Rebecca Scholten MSc.

“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing.” — Albert Einstein

Rebecca Scholten MSc. is a PhD researcher at Nyenrode Business University and is part of the Center for Entrepreneurship, Governance and Stewardship. Her work focuses on how organizations navigate sustainability transitions in practice—particularly how climate considerations are embedded into governance structures, risk management and strategic choices.

Her research explores the role of governance, stakeholder engagement and financial decision-making in shaping sustainability outcomes. Using mixed-method approaches, she develops practical insights and tools that support organizations in translating regulatory frameworks such as the CSRD into meaningful organizational processes and decision-useful information.

Alongside her academic work, Scholten engages with practice, supporting organizations in embedding sustainability and climate considerations into governance and decision-making, with a focus on stewardship, long-term value creation and accountability. In this context, she also contributes as a member of the Harvard Business Review Advisory Council, where she provides research-based input on emerging topics in management and leadership and supports the development of future editorial content.

She teaches in executive education programs, including Nyenrode’s Full-time and part-time Impact MBA, where she contributes to the course Sustainable Development and Circularity, as well as in the Executive Master of Finance & Control, where she teaches on Business Impact & Sustainable Strategy. She is also involved in program developed with the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership. In her teaching, she focuses on bridging theory and practice and supporting professionals in their role as change agents.

Her professional background spans financial services, professional services and academia. She previously served as Senior Executive – Sustainable Business at Gard (Norway), embedding sustainability and climate risk into governance, strategy and reporting, including climate scenario analysis and reporting aligned with TCFD, EU Taxonomy and CSRD. Prior to this, she was Head of Sustainability at EY Netherlands, where she led sustainability strategy, governance and reporting at senior leadership level. During her time at Gard and EY, she was also a regular guest lecturer in Nyenrode’s full-time MBA program for the course Circular Economy and Sustainable Development.

Scholten holds a Master’s degree in Sustainability Leadership from the University of Cambridge, a Master’s degree in Sustainability Science and Policy from Maastricht University, and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Amsterdam. She is also a certified Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Professional.

Relevant publications

• The Impact of Climate Change in the Valuation of Production Assets via the IFRS Framework (degruyter.com)
• (PDF) CORPORATE CLIMATE CHANGE RISK REPORTING AT SECTOR LEVEL (researchgate.net)
• How to Push Oil and Gas Companies to Realise Climate Change Mitigation