Dr Minna Sunikka-Blank is Associate Professor and Deputy Head at the Department of Architecture in Cambridge.

She is interested in the role of mass housing in sustainable development: the transition from informal to formal in housing and energy infrastructure. Her research explores the intersections of domestic energy transitions, housing and gender. Dr Sunikka-Blank leads AHRC Research Network Filming Energy (FERN) that uses participatory film-making to understand women's lived expereince in low-income housing in India and South Africa. At the core of the project is collaboration with 'non-traditional' research partners: NGOs and policy makers.

Dr Sunikka-Blank co-convenes the inter-disciplinary Global Energy Nexus in Urban Settlements/GENUS research group across Geography, Engineering, Architecture and Judge Business School. At the Department she co-leads Behaviour and Building Performance/BBP group with international research students.

Before coming to Cambridge Dr Sunikka-Blank worked on environmental impact assessment projects and research in Finland and the Netherlands. She has held a Visting Professorship at Keio University in Japan. She regularly collaborates with inter-disciplinary networks beyond Cambridge, looking at challenges such as adaptation of solar technologies in low income communities, focusing on the perspectives of women.

Dr Sunikka-Blank has authored over 60 peer-reviewed publications and her research on understanding domestic energy demand and conceptualisation of the 'prebound effect' has directly informed housing and thermal retrofit policy. She authors policy briefings such as the British Academy COP26 Policy Briefing on Cities and Energy Transitions.

Her work was presented in BBCArts 'Animated Thinking' series showing how today’s slums in India and how the transition to high-rise flats has adversely and radically affected the lives of women.