The double-edged sword of informal learning: Catalyzing or undermining sustainability?

Khner et al. (2025) provide valuable insights into how structural approaches (e.g., leadership, green human resource management, and organizational interventions) shape environmental sustainability in organizations.Although the authors rightly highlight the role of individual characteristics, such as knowledge and motivation, in affecting employee green behavior, the article falls short of considering how informal dynamics and wider societal discourse, although often beyond the organization's immediate influence, can significantly shape these individual characteristics.Although formal training and development, as emphasized in the focal article, are important components for building green competencies, these efforts must be complemented by approaches that foster informal learning-as most work-related learning occurs outside structured programs (Beier et al., 2025;Cerasoli et al., 2018).Employees can acquire green knowledge and skills during and through their work while also integrating information from external sources (i.e., wider societal discourse) into informal interactions at work.Moreover, potential negative effects may arise from informal dynamics and within group decision making processes.Mechanisms, such as informal knowledge exchange between colleagues, may reinforce unsustainable norms, suppress critical thinking, or marginalize dissenting opinions (Geiger et al., 2024).For instance, when colleagues casually exchange the belief that reusing materials is inefficient or unnecessary, such informal conversations can normalize wasteful practices and discourage others from questioning them.By ignoring these dynamics, organizations run the risk of entrenching skeptic or denialist beliefs that do not align with the urgent need for genuinely sustainable practices. Complementing formal sustainability training with green informal learningThe focal article by Khner et al. (2025) comprehensively discusses formal training and development for increasing green knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAO).Although this is certainly important, it overlooks the fact that most work-related learning does not occur formally, but informally, with estimates suggesting that 70-90% of learning in the workplace is informal (Cerasoli et al., 2018;Tannenbaum & Wolfson, 2022).Informal workplace learning encompasses non curricular, intentional learning in work-related situations that is neither institutionally organized nor pedagogically accompanied, but controlled by the learner and aimed at solving problems (Cerasoli et al., 2018;Decius et al., 2025).Typically, this learning manifests in behavioral and cognitive activities such as experimentation, feedback seeking, reflection, and modeling (Decius et al., 2019;Tannenbaum & Wolfson, 2022).Interestingly, these characteristics