Ielyzaveta Badanova holds bachelor and master's degrees in International Law from the Kyiv National Taras Shevchenko University Institute of International Relations (with honours) and an LL.M. in International Law from the University of Cambridge. She also graduated with an MBA from the Kyiv School of Economics. At the moment, she is pursuing a PhD in Law at the European University Institute with her research dedicated to the international law of financing for the environment (with a particular focus on green energy) and standards for effective management of these funds.

Ielyzaveta has extensive experience in the energy sector. She made an internship at the Energy Community Secretariat in Vienna in 2014. In 2014-2023, she worked as part of operational management of NJSC Naftogaz of Ukraine, including as Deputy Head of Legal and as Team Lead for Energy Market Development. She was in charge of international and EU law aspects of most complex regulatory issues related to the Ukrainian gas market, including the unbundling of the gas transmission system operator of Ukraine, the counteraction to politically motivated energy projects such as Nord Stream 2, the transition from administrative to market-based pricing, the opening up of the retail gas market for competition etc. Since 2023, Ielyzaveta works as an independent consultant for the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine responsible for major issues of Ukraine-EU energy market integration.