Entry is free and open to all.

All finalists will be considered for nomination for the global Earthshot Prize by official nominator Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington. Three finalists from last year’s awards are currently in running for the prize, which comes with £1 million in prize money.

Rachel Brown ONZM, CEO and founder of the Sustainable Business Network, which runs the Awards, says: “The future economy isn't coming, it's being built right now by the people we celebrate through these Awards.

“This year we’re expanding the categories to acknowledge finance that backs courageous ideas, procurement that pulls sustainable products into the mainstream and partnerships that make the seemingly impossible possible. These are the levers that accelerate change.

“Over more than two decades, we've seen what happens when innovators and disruptors are recognised and connected. This year, we're deliberately casting the net wider, because every organisation who moves this system forward deserves to be acknowledged.”

Garry Taylor, Executive General Manager, NZI says: “As New Zealand’s leading business insurer, NZI is proud to support the Sustainable Business Awards as Principal Partner.

“It is our privilege to help celebrate exceptional business leaders who are taking action to strengthen their operations, their communities and the wider economy for a more sustainable future,” he says.

The 2026 Award categories are:

• Disruptive Innovation – celebrating groundbreaking products, services, technologies and business models designed with sustainability and circular economy principles at their core.

• Transformational Leadership – honouring individuals or teams who go beyond business-as-usual leadership to drive meaningful progress towards a regenerative, circular economy.

• Emerging Transformational Leader – recognising a leader within the first 10 years of their career who is bringing fresh thinking, initiative and a clear sense of purpose to the challenges ahead.

• Market Mover – recognising those using their influence deliberately, pulling the market towards low carbon, circular and fairer outcomes.

• Outstanding Collaboration – celebrating collaborations that have produced meaningful environmental or social outcomes through genuine partnership.

• Future Finance – acknowledging funders, philanthropists and financial institutions using capital as a catalyst for change.

• Communicating for Change – recognising initiatives that use communications, storytelling and engagement to influence behaviour and accelerate progress on sustainability challenges.

• Regenerating Nature – celebrating organisations that are integrating nature into the core of how they operate, taking action to restore ecosystems and enhance biodiversity.

The supreme award – Next Aotearoa Award – will be presented to one of the winners of the category awards, recognising the organisation that demonstrates exceptional ambition, system-level impact and the potential to create lasting change.

The finalists form the ‘Next’ list – an annual list of innovators and entrepreneurs leading us towards a better future. In 2025, there were 119 organisations and people on the list, selected by a panel of independent judges.

Entries to the Sustainable Business Awards close on 30 June 2026. The winners will be announced at a celebration on 26 November in Shed 10, Auckland waterfront.

To find out more, or to enter the Sustainable Business Awards, go to www.sustainable.org.nz/sustainable-business-awards.