10 years of Design for Government

Aalto University’s course building public sector design capability

This year, the Design for Government (DfG) course at Aalto University in Finland is celebrating its 10-year anniversary.

The practice-based term-long course sits within the university’s multi-school Creative Sustainability master’s program. 24 to 36 students complete the course a year. Students from any Finnish university can apply to do the course because of Finland’s Flexible Study Rights (‘JOO’) — it allows students to include studies from other Finnish universities in their degree.

The course was founded by Seunho Lee, Hella Hernberg, and Juha Kronqvist following the proliferation of design labs in public services, such as the Helsinki Design Lab in Finland, which strongly inspired and supported the course leaders. The course was created with the mission to build design capability as well as show how design can be applied in the Finnish government. Students work on real briefs to respond to current policy challenges. The challenges are set by course leaders in collaboration with Finnish ministries, public service agencies, and regional and municipal administrations.

The course continues to help students and government understand the power of user-centred and strategic design approaches in improving public services and government administration. The approach of the course focuses on new ways of delivering policy intent by bringing policy and delivery closer together and creating a continuum and feedback loop between the two, rather than two siloed processes.

By bringing a human and systems perspective into the policymaking process the course leaders create the opportunity for better, more sustainable public services and societal outcomes. To do this, the course teaches three approaches: human-centred design, systems thinking, and behavioural design. 256 alumni have completed the course and some continue to work within or with public administrations, think tanks and design consultancies around the world.

Here are a few alumni:

Annu Mathew

— course completed in 2024, Service Designer, Design Researcher • Teaching Assistant at Aalto University

Where are you now? What are you working on?

I am a soon-to-be master’s graduate from Aalto University, School of Arts, Design & Architecture. My study focus was service design, and I am currently finalising my thesis which is titled “Evaluating the effectiveness of climate crisis strategies through policy design”. At the same time, I am also working as a teaching assistant for a design course that is offered to year 1 Master’s students here at Aalto University.

What did you learn at Aalto that you keep returning to in your work?

Aalto gave me the skillset needed to work in a diverse and international environment. It instilled in me the value of interdisciplinary collaboration, open-mindedness, and adaptability, which have become central to approaching challenges and teamwork in any context I work.

David Martens

— course completed in 2019, Designer and Policy Analyst • EU Policy Lab, European Commission

Where are you now? What are you working on?

I’m currently working as a designer and policy analyst at the EU Policy Lab in the European Commission. Together with my colleagues I am learning how design and creative practices can contribute to policymaking. And what it means to experiment inside public institutions.

What did you learn at Aalto that you keep returning to in your work?

Studying at Aalto gave me many things. I made my first experiments with video and photography, started playing music in the margins, learnt what it takes to truly collaborate, got addicted to sauna (ended up building one in Brussels) and I had the chance to work as a designer in a government context. Which made me believe that I could do meaningful work as a creative in public institutions. And which eventually led me to my current job at the European Commission. Bless!

Sofia Pascolo

— course completed in 2024, Designer • Creative Sustainability Master’s Student at Aalto University

Where are you now? What are you working on?

I am currently starting to work on my Master’s thesis. I am particularly interested in exploring how design processes can effectively connect institutions with citizens to enhance civic engagement and improve the effectiveness of public services. I aim to focus on how design for government and strategic design can advance policymaking processes, especially within the context of sustainable urban development.

What did you learn at Aalto that you keep returning to in your work?

Through the various courses at Aalto, I have been impressed by the extensive application of design processes and methodologies and inspired by the crucial role designers can play in addressing complex societal and environmental challenges. This understanding influences both my ongoing university projects and my current work in the circular construction field, as well as my volunteering experiences with civic non-profit organisations.

To learn more, visit *dfg-course.aalto.fi*