking the soil, responding to seasons. The garden’s beauty doesn’t emerge overnight – it’s a result of routine care, small adjustments, and a vision that outlasts weather patterns.
Culture in a business is just like that. It isn’t planted by a keynote speech or a workshop. It’s cultivated – over time – by the choices leaders make, the behaviors teams reward, and the norms that quietly take root. Sustainability, then, isn’t an external goal; it’s the fruit of a well-tended internal ecosystem.
Here’s how to nurture a garden of sustainability in your organization:
- Define What Sustainability Means In Your Context
Sustainability isn’t universal in form – it’s contextual in function. Every organization must identify what sustainability tangibly looks like within its operations. For one, it may be eliminating single-use plastics. For another, it may be fostering mental wellness and equity in hiring. Be clear. Be specific. - Start With Founders and Leadership Habits
Culture follows leadership like vines on a trellis. What leaders tolerate, replicate, or role model will define what grows. If founders waste paper or disregard ethical partners, no policy will fix that. Sustainability must start in how leadership thinks and acts, even when no one’s watching. - Create Norms, Not Noise
If culture is a current, sustainability must become the undercurrent – not the billboard. Instead of relying on one-time campaigns, ensure that daily practices reflect your sustainability ethos. A quiet commitment will go farther than loud intentions. - Make the Invisible Visible
People learn by observing. Use micro-moments to reinforce macro-values: Celebrate someone who cycles to work. Acknowledge the colleague who turned off unused lights. Normalize recognition for the small wins – they’re your cultural compost. - Appoint and Empower Culture Carriers
In every team, there are hidden gardeners – the ones already living the values. Find them. Empower them. Equip them with knowledge and a voice. Culture carriers aren’t always in HR – they’re in finance, logistics, customer care. And their example will multiply your message. - Tie Behavior to Recognition and Rewards
Don’t just reward targets. Reward the journey. If someone initiates a recycling program or challenges an unsustainable supplier choice, let that count. Build KPIs and performance metrics around values, not just deliverables. - Design for Frictionless Action
Even the best seed won’t grow in poor soil. Make sustainability easy. Eliminate the hurdles that block people from doing the right thing. Are bins labeled well? Is policy accessible? Are your team’s default tools aligned with eco-conscious choices? - Address the Gaps: From Gossip to Grapevines
Left untended, weeds grow. And so does toxicity. Address informal behaviors that contradict your values: gossip, cliques, silent disengagement. Sustainability includes the health of your workplace culture – emotional, psychological, and social. - Normalize Reflective Conversations
Your garden needs seasons of pruning. Introduce structured but informal spaces to ask: “Is this how we want to work?” Invite feedback. Rotate facilitation. Create circles where the intern’s view matters just as much as the CEO’s. That’s where truth lives. - Build for the Long Haul, Not Just the Launch
A garden planted for show will wither. A culture rooted in values will endure. Your sustainability goals must be designed to outlive leadership transitions and trend cycles. Institutionalize them through rituals, onboarding, policies, and lived habits – not just memos.
In the end, culture isn’t the flowers on display – it’s the soil that nourishes them. Make it a habit to do it intentionally, daily, and with humility. Because the sustainability of your business begins with the sustainability of your culture. What you plant today is what your legacy will harvest.
HOW TO BUILD A CULTURE OF SUSTAINABILITY FROM THE INSIDE OUT
What if the biggest change your business needed wasn’t a new strategy – but a new habit? At the core of every sustainable business lies not just a policy or program, but a culture – shaped by the tiniest, most routine decisions. Culture isn’t changed by declarations. It’s changed by repetition. And when sustainability becomes part of how we hire, talk, reward, lead, and even switch off the lights – we stop managing it, and start becoming it.
In what ways can organisations engage employees in building a culture of sustainability and shared responsibility?
- Employees can give anonymous feedback
Allow staff to share ideas or concerns about sustainability without revealing their identity-it helps everyone feel safe and heard. - Induction or training
Teach new and current employees the basic sustainable rules and have someone responsible for making sure they’re followed. - Let employees see the bonus of being sustainable
Show them how being sustainable can benefit them personally-like saving money, better health, or recognition. - Having employees own it
Let employees create and lead sustainability efforts so they feel like it belongs to them, not just something imposed by management. - Encourage a positive culture
Celebrate and reward small efforts-appreciation builds a habit and keeps the momentum going. - Bring employees together
Involve everyone when making the sustainability rules. People support what they help create. - Add appraisals
Include simple sustainability goals in performance reviews-like using a bike or reducing paper waste-and reward those who try. - Show negative effects
Share real examples of how unsustainable practices harm businesses and the environment, and how small actions make a difference. - Benchmark other companies
Look at companies already doing well in sustainability and learn from what’s working for them. - Invest in the future
Support the younger generation to be responsible-this could be through school outreach or education programs. - Simplify the SDGs
Break down the Sustainable Development Goals into simple language that the common mwananchi or employee can understand and apply at work or home.
What practices can a small, mid-size business undertake to embed a culture of sustainability and shared responsibility?
- Go back to the basics
Revisit the small, everyday decisions: Who are we hiring? What kind of cups are we using? Where do we source our furniture? Culture is built in the day-to-day. - Prioritise inclusive sourcing
Make deliberate efforts to source products or services from women, youth, and disadvantaged groups. - Leverage internal skills
If hiring a sustainability manager isn’t feasible, tap into the existing skills of team members and include sustainability as part of their routine roles. - Incentivise without money
Motivate teams using non-monetary rewards. For example, offer upskilling or training opportunities to employees who consistently practice sustainability. - Track your actions
Measure what you’re doing. Seeing progress helps teams stay motivated and push for more impact. - Make sustainability make business sense
Focus on creating measurable impact and align your sustainability efforts with the organisation’s business goals. - Simplify the language
Avoid jargon. Break down sustainability concepts into everyday language that all employees can understand and relate to.
What is the one atomic (small) change you can make from tomorrow onwards to shape your organisational culture around sustainability?
- Start with people
Sustainability begins with individual action. Ask yourself, “What am I doing to shape our culture of sustainability?” - Demystify sustainability
Break it down-what does sustainability really mean in your daily work and behavior? - Communicate and collaborate
Promote teamwork and open communication around sustainable habits, e.g. reminding teammates not to leave lights on unnecessarily. - Offer sustainability training
Equip staff with the knowledge and tools to understand and live out sustainability at work and at home. - Adopt a mindset shift
Sustainability is about how we think. Are we re-evaluating our lifestyle and daily decisions to align with sustainable living? - Be a role model
Lead by example. Let your actions speak sustainability before your words do. - Nip misinformation early
Stop harmful narratives, gossip, or misleading information before it spreads and affects the culture. - Address toxic behavior
Reflect on your influence: are you contributing positively or creating a toxic work environment that undermines sustainability? - Integrate sustainability into leadership communication
Ensure senior leaders talk about sustainability in real, visible ways-not just in reports, but in everyday conversations. - Reverse mentorship
Let junior staff mentor seniors on new ideas, especially around sustainability, innovation, and digital behavior. - Own the sustainability story
Everyone in the organisation should believe in and embody the mission-just as Safaricom’s staff rally behind their shared sustainability narrative. - Communicate sustainability clearly
The way management speaks about sustainability sets the tone. Make sure it’s consistent, relatable, and actionable.
In conclusion, embedding sustainability as a way of life requires moving beyond statements to systems, beyond programs to patterns, and beyond compliance to culture. This isn’t about adding more initiatives – it’s about making sustainability the default setting in everything we do. The organizations that will lead the future are those that build values into hiring, reinforce them in meetings, and sustain them even when leadership changes.
For SMEs, culture is your biggest asset – and your most affordable tool. Embedding sustainability starts with the small stuff: training, clarity, consistency, and allowing everyone to own a piece of the mission. Celebrate the invisible wins, align your internal habits with your external claims, and design operations that reflect your values – not just your margins.
Culture is not built by policies alone; it is curated through daily behaviors. The more inclusive, consistent, and intentional those behaviors are, the more sustainable your business becomes. Whether it’s simplifying the SDGs, modeling values from the top, or letting junior staff reverse-mentor their leaders – every action contributes to a culture where sustainability is not a task but a truth.