Sarah Beaubien Is Redefining Sustainability at Mondelēz International

Friday, September 18, 2026

Sustainability in consumer-packaged goods demands more than good intentions; it takes curiosity, business fluency, and the grit to embed environmental and social impact into everyday decisions. Sarah's career at Mondelēz International is proof. As Impact & Sustainability Lead for North America, she drives strategy across climate, packaging, waste, human rights, and community impact through the ASPEN framework: Agriculture, Social, Packaging, Environment, and Net Zero. Here, she shares how she builds the business case for sustainability at scale and what it looks like when you make MDLZ stronger through purpose-driven decisions.

Can you tell us a little about your career journey and what first sparked your interest in sustainability?

In the early 2000s, I unexpectedly became a sustainability professional. There weren't degrees or even many sustainability titles at the time. I was working as a product manager in the coffee industry, and the number of projects coming across my desk with a sustainability bent were dramatically increasing. I wrote a sustainability lead job description and presented it to our leadership team. They agreed that there was a growing demand and took a chance on me with almost no formal training. I was a one-woman army directing the climate, packaging, waste, sustainable ingredients, social impact, and employee engagement strategies. I was really fulfilled by the work and have been in sustainability ever since.

What advice would you give to students or professionals interested in pursuing a career in sustainability?

I think the most important skills for a sustainability professional are "soft" skills more than "hard" skills. It's helpful to know about climate, packaging, human rights, and agriculture, but curiosity, good listening, integrity, authenticity, and grit may be more important. It takes an incredible amount of patience and persistence to be successful. I recommend that people have a really solid grasp of change management, negotiation, and adult learning & development. And, sustainability roles need to understand business, including the P&L, manufacturing networks, supply networks, customer relationships, etc. and the dynamics that are part of those functions.

When you think about the future of sustainability and impact, what gives you the most optimism?

There is an evolution of terminology, tone, and tactics underway. Sustainability is shifting beyond vision setting to being embedded in the business; from aspirations to hard-wiring. In this new paradigm, we empower every employee to integrate sustainability into daily decision-making: beyond compliance, beyond reporting. As someone who likes to roll up my sleeves and dig in, I'm energized by the opportunity to work in the business and operationalize sustainability.

How do you balance ambitious sustainability goals with practical business realities?

The way to balance sustainability with practical business realities is to first raise awareness that sustainability is part of the business, not separate from it. Sustainability helps Mondelēz be more adaptable and resilient, but there are always competing priorities and trade-offs. Having a clear understanding of the risks and opportunities of action and inaction is critical to moving the agenda forward. Sustainability needs to create value, not virtue. That value can be reputational, but it can also be in building strong supplier relationships, creating productivity, attracting and retaining talent, and reducing fines and penalties. Sustainability doesn't just exist for goodwill and branding. We have to optimize for impact and always build the business case.

What emerging sustainability trends do you believe will shape the future of consumer-packaged goods?

While I am still an optimist, I believe we'll continue to see trust in institutions challenged and nations turning inward to protect their resources, including natural resources like water, soil, and renewable energy. And if we continue business as usual, we'll see multi-year droughts, repeated poor harvests, and geopolitical tension that will disrupt our global supply chains, which may drive sourcing to be more local. Consumers will continue to become more savvy and reach for better-for-you options.

What excites you most about the work Mondelēz is doing in this space?

It is promising that Mondelēz North America (NA) has leadership support to cascade sustainability KPIs and considerations into business choices beyond just compliance. We have strong governance and cross-functional partnerships. Sustainability is being embedded into routine functional decisions and annual cycle planning. Progress is also underway to embed sustainability competencies into role descriptions and onboarding processes for key functions.

Sustainability can mean different things to different people. How do you define it in the context of the food and snacking industry?

I believe that sustainability should include both social and environmental components. There are so many synergies between nature and communities. On our team, we believe that key to the transformation that needs to happen for our organization to operate with sustainability as one of our four success pillars is to stop thinking about it as a siloed responsibility and start to understand it as a core responsibility within every role.

We have a little analogy to explain what our team is setting out to do: ASPEN.

An Aspen Grove is not a forest of trees; it is actually a single organism, with an interconnected root structure to share information and resources. This makes the Aspen Grove extremely resilient. If part of the grove is affected by drought, the organism sends extra water there. That is how we like to operate across Mondelēz North America: send resources where support is needed and we will all be more resilient. And conveniently, the core pillars of our team spell ASPEN: Agriculture, Social, Packaging, Environment, and Net Zero.

What does your role as Impact & Sustainability Lead for North America involve?

I believe in shine theory. If my team shines, then I shine. So, a lot of what I do is supporting talented leaders of our core impact and sustainability pillars: Agriculture, Social, Packaging, Environment, and Net Zero.

A big part of the role involves developing governance and raising awareness for global and North American functions and business teams on impact and sustainability challenges related to their scope and activity.

My focus is guiding the US business unit towards a clear short- and long-term vision for impact & sustainability, creating a framework of ambitions, strategies, goals, and metrics, which allow all functions to contribute to progress against the Mondelēz sustainability pillar. This includes providing strategic leadership across a portfolio of impact and sustainability areas including climate, waste, packaging, human rights, sustainable ingredients, mindful snacking, and community impact.

Interpreting and defining actions based on progress is also up to me, continually evaluating how short-term results will allow us to achieve the long-range strategic plans. The role also requires establishing and managing a process for prioritization and focus for impact and sustainability efforts, leveraging roadmaps in close collaboration with internal partners for eventual functional ownership of key workstreams.

Through these efforts, programs are designed to be embedded within the organization where ownership and performance can be realized.

What attracted you to Mondelēz International and the opportunity to lead Impact & Sustainability initiatives in North America?

I came into Mondelēz through the CLIF acquisition. While I loved working at CLIF, I am excited about the opportunity to practice sustainability at scale. If we can shift the rudder even a few degrees at Mondelēz, we can create big impact.

How would you describe the culture at Mondelēz in a sentence?

In an ever-changing and volatile world, the Mondelēz culture empowers employees to take ownership and embrace agility.

Sarah's story highlights the power of pursuing work that aligns passion with purpose. Over the course of her career, she has demonstrated that creating meaningful impact requires curiosity, collaboration, and a willingness to continuously learn and adapt. Her journey reflects how sustainability is more than a business priority; it is an opportunity to drive innovation, strengthen communities, and shape a better future.

For those considering a career in sustainability or looking to grow their impact, Sarah's experience serves as a reminder that every role, challenge, and opportunity can contribute to a larger purpose. By staying committed to learning and embracing change, it is possible to build a career that delivers both personal fulfillment and lasting impact.