Liao, ShushuNguyen, Nhut HTruong, Cameron2026-06-152026-06-152025-01-29Abacus, ISSN: 0001-3072 (Print); 1467-6281 (Online), Wiley, 62(2), 508-542. doi: 10.1111/abac.123580001-30721467-6281http://hdl.handle.net/10292/21410We investigate the nexus between the early-life disaster experiences of chief executive officers (CEOs) and their firms’ environmental performance metrics. We hypothesize that first-hand experience of the adversities of natural disasters in the formative years of a CEO can catalyze a transformation in their environmental cognizance and perspective. This transformation is postulated to have a beneficial influence on their corporations’ strategic frameworks for environmental risk mitigation. Our results show that entities steered by CEOs exposed to disasters in their early life have fewer incidences of environmental issues. These findings remain consistent even when controlling for other factors or using alternative methods. We suggest that CEOs with early disaster experience have an enhanced perception of risk ramifications, which inculcates a prudential approach to decision making, potentially heightening the environmental risk profile of their enterprises.© 2025 The Author(s). Abacus published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Accounting Foundation, The University of Sydney. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/35 Commerce, Management, Tourism and Services3507 Strategy, Management and Organisational BehaviourHealth Disparities and Racial or Ethnic Minority Health ResearchSocial Determinants of HealthPrevention1501 Accounting, Auditing and Accountability1502 Banking, Finance and InvestmentAccounting3501 Accounting, auditing and accountability3502 Banking, finance and investmentCEOsDisasterEarly-life experienceEnvironmental performanceJournal ArticleOpenAccess10.1111/abac.12358