Thu is a researcher in public policy, currently pursuing a PhD in Spatial Planning and Transport Policy at Aalto University. Her research interests include policy design and governance, urban sustainable development and sustainability transition. She is doing research on policy mixes for the decarbonization of transportation in Finland as part of her doctoral studies.

I am an anthropologist with a long and multifaceted experience in researching Africa and in acting as the PI for research projects on Africa. Thematically I have examined various societal changes that take place in the coming together of global and local regimes of economic and socio-cultural value. My specific research topics include the following: women traders and socio-economic empowerment in Tanzania; youth cultures' and culture industries' social and economic significance in South Africa; music industry structures, practices and value chains in South Africa and Europe; clothing and fashion industry-related entrepreneurships in South Africa and Tanzania; emerging black middle classes. I am fluent in KiSwahili language.

Projects

Youth music and the construction of social subjectivities and communities in post-apartheid South Africa

Ph.D. student of Technical Sciences at the University of Vaasa - Finland. Master of Science in Engineering, Environmental and Energy Engineering, the University of Sheffield - UK. Industrial Engineer, Universidad Santiago de Cali - Colombia. Currently working as a project researcher at VEBIC@University of Vaasa. Work experience in several electricity companies in Colombia.

Nathaly Pinto is a doctoral researcher at Aalto University, Finland, and an Adjunct Professor at the Pontificia Universidad Católica in Ecuador. With design training in Ecuador and the Netherlands, she has spent nearly a decade collaborating on projects with popular classes and indigenous peoples, partnering with civil society organizations in Ecuador and Andean South America. Her research centers on participatory design from the Global South, popular communication, and design for social change. Currently, Nathaly's focus lies in closely working with indigenous organizations and youth in the Ecuadorian Amazon, conducting research and co-designing visual devices to support political-educational spaces for dialogue, deliberation, and learning.

Projects

Network initiative to improve methods for seafood traceability

Projects

Tax/benefit microsimulation for Ghana

Projects

Grapho Learning International Development

Project Manager working in higher education, science policy, and EU-AU science cooperation.

Projects

CAAST-Net Plus: Advancing SSA-EU cooperation in research and innovation for global challenges

ERAfrica: Developing Africa-European joint collaboration for Science and Technology

PREparing for a Long-Term Joint EU-AU Research and Innovation Partnership on Renewable Energy (PRE-LEAP-RE)

Developing Finnish Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation between Europe, Africa, Asia and the LAC Region (FinCEAL Plus)

A long term EU-Africa research and innovation partnership on food and nutrition security and sustainable agriculture (LEAP-AGRI)

Developing Finnish Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation between Europe, Africa and the LAC Region (FinCEAL)

Developing Finnish Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation between Europe, Africa, Asia and the LAC Region (FinCEAL Plus Continuation)

Internationalizing Finnish Science: Building Sustainable Bridges to Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean (BRIDGES)

Long-term EU-AU Research and Innovation Partnership for Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (LEAP4FNSSA)

Current research on internationalization of higher education through North-South collaboration. Lead and participated in various collaboration projects with Universities from Tanzania, Ghana, South Africa and Eritrea.

Occupational well-being project to increase physical and mental health for Indonesian teachers.