A Leading Voice in Sustainability Transitions & Circular Innovation
We are delighted to introduce Svenja Damberg, Associate Professor in Sustainability and Circularity at Aalborg University (AAU), Denmark, and Research Fellow at the DesignLab, University of Twente, The Netherlands.
Svenja brings a rare and powerful combination of academic excellence, methodological rigor, and hands-on innovation practice.
With deep expertise in sustainability transitions, Svenja focuses on understanding how consumers and organizations truly behave when navigating circularity and environmental change. Her research is grounded in strong empirical evidence and advanced quantitative methods — she is a recognized expert in structural equation modelling (SEM) and has published in top journals such as Ecological Economics and Business Strategy and the Environment.
Before joining AAU, Svenja contributed to major European sustainability initiatives as a postdoctoral researcher in a third-party funded project on sustainable regional development in Germany, and later as Assistant Professor in Sustainable Entrepreneurship & Innovation Management in the Netherlands.
But what truly sets Svenja apart is her commitment to bridging research and real-world impact. She collaborates closely with companies, co-organising workshops on design thinking, futuring, and circular product development, enabling organizations to transform abstract sustainability goals into actionable strategies.
Her dedication to innovation is also reflected in her role as a Faculty Innovation Fellow at Stanford University’s d.school, where she connects cutting-edge design approaches with sustainability transitions.
🌱 Svenja is a catalyst for change — shaping how regions, businesses, and individuals rethink their role in a circular and regenerative future.
We are excited to collaborate with her and bring this expertise into practice through our ongoing work.