KATA FODOR, PhD
Design for
systems change across scales
...from the spoon to the city, and above all the relationships in between.
As a strategic designer, architect-urbanist and researcher, I help cities, communities and organisations turn the challenges of sustainability transitions into strategic portfolios, tangible projects and built environments.
for universities, organisations and individuals→
Projects
All projects →Published Writing
Food policy, food geography, sustainability science and design.
Kitchen Think-OverFraming Food System Challenges through Design in Affluent Western Cities (doctoral dissertation)Aalto · 2026
Fodor, Kata. 2026. Kitchen Think-Over: Framing Food System Challenges through Design in Affluent Western Cities. Aalto University Doctoral Theses.
FoodscapesMaking Sense of Urban Food Provisioning PracticesFood, Culture & Society · 2025
Fodor, K., Jalas, M. 2025. Foodscapes: Making Sense of Urban Food Provisioning Practices. Food, Culture, & Society, 1–25.
Design at the End of the Food SystemHybrid Foodscapes in the Realm of ConsumptionEdward Elgar · 2022
Fodor, K. 2022. Design at the End of the Food System: Hybrid Foodscapes in the Realm of Consumption. In C. Sage (Ed.), A Research Agenda for Food Systems (pp. 243–257). Edward Elgar.
The Hybridization of Food SpacesChanging Spatial Logics in Urban Food Systems and Prospects for Sustainable DietsIJSAF · 2021
Fodor, K. 2021. The Hybridization of Food Spaces: Changing Spatial Logics in Urban Food Systems and Prospects for Sustainable Diets. The International Journal of Sociology of Agriculture and Food, 27(1), 102–118.
Lessons from Launching an Alternative Architectural PracticeArchitectural Design (AD) · 2018
Fodor, K. 2018. Lessons from launching an alternative architectural practice. Architectural Design, 88(3), 62–67.
I work at the intersection of architecture, urbanism, food policy and sustainability transitions – through research, design, advocacy and education.
I co-founded the multidisciplinary design studio Atelier Kite in London in 2016 and completed my PhD on urban food systems at Aalto University, Helsinki, in 2026 (Kitchen Think-Over). Research and design feed each other in my practice, with past projects in Denmark, Ireland, Austria and the UK, and my work exhibited at the Royal Academy of Arts and Helsinki Design Week.
I also bring real-life initiatives into academic settings – not only as case studies or guests, as in the Systems Thinking course I taught at Aalto (2020–24), but by integrating students' work directly into projects such as EASA and the Fredericia Food Lab.
Full bio & CV highlights
Education
- PhD, 2026 – Aalto University, Department of Design, supervisor: Prof. Mikko Jalas
Personal research grant from KONE Foundation (2021–2022) - MAA, 2015 – The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts | Urbanism & Societal Change programme
- Bachelor of Architecture, 2013 – Academy of Fine Arts Vienna | IKA
Previous work
- research at Aalto University's Department of Design
- coordinating an Erasmus+ consortium bid of six top European universities
- teaching in the Creative Sustainability Master's programme of Aalto University
- co-founder and urban strategy lead at Atelier Kite
- architectural work for Viennese practices feld72 and querkraft
- commissions for property developers, local councils, charities and community initiatives
Organising educational events
- Systems Thinking MA Course for Aalto University, 2020–2024
- Nodus Talks series 2018–19, Design Museum Helsinki
- Welfare City Futures Symposium at Aalto University, 2019
- EASA 2017: Hospitality, Fredericia, Denmark – an annual international architecture summer school
Selected exhibitions
- Urban Foodscapes 1.5 video installation at Designs for a Cooler Planet, Helsinki Design Week 2022
- Hob Hub: A Kitchen to Share at City Living in Jätkäsaari Housing Fair, Helsinki, 2018
- Babette's Town Feast + Fredericia Food Lab at 'National Food Service Exhibition', Foodhall Sheffield, 2018
- Hackney Kitchen by Atelier Kite (Urban Jigsaw curated by Owen Hopkins), Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2016
Affiliations
- Puistokatu 4, Helsinki (2026)
- Nodus Sustainable Design Research Group, Department of Design, Aalto University (2018–2025)
- EASA network, European Architecture Students' Assembly (2007–2010; 2017)
Talks, panels & conferences
- RGS-IBG Annual International Conference 2024, Royal Geographical Society, London, 2024
- Systems Thinking for Impact at the Entrepreneurship Winter School of Aalto University, 2024
- YHYS Colloquium: Sustainable Welfare. The Spatial Implications of Food Citizenship, Aalto University, 2021
- Eating for 1.5°C: Round Table on Climate Change and Sustainable Diets, The American University of Rome, 2021
- Accommodating Urban Food Futures, Nodus Talks + Design Museum, Helsinki, 2021
- Sustainable Food Systems < > Sustainable Diets Conference, The American University of Rome, 2019
- How to Make a Just Food Future: Alternative Foodways for a Changing World Conference, University of Sheffield, 2019
- Future Food Symposium, University of Nottingham, 2019
- Sustainability Science Days: Innovations in Sustainable Food Systems, Aalto University, 2019
- Food & Resilient Cities: Climate Change, population growth & urban development, panel discussion at Dodo Helsinki
- New Wave Public Design: Towards a National Food Service symposium, Festival of the Mind by Sheffield University, 2018
- Life & Politics in Metropolitan Cities: Hob Hub, a Kitchen to Share, at City Living in Jätkäsaari Housing Fair, Helsinki, 2018
- Urban Jigsaw: What next? talk and panel discussion, Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2018
- An evening on housing and food – talk & panel discussion with Tim Lang, Carolyn Steel & Dan Hill, Royal Academy of Arts, 2016
Published writing is listed in the Writing section above.