VISIT to Aalto University
By: VILNIUS TECH University, Associate Professor, Skirmante Mozuriunaite
NORDTEK MOBILITY PROGRAM continually supports scholars and students in their academic career development and cohabitation between universities. With the support of Nordtek teachers’ mobility scholarship Skirmante Mozuriunaite from VILNIUS TECH University spent a semester at Aalto University during autumn 2022.
Since 2020, the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic professor Anssi Juotsiniemi from Aalto University invited Skirmante Mozuriunaite to join teaching at the Master’s Programme in Urban Studies and Planning, and Nordtek scholarship allows to keep this cooperation.
At Aalto University, Skirmante Mozuriunaite was involved in USP, Urban Changes Studio 1, where students are prepared as professionals, who are capable of understanding and addressing complex urban development challenges. Skirmante Mozuriunaite gave lectures on topics of ”Urban design tools”, “Housing Typologies”, Placemaking” and “How to fix urban sprawl”. During the lectures, students learn how to address such challenges through an interdisciplinary approach skills and practice.
The northern part sites of the Helsinki Metropolitan area were given as the students’ group design areas. The individual students’ group consultations and sharing of Skirmante Mozuriunaite’s professional work experience with the students gave groups a broad understanding of urban phenomena and a better practical experience of urban planners’ daily issues found not only in Finland but on the European and global scale. The Urban Challenge Studio 1 themes are attached to a certain focus area, to provide a constructive and critical framework for study and cross the boundaries of disciplines and professions, addressing a common challenge and emphasising a forward-looking perspective.
This continuous Aalto and VILNIUS TECH cooperation at the Master level programme led to successful cooperation at the PhD level. In May 2022 Skirmante Mozuriunaite was appointed as advisor of Hulusi Eren Efeoglu, a doctoral candidate in the Doctoral Programme in Arts, Design and Architecture at Aalto University.
Being a part of the Aalto University Architect academic community, Skirmante Mozuriunaite was invited to the exclusive celebration of Aalto University’s 150-year-old School of Arts, Design and Architecture event. The School of Arts, Design and Architecture has educated creative hands and minds since 1871. She says it is an honour and privilege to participate in the event between the first alumni and distinguished professors and academic staff.
Although the visit to Aalto University is over, Skirmante is very grateful to NORDTEK for the opportunities to continue this fruitful cooperation in the second and third cycles of education and research. Both universities share similar research and professional interests which leads them to a common research project and further future cooperation. Since the end of the semester, researchers already have made joint grant applications for the research project and agreed on teaching contributions to VILNIUS TECH PhD Summer school and exchanges for the next academic year.
Skirmantė Mozūriūnaitė greatly appreciates NORDTEK for giving the financial opportunity for the academic visit and Professor Anssi Juotsiniemi for continuous support and the possibility to visit Aalto University and be a part of the academic community.
USP student’s project publication with the contribution of Skirmante Mozuriunaite.