Rate My Professor Matti Kuittinen

Matti Kuittinen is an Associate Professor of Sustainable Construction in the Department of Architecture at Aalto University. He earned his Master's degree in Architecture from Helsinki University of Technology in 1999 and his Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) in Architecture from Aalto University in 2016. Prior to his academic appointment, Kuittinen worked as Senior Ministerial Adviser at the Finnish Ministry of the Environment, contributing to the climate aspects of construction law reform and leading the development of Finland's national method for whole-life carbon assessment of buildings; he edited the 2019 report 'Method for the whole life carbon assessment of buildings' published by the Ministry. He holds an ongoing external position at the Ministry since 2016 and returned to Aalto University full-time thereafter.

Kuittinen's research centers on sustainable construction, circular economy principles in the built environment, whole-life carbon emissions and energy efficiency of buildings, climate change mitigation strategies, and environmental impacts of humanitarian construction projects. As leader of the Sustainable Construction research group in the Department of Architecture, he supervises doctoral researchers and teaches courses on building anatomy, materials, structures, sustainable development, and circular economy at bachelor's and master's levels. He has produced 73 publications and artistic outputs, including peer-reviewed articles such as 'How can carbon be stored in the built environment? A review of potential options' (2021, Architectural Science Review), 'Estimating CO2 flows in urban parks: knowns and unknowns' (2024, Frontiers in Sustainable Cities), 'Metrics for building component disassembly potential: a practical framework' (2025, Buildings & Cities), and 'Carbon sequestration through urban ecosystem services' (2016, Landscape and Urban Planning). His projects include serving as principal investigator for the NEBA Alliance (NEW EUROPEAN BAUHAUS ACADEMY ALLIANCE, 2024-2026) funded by the EU, and participation in CO-CARBON phases on carbon storage in urban green spaces (2020-2026). Kuittinen's work supports multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals, notably SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 13 (Climate Action), and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production). He has received awards including the Aid Innovation Challenge (Aid Expo, Belgium, 2013) and Helsinki East Urban Centre competition invitation (2020), and currently chairs the Publication Forum (Julkaisufoorumi, 2022-2025). He contributes to climate policy in the construction sector across Europe and the Nordic countries through lectures, podcasts, and committee roles.