In this discussion, we'll be exploring the topic Thesis Students and its benefits for both the research field and organisations. Specifically, we'll be looking at the experiences of one Voiager, Henry Y Acosta Carrascal, who has all eyes on the micromobility field.

Can you share with us a bit about your background and what you’re doing today at Voi?

I’m currently writing my Master Thesis at Voi. I have a background in Mechanical Engineering and in the automotive sector. I will be researching the motivations of usage (and not usage) of shared micromobility during night time in Stockholm with a gender focus.

Do you have any interesting stories from when you understood that micromobility was a big passion of yours?

Actually I do, the first time I saw an electric scooter was in 2018 while living in Colombia, where I’m from, and my instant thought was “OMG, this looks so cool and fun”. Fast-forward to November 2021 in Barcelona. It was the last day of the Tomorrow.Mobility World Congress and I felt overwhelmed because I didn’t know where to go with my master’s in Transportation. My friend comes with a Voi helmet he got at Voi’s stand as a gift for me, and that’s when it hit me: micromobility is my thing. Walking into Voi’s HQ on the first day already with my Voi helmet felt like a full-circle moment.

What kind of support and mentorship have you received from Voi employees, and how has this impacted your professional growth?

Research usually feels like a lonely thing to do but Voi’s team has made me feel very supported. So far, they have offered to use some of the company’s resources to help me reach out to existing Voi users, which will make my use of time much more efficient and the results of my thesis way more impactful than I had initially expected.

Please give us a sneak peak of the result of your study! Have you found any unexpected insights in your data collection that you didn't anticipate before?

I am still very early in my research but I have a main hypothesis, which I find funny, sad, and contradictory at the same time. Women, regardless of using or avoiding micromobility at night, seem to do it for safety reasons. Many of the ones who use it, see this as a safer alternative where they are independent and can avoid harassment more easily compared to Public Transport or walking; whereas many of the ones who avoid it, do it for safety reasons for instance due to e.g. a lack of safe road infrastructure.