Sustainability highlights 2025

Instituto Terra, a non-profit organization, was founded in 1998 by Lélia Wanick Salgado, and her husband, photographer Sebastião Salgado, with the goal of restoring part of the badly degraded Atlantic Forest in the Rio Doce Valley in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The couple embarked on an initial restoration project of over 700 hectares on the former Salgado family farm. Starting in 2020, with a donation from Zurich, Instituto Terra began to plant one million seedlings as part of the Zurich Forest Project, on top of the 2.5 million trees Instituto Terra was already planting. In following years, Zurich provided the means to allow Instituto Terra to triple its land, and also extended its engagement. Zurich’s support enabled Instituto Terra to begin construction on a new nursery with an initial annual capacity of one million native seedlings. In 2025, the Z Zurich Foundation, the charitable Swiss-based entity established by Zurich, agreed to provide support for NERE, Instituto Terra’s program helping young adults in the region and beyond to acquire skills and knowledge to promote sustainable farming and ecosystem restoration.

Sebastião Salgado

February 8, 1944 – May 23, 2025

Sebastião Salgado’s legacy includes more than 500,000 photographic images, he took, starting with the first one in 1971 of his wife Lélia Wanick Salgado. His award-winning work, characteristically in black and white, captured the world’s complexity. That included the images of the Amazon river basin and its people shown in the Amazônia exhibitions, which have drawn millions of visitors since the first showing opened in Paris in 2021. Curated by Lélia, Zurich has served as a main global sponsor for many of these shows. But it was the smaller Atlantic Forest which captured the Salgados’ hearts, and its threatened existence which inspired them to found Instituto Terra. After Sebastião’s passing in May 2025, the non-profit continues its work, led by Lélia, and their son, Juliano Salgado, who serves as president of its board. Zurich remains committed to supporting Instituto Terra’s very real vision of hope and community.

By increasing their awareness of emissions, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) can gain insights into ways to reduce their carbon footprint and meet their sustainability goals. In 2025, with the support of Zurich’s Carbon Fund,¹ Zurich began collaborating with the ‘We Mean Business Coalition.’ The Coalition provides tools via the SME Climate Hub² to help SMEs measure emissions. With Zurich’s support, resources are being made available to our suppliers and the SME businesses we work with, supporting their transition and our own sustainability goals.

We’re proud to see that some of our SME suppliers are measuring their carbon footprints for the very first time and have taken the SME Climate Commitment. By pledging to reduce emissions by half from a relevant baseline before 2030, and net-zero before 2050, we are proud to support them in their net-zero journey.

¹ Zurich’s Carbon Fund was established 2020 to fund efforts to reduce emissions relating to the Group and its subsidiaries and to support innovation in emissions reduction solutions, in line with the ambition to become net-zero by 2050 across our business.
² The SME Climate Hub is an initiative of the We Mean Business Coalition, co-founded and operated in partnership with the Exponential Roadmap Initiative and the UN Climate Change High Level Champion’s Race to Zero campaign.

Zurich directly manages a real estate portfolio of USD 14.1 billion. Our real estate team has already achieved a 36 percent reduction in emission intensity related to its portfolio¹ relative to a 2019 baseline. We aim to continue to reduce emissions versus the baseline by 45 percent by 2030, and achieve the netzero goal by 2050. Our progress reflects a combination of measures to reduce emissions, and the increased use of green energy. For instance, in properties in which we invest, we’ve upgraded traditional lighting to energy-efficient LED systems and modernized elevators. We’re also supporting a transition to greener energy fuels, for example, by using green energy generated through biogas production, and installing photovoltaic systems to generate renewable energy.

¹ Landlord operational emissions for 2024 measured from energy invoices, covering USD 9.6 billion.

H2 Energy, a Swiss pioneer in green energy solutions, has been a valued Zurich customer for several years. Previously, H2 Energy joined forces with Hyundai, a South Korean automotive giant, to establish the joint venture ‘Hyundai Hydrogen Mobility’. This partnership has enabled the introduction of fuel cell heavy-duty trucks powered by green hydrogen on Swiss roads, marking a step toward sustainable transportation.

Green hydrogen represents a clean fuel alternative. It is produced by using renewable energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen, and the only emissions are water. It can be burned to produce heat or used in a hydrogen fuel cell to generate electricity, making it suitable for power generation, transport and domestic heating.

We provide insurance for Hyundai Hydrogen Mobility’s truck fleet and offer multiple tailored insurance solutions to H2 Energy, protecting the entire green hydrogen ecosystem. This includes property, liability, accident and health, as well as engineering and marine lines of insurance. Our ability to offer comprehensive coverage is built on our careful approach to underwriting. Although hydrogen is perceived as a higher-risk technology, the close collaboration with internal risk specialists, hydrogen experts, and H2 Energy enabled us to understand how the hazards associated with hydrogen can be managed. This joint effort allowed us to create an insurance solution that helps facilitate innovation while managing risks responsibly.

Our global Digital Leaders program is building the next generation of Technology & Operations leaders by combining strategic insight, emerging technology and hands-on development in a comprehensive nine-month tailored program.

The latest cohort finished in May 2025 and completed eight modules covering AI, cyber, cloud, leading through data, and change leadership – supported by senior mentors, monthly cohort sessions and external speakers.

Of these, 76 percent have moved into new roles, with many citing stronger networks, increased self-confidence, and a broader strategic perspective as outcomes of the program.

One said, “I’m more confident in applying what I have learnt and challenging the status-quo”, while another shared, “It gave me a clear view of the tech challenges that we have.” The next cohort launched in October 2025 with a deeper focus on AI and digital transformation, reflecting our commitment to delivering smarter, faster, and more impactful outcomes.

ZRS has worked with Katoen Natie, a privately owned global group with over 170 years of history, offering warehousing, industrial subcontracting and supply chain solutions to a wide range of industries. Globally, it manages more than 5 million m² of warehouse capacity, with approximately 3,300 silos, about 160 platforms and 65,000 solar roof panels.

Growing increasingly concerned about the future impact of extreme weather on their operations and assets, Katoen Natie requested the support of ZRS who conducted climate risk assessments of warehouse roofs, which were systematically inspected for damage resulting from extreme weather such as water, hail or severe winds. Solar panels were also evaluated for secure installation and potential weather-related damage, including signs of movement caused by wind. The assessment considered whether the panels could withstand severe windstorms, which may intensify in the future. To combat this risk and maintain the lifespan of its solar energy production, Katoen Natie has reoriented its solar roof panels from south-facing to east-west, resulting in both reduced wind damage risk and increased energy output.

In addition to roof inspections, the interiors of warehouses and on-site battery energy storage systems were assessed. The evaluation included drainage and flood risks, particularly in low-lying areas identified in the preliminary desktop analysis.