Written by Matthew Kayser
In the conference rooms of Wall Street and in the cavernous halls of Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, one phrase comes up repeatedly: how can finance remain disciplined when the world is demanding fast answers to the climate crisis?
To find out, we spoke with Vira Tolkach, an international finance and ESG accounting expert who has spent over a decade advising Fortune 500 companies on sustainable finance strategy. She argues that the principles highlighted at Berkshire’s gathering are exactly the discipline the green bond market urgently needs.
“People think ESG is about checking a box or writing a nice report,” she says. “But real sustainable finance is brutally honest. It’s about asking if your company can survive and deliver on its promises for decades—not just quarters.”
Tolkach attended the 2025 Berkshire Hathaway meeting in Omaha—widely seen as the last under its longtime CEO—and says the experience reinforced her belief that sustainable finance professionals have much to learn from traditional investing discipline.
“One of the key lessons was about studying balance sheets over an eight- or ten-year period before even looking at the income statement,” she recalls. “That stuck with me. Certain things are harder to hide on the balance sheet. That’s true for ESG too. You can market anything as green, but the balance sheet tells you if you can actually fund it.”
She worries that the rapid growth of the green bond market—over $2.5 trillion in cumulative issuance as of 2024—has outpaced due diligence.
“There’s incredible demand for ESG exposure, but too often people want the label without the discipline. Issuing a green bond is easy. Delivering the impact for 30 years is hard. That’s where investors need to be tough.”
At the meeting, the company's designated successor emphasized maintaining a “fortress balance sheet” as a strategic asset—one that ensures flexibility in downturns and avoids dependency on short-term funding.
“That philosophy is exactly what ESG investing needs,” Tolkach says. “When a company issues a green bond to finance a wind farm or retrofit, can it handle cost overruns? Can it refinance in a downturn? Does it have the liquidity to absorb volatility?”
“It’s not glamorous,” she says. “But it’s the difference between a green promise and greenwashing.”
Another theme Tolkach draws from the Omaha gathering is culture. One oft-repeated warning was that it takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.
“ESG investing isn’t just about the project you’re funding,” she insists. “It’s about the issuer’s culture. Do they have the governance, incentives, and mindset to deliver impact over decades?”
She tells the story of advising a European utility that wanted to issue a green bond for renewable upgrades.
“On paper, their pipeline was perfect,” she explains. “But internal audits found inconsistent ESG data, siloed teams, and misaligned incentives. I told them to delay the bond. Six months later, with governance restructured, they issued it with far stronger investor confidence—and better pricing.”
Tolkach is quick to acknowledge the power of green bonds to mobilize capital at scale.
“I’m not here to criticize green bonds,” she says. “I’m here to make them better. They’re essential for decarbonization. But they’re only as strong as the discipline behind them.”
“Investors don’t want hype,” she says firmly. “They want to know their capital is really moving the needle on emissions, energy efficiency, adaptation. That requires real work and honesty.”
Grid Analogy: ESG Strategy Beyond Marketing
During the 2025 meeting, one speaker also compared America’s aging electric grid to the interstate highway system—requiring careful planning and public-private cooperation.“That analogy is perfect for ESG strategy,” Tolkach says. “Issuing a green bond is just a tool. It’s like pouring cement for the highway. But you need the plan, the coordination, the policy framework.”
Engage with policymakers to shape effective incentives and standards
“ESG is not marketing,” she says. “It’s core business strategy. And it has to be treated that way if we want real results.”As our conversation winds down, Tolkach reflects on the event’s emphasis on patience and resilience.
“They’re not chasing the next quarter. They’re thinking ten, twenty, fifty years ahead. That’s the mindset we need for ESG investing. We’re financing infrastructure that will last decades. We need to be brutally honest about the risks—and have the humility to plan for them.”
“Climate change isn’t waiting for us to figure this out,” she says. “The tide is coming, with stricter regulation, investor expectations, consumer pressure, and physical impacts. We need to be ready. Not with slogans—but with plans that will actually deliver.”
For Tolkach, the message from Omaha wasn’t old-fashioned—it was urgently contemporary.
“The whole approach is about understanding the business, the balance sheet, the risks. It’s about managing cash as a strategic asset, protecting reputation. Those aren’t just values for one company. They’re the blueprint for how sustainable finance has to evolve if we want it to work.”
But for Tolkach, it’s not just about advising corporations or sitting in conference rooms. She’s committed to giving back by sharing these ideas far beyond Wall Street.
“This knowledge shouldn’t stay locked up with executives,” she says. “It needs to reach young professionals, local entrepreneurs, and communities—anyone working to build something that lasts.” For her, the real goal is to help more people put disciplined, honest finance to work in ways that strengthen businesses, support communities, and create a truly sustainable future.
“It’s not glamorous,” she says. “But it’s the difference between a green promise and greenwashing.”
