Julia Hailes MBE
Trailblazing environmentalist Julia Hailes empowers businesses to challenge the status quo, drive systemic change, and lead with sustainability at the core.
Why book Julia Hailes for your next event
- As co-founder of SustainAbility with John Elkington, Julia Hailes has shaped global corporate strategies for nearly 40 years, helping industry leaders integrate sustainability at the very core of their business models. Her groundbreaking work has set the benchmark for how organizations approach long-term environmental responsibility.
- Julia co-wrote the million-selling Green Consumer Guide, which not only launched a worldwide eco-conscious movement but also changed the way consumers and corporations think about environmental responsibility. This enduring influence continues to inspire companies to align with modern sustainability expectations.
- Awarded an MBE and elected to the UN Global 500 Roll of Honour, Julia’s contributions to sustainability have been recognized at the highest international level, positioning her as one of the most authoritative voices in the field. These accolades reassure organizations that her insights are backed by proven global recognition.
Non-binding request for Julia Hailes
From Green Consumerism to Corporate Sustainability Leadership
Sustainability pioneer with 40 years’ experience, bestselling author, and MBE awardee, Julia Hailes empowers organizations to embrace bold, systemic change. Known for her provocative and entertaining style, she transforms corporate thinking on waste, circular economy, and sustainability, delivering keynotes that inspire leaders to act, innovate, and future-proof their businesses.
Keynote Speaker Julia Hailes is a trailblazing environmentalist, bestselling author, and internationally recognized sustainability pioneer with nearly 40 years of experience driving systemic change. Known for her provocative, humorous, and fiercely honest style, she challenges organizations to think differently about the future of business, the planet, and the role they play in shaping both.
In 1987, she co-founded SustainAbility Ltd with John Elkington, one of the world’s first consultancies dedicated to embedding sustainability into corporate strategy. She went on to co-author the million-selling Green Consumer Guide, igniting a global movement that reshaped consumer behavior and corporate responsibility. Recognized with an MBE and the UN Global 500 Roll of Honour, Julia’s influence spans multinational corporations, governments, and NGOs alike.
Today, Julia continues to push boundaries as Director of Rubbish Ideas and leader of the Poo Campaign, highlighting the urgent need for circular economy solutions and waste innovation. She has advised global giants such as Unilever, Procter & Gamble, Shell, and Marks & Spencer, helping them navigate the complexities of sustainability and create strategies that deliver measurable impact.
When you book Julia Hailes for your event, you gain more than a keynote, you unlock transformative insights that inspire leaders, engage employees, and empower organizations to innovate for a sustainable future.
Keynotes
Keynote by Julia Hailes:
System Change, Not Climate Change
Are your sustainability efforts stuck in small steps that fail to deliver real impact?
Too many organizations focus on incremental changes, recycling programs, energy tweaks, or token CSR initiatives, while the climate crisis demands something far bolder. This is where Keynote Speaker Julia Hailes brings unique value. With nearly 40 years of experience challenging the status quo, Julia exposes why “business as usual” won’t work and demonstrates how deep, systemic transformation is the only path forward. Her keynote cuts through greenwashing, provokes fresh thinking, and equips leaders with actionable strategies to redesign business models for long-term resilience. Known for her entertaining, fearless style, Julia inspires executives and teams to embrace innovation and lead with purpose.
When you book Julia Hailes for your event, you gain more than a talk, you ignite a powerful call to action that positions your organization at the forefront of sustainability leadership.
Keynote by Julia Hailes:
Rubbish Ideas: The Circular Economy in Action
Is your business struggling to cut waste while staying competitive in a resource-hungry world?
Traditional linear models, take, make, dispose, are no longer viable in a marketplace where sustainability, efficiency, and innovation drive success. This is where Keynote Speaker Julia Hailes brings game-changing insights. Drawing on decades of pioneering work in sustainability, Julia reveals how organizations can transition to circular models that turn waste into opportunity. Her keynote showcases practical strategies to redesign supply chains, create closed-loop systems, and unlock new value streams, all while reducing environmental impact.
With her trademark humour and fearless honesty, Julia challenges audiences to rethink “rubbish” as a resource and demonstrates how circular solutions drive profitability and resilience.
When you book Julia Hailes for your event, you empower your leaders and teams with the vision and tools to embrace a zero-waste future, transforming environmental responsibility into a source of competitive advantage.
Keynote by Julia Hailes:
Wilding: Reconnecting with Nature
Is your organization struggling to align business growth with biodiversity and nature-positive practices?
As ecosystems collapse and natural resources dwindle, companies face mounting pressure to integrate environmental resilience into their core strategies. This is where Keynote Speaker Julia Hailes delivers unique expertise. Drawing on her leadership of the UK’s first Wilding Weekend and her work with leading conservationists, Julia demonstrates how rewilding restores ecosystems, strengthens resilience, and provides businesses with powerful lessons for sustainable innovation.
Her keynote goes beyond theory, offering practical insights on how organizations can reconnect with nature, support biodiversity, and harness nature-based solutions to future-proof operations. With humour, honesty, and a track record of sparking change, Julia inspires leaders to see the commercial and cultural value of wilding.
When you book Julia Hailes for your event, you equip your teams with the vision and actionable tools to integrate nature-positive strategies that strengthen both the planet and your business.
Keynote by Julia Hailes:
Eco-Tourism: A Lifeline for Rainforests
How can businesses support rainforest protection while still driving economic growth?
Across the globe, logging, mining, and agribusiness threaten some of the planet’s most vital ecosystems. Yet organizations increasingly face stakeholder pressure to align with sustainable solutions. This is where Keynote Speaker Julia Hailes delivers transformative insights. Drawing on her recent travels in the Guyanas, Julia demonstrates how eco-tourism can provide a powerful, profitable alternative, protecting biodiversity while creating long-term economic value.
Her keynote reveals compelling case studies, innovative models, and actionable strategies for businesses to support responsible tourism and conservation initiatives. With her trademark humour and authority, Julia challenges assumptions and inspires leaders to see how protecting rainforests is not only an environmental imperative but also a strategic business opportunity.
When you book Julia Hailes for your event, you empower your organization with fresh ideas on how to connect sustainability, profitability, and global responsibility in one inspiring vision.
Keynote by Julia Hailes:
How Poo Could Be Good Again...
Is your organization overlooking one of the most taboo yet critical environmental issues-waste?
While wild animal droppings sustain ecosystems by fertilizing soils and spreading seeds, human sewage and farm slurry have become ecological disasters, polluting rivers, seas, and air. This hidden crisis demands urgent attention, and Keynote Speaker Julia Hailes delivers it with honesty, humour, and unflinching clarity.
In this thought-provoking keynote, Julia breaks the silence around “poo,” revealing its vital role in ecosystems and the catastrophic impact of mismanagement. She challenges businesses to rethink waste, highlights innovative solutions such as biogas and sustainable sewage treatment, and inspires audiences to see opportunity where others see only problems.
When you book Julia Hailes for your event, you invite a keynote that is as entertaining as it is transformative, equipping leaders and teams to tackle one of sustainability’s most overlooked challenges with fresh thinking and practical solutions.
