Once considered a brand differentiator, sustainability has now become a business imperative, reshaping how companies think, act, and communicate. Daniel Rösth, Founder and Executive Creative Director at Sweet, a creative lead agency based in Stockholm, and jury member of the GreenWorking Awards, sees sustainability not as a campaign slogan or a marketing add-on, but as a creative foundation.  His perspective is clear: when responsibility and creativity work together, they create stories that resonate far beyond the screen.

In this interview, he reflects on how responsibility and creativity can coexist, the role of storytelling in building trust, and why the future of sustainability-driven ideas lies not in single campaigns, but in ecosystems.

1. Sustainability has evolved from a brand value to a business imperative. How do you see it shaping creative strategy today?

Sustainability isn’t a nice-to-have anymore… it’s already baked into the DNA of most brands that walk through our door. For us, it’s not about ticking a box, it’s about using those values to create distinction. When a brand’s commitment to sustainability is authentic, it becomes a story worth telling. Not always the headline, but always the foundation.

2. At Sweet, how do you approach integrating sustainability into campaigns without making it feel forced or performative?

The audience shouldn’t feel preached to, they should feel like they’ve just discovered the brand’s soul. That’s when it sticks. We don’t add sustainability onto the campaign like a “save the planet” bumper sticker. Creativity makes them listen. Responsibility makes them stay.

3. Where do you see the balance between creativity and responsibility when it comes to sustainability messaging?

Treat creativity and responsibility like lovers, not colleagues. Let them fight, inspire, and sharpen each other. The tension is the point. Because in sustainability, the safest idea is usually the least honest one.

4. How can storytelling be used to build trust around a brand’s sustainability journey?

Tell the full story. The missteps, the progress, the proof. That’s when a brand stops sounding like a brand and starts sounding like someone worth listening to.

5. What role does video play in conveying sustainable values, and how can the production process itself reflect those values?

Video is the campfire where brand stories get told. If your sustainability video looks green but was made on a diesel-soaked set with fifty plastic water bottles per hour, it’s not a story, it’s a costume. Make the making part of the message, and the message will outlive the campaign.

6. What role do awards like the GreenWorking Awards play in raising industry standards for sustainability?

Awards like GreenWorking don’t just applaud good ideas they argue for them, making sustainability both a creative spark and a creative standard.

7. What’s next for sustainability-driven creativity? Any trends or shifts you're excited about?

The next wave of sustainability-driven creativity won’t be about campaigns at all... It’ll be about ecosystems. Ideas built to last. Stories that don’t sit on screens but spill into people’s lives, inviting them to step inside futures that already feel possible. Technology will be the engine, but the soul will always be human.

The GreenWorking Awards are an initiative of CIFFT and normmal, with the participation of UN Tourism. Entries are now open until September 15. Submit your work now.