Elena Mykhailenko, PhD

Elena Mykhailenko is Associate Professor at Kyiv National Economic University and Chief Researcher at the Research Institute, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade, Ukraine. Speaking several languages, she resides both in Kyiv, Ukraine and Toronto, Canada with her husband, a Digital Literacy Researcher at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology.

Born in Kyiv, Elena lived half her life in Soviet, and half in post-Soviet Ukraine. As a child she walked the sidewalks surrounding Maidan Nezalezhnosti with her grandfather. As an adult she witnessed the recent, revolutionary events first-hand. In this way, she is both a child and citizen of Maidan.

Today, as a successful academic and proud Ukrainian, she travels widely in Western Europe and North America exploring culture, conducting research and establishing university partnerships. Elena's research focuses on innovative, regional, socio-economic development models. However, her intellectual passion extends to all things Ukraine, and she offers an authentic, insightful and hopeful voice. Despite the challenges of living on the boundary of East and West, she personifies Ukraine's patient endurance and human capacity to pursue its own, very determined, path to democratic development and socio-economic growth.

From October 1, 2014 to February 1, 2015, Elena will be conducting research in Canada. She is available to address Ukrainian-Canadian organizations or business groups (in Ukrainian, Russian and English). Media inquiries and interview requests may be made by sending email via the link at the top of the page.