Saara Saarinen (FI)

Saara is a Lead Expert at Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund—an independent public organization that acts as a think tank, funder, and catalyst for societal change. Sitra works across themes like democracy, lifelong learning, sustainability, data economy, and well-being, helping Finland prepare for the future through experimentation, collaboration, and strategic foresight.

In her role within the Solutions Function, Saara brings people and organizations together to develop and test bold approaches to today’s societal challenges. With a strong belief in the power of co-creation, Saara is particularly drawn to the human side of expert work: intuition, creativity, and visual thinking.

With over two decades of experience spanning marketing communications, education, service design, and digital learning, Saara is a true generalist in social change. She holds a Master of Arts degree and has worked as a media specialist and professional teacher. At Sitra, she has contributed to projects on change readiness, participatory democracy, and the strategy reform process, and she has also led the development of the Sitra Academy—an experimental model for continuous learning.

Saara thrives in fast-paced, agile environments and is passionate about the intersection of design, learning, and innovation. She’s always open to connecting around creative approaches to societal transformation.