Our team

Svitlana Kravchenko

1949-2012

Founder of EPL

rofessor Svitlana Kravchenko is the founder of the organization, the Teacher and ideological inspirer of EPL team who raised several generations of environmental lawyers and activists who protect and cherish the environment in Ukraine and worldwide. Professor Kravchenko had taught environmental law in Ukraine for over 25 years. She has international reputation for both her academic work and her practical legal work. In recent years she specialized in public participation in environmental decision making, access to environmental information and access to justice, biodiversity preservation, climate change, interrelation of human rights and environmental protection. She taught Human Rights and the Environment and International Environmental Law at the University of Oregon School of Law (USA) and was the director of the Oregon LL.M. (Master of Law) Program in Environmental and Natural Resources Law. Until her last days Svitlana Kravchenko was a Vice-chair of the Compliance Committee of the Aarhus Convention, member of IUCN, Regional Governor for Eastern Europe at International Council of Environmental Law.

John Bonine

Chairs of the Executive Board

Professor John Bonine has worked with EPL in one capacity or another for nearly 20 years. He is the co-founder of the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW), a global network of public interest lawyers protecting home-country environments. John Bonine has been a Professor at the University of Oregon for over 35 years, where he teaches Human Rights and the Environment (based on the book that EPL Founder, Dr. Professor Svitlana Kravchenko, and he published), Comparative Environmental Law, Pollution Law, Constitutional Law, and Administrative Law. He is also the Director of the Oregon LL.M. Program (Master of Laws) in Environmental and Natural Resources Law. Before joining the university, he was Associate General Counsel at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, D.C.

Olena Kravchenko

Executive director, member of EPL Executive Board, Chief - editor of Environment. People. Law Journal

Olena has been working at EPL since 2005 as the chief editor and since 2009 as the executive director. She performs operational administration of the organization and continues to work as the Chief - editor of EPL Journal. Environment. People. Law Journal is one of the first official environmental and legal editions in Ukraine. The purpose of the Journal is to promote development of protected areas and environmental protection, to promote development of science and education, to raise awareness of the population in the environmental and legal sphere.

Hanna Khomechko

Development director

Hanna has been working at EPL since 2008. She is responsible for ensuring financial stability and strategic development of the organization. As a project manager, Hanna coordinates the process of applying for funding, implementation of projects and reporting on EPL’s work.

Iryna Vasylakiy

Chief accountant

She worked as a cashier, accountant, economist-financier and chief accountant. Since 1993 she has been working as a chief accountant of the law firm “Lohush, Borsuk, Brofman and Kalyshevych”. She has been working at EPL since 1995 as the chief accountant.

Olha Malen-Zabramna

Head of legal department

Olha came to EPL in 2001 as a volunteer and then started working as a lawyer’s assistant. Since 2002 she had been working as a lawyer, since the mid of 2005 she has been the head of the legal department. In 2009 she received Master’s degree in environmental law at the University of Nottingham (Great Britain). In October 2009 Olha rejoined EPL’s team and at present she holds the position of the head of legal department. She provides legal consultations, represents interests of citizens in courts, bodies of public authority and local self-governance, manages the work of the legal department of EPL.

Yelyzaveta Alekseyeva

Senior lawyer, Head of information and analytical department

Yelyzaveta started working at EPL as a volunteer in 1998. In 2003 she participated in EPL Clinical Program for law students. Since 2005 she worked as a lawyer and in 2007-08 worked as a senior lawyer. In 2009 Yelyzaveta pursued an LL.M in Environmental and Natural Resources Law at the University of Oregon School of Law (USA). In October of 2009 Yelyzaveta rejoined EPL’s team and since then serves as a senior lawyer and specializes in the issues of Ukraine’s implementation of international agreements on environmental protection and European human rights standards. Since October 2012, Yelyzaveta has been leading EPL’s Information and analytical department. She provides legal consultations, represents citizens’ and NGOs’ interests in courts and bodies of public authority and self-governance, writes articles for Environment. People. Law Journal and participates in writing compendiums and other publications that EPL produces, coordinates activities of information and analytical department.

Anatoliy Pavelko

Lawyer

Lawyer, environmental scientist. He started working for EPL in 2002 as an environmental scientist. Areas of responsibility: environmental law and legal aid in the area of environmental protection, representation of citizens and NGOs in courts and in front of public authorities and local governments. Special expertise in protection of aquatic ecosystems and water safety, geoecology.

Solomiya Baran

lawyer

She started her career at EPL as a volunteer in September 2021. Since October 2021, she has been working as a legal adviser, specializing in the protection of particularly valuable natural areas, protection of water bodies from pollution, excessive use of hydrological and hydrogeological violations, destruction of habitats of flora and fauna, forest conservation, air pollution, waste management . Her responsibilities include providing legal consultations, representing interests of citizens and NGOs in courts and in front of public authorities and local governments, writing articles for Environment-People-Law Journal, co-authoring manuals and other EPL publications.

Oksana Kizima

lawyer

She started her career at EPL as a volunteer in September 2021. Since October 2021, she has been working as a legal adviser, specializing in the protection of particularly valuable natural areas, protection of water bodies from pollution, excessive use of hydrological and hydrogeological violations, destruction of habitats of flora and fauna, forest conservation, air pollution, waste management . Her responsibilities include providing legal consultations, representing interests of citizens and NGOs in courts and in front of public authorities and local governments, writing articles for Environment-People-Law Journal, co-authoring manuals and other EPL publications.

Alla Voytsikhovska

environmental scientist of the 1st category

Alla is an Associate professor at the Chair of Environmental Safety and Nature Protection at the National University “Lviv Polytechnics”.
She started her work at EPL in September 2014 as an environmental scientist of the 1st category. Her responsibilities include counseling citizens on environmental issues, researching impact of anthropogenic factors on the environment, scientific assistance to lawyers in handling EPL court cases, writing articles for Environment. People. Law Journal, participation in writing compendiums and other publications that EPL produces.

Kateryna Polyanska

environmental scientist

In January 2017, Kateryna started her work at EPL on the position of environmental scientist specializing in geo-ecological issues, landscape studies, conservation biology,research of the river valleys nature, protection of the wild animals, development of the Emerald Network, and ecological education.
Her responsibilities include counseling citizens on issues of environmental protection, research of anthropogenic factors on the environment, scientific assistance to lawyers in handling EPL court cases, writing articles for Environment. People. Law Journal, participation in writing compendiums and other publications that EPL produces.

Bohdan Kuchenko

environmental scientist

He started his career at EPL as an environmental scientist in September 2019, specializing in the protection of particularly valuable natural areas, protection of water bodies from pollution, excessive use of natural resources, violations of hydrological and hydrogeological regimes, destruction of flora and fauna, air protection, development of volunteer movement, environmental education, forest protection, preservation of green city areas. Responsibilities include providing consultative assistance to citizens on environmental protection, research of anthropogenic impact on the environment, ensuring scientific expertise to EPL lawyers in handling court cases, writing articles for Environment-People-Law Journal, co-authoring manuals and other EPL publications.

Zoryana Kopylchak

manager

Zoryana has been working at EPL since 2020 first as a volunteer and then as an office-manager. Since 2021 she has been occupying the position of a manager. Her responsibilities include organization of the work of the office, registration of office documentation, help in organizing seminars, conferences and other events, managing EPL web-site and sites in social media, daily collection and dissemination of environmental and environmental law information, dissemination of information about the organization’s functioning. Maryana takes care of ensuring friendly atmosphere in the EPL team.

Yaroslav Ivanusa

IT manager

Yaroslav started working in EPL in 2009. He administers computer networks, installs software and manages its functioning, instructs EPL staff on using modern information technology products. New information technologies make EPL’s work easier and improve working process.