Who We Are
Getting to know Naouël Noury, Sustainability Manager, VPWhite
What did you want to be when you were 10 years old?
When I was much younger, I wanted to be a teacher. My father was a teacher and I liked to sit my younger brother down in front of a chalkboard we had at home and teach him whatever I had learnt at school – whether he understood it or not!
What are you doing instead?
I’m now a Sustainability Manager at VPWhite, a publisher and integrator of performance management software solutions. I support clients to digitalise and manage their extra-financial reporting operations and to deploy their sustainable development strategies. This involves helping them understand and meet their compliance and transparency obligations across the ESG spectrum. To do this, I regularly help them gather, and report on, data ranging from emissions and energy consumption to accidents at work, diversity and gender pay gaps, and executive diversity, training and incentives.
What has your career journey looked like so far?
I started my career at Ashurst Paris, where I worked for over five years in the Restructuring and Dispute Resolution team. I then moved to another firm, where I worked for nearly four years.
In 2021, the French supermarket chain Casino was accused of contributing to land-grabbing and deforestation in the Amazon. At that time, I’d been giving a lot of thought to how I could build my passion for the environment into my legal practice to deliver more value for the firm and our clients. I had hoped to develop my team’s expertise in environmental due diligence and litigation, but was unable to get the traction I needed to do that because of the team’s day-to-day commitments. So, after being a litigation lawyer for nearly a decade and with two small children at home, I decided to leave my job and study sustainability.
I now have a master’s degree in sustainability, am certified by Centrale Supélec Exed and EcoLearn, and work as a consultant in the sustainable development ecosystem. I’ve been doing that for nearly three years now and really enjoy it. When I decided to change direction, I didn’t realise how useful my professional and academic background in law would be – particularly in the context of helping clients understand their various obligations under European Union directives. It’s very fulfilling to be able to use all my experience and education to further sustainability.
Why are you passionate about sustainability?
I am personally committed to finding ways to achieve zero waste and protect animals. I live my life in line with those values.
I think I developed my passion for sustainability and the environment at a very early age. I spent my first 17 years growing up in Tunisia, which is an incredibly beautiful country that’s rich in landscapes and nature. Unfortunately, the country has a significant problem with pollution and much damage has been caused over time. My empathetic nature left me feeling sensitive about those issues.
Over the years I’ve been involved in a range of sustainability initiatives outside of work, including volunteering and pro bono activities. For example, I am a member and shareholder of Team for the Planet (the world's largest citizen climate action movement) and a facilitator for Climate Fresk, which runs workshops on the fundamental science behind climate change and aims to empower participants to take action.
What has been the most valuable lesson you've learned in your career?
Take the time you need. My move from law to sustainability has been a progressive one. I think that if I hadn’t taken the time to reflect on what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it, I wouldn’t feel as fulfilled as I do today. It took me about three years to really think it through.
What's your most memorable moment from your time at Ashurst?
I loved my time at Ashurst so much and I have many memorable moments. But one that stands out was going to the firm’s first ski seminar in the French Alps. At the time, I didn’t know many people because I had just joined the firm. After that trip, I felt I was part of a team that was like a family.
What's something few people know about you?
I’m actually very anxious about climate change. I try to only show my passion and enthusiasm for the topic to others, but sometimes I feel quite devastated about the impact climate change is already having on our world.
Where do you see yourself in five years' time?
While I really enjoy the stimulating work I do as a sustainability consultant, I’d eventually like to move to an in-house role so that I can be part of the whole journey that's required to successfully deploy corporate sustainability strategies.
