Vera Kichanova

Dr Vera Kichanova is a market urbanist exploring and shaping the future of private cities, a policy researcher at Zaha Hadid Architects, and a senior economist at the Free Cities Foundation. At the age of 20, she was elected to the Municipal Council in Moscow, becoming the first-ever elected libertarian in Russia. After the Revolution of Dignity in Ukraine, being half-Ukrainian, Vera moved to Kyiv to work with Atlas Network, advocating market reforms in the country.

Her comments were published by The Telegraph, Forbes, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Spiegel, among others. Vera is the 2013 Democracy Award winner, a Mont Pelerin Society member, and an SFL alumna. She holds a PhD in Political Economy from King’s College London, a Master of Public Policy degree from the University of Oxford, and a BA in Journalism from Moscow State University.