Saara Merioja joined the GreenDice team at the end of August. We conducted a longer interview with her so that you could also find out who she is and what role she will be taking on in the company.
Briefly talk about your background – what were you doing before joining GreenDice?
My first and most important job is being a student. I study sustainable entrepreneurship and circular economy at the Virumaa College of Tallinn University of Technology.
Before joining GreenDice, I worked at Swedbank as a sustainability junior specialist. This experience gave me a vast knowledge base about how a large company operates, how decisions are made, and what role sustainability plays in the company's daily operations and strategy. Swedbank was an excellent springboard for my further career, and I am very grateful for that experience.
Now I have the opportunity to see the world of sustainability from a completely different perspective – in a smaller and faster-moving company, where reaching from idea to implementation can happen very quickly.
What are your main tasks in your new position and what topics do you work on daily?
My main goal is to help bring digital education, new knowledge, and opportunities to schools in Estonia.
Currently, we have a monthly theme program, where our partner schools focus on a specific area each month. Whether it's digital competence, financial literacy, entrepreneurship, or some other essential life skill. We want to bring knowledge and experiences to schools that help young people cope better in real life.
In addition, I lead the digital ambassador program, which aims to give tech-savvy young people the opportunity to act as IT support in their school. This allows young people to develop their skills, take responsibility, and help their peers and teachers.
For me, it is especially important that young people are not just passive recipients of knowledge, but can actually do something meaningful.
What speaks to you the most about GreenDice? Why?
What I like most about GreenDice and the circular economy in general is that the solutions are holistic and well thought out.
For example, a laptop that has been used in a company may lose its value at some point due to the organization's internal rules or the cycle of replacing equipment. But that doesn't mean the computer is at the end of its life. In fact, that same device can serve for years and be an invaluable learning tool for some young person in Estonia.
We like to talk about Estonia as a digital country. And rightly so, because we are a model in many fields worldwide. But sometimes we forget that living in a digital country does not automatically mean equal access to digital opportunities.
Young people living outside larger centers may not have access to quality devices or opportunities to develop their digital skills. In my opinion, this is very unfair. A young person's future opportunities should not depend on where they live or how much money their family has.
For me, GreenDice combines two very important goals: smarter resource use and reducing educational inequality.
How does GreenDice's mission align with your personal values?
I truly believe that every person deserves the opportunity to receive a good education and realize their potential. That is exactly what GreenDice aims to provide for young people.
I remember very well my first year of university when I needed a computer for my studies. I was incredibly lucky because I have a very dear sister who gave me a laptop as a gift for the start of university. But I know that not all young people have such a support network or the opportunity to buy a new computer.
I have also seen students at the Technical University who come to class with their old, humming laptop that takes an eternity to boot up. In those moments, I would like to tell them to check out GreenDice’s devices! A decent computer doesn’t have to cost a fortune, and certainly no one should feel like they have to take out a student loan to buy a laptop necessary for their studies.
For me, technology is not a luxury item, but one of the basic tools of modern education.
What are your first impressions of the GreenDice team and culture?
There is a very strong sense of community at GreenDice. These are people who truly believe in what they do and want to bring about significant changes.
What I like about a small company is that ideas can be brought up at any moment, discussed together, and tested quickly. You don’t have to wait for multiple meetings or go through a long decision-making chain to move forward with an idea.
Of course, growing a small company is not always easy, and GreenDice has had its challenging times as well. But it seems to me that it is the mission that drives people forward. When you know that your work truly creates value for both people and the environment, it’s much easier to push through even in tougher moments.
What has surprised or delighted you the most about your new job so far?
What has surprised me the most is how different the digital opportunities can be in Estonian schools.
I attended school in downtown Tallinn, where computer labs, iPads, and mobile computer labs were a completely normal part of school life. We had a school email address for every student, and digital systems were a natural part of everyday teaching.
I naively thought that this was the case in every school in Estonia.
However, working at GreenDice has made me realize that the reality can be quite different. In some schools, the issue is not just the lack of equipment, but also that there are no functioning digital systems and opportunities to use them on a daily basis.
This made me understand how much a young person's digital competence depends on the environment they were born into or where they go to school. If one young person has had the opportunity to use technology daily since elementary school, but the other does not, then they do not start from an equal starting position in the job market or university later on.
At the same time, this knowledge is also very motivating. It shows how much more we can still achieve.
What inspires you outside of work and what do you do in your free time?
I am most inspired by nature and the knowledge of how small a person is next to it.
I have been involved in various water sports for years, including windsurfing and kite surfing. These sports have taught me one very important thing: you cannot fight against nature, you have to work with it. You cannot change the wind to your will, but you can learn to use it to your advantage.
In recent years, I have been more involved in wakeboarding. Before starting work at Swedbank, I also worked as a wakeboarding instructor for several summers.
One thing I really loved about this job was teaching. It still makes me incredibly happy when I can teach someone some new skill in just a couple of minutes. Seeing how a person initially doubts themselves, but after a little while shines with success, is just awesome.
I think that's also one reason why working on education projects at GreenDice suits me so well. I love seeing how new knowledge and skills give people confidence and open up new opportunities.
If you could give one simple tip on how someone could reduce their digital footprint, what would it be?
My advice is simple: use your devices for as long as possible.
When we talk about digital footprints, we often think of cloud services, emails, or internet usage, but we forget that the production of devices also has a significant environmental impact. Making a new computer or phone requires raw materials, energy, and water.
Therefore, one of the most effective choices is to extend the lifespan of an existing device. If a computer becomes slow, it doesn't automatically mean you need a new one. Sometimes, maintenance, software cleanup, or replacing a component is enough.
And if you really need a new device, it's worth considering a quality used or refurbished device.
I like the principle of "less is more." I try to follow this in my daily life as well. I avoid impulse purchases, prefer quality over quantity, and I've discovered that the fewer unnecessary things I have, the easier it is for me to be.
Sustainability doesn't have to mean complicated rules or constant renunciation. Sometimes, it’s simply enough to use what we already have more wisely.