Q Insights #014

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This week’s read time: 6 minutes

Welcome to this edition of Q Insights — our bi-weekly newsletter for sustainability and ESG professionals looking to make smarter solution decisions.

Each edition brings you concise, relevant updates on the tools, trends, and technologies driving the sustainable transition. We filter the noise, highlight what matters, and help you navigate the sustainability solution landscape with clarity and confidence.

In this edition, we’ll cover: 

• KanataQ Corner: KanataQ New Sustainability Solutions Classification System, Live Leaderboard Launched, and New Listed Providers on KanataQ ✅

• Q Interview: How beSirius is bringing a business mindset to sustainability (An interview with Anastasia Kuskova, Co-Founder & CEO of beSirius) 💬

• Q Signals: Position Green acquired Factlines, Upright launched a real-time double materiality assessment, Denominator acquired Equileap, and other news 🟢

• + other insights 💡

KANATAQ CORNER

KanataQ Sustainability Solutions Classification System (QSSC) Version 2.0

Following extensive feedback from our community and the rapid evolution of the sustainability solutions landscape, we’re proud to release QSSC Version 2.0 (October 2025).

The updated framework introduces clearer structure, broader thematic coverage, and new cross-thematic categories that reflect the growing convergence between technology, advisory, and education in sustainability.

What’s New in v2.0:

➡️ Expanded coverage of reporting frameworks and regulations (CSDDD, CBAM, VSME, SBTI, TNFD).    
➡️ Enhanced cross thematic categories: Smart Grids, Screening, Cyber Security, Satellite Data)
➡️More focus on climate adaptation and forestry-related themes (Land Use & Deforestation, Climate Adaptation).
➡️ Streamlined taxonomy for clarity and alignment with industry terminology.

All these categories are now fully accessible on KanataQ, where users can explore sustainability solutions by solution type and category filters — enabling seamless navigation and discovery across the ecosystem.

Why It Matters:

The QSSC System underpins how KanataQ structures and analyzes over 400 sustainability solution providers on our platform - and serves as an open standard for mapping the entire sustainability solutions ecosystem.

📘 Free License:

QSSC is available license-free under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0) license.

It can be freely used by solution providers, academics, buyers, and industry platforms for both commercial and non-commercial purposes. 

Explore the full classification and download the latest version here.

Q INTERVIEW

This week’s guest:

Anastasia Kuskova

Co-Founder & CEO of beSirius

1. You recently released the Sustainability Outlook 2025 report, which describes this year as a turning point - “the end of sustainability as we knew it.” What do you think defines this new era, and what has changed?

We finally got practical.

No more “good corporate citizen” talk or vague ambition slides, it’s now about the business case (yes, the one that everyone hated before).

The transition feels harsh because the old model was built on moral appeal and external pressure instead of measurable value. But staying there would have been more damaging.
The shift to efficiency, prioritization, and business alignment is painful, but necessary. It’s the difference between sustainability as a story and sustainability as a system.

2. The report talks about sustainability shifting “from aspiration to survival-driven.” How do you think companies are adapting under tighter budgets and political pushback?

Very differently. Some reacted in the most short-sighted way possible: cutting everything, firing teams, pretending it was just a temporary phase, and that sustainability is dead.

Others used the moment to focus: focusing on efficiency, automating the repetitive, and connecting sustainability work to decisions that move the business, linking it to customers, investors, and banks. That’s the direction that will last.

It’s the logic we built beSirius on years ago: sustainability that doesn’t touch the bottom line won’t survive the next cycle.

3. You also highlight that AI has moved from experiment to essential infrastructure. What are the most practical, high-impact AI use cases you’re seeing inside sustainability teams right now?

AI is already a proven efficiency layer. Anything repetitive, logical, or data-driven is now automated (or has to be). For sustainability teams, that means compiling disclosures, answering ESG questionnaires, running due diligence, and risk checks. Thankfully, these are all things that drain time, and many of us absolutely hate them as they don’t need strategic judgment.
If you’re not using AI here, you’re already behind.

What’s next and exciting is moving beyond automation using AI to reason and support expert judgment. That’s what we’re doing now with beSirius: building intelligence around niche, industry-specific frameworks like RMI, IRMA, the Copper Mark, etc, supporting teams in long-term strategic projects.

Generic AI can’t do that, but when trained on deep domain context, it becomes a real partner, going beyond just an “efficiency tool”.

4. You emphasize that the future of sustainability is in-house and tech-enabled. How do you see the balance between external consultants and internal capability evolving over the next few years?

Generic consulting is dying, slowly but surely.

If you’re not bringing extremely specific, irreplaceable expertise, there’s no reason for a company to hire you, because their in-house team with AI can do the same job in half the time and quarter the cost.

What will remain are niche specialists with hard-earned, experiential knowledge, the kind that isn’t written down, meaning that it can’t be replicated by AI.

Everything else moves in-house, supported by systems that make people smarter and faster.

5. And finally, many organizations are stuck in what you call the “Trough of Disillusionment.” How do you help clients overcome that phase?

Today’s sustainability officers are bridge-builders between disappointment and opportunity.

The EU’s over-regulation phase created both hype and fatigue: first overwhelming companies with compliance panic, and now undermining trust with total uncertainty and delays. That mess (there isn’t a better way to call it) made many leaders cynical.

So CSOs need to bring evidence of value today to the Board. Not stories, not slogans, clear practical bottom line effects.

For me, “show the money” has always been the rule due to the pragmatism of our industry, even before we went down the hype curve. That’s the core principle behind beSirius.

We connect sustainability data to stakeholder needs, demonstrate where value comes from, and give teams the evidence to defend their budgets. We stay niche and precise, because that’s what makes sustainability credible and valuable for the business.

Q SIGNALS

Latest developments, insights, and trends

📊 New tools, features, acquisitions, and funding rounds from solution providers

Position Green (KanataQ listed) acquired Norwegian supply chain transparency firm Factlines (KanataQ listed), expanding its integrated sustainability software and advisory platform. The deal follows Position Green’s recent acquisitions of Greenomy and Morescope as it builds a unified ESG ecosystem spanning climate, nature, people, and governance. Factlines, which helps companies manage ESG and human rights due diligence across suppliers, adds 200 clients to Position Green’s 800. Position Green said the acquisition strengthens its position as Europe’s leading sustainability platform amid rising regulatory and supply chain accountability demands. (link)

Upright Project (KanataQ listed) launched a free double materiality assessment (DMA) tool that delivers real-time CSRD-aligned analyses using only a company URL. The solution automatically gathers product data, matches it with scientific and value chain information, and generates a full DMA across 80+ ESRS topics in minutes, with optional enterprise upgrades for collaboration, benchmarking, and financial impact translation. CEO Annu Nieminen said the tool replaces manual data collection with traceable, comparable insights to accelerate sustainability action. Upright plans additional real-time tools, including investor-focused versions. (link)

Denominator (KanataQ listed) acquired Equileap to build a global leader in Human Capital Data. The deal combines Denominator’s global human capital analytics with Equileap’s gender equality and diversity datasets, creating coverage of 5.5 million companies and 1,800 data points. Denominator CEO Anders Rodenberg said the acquisition enhances AI-driven insights as investors increasingly seek robust human capital metrics. Equileap co-founder Diana van Maasdijk becomes Chief Commercial Officer, and COO Lotte van der Stelt takes on the same role for the merged company. (link)

Esgrid (KanataQ listed) launched its new Food & Beverage Discovery product, introducing a streamlined process for managing Requests for Information (RFIs) through its platform. The company says users can access supplier contact details directly, without paywalls or restricted access. Within the platform, RFIs can be initiated almost automatically: users search for the needed product, select suppliers, outline requirements in plain language, and Esgrid generates an RFI email within seconds. (link)

Measurabl (KanataQ listed) expanded its global sustainability platform through new partnerships with the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) and the U.S. Green Building Council California (USGBC-CA). The collaboration with GBCA integrates Australia’s Green Star certification (covering 64 million square meters of assets) into Measurabl’s 22 billion-square-foot global dataset (link), while the USGBC-CA partnership provides California building owners free access to the platform via the new California Building Performance Hub to support state emissions and compliance goals. Together, the initiatives enhance benchmarking, transparency, and regulatory alignment for real estate investors across key markets. (link)

Diligent and Persefoni announced a strategic partnership to integrate their platforms and enhance corporate sustainability reporting capabilities. Under the agreement, Diligent will transition its carbon accounting clients to Persefoni’s AI-powered platform and take an equity stake in the company, combining Diligent’s governance, risk, and compliance expertise with Persefoni’s advanced carbon management and disclosure tools.

Bloomberg launched new analytics tools to help investors gauge company and portfolio exposure to low-carbon transition risks and opportunities. The suite includes datasets on transition-related revenues and capex for over 100,000 companies, covering 23 clean energy and fossil-fuel activities, plus a Transition Capex Tool with data from 70,000 power generation deals.

KANATAQ CORNER

What’s new on KanataQ?

📊 KanataQ Live Leaderboard

We’re excited to announce the launch of KanataQ Live Leaderboard, the first real-time trust ranking system for sustainability solution providers.

🏁 400+ providers are now dynamically ranked by Trust Score, KanataQ’s proprietary metric that measures verified credibility and visibility across the sustainability ecosystem.

🔍 Updated live, the Leaderboard showcases which providers are leading by:
• Verified client endorsements
• Market credibility (revenue maturity, years in business, LinkedIn followers)
• Performance on KanataQ (views, leads, activity)

🌍 Explore who’s leading the sustainability solutions market in real time → https://kanataq.com/leaderboards

📈 KanataQ Growing Family

Here is the list of providers that joined KanataQ since our last edition: carbmee (Climate Action), ORI Partners (Strategic Advisory Services), RGS (Impact & Stakeholders), Rho Impact (Impact & Stakeholders), and Simple. Software FlexCo (Climate Action), Unravel Carbon (Climate Action), Weather Trade Net (Climate Action).

Come join us

Are you a sustainability solution provider? Join KanataQ, the platform where sustainability solution providers connect with high-intent buyers. Generate quality leads, gain market insights, and maximize ROI with our commission-free model. List with us today or contact us at [email protected] for inquiries.

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