Post by Dr. Richard Scholz

𝗦𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿. 𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽. For the second time, I had the opportunity to join the Volkswagen Group Sustainability Summit — and this thought stayed with me: the time of pure ambition statements is over. What matters now is implementation, steering, and measurable impact. What makes this format so valuable to me is that it goes beyond broad statements about sustainability. The conversations focus on the real challenge: how to translate sustainability into business models, value creation, governance, and decision-making. That is where the real work begins. Sustainability is no longer a topic that sits next to the core business. It is becoming increasingly central to resilience, competitiveness, and responsible leadership. And for that, we need more than ambition. We need reliable data, clear steering mechanisms, and the courage to make impact measurable — and therefore manageable. For me, the Summit was once again a great space for open, thoughtful, and solution-oriented exchange. I had many truly valuable conversations with people who do not see sustainability as a compliance exercise, but as a responsibility to shape the future. This is exactly what we need: spaces where transformation is not only discussed, but where people work together on how to put it into practice. Thank you to Volkswagen Group and everyone involved for two inspiring days, many meaningful conversations, and fresh perspectives. My key takeaway: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲. 𝗟𝗲𝘀𝘀 “𝘄𝗵𝘆?”, 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 “𝗵𝗼𝘄?” — 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹: 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀? Volkswagen Group Thanks for the insightful discussions: Anna Alex Dr. med. Eckart von Hirschhausen Dirk Voeste Verena Menrad Marcel von dem Berge Stephan Grabmeier Maximilian von Hoyningen Dr. Mirjam Peters Ralf Duessel Stefanie Lang Tanja Reilly Fotocredits: Michael Romacker