Nataliya Bugayova is a research fellow at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), where she leads the Russia and Ukraine portfolio. Her work focuses on the Kremlin’s foreign policy decision-making and ongoing global campaigns. She was previously ISW’s development director from 2016-2019. She led the ISW development team’s efforts and the planning for major events, including the ISW Security Conference.
Prior to ISW, she was the chief executive officer of the Kyiv Post, Ukraine’s independent English-language publication. She also served as chief of staff to former Ukrainian Economy Minister Pavlo Sheremeta, appointed after the pro-democracy Euromaidan Revolution drove Kremlin-backed President Viktor Yanukovych from power on Feb. 22, 2014. She also advised Sheremeta on cooperation with international financial institutions, focusing primarily on the World Bank. She has worked on consulting projects with the World Bank in Washington, D.C. and with the Boston Consulting Group in Kyiv.
She obtained a master’s in public policy from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. She was a student fellow at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. She earned her undergraduate degree in East Asian Studies at Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University
