BOSTON: Ceres, the leading sustainability nonprofit, announced today that Mindy Lubber, its long-time CEO and President, will step down at the end of 2027. The Ceres Board of Directors will launch a national search process to find the organization’s next leader. Lubber will remain in the position until then.
Over more than two decades, Lubber has led Ceres from a niche organization to a global force for system change. She has expanded its size, influence, and impact by building strong networks, nonprofit partnerships, and global initiatives that have shaped modern responsible investment and business practices.
“This has been a thrill, a privilege, and an honor of my lifetime, leading Ceres for the last 23 years,” said Lubber. “We have always believed that a commitment to sustainability builds stronger, more innovative, more trusted, and more resilient enterprises, and that business has a uniquely important role to play in getting a better outcome. Our work to ensure the private sector is a crucial partner in addressing our climate and sustainability challenges has delivered real results.”
As a global thought leader in sustainable capital markets, Lubber has encouraged institutional investors and Fortune 500 executives to integrate financial sustainability issues into decision-making. She has brought concepts such as ‘climate risk’ and ‘water risk’ into the business lexicon and has shown how addressing these issues benefits both the environment and the bottom line. Today, more investors and corporations have ambitious sustainability goals, transparent transition plans, stronger governance systems, and advocate for public policies.
“Mindy truly has redefined business leadership, guiding countless investors and companies alike on their sustainability journeys,” said Tony Davis, Ceres’ board co-chair and CEO and CIO of Inherent Group. “She has mobilized and led an unstoppable movement for a cleaner, more just, and resilient economy.”
Lubber, whose career spans the private, public, and nonprofit sectors, is known for her data-driven, results-oriented approach and her unwavering optimism. Her ability to work across industries and regions and across the political aisle has helped drive progress toward a cleaner economy. She has consistently argued that businesses and governments share responsibility to act—and that together, they can drive real change.
Under her leadership, Ceres has effectively brought businesses to Capitol Hill and statehouses to champion bipartisan climate and energy legislation. Ceres’ policy advocacy efforts helped secure the largest federal climate investment in U.S. history and the first federal rule requiring public companies to report their climate-related risks. Internationally, she helped mobilize business support for the Paris Agreement, earning her recognition as a “Climate Warrior” by Vogue Magazine.
In recent years, Lubber helped Ceres navigate a political backlash against responsible investing and business, successfully defeating hundreds of legislative attacks on the rights of investors and companies to consider climate risk and opportunities in decision-making. She has helped widen the global coalition to include more conservative voices and other unlikely allies to protect fundamental investment freedoms and the free market.
“Mindy has been an extraordinary and transformational leader who has taken Ceres to new heights, guiding it through significant growth and change,” said Janet Ranganathan, Ceres board co-chair and a managing director at the World Resources Institute. “Her vision and dedication have strengthened Ceres for the long term and left a lasting impact on the advancement of sustainable capital markets.”
Before joining Ceres, Lubber was a Regional Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the founder and CEO of Green Century Capital Management.
Her leadership has earned her many accolades, including the United Nations’ prestigious ‘Champions of the Earth’ award, the William K. Reilly Award for Environmental Leadership from American University, the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship from the Skoll Foundation, Barron’s Magazine’s list of the 100 Most Influential Women in U.S. Finance, and Industry Leaders’ top 20 Sustainability and ESG Leaders of 2026.
Ceres will announce additional updates in the coming year about the forthcoming transition, as well as how the organization will honor and celebrate Mindy’s legacy.
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About Ceres
Ceres is a nonprofit advocacy organization working to accelerate the transition to a cleaner, more just, and resilient economy. With data-driven research and expert analysis, we inspire investors and companies to act on the world's sustainability challenges and advocate for market and policy solutions. Together, our efforts transform industries, unlock new business opportunities, and foster innovation and job growth – proving that sustainability is the bottom line. For more information, visit ceres.org.