Olga Tanchuk (ELP 2024) | Senior ESG Consultant, PwC Ukraine, Ukraine
24th February 2022, the day Russia invaded Ukraine, will stay in my memory for the rest of my life. I know how it feels to find yourself living in a completely different world– a world that is cruel, unjust, and full of destructive power. The war taught us, Ukrainians, to live under conditions of stress and uncertainty. Due to extreme climate events, we need to be ready for that soon, and many others on this planet will be forced to live under similar climate conditions.
My journey as an environmentalist started before the war. National unity in the face of unprovoked attacks made me believe strongly in the power of collective action to bring a positive change to the world. If we all unite against climate change, we can survive as a civilization and sustain a healthy and safe planet for future generations.
I am an advocate for active engagement of the private sector in climate change and nature-based solutions. I believe that without cooperation from corporations, medium and small enterprises will not be able to achieve any of their environmental goals; reach carbon neutrality; or prevent biodiversity loss. Working as a senior consultant at PwC Ukraine allows me to be a mediator between the environmental and corporate worlds, and participate in boosting sustainability actions among Ukrainian enterprises.
One might argue that wartime is not the best time for companies to invest resources to follow the environmental agenda. However, every day at my work I meet with frontmen of Ukrainian enterprises who continue working, producing, delivering, providing, and, surprisingly, decarbonizing. Their motivation is simple – they are not allowed to fail during such a turbulent time. More than ever before, the Ukrainian state depends on the resources and capabilities of the private sector to make changes happen.
War is a complicated phenomenon that changes your country drastically for better or for worse. War atrocities leave marks on the Ukrainian state and society every day. Still, I do believe that the invasion may become a catalyst for positive changes in the long run. The reconstruction of Ukraine may change the post-Soviet model of exploiting natural resources, to a resource-efficient, innovative and low-carbon economy. I must admit that as our fossil fuel energy infrastructure was almost destroyed, we had no other choice but to rely on renewable energy, which is still limited. However, this situation led us to shift from the belief that we couldn’t live without fossil fuels to embracing a new, renewable-based energy supply.
Responsibility has been put on the shoulders of my generation to decide on the future of a Ukrainian state. And we have a choice to make: to continue with an inefficient economy that depends on exploiting natural resources, or to reshape the economy into an innovative, resource-efficient, and high-valued system.
I choose the second option.
I hope to be an active participant in the economic recovery of my country and to bring climate and nature to its heart. Consideration of the environmental and social issues could create a phenomenon of building a sustainability-led model of economic development in a post-war country. To achieve that goal, Ukraine requires environmental leaders who will lead the way.
This brings me to the Beahrs ELP program which became a truly inspirational moment of my life. It was astonishing meeting professors who not only shared their expertise and knowledge, but also largely inspired participants to boost environmental leadership in their communities. I cannot be thankful enough for the support of Vera and John Pardee, incredible Dr. Mio Owens, and the team at PwC Ukraine who made this educational journey possible for me. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the entire Beahrs ELP team and the amazing individuals who shared this experience with me and for whom I am fortunate to call friends.