Insurance is a large and ubiquitous component of the world economy. It has also historically been a significant social good, providing protection against risk to individuals and enterprises, and helping unleash prosperity and innovation. Thus, it can and should play a significant role in the pursuit of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The peculiarities of its business model and the modern competitive environment, however, mean that not all activities are equally promising for insurance when supporting these sustainability goals. We discuss these realities of modern insurance and develop three avenues for activists/NGOs and insurance companies to support sustainability. Activists can play a societal, regulatory, or catalytic role as they drive the development of market demand, influence regulatory change, or accelerate the activities of individual insurers. Insurers can be interlocutory, trailblazing, or activating as they act as informed sparring partners to other actors, forge ahead with tailored market solutions, or empower their employees to act. These activities closely match the three pillars of sustainable purpose, traveling organization, and connectivity as vital guiding principles for living these suggested roles.