معرفی
Dr. Cindy Kohtala is a Professor in Design for Sustainability at the Umeå Institute of Design (UID), where she serves as Programme Director for the MFA Interaction Design programme. She leads the Design Special Interest Group (SIG) within the Arctic Sustainable Art and Design (ASAD) thematic network under UArctic, focusing on grassroots participatory processes that localize design and sustainability initiatives.
Research Focus: Her work bridges Design Research and Science & Technology Studies (STS), examining material sustainability practices in maker spaces, fab labs, and citizen science projects. She explores infrastructures for alternative production and consumption models, emphasizing peer-to-peer participation and urban maker culture.
Teaching & Collaboration: Dr. Kohtala has taught at Bachelor's, Master's, and PhD levels globally, contributing to design education through projects like the LeNS network and EMUDE. She lectures internationally on topics including open design, co-design, and distributed economies, and has been a guest teacher in Mexico, China, and India.
Article Trends: Recent publications focus on
- 2025: Equity in digital fabrication (Fab25), collective healing through sustainable textile-making
- 2024: Renewable energy co-design, material engagement in sustainability, solarpunk futures, peer production models
- 2023: Critical analysis of design commons, product longevity strategies, ecosystem thinking in sustainability
Network Involvement: Active member of
- LeNS (Learning Network for Sustainability)
- o2 Global (design-for-sustainability network)
- UmArts research environment
- Aalto University's Creative Sustainability programme
