Five new honorary doctors in technology at Aalto in 2024

Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko, President and Chief Executive Officer, Marimekko

Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko, President and CEO of Marimekko Corporation, has boosted Marimekko into sustainable growth both in Finland and internationally. She became President and CEO in 2015 when she was only 33 years old, and in 2021, she received the Executive of the Year award and the Change Manager of the Year award for her exceptional success. Alahuhta-Kasko has worked at Marimekko for nearly two decades now.  

Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko is an alum of Aalto University School of Business. Some of her several positions of trust include board membership of the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), Finnair Plc and the Climate Leadership Coalition. 

Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko has acted as vice chair of the honorary delegation of the Aalto University Student Union AYY since 2016, where she has promoted interaction between the student union and the rest of society and supported the student union amid societal changes. Moreover, she has promoted the development of stakeholder group relations of Aalto School of Business as a member of the Alumni Advisory Board and has been often featured as a guest speaker at Aalto University events. 

Petteri Alinikula, Chief Technology Officer, Saab Finland

Petteri Alinikula is the Chief Technology Officer at defence and security company Saab Finland. He has built a notable career in mobile technology and innovations: before joining Saab, Alinikula spent two decades in various research leadership roles at Nokia where he had a key role in expanding international connections and promoting cooperation with universities.  

Alinikula has a doctorate in electrical engineering from Penn State University and he is an alum of Aalto University’s precedent, Helsinki University of Technology. He has authored several scientific articles and conference publications. Alinikula is also one of the founders of Avaava Digital Oy, a company focused on website accessibility, and he has held several positions of trust in various technology organisations. Alinikula is a sought-after conference speaker on mobile technology, industry innovations, sustainable development and accessibility. 

Alinikula has led the cooperation and strategic partnership between Aalto University and the Saab group since its initiation in 2017. This cooperation has been very extensive, with both scientific and commercial impact. The joint research programme of Aalto and Saab has produced several master’s theses, doctoral theses, scientific articles and inventions.  

Ashok Kumar, Professor, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur  

Ashok Kumar is a globally awarded researcher and pioneer in bioengineering. He is currently a Professor of Bioengineering at Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur), where he also leads the IIT Kanpur-La Trobe University Research Academy, and acts as the Head of Environmental Science and Engineering. He has also served as a visiting professor at several universities internationally, including Aalto University. He holds several positions of trust in scientific and societal bodies and has also founded a start-up company developing biomedical applications. 

During his extensive scientific career, Kumar has innovatively promoted the application of new advanced biomaterials for biomedical applications. Some of his major research achievements have been designing new approaches for critical defect healing of bone, liver, diabetic wounds, and peripheral nerve and developing extracorporeal bioartificial liver support bioreactor. He has significantly integrated and expanded the fields of natural sciences, engineering, and medical biomaterials sciences in India.  

Kumar has actively collaborated with Aalto University in novel biomaterials, biopolymers, their additive manufacturing, and their biomedical applications since 2015. He has showed excellent leadership in establishing strong and long-standing academic collaboration between India’s and Finland’s top research institutions. 

Professor in Practice Cecilia Tortajada, Water resources management, University of Glasgow

Cecilia Tortajada is an internationally renowned scientist and policy advisor with over 25 years of experience in water, environment, and natural resources management. She currently works as Professor in Practice in Environmental Innovation at the School of Social and Environmental Sustainability, University of Glasgow, studying the impacts of global changes on water resources, environment, food, and societies.

During her exceptional career, Tortajada has been linking pioneering scientific work with policy advice at the top international level. Working as an advisor for several organisations and development agencies, governments, and development banks worldwide, she has promoted sustainable development, equity, and development issues on the international water agenda.

Tortajada has been working closely with Aalto University and its predecessor for over 20 years. She has had an important contribution to Aalto’s water and development research and education. The joint projects with Tortajada have been instrumental in formulating the water and development research approach and agenda to be maximally policy-relevant and impact oriented, while targeting towards the highest academic standard.

Professor Marjo Yliperttula, biopharmacy, University of Helsinki 

Marjo Yliperttula is an internationally renowned researcher and innovator in biopharmacy. She is currently a professor at the University of Helsinki, where she leads a research programme focused on the development of biomaterials. Earlier Yliperttula has worked in companies such as Nokia, KSV Instruments and Orion Pharma, as well as the French atomics research centre in Paris. She is also a member of the Scientific Council for Natural Sciences and Engineering of the Research Council of Finland and a member of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters.  

Yliperttula is one of the most important researchers internationally in the development of biobased nanomaterials for biomedical applications. She is included in 14 patents. Globally successful products include the GrowDex cell culturing medium and the FibDex wound dressing, used in several hospitals, developed in cooperation with UPM. In 2016, Yliperttula received the Innovation Award from Chemical Industry Federation of Finland for her work with cellulose nanofibril hydrogels. 

Yliperttula has conducted extensive and multidisciplinary cooperation with Aalto University for over two decades, focusing on the use of nanocellulose in biomedical applications. Her support, expertise and networks have had a major positive impact on the success of projects and the academic careers of many researchers.