She is a tech nerd: the expert voice, brimming with energy and always there with a ready laugh. These are probably the best reasons not to miss Evelina Galli as this year’s moderator on the stages at Scanpack.

The 28-year-old technology and consumer expert Evelina Galli has an impressive background and can be seen every week on the technology feature ‘Techtorsdag’ on Sweden’s TV4 channel. She is also in charge of the podcast ‘En Hållbar Podd’ (‘A Sustainable Podcast’), which, as the name suggests, is all about sustainable consumption.

‘I’m a born nerd,’ says Evelina, explaining how her journey started at the age of 14 when she was given a gaming console and describing the feeling of coming as close as you can get to magic.

‘I was hooked. It was the best fun possible. It was paradise. Gadgets and games became my life!’

What started as play soon turned into an insight into the opportunities that this provided to be involved in development – and, therefore, to make a difference.

‘When I was growing up, being nerdy wasn’t cool. Now I think how lucky I was to get into this technology stuff so early. All the things I learned from my first gaming console are the basis of my career.’

Getting engrossed in issues with trade fair visitors

As a former editor on a number of Sweden’s technology websites, Evelina has reported from tech fairs in the global arena on everything from video games to quantum computers. Nerdery has been a concept for a long time now and, as Evelina puts it: ‘it’s hard to beat having that unique, special expertise’. There is also an art to taking on the role of explaining things so that everyone can understand and keep up.

‘I’m massively looking forward to being at Scanpack – getting to meet skilled professionals and curious visitors alike and moderating the discussions. I love trade fairs where we meet and get engrossed,’ says Evelina, who feels that she is well aware that other people perhaps do not think as she does and have not had the introduction to the subject that she has enjoyed since she was small.

‘Here, I feel that my job is to make sure that everyone can understand, and so I need an audience that feels secure and has the courage to ask all the questions. That’s how I work myself. When you look at all angles of an issue, you can end up getting really deep down into a topic.’

Of course, AI is the future of the industry

Given Evelina’s interest in technology and innovation, Scanpack is not just a place of work to her. She will be seizing the opportunity to learn more.

‘I’m raring to meet happy people and looking forward to some rewarding discussions and to learning lots of things. And I’ll be asking the questions that I’m pondering myself: how can I, as a consumer, know what’s best for the future? How will we work together to get there? And what difficulties will we encounter along the way?’

She is also thinking of exploring AI on her own behalf and is hoping to learn more about this within the packaging industry.

‘To me, it’s obvious that AI is the future of the industry, and I find it extremely exciting, for example, how we’re optimising freight by using less air and how technology is being integrated into packaging processes, where tasks are being automated by using robots. I’m hoping for more information about this at Scanpack,’ Evelina says.

Another topic that is high on her list of interests is sustainability in the current packaging industry.

‘Think of all the packaging in our lives. Just consider this thing about caps having to be attached. It affects us every day, but what difference does it make? We need to talk more about this and what size of effect we’re dealing with, so it doesn’t just happen. Everyone needs to understand what’s happening right now, but they also need to understand what effects can be obtained in the future.’

Packaging-smart e-commerce

On the topic of sustainable packaging alternatives, Evelina is looking in particular at the parcel boxes used in e-commerce and how these will be able to be used. Perhaps it may become an everyday thing to collect orders with the products just there in the box, with no unnecessary packaging.

‘Here, we’re talking about opportunities that I believe will make a difference. I’m absolutely sure that, if we optimise the delivery, we can also make an impact on the cityscape and how we handle these deliveries.

‘We all need to do some soul-searching when it comes to consumption. I try to remember just to buy the things I really need. It sounds simple, but I’d say it’s a challenge, and when we shop we must also be aware of how the item is packaged.’

On the question of whether she has a favourite type of packaging, Evelina replies with another laugh, saying that she cannot think of one ‘just like that’ but that she is happy if its function fulfils its purpose.

‘It makes me think of an amusing take on TikTok. There, they’re joking about who came up with the packaging for flour – a bag that always breaks apart and leaves flour everywhere when you pour it. And why has it looked like that forever? There’s a lot of wastage, but perhaps it’s still best from a climate perspective and in terms of how best to store flour. Certainly it would be exciting to find out?’ So says a solution-oriented Evelina Galli, who makes it clear that flour bags are not her thing.

‘I like having nice jars in my pantry – smartly packaged, no wastage and where you can see what’s in them!’

Would you like to see more of Evelina Galli? Welcome to Scanpack, 22–25 October 2024. Buy your ticket »