Hello, I'm Nikola Ilic

I’m a professor of leadership, a leadership development professional, social entrepreneur, and long-time activist. My journey in activism began when I was 15, joining the Serbian anti-dictatorship movement. In 2009, I co-founded Serbia on the Move, a pro-democracy social movement, and since then I’ve led numerous grassroots campaigns focused on anti-corruption, health justice, civil rights, and democratization.

Today, I advise several social movements around the world on strategy and movement-building—including Kreni-Promeni, Volt Europa, the World Liberty Congress, and the Serbian Diaspora Assembly.

In 2020, I founded ChangeLab to democratize access to leadership and social change tools—no matter your background or socio-economic status. Through ChangeLab, I support leadership development programs with UNICEF, the Obama Foundation, and the U.S. government, and I continue to work with pro-democracy activists around the world to help them build and scale their movements.

As an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, I teach Ethics in International Affairs and Democratic Leadership. My teaching is rooted in experiential learning and action-learning, guided by the Democratic Leadership Framework I developed.

I hold a master’s degree from Harvard University and a leadership coaching certificate from Georgetown. I live in Washington, D.C., with my wife and our two daughters.