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Nova Ukraine Welcomes Ostap Korkuna to Board of Directors

Photo of Nova Ukraine Director Ostap Korkuna.
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SAN FRANCISCO—Nova Ukraine is pleased to announce the appointment of Ostap Korkuna to its Board of Directors. Born and raised in Lviv, Ukraine, Ostap moved to California in 2009 to join Facebook as one of its first infrastructure engineers. He was an early organizer of the MaydanSF movement supporting Ukraine’s Revolution of Dignity and is a co-founder of Nova Ukraine, previously serving as a board member and co-chair from 2014 to 2024.

“Ostap was there with us at the very beginning when Nova Ukraine started as Euromaidan SF, and he was crucial to getting us off the ground,” says Mikola (Nick) Bilogorskiy, Chairman of Nova Ukraine. “Welcoming him back as we turn toward recovery, reconstruction, and modernization is a full-circle moment for all of us.”

During his nine years at Facebook, Ostap helped build the systems powering the world’s largest social network. He later served as Director of Engineering at People.ai, leading the Intelligence Platform team.

Ostap recently earned his Master’s in Management from Stanford Graduate School of Business and co-founded NeoLens, where he serves as CTO. NeoLens builds an offline-capable, on-device AI copilot delivering diagnostics and step-by-step guidance for defense and industrial operators. The platform is provided free to Ukrainians. 

ABOUT NOVA UKRAINE

Nova Ukraine is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization founded in 2014 that provides humanitarian aid and services, and raises awareness about Ukraine in the United States and globally. Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Nova Ukraine has delivered critical assistance to millions of Ukrainians, supporting medical institutions, civilian infrastructure, displaced families, and community-led recovery efforts.

Donate. Impact. Change.

Feb 19, 2026

Nova Ukraine

Nova Ukraine
Photo of Nova Ukraine Director Ostap Korkuna.
Feb 19, 2026

Nova Ukraine

Nova Ukraine
Donate

SAN FRANCISCO—Nova Ukraine is pleased to announce the appointment of Ostap Korkuna to its Board of Directors. Born and raised in Lviv, Ukraine, Ostap moved to California in 2009 to join Facebook as one of its first infrastructure engineers. He was an early organizer of the MaydanSF movement supporting Ukraine’s Revolution of Dignity and is a co-founder of Nova Ukraine, previously serving as a board member and co-chair from 2014 to 2024.

“Ostap was there with us at the very beginning when Nova Ukraine started as Euromaidan SF, and he was crucial to getting us off the ground,” says Mikola (Nick) Bilogorskiy, Chairman of Nova Ukraine. “Welcoming him back as we turn toward recovery, reconstruction, and modernization is a full-circle moment for all of us.”

During his nine years at Facebook, Ostap helped build the systems powering the world’s largest social network. He later served as Director of Engineering at People.ai, leading the Intelligence Platform team.

Ostap recently earned his Master’s in Management from Stanford Graduate School of Business and co-founded NeoLens, where he serves as CTO. NeoLens builds an offline-capable, on-device AI copilot delivering diagnostics and step-by-step guidance for defense and industrial operators. The platform is provided free to Ukrainians. 

ABOUT NOVA UKRAINE

Nova Ukraine is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization founded in 2014 that provides humanitarian aid and services, and raises awareness about Ukraine in the United States and globally. Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, Nova Ukraine has delivered critical assistance to millions of Ukrainians, supporting medical institutions, civilian infrastructure, displaced families, and community-led recovery efforts.

Donate. Impact. Change.

We greatly value your support, and it is indeed crucial. Please consider donating monthly. Your consistent contributions are vital to sustaining our efforts and driving meaningful change over time. Your commitment will make a lasting difference, and we sincerely appreciate your consideration.

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Nova Ukraine Chairman & CEO Statements on “Undesirable” Designation by the Russian Federation

WASHINGTON/PALO ALTO–In July, Russia declared the U.S.-based nonprofit Nova Ukraine an "undesirable” organization, effectively outlawing the organization's activities within Russia. The designation bans any cooperation or financial transactions with Nova Ukraine by Russian nationals or entities, and exposes affiliated individuals to severe criminal penalties and lengthy prison sentences. In response, Nova Ukraine Founder and Board Chairman Mikola (Nick) Bilogorskiy and CEO Ambassador Erin E. McKee issued the following statements: Bilogorskiy: “We see the “undesirable” designation as proof our work is effective.

Language and Thinking program students attend a lecture
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‘Language and Thinking’ Program Prepares Young Ukrainians for Future Leadership

With Nova Ukraine’s support, Bard College leads writing- and discussion-filled workshops on the topic of justice Students from across Ukraine developed critical reading, writing, and civic leadership skills in a new program this summer supported by Nova Ukraine. The tuition-free, residential program, called Language and Thinking Kyiv, was based on Bard College’s Institute for Writing and Thinking approach to learning and was led by students and faculty members from the school. A total of 29 high school students completed the three-week program, which focused on the theme of “justice.” Students read and discussed texts written by Václav Havel, Lesia Ukrainka, Martin Luther King Jr., and others, and zeroed in on topics such as freedom, responsibility, and dignity. The students worked in small, immersive workshops and practiced a variety of writing formats, including free writing, loop writing, and process writing—all in English—and then shared and discussed their work with their classmates to examine and refine their own thought processes. One example of their assignments was the use of dialectical notebooks, in which students write down their thoughts about a text they had read together, then pass their notebook to another student to add their perspective.

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