Yoana Kisyova is a PhD candidate in the Environmental Science and Technology program at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA-UAB) at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. She joined IBEI under the supervision of Dr. Martijn Vlaskamp (IBEI) and Dr. Cristina Madrid López (ICTA-UAB) as a Joan Oró predoctoral research fellow (FI), funded by the Catalan Agency for Management of University and Research Grants (AGAUR). She is part of the research groups of the Observatory of European Foreign Policy (IBEI) and the LIVENlab (ICTA-UAB). Her research is focused on the geopolitical impacts of the energy transition and her work aims to understand how shifts in energy systems affect international relations, policy, and global dynamics. 

She holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from IBEI and a bachelor’s degree in Politics and East European Studies from University College London (UCL). Prior to her doctoral studies, Yoana held researcher roles at the LIVEN lab at ICTA-UAB, focusing on the energy transition in Spain. She was also involved in the INGOV and ENGAGE research projects at IBEI. Additionally, her experience as a political assistant at the Bulgarian Diplomatic Institute to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in London further informs her work in understanding the complex interaction between energy, politics, diplomacy, and sustainability.