Inside Nike’s Strategy for Sustainable Leadership and Innovation

As the climate crisis continues to reshape consumer expectations, investor priorities, and regulatory frameworks, sustainability has evolved from a niche concern to a defining business imperative. For global brands, especially in retail and apparel, the challenge lies not only in reducing emissions or minimizing waste—but in embedding sustainability into the core of how they innovate, lead, and grow.

Jaycee Pribulsky ‘01, Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) at Nike, is involved in this shift. Speaking at Columbia Business School as part of the Green Business Club’s Climate of Change series, Pribulsky shared how Nike is executing a sustainability strategy that is innovation-led and deeply rooted in the brand’s cultural DNA.

“We’re at our best when sustainability and performance come together,” Pribulsky said.

At Nike, Pribulsky leads and shapes an enterprise-wide sustainability program that spans everything from supply chain and innovation to product design and labor rights. Sustainability, she argued, isn’t a side project or a siloed function—it’s a shared responsibility, and a cultural mindset that needs to be owned by every corner of the organization.

Embedding Sustainability in Culture and Leadership

With more than 75,000 employees worldwide, Nike’s sustainability efforts rely on every team embedding the practice into their everyday decisions—from design and development to marketing and operations.

One of Pribulsky’s guiding leadership principles is to seek out the “gray space”— the areas where there is meaningful work to be done, but no one has yet taken ownership. By stepping into ambiguity and bringing clarity, leaders can build credibility, deliver results, and shape the future of the organization.

"Look for the spaces where there's work to be done, but no one's raising their hand. Maybe it's not their job or they don't want to do it, but if done, it can make an impact,” Pribulsky said.

She also encouraged emerging leaders to remain open to unexpected opportunities and non-linear paths. Leadership, she believes, comes not from following a prescribed trajectory, but from consistently adding value and aligning with purpose. For women—and other underrepresented leaders—she emphasizes the importance of recognizing imposter syndrome, owning your place at the table, and creating inclusive environments where others are empowered to speak up.

Pribulsky’s perspective on climate leadership is grounded in pragmatic optimism. While political and regulatory shifts may create uncertainty, the business case for sustainability is clearer than ever. Companies that lead in this transition—through innovation, accountability, and cross-sector collaboration—will be best positioned for long-term success.

The Innovation Imperative

For a company rooted in performance and sport, Nike’s sustainability journey begins with the athlete—but is grounded in data and design, according to Pribulsky. Material innovation is also a central focus. The company targets five key materials—rubber, foam, leather, polyester, and cotton—as core levers for emissions and waste reduction.

Citing Nike’s development of its ReactX foam, used in the midsole of Nike’s running shoes, Pribulsky shared that the foam’s re-engineered formulation not only improves energy return—a benefit for runners—but also reduces carbon emissions in manufacturing. "For us, that's a sweet spot — when you're actually driving performance at its best and doing it in the most sustainable way,” Pribulsky said.

Pribulsky also shared how Nike’s Re-Creation program works with local designers to reimagine apparel – taking deadstock or secondhand product in cities like L.A. and Paris and manufacturing them locally. She also noted that the company’s sustainability efforts go beyond climate to include labor rights and supply chain ethics.

“We are focused really on climate and environment, but also on the people who make and move our product and ensuring that from a standards and human rights perspective, those two things are coming together,” Pribulsky said.

As CSO, leading an end-to-end team that touches everything from product innovation to compliance with emerging global regulations, a major focus of Pribulsky’s current role lies in aligning the organization around a single source of truth through robust data systems.

“The old adage of ‘bad data in, bad data out’ couldn't be more important now as we look at the future,” she said. “The data foundation is so important."