Insights

Connecting theory and practice

Tua is the director of the Design Factory, an associate professor in leading for creativity in the School of Engineering and the teacher-in-charge of the master’s level product development major and minor in Aalto. Her work revolves around understanding, teaching and developing co-creation efforts, turning ideas into improvements in organizations and education. Tua heads research at the Design Factory, looking into sustainable design practices, innovation in organisations, co-creation and the impact of the Design Factory. She is also a deputy editor at the Journal of Engineering Education.

On the teaching front, Tua is a part of Design Factory efforts to promote developing university teaching. She teaches responsible innovation and human-centered design in courses such as the Product Development Project, Mechanical Engineering in Society, Prototyping for Innovation, and Design thinking for innovation, as well as design innovation in executive and professional education. Tua has a DSc degree in work psychology from the Aalto University School of Science, and an MA degree in cognitive science from the University of Helsinki.