2025
Comparably’s Best Company Outlook
Sustainability
A Roadmap to a More Sustainable Future
Balancing Humanity’s Social, Economic, and Environmental Needs
We believe our sustainability efforts in our project work, our partnerships, and our operations create a stronger company and will help ensure a more prosperous future for our people and our planet. Notably, SWCA has partnered with The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) and The Water Resilience Coalition. Collaborating with WBCSD allows us to work with businesses across the globe who are focused on tackling corporate sustainability issues, while our partnership with the Water Resilience Coalition focuses on addressing the global water crisis.
As part of our ongoing commitment to responsible business practices, SWCA has also joined the United Nations Global Compact. By joining, we have pledged to align our strategies and operations with the Compact’s ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption, and to advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
For more information on our sustainability efforts, please read our Sustainability Policy or browse our 2024 Sustainability Report below.
People
Employee Safety
A company-wide commitment to safety begins with each of us. Thanks to our employees’ efforts and dedication, SWCA has some of the best safety ratings in the industry.
89%
Training Completion Rate
SWCA meets and exceeds client and industry certifications and supplemental training requirements. SWCA has staff trained in HAZWOPER, OSHA 10 and 30, MSHA, and more.
0.36
OSHA Total Recordable Incident Rate
0.84
Experience Modification Rate
Employee Engagement
Every 18 months, SWCA carries out comprehensive engagement surveys across the company, offering employees a formal and confidential avenue to share their feedback and suggestions.
95%
of Employees Receive Regular Performance and Career Development Reviews
Career growth and development are essential to maintaining a skilled and engaged workforce.
In 2025, we celebrated the 5th anniversary of SWCA's Career Development program.
86%
Overall Employee Satisfaction (Net Promoter Score)
72%
of employees see development opportunities to expand their skills
Talent Retention
In 2024, SWCA experienced exceptional growth. With this growth, we continued to make significant investments in the development of our people.
78%
of Employees are ESOP Plan Participants
In 2024, participation in the ESOP increased 25%, allowing employees to enter the plan sooner and benefit from ownership earlier in their careers.
83%
Retention Rate Overall
84%
Retention Rate of Women
Partnerships
SWCA Gives Back
In 2024, SWCA’s commitment to giving reached unprecedented levels, breaking records for employee volunteer hours, nationwide Gives Back events, and the overall impact, marking it as the most impactful year in company history.
2024
Have a Heart Award
The Austin office held more than 12 Gives Back events and volunteered over 488 hours. They had a financial impact of over $13,896.
4,143
Volunteer Hours in 2024
$235k
Total Raised in 2024
Science Leadership
Sound Science and Creative Solutions isn’t just a tagline at SWCA; it’s how we work. We believe that sharing expertise, both across teams and with our clients, strengthens everything we do.
2024
Steven W. Carothers Award Winner
Dr. Nicole Smolensky was honored with this prestigious award for her outstanding contributions to ecology, evolution, and conservation biology.
24
Spreading the Science Events Nationwide in 2024
32
Training Classes and Workshops Provided to Clients
Client Feedback
SWCA’s partnerships with clients are core to our business. We take great care to ensure that all clients’ expectations are met, whether it’s our first time working together or our hundredth.
86
Net Promoter Score
The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty metric that measures the willingness of customers to recommend SWCA's services to others.
97%
Client Satisfaction Rate
63%
Have been clients for more than 5 years
Planet
Swag Swap Program
The launch of the Swag Swap initiative in 2024 provided an innovative solution to reduce textile waste. This internal initiative allows employees to exchange SWCA-branded gear with others in the company, extending product lifecycles and minimizing unnecessary purchases.
100%
of Offices Have Recycling Programs
Through employee-driven programs and structured sustainability goals, we continue to enhance our waste reduction efforts.
9,462
Pounds of tech equipment recycled
42%
of Offices had a composting program in place in 2024
Energy Use
At SWCA, we are always looking for ways to reduce the energy use that is within our control and encourage our employees to consider their actions.
970
Clean Energy Projects
SWCA has extensive experience supporting clean energy generation projects, including wind, solar, geothermal, and hydropower and is committed to advancing sustainable energy solutions.
24.24
KBTU/Square Foot Energy Use Intensity
100%
Powered by Renewable Electricity
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Our methodology ensures consistency, accuracy, and transparency, drawing from companywide fuel usage data, electricity consumption records, and business travel metrics.
2024
Both Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions decreased from 2023
Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions were calculated in accordance with the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.
3.28
MT CO2E / Employee
5,437
Total Emissions (MT CO2E)
Sustainability Framework Committee
The Sustainability Framework Steering Committee, composed of leaders from across the company, collaborates to develop the company’s sustainability strategy. The committee also works closely with the Board of Directors to guide the company’s overall direction on sustainability initiatives.
Positive Impact Areas
As part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by the United Nations, their 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to end poverty, protect the planet, and promote peace and prosperity.
While supporting all 17 SDGs, SWCA chose five SDGs that most closely align with our purpose, our services, the markets we serve, and our people. We’ve adopted these five SDGs and made them our own, naming them Positive Impact Areas, to focus our efforts where we can make the biggest differences.
SWCA endorses the United Nation’s Women’s Empowerment Principles. We are committed to empowering women to have an equal voice at all levels of the organization. We provide resources to ensure women feel safe in all areas of the workplace and have pay equity. Setting women up for success starts early in life. Through our Spreading the Science program, SWCA partners with programs to engage the next generation of women in STEM.
SWCA is committed to helping our clients integrate water resources management, identify creative solutions to mitigate the impacts of drought and erosion and protect water quality in streams, rivers, lakes, aquifers, and wetlands. Our goal is to maintain a healthy habitat for water species while supporting critical water needs for communities.
SWCA works with clean energy providers, transmission companies, regulators, and landowners to responsibly identify, design, and permit projects that protect, restore, and conserve the surrounding habitat. We engage stakeholders and use our knowledge of the local environment to develop net positive impacts in clean energy projects. We are committed to mitigating impacts, improving habitat, and promoting biodiversity.
SWCA is dedicated to preserving and protecting communities. From cultural and historical sites to buildings and homes, to greenspace and the natural environment, we work with clients to build more resilient communities to withstand future disasters and the impacts of climate change. When natural disasters strike, we work on recovery projects to help the community and their residents rebuild their lives with an eye toward a more resilient future.
SWCA helps our clients conserve and enhance habitat and ecosystem functions in forests, grasslands, deserts, mountains, wetlands, rivers, and urban areas. Through our project work, we minimize and mitigate impacts, manage outcomes, restore degraded areas, and protect and preserve natural resources where possible. SWCA is committed to working with our clients to encourage the application of best practices as an integral part of their projects.