I was born in Ukraine but spent most of my childhood in Belarus. In 2010, I earned a bachelor’s degree in media and communications from the Belarusian State University. Motivated to broaden my academic horizons, I earned a scholarship to pursue a master’s degree in media studies at Karlstad University (Sweden), graduating in 2013.
Following this, I returned to Belarus and worked as a communications manager in the NGO sector for several years. During this period, my deepening interest in post-Soviet and authoritarian politics inspired me to pursue a PhD. This led me to the George Washington University (Washington, DC), where I specialized in comparative politics and successfully defended my dissertation in 2024 under the mentorship of Professor Henry Hale.
In 2023, I began working as a senior research analyst at the Center for New Ideas, a Belarusian think tank operating in exile from Poland. In this role, I contribute to a range of projects, including research on online disinformation and propaganda. I also develop educational initiatives, such as online courses on authoritarian politics and research methods (as well as R), designed for Belarusian university students, human rights activists, and independent journalists.
I am fluent in Belarusian and Russian and have a good understanding of Ukrainian.
