Insights from CS x Crust Alumni Panel Discussion on Careers in Sustainability

Panelist Introductions 

Emma Berg, who graduated in 2018 (CS Arts track), is a Service Designer and Energy Specialist at the City of Helsinki Urban Environment Division, focusing on housing company energy consultations. A big theme is advising housing companies on climate change adaptation, including energy savings, cooling, landscaping, and water solutions.

Satyaki Roy, who graduated in 2023 (CS Chem track), is currently a Sourcing Sustainability Specialist at Kalmar, working on sustainability in the supply chain. He is developing a calculator tool to make emissions calculations simple and understandable for non-experts in sustainability.

Savannah Vize, who graduated in 2022 (CS Arts track), works as a regenerative designer-researcher with Falay Transition Design, focusing on creative approaches to eco-social challenges. Her work includes creative practice as a form of care to address eco-anxiety and help people navigate the emotional aspects of the climate crisis.

Patrick Lees, who graduated in 2014 (Information Service Management with a CS Business minor), is a Development Project Manager at Halla Offshore Wind Farm, managing offshore wind energy projects in the Bothnian Bay. His responsibilities include environmental impact assessments (EIA) and biodiversity strategy implementation. 

Discussion Highlights

How did your experiences in the CS program influence your career path?

Emma: CS had a transformative effect on my path. I would not have worked for the public sector had I not taken the designing for services courses in CS. I just went for it and opted for all the service design courses. Nobody gave me permission, I just took the opportunity, and it changed everything.

Savannah: CS marked a strong shift in my career. The program introduced me to what are now my focal areas and cornerstones of current projects, such as systems thinking. CS also opened my perspective on the role of design in sustainability transformations.

Patrick: When I applied to Aalto, I actually did not know CS existed. I heard about it through students while studying in ISM and took it as a minor. The CS project courses with peers from different backgrounds gave me new perspectives and made me realize I want to work with renewable energy.

What key challenge have you faced in your career, and how have you overcome it?

Satyaki: Feeling like a generalist and trying to fit job descriptions when applying. I think networking is important, especially in the second study year; most interviews I got were through my network. The capstone project was helpful since afterward you can tell the company that you have worked for them, which gives you a lot of leverage to get hired in Finland.

Emma: I agree with the feeling of being a generalist. For me, a key challenge was being the only designer in a team of 15 engineers. I felt alone and like I was losing my identity as a designer. So I created a network of designers working in the same sector and found my community. Now I also have another CS designer on my team, so there is more peer support.

Savannah: I can relate to the importance of peer support. I also struggled to maintain my designer identity after leaving the CS bubble. CS can give you radical ideas but then jobs in studios require you to dilute that and take a softer approach. Being an independent designer was the way to not compromise how you think of sustainability and creative practice. But it comes with the trade-off of getting funding and clients, especially with the big cuts in the sector.

Patrick: On the course How to Change the World, I worked with small-scale farmers in Mozambique. I tried to do my thesis on the project but lost contact with the local ministry. So, I changed direction and moved to Italy to work for a company making cables for wind farms. When I returned to Finland after a year, I was focused on the offshore wind niche, but Finland has nothing to offer on that. Then I was in tech consultancy for 1.5 years before finally finding a job in offshore wind. All in all, you may not find the perfect job right after graduation, but trying something else is good for building new skills and meeting people. So, be patient with your career path.

When did you start feeling like a specialist or do you still feel like a “generalist” in your career?

Emma: I consider myself a service designer and hold the title of a specialist, but my expertise feels more broad than deep. My top skills are project and people management, and I'm often the go-to person to connect others with resources. However, I do miss having deeper specialist knowledge in certain areas.

Satyaki: In my role, I need to know chemical safety, and I’ve been learning that on the job. I think specialization will come with time as I continue to develop my skills.

Savannah: Having many areas of knowledge is what makes you feel like a generalist, but being at the cross-section of them all makes you a specialist.

Patrick: Over the years, particularly in environmental impact assessments (EIA), I’ve developed a level of specialization. I wouldn’t call myself a generalist anymore, though I’d like to explore other areas at some point.
 

What was the topic of your thesis? Did it impact your career, and was it helpful?

Emma: My thesis was for the City of Helsinki, though it was in a different department than where I work now. It was a service design project and I wanted to see if I could go into that sector. It was the first time I managed my own project and clients, which gave me confidence. It also changed how I view Helsinki as a large, complex system. My advice to others is: don’t do it alone—plan well, work in a group, and set clear deadlines.

Satyaki: I recently completed my thesis, which focused on reusing wood from demolished buildings. While it’s not directly relevant to my current field, the process was still helpful for my overall learning.

Savannah: My thesis explored the role of play in sustainability to maintain engagement in environmental and social action, which continues to influence my work today. Play is important for well-being, and my thesis sparked many conversations and networking opportunities. I’m glad I chose a topic I’m passionate about, as it made the writing process much easier.

Patrick: My thesis wasn’t closely related to CS, as I was studying in the ISM program at the time. Had I been able to work on my initial topic of agriculture and supply chains, it could have taken my career in a different direction. While I wouldn’t say the thesis defines your career, small, random decisions like that can certainly shift your path in one way or another.

Bonus Question: What is your favorite memory from studying in CS?

Emma: “My favorite memory from studying in CS is definitely all the field trips we did to do our user research and exploration together. Whether it was going to see rural Hämeenlinna to understand their transportation system in DfG (Design for Government course), or going to explore Tuusula to understand phosphorus recycling for Sustainable product and service design course. And of course the amazing people that made the trips fun and interesting.”

Satyaki: “I would say the capstone project, because of it being demanding all 5 of us worked quite closely, learning from and supporting each other in achieving their personal goals while also working on the project, while also learning a lot and getting great exposure from Konecranes. Overall very great and also defining experience for me in terms of learning strengths and what I would like to do in the near future.”

Savannah: “As I was a student in the pandemic years, there aren't that many memories that didn't involve me sitting behind a screen unfortunately. But I do have a very fond memory of our introductory courses being held on Särkkä island - I'd arrived in Finland only the week before, and it was a beautiful introduction to both the scenery of Finland and to the kinds of topics we'd be exploring in CS, and getting to know my classmates.”

Patrick: “My favorite single memory has been the 2-week field trip to Mozambique during our Change the World project course in 2012. We had a really good multidisciplinary team (graphic design, engineering, business, entrepreneurship) and the trip was quite the reality check for young students trying to learn about agriculture and the basics of development aid. Understanding the complexity of the challenges small-scale farmers faced in Mozambique with their supply chain was eye-opening. In general, I really enjoyed the multidisciplinary approach of CS.”