During the 2024/2025 study year, 3rd semester EKA students delved into the multi- faceted wicked problem of housing in Tallinn. Transition design and system-oriented design principles were applied in this studio course partnering with Tallinn City’s Strategic Management Office.

Problem statement: Housing prices have risen considerably in recent years, leading to a situation where families with average Estonian income cannot afford to buy in most Tallinn boroughs anymore.

The city is not in a position to build sufficient housing to satisfy the growing need. Development is left to private players, for whom renovation is often not profitable enough and new-builds tend to cater for upper-mid and luxury segments. Renovation of ex-soviet blocks is left to the individual housing associations, with varying degrees of success. Public-led initiatives such as Soft Academy have had some success in motivating and speeding up renovation and social placemaking/ value creation, but these initiatives remain exceptions.

These systemic problems were tackled with a blend of service design, futures methodologies and systems thinking, identifying root causes and points of intervention in the system to jump into future scenarios in the fields of housing renovation, communal housing models and accessibility.

Ideas and prototypes were tested with residents and service providers alike - users with a lived experience and Tallinn City representatives.

We extend our deepest gratitude to the lecturers who guided and mentored the service designers, as well as our local partners at Tallinn municipality’s Strategic Management office: Jörn Frenzel (GER - EKA), Johanna Vallistu (EE TalTech), Külliki Kesa (Tallinn LV), Airi Andresson (Tallinn LV)

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