At LSE I pursue an MSc in Philosophy and Public Policy - a unique programme that allows not only to acquire a thorough background in ethical theory and political philosophy, but also to apply this knowledge to issues in public policy. LSE is the right place to do that, not least because QS World University Rankings 2024 has recognised LSE Philosophy as 1st in the UK and 2nd best in the world, and The Times has ranked LSE as the top university in the UK.
At the European Commission I am an independent expert at the European AI Office within the process of developing the first General-Purpose AI Code of Practice that will detail out the relevant rules of the EU AI Act. I am a member of working groups on transparency rules, risk assessment, risk mitigation, and internal risk management and governance. Previously I was a member of the Expert Group on AI and Data in Education and Training, where I represented UNESCO. The main task of the group was to assist the European Commission in the preparation of ethical guidelines in this field. I was particularly a member of the core team working on ethics. The resulting Ethical Guidelines can be found here.
At IDLO I am a Research Specialist in the Research and Learning Department working on the rule of law, access to justice and sustainable development issues. My main focus is on developing high-quality corporate knowledge products in these areas, while actively contributing to the management of the research pipeline and quality control process. I am particularly involved in the cross-institutional thematic cluster on digital innovation, and also work on developing the idea of digital rule of law. I further contribute to maintaining effective relationships with key stakeholders and support program teams to ensure deliverables meet quality standards. I also serve as the data protection focal point for research. As the rule of law has been in persistent decline globally several years in a row, I strive to do my utmost to reverse this trend, and eventually reshape the world into one where every person lives in dignity and equality under the rule of law. Overall, as the motto of IDLO says, it is about creating a culture of justice.
At UNESCO I was a Programme Specialist in the Bioethics and Ethics of Sciences and Technology Section of the Social and Human Sciences Sector. I started in 2020 as the principal consultant on the ethics of artificial intelligence (AI) with the main tasks to develop an overall framework of possible ethical values, principles and policies on AI ethics that are relevant to UNESCO's fields of competence and priorities. I also worked on identifying possible structures and prepared the background document for the first ever global normative instrument in this field - the Recommendation on the Ethics of AI (the end result of these particular tasks can be found here). I continued the work supporting the process of elaborating the Recommendation through the drafting, consultations, and intergovernmental negotiations stages. The Recommendation was adopted at the UNESCO General Conference in November 2021 (see here), after which I focused on its implementation, particularly developing the tools of ethical impact assessment and readiness benchmarking.
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At the UNHCR I was an Innovation Fellow within the UNHCR Innovation Fellowship programme to facilitate innovations and use innovation methods, tools, and embed new approaches in projects with the focus on problem-solving, ideation, and experimenting solutions to real-life challenges.
I engaged in various OSCE activities starting with assisting the Parliamentary Assembly Liaison Officer at an Election Observation Mission back in 2008. In 2009 I also assisted the Human Dimension Officer at the OSCE Office in Minsk regarding ensuring full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, abidance by the rule of law, promotion of principles of democracy and tolerance. I was also invited to speak at various OSCE technology-related events, including as a keynote speaker on the issues of AI and law enforcement at the OSCE headquarters in Vienna in 2019.
At Sciences Po I developed and taught a case study on ethics and governance of artificial intelligence for second year master’s students at the School of Public Affairs. The objective of the case study was to understand the impacts of these technologies, the tensions involved in the issues surrounding AI, and the ways they are and can be addressed multilaterally from ethical, legal, and policy perspectives.
I received my LLM degree in European Law in 2011 from the College of Europe, Bruges Campus on a scholarship from the European Commission. Since then on several occasions I assisted the College of Europe Development Office with delivery of their professional trainings on EU affairs executive education and tailor-made courses portfolio.
I have been part of the Harvard Law School’s Institute for Global Law and Policy (IGLP) network since 2015. Among activities, I took part in IGLP Scholars Workshops in Doha and Cape Town, which are a unique series of lectures and intensive interdisciplinary debates and writing. As part of this network I was involved in the project on regional and constitutional structures in tension speaking at panels at Harvard Law School and the University of Geneva.
I was a research assistant at UCL in 2012-2014 on the project examining in a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective the implementation of impact assessments in Europe. The project was done together with Ecole nationale d’administration in France and was based on the Gutenberg Chair established therein.
I have received my PhD in law from Ghent University in 2018, which was a joint doctorate with the Belarusian State University on a scholarship from the Ghent University Special Research Fund. The results of this particular research with a focus on regional integration have led to the book published with Cambridge University Press in 2023 (see the book page).
At Atlas Corps I was part of the Think Tank LINKS Fellowship management development program for think tank and non-profit leaders from around the world. Atlas Corps is a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit that brings together social sector leaders and organizations and promotes innovation, cooperation, and solutions to address the world’s 21st-century challenges. As a fellow in 2013 I served half a year at the Cato Institute in Washington, D.C. I continue to get involved in various other activities at Atlas Corps, in particular I am currently a member of the Atlas Corps Selection Board.
In 2018-2019 I coordinated the research work commissioned by the Eurasian Economic Commission on developing regulatory models of cross-border data flows. This work resulted in two draft international agreements in this field.
I held a number of positions at HSE University throughout 2015-2020, including Deputy Director and Leading Research Fellow at the International BRICS Competition Law and Policy Center, Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law, and Leading Research Fellow at the HSE-Skolkovo Institute for Law and Development.
In 2014 I was assistant chair at the European Studies Institute - a joint EU-Russia project implemented by the College of Europe and MGIMO University to provide postgraduate degrees in European studies to Russian officials. Later on I also consulted on developing and drafting project proposals, which resulted in successful bids for funding from the European Commission, including establishment of two Jean Monnet Networks.