Cheng argued that sustainability needs to be “integrated” into business objectives for leaders, not just placed in tandem with their other business goals. Otherwise, they will simply be pushing a boulder uphill.

“We fundamentally believe operating sustainably means it’s good for business medium-term and long-term,” she said, noting that in the short-term, investments will need to be made. Yet, she says these investments will pay off, providing the example of a sustainable propellant for inhalers that her company invested half a billion dollars in. Now, she says not only does AstraZeneca have a competitive advantage, but she hopes they have “inspired” other companies to think sustainably as well.

“When we transition to green energy, when we decarbonize our value chains, when we are generating less waste and using less natural resources, do you know you are contributing to saving lives?” She asked her fellow business leaders. “Simply put, we are all interdependent…One action at a time to make a difference.”

Adeyemo, who served at the Treasury under former President Joe Biden, responded to governmental deregulation and rollbacks, stating that while governments and businesses often think of the monetary cost of what it would mean to start investing green, they often do not think about the lives affected by climate disasters as a cost.

“That young person with asthma—that’s a cost. You think about the person who can’t farm on their land anymore—that’s a cost. You think about that family who owns a house on the coast and they can no longer insure a house on the coast—that’s a cost,” he said. 

Despite challenges within the climate-action world, Adeyamo said that people are starting to recognize these costs, pointing specifically to rising electricity bills across the country.

“And it’s not only individuals, it’s companies,” he said. “And companies are saying the cost of energy for my company, no matter who I am, is something I need to manage and the best way to do that is to think through sustainable options.”

The panelists also discussed the use of artificial intelligence to optimize clean energy use, something both Cheng and Jackson’s companies have used. For Cheng, though she noted that AI is incredibly energy intensive, she also said that it has been useful in AstraZeneca’s work helping health care systems increase early diagnosis and treatment for kidney disease, preventing the need for wasteful and costly dialysis treatments.

Jackson said that AI has been useful in predicting energy needs.

“The secret to cheap, clean energy today is to be able to forecast every solar panel, every wind turbine, to optimize every battery, to know when each electric vehicle is going to get home and get plugged in and how much power it’s going to need, because that way you can continually try and match the power consumption, the power generation,” he said.

The TIME100 Climate Leadership Forum was presented by AstraZeneca, Fortescue, and Official Timepiece Rolex.