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Why are you interested in Sustainability?

I was born and raised in a small coastal town in the middle of Vietnam. Because of the geographical location, we would face at least several storms during the monsoon season every year, and a hurricane every decade. Basically, the kind of extreme weather happening more frequently in Europe. In that sense, I’m always humbled by the destructible force of nature and aware that we as a species need to prioritise protecting the environment for our survival and prosperity. 

What was the most interesting project that you’ve worked with and can you mention a specific thing that you learned?

For the Entrepreneurship Lab course, I had to team up with EIT and exchange students to find and validate a real-life problem to build a startup based on it. Our initial focus was the recycling of high-performance metal, a topic which I had no previous background in. Later on, after interviews with big companies in the industry, experts, and retailers, we narrowed it down to Tungsten, also known as Wolfram Carbide. The most eye-opening knowledge I got out of this was perhaps a lot of times companies are encouraged to recycle or remanufacture their end-of-life products, but if the take-back tools and parts are labelled as ‘waste’ instead of ‘end-of-waste’, the logistics are much more expensive and effort-intensive. 

What do you want to do after you have graduated? Do you have a dream job? 

I don’t have a ‘favourite’ industry though, because there is always room for more sustainability in every field. I would like to work in big and established companies as they are pressured more by sustainability regulations, such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive applicable to all EU member states. It is definitely not an easy and overnight process for them, and I’m up for challenges. 

Is there something that you have felt challenging (something about Finnish culture, or Aalto, or your programme)? How did you overcome the challenge?

It’s natural for foreign students to experience some sort of culture shock when coming to a new country. For me, it was not really that big of a deal and I could integrate into Finnish society quite fast, mainly thanks to my Finnish friends. The biggest challenge has been making food similar to what I have in Vietnam. The ingredients are rarer and more expensive and the cooking process usually takes longer. 

Do you have a place (in the campus,  near where you live or city) that you really enjoy and spend time at – it could be anything really – would you care to tell us about it? 

I absolutely love the Design Factory building on campus. This semester I have two courses as well as several visits and events there. In my free time, especially before or after lunch I would go upstairs and study in the Hot Desk area. In between the lectures and during breaks, my group mates and I would have a table football match or enjoy hot chocolate at Kafis. Other times, I would simply just rest on one of those bean bags and read books or watch Youtube videos.