13 things about Miss Universe Canada 2020 Nova Stevens

Nova Stevens represented Canada in the 69th edition of Miss Universe. It was won by Andrea Meza of Mexico.

BIOGRAPHY

Stevens is a South Sudanese-Canadian activist, actor, model and beauty queen born Nyawal Bukjok in Kenya to South Sudanese parents. Here are 13 more things about her:

1. Her family fled a civil war in South Sudan.
2. In 1999, she and a cousin were sent to Canada while her mother was left in a United Nations camp in South Sudan and her father and siblings went to Ethiopia.
3. In 2008, she decided to live on her own.
4. In 2009, she went to New York, United States where she started her career as a model.
5. In 2011, she became the manager for the Youth Transition program in Alberta, Canada, which helped her finish school and become independent.
6. She was a Miss Universe Canada 2014 finalist.
7. In 2014, she moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada to pursue her career as a model and an actress.
8. In 2015, Premiere Talent Management started representing her.
9. She was a Miss Universe Canada 2018 semifinalist.
10. She won Miss Universe Canada 2020.
11. She was a Miss Universe 2020 candidate.
12. She was a Miss Universe 2024 judge.
13. On May 5, 2025, she turned 33.

TIMELINE

Stevens is 6’0″ tall. She speaks English and Nuer.

2010s

• On May 24, 2014, she competed against 62 other Miss Universe Canada 2014 candidates as Nyawal Bukjok at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and finished in the Top 12.
• On August 18, 2018, she competed against 59 other Miss Universe Canada 2018 candidates at the John Bassett Theatre of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto. She won the Miss Photogenic award and finished in the Top 20.
• She played a witch in “See” Season 1 episode 3 “Fresh Blood,” which aired on November 1, 2019.

2020s

• She played a Visigoth witch in “The Magicians” Season 5 episode 4 “Magicians Anonymous,” which aired on February 5, 2020.
• She played a team leader in “Motherland: Fort Salem” Season 1 episode 8 “Citydrop,” which aired on May 6, 2020.
• On June 19, 2020, she and Shamika Mitchell organized a peaceful Black Lives Matter march in Vancouver. The duo also had the city declare August 1 as Emancipation Day. The Slavery Abolition Act 1833 ended slavery in the British Empire on August 1, 1834.
• On October 24, 2020, she competed against 39 other Miss Universe Canada 2020 candidates at the John Bassett Theatre and won the title.
• On May 16, 2021, she represented Canada at Miss Universe 2020 and competed against 73 other candidates at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, USA. She was unplaced.
• On August 7, 2021, her successor Miss Universe Canada 2021 Tamara Jemuovic was officially appointed.
• On May 14, 2022, she and Jemuovic attended the Miss Universe Canada 2022 coronation ceremony at the Meridian Arts Centre in Toronto.
• In June 2022, Giordano Torresi and Jaragon gave her her own non-fungible token trophy.
• On August 23, 2023, she met Miss Universe 2005 Natalie Glebova for the first time.
• On July 27, 2024, she attended the Miss Universe Canada 2024 coronation ceremony at the Capitol Theatre in Windsor, Ontario.
• On November 16, 2024, she served as a judge at Miss Universe 2024 at the Arena Ciudad de México (Arena CDMX) in Azcapotzalco, Mexico City, Mexico.