Take part in the upcoming international conference ‘Integration Challenges in a Radicalizing World’
‘Active Youth Forum 2016’ invites young people to join in on discussions
Citizens Day quiz launching on 21 November
Organiser sought for awareness-raising campaign to get young people with mother tongues other than Estonian working in the public sector
The National Association of Armenians in Estonia is organizing Armenian Cultural Days in Haapsalu
Azeri Sunday School opens its doors to visitors
MISA events in November
Take part in the upcoming international conference ‘Integration Challenges in a Radicalizing World’
This international conference is organised by the Integration and Migration Foundation 'Our People' (MISA) and is titled ‘Integration Challenges in a Radicalising World’. It will take place on the 29th and 30th of November in Tallinn. The conference will focus on integration challenges in contemporary societies characterised by increasing cultural diversity and migration, as well as escalating global conflicts, affecting relations at the local level between people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds.
“The world is rapidly changing and we need to review the preconceptions we have of what is important for social integration, as well as continue to raise issues that have been topical for decades,” explained MISA’s Director, Dmitri Burnashev. “Our goal with the conference is to bring together professionals in the field of integration from Estonia and elsewhere in Europe to share their experience and best practices, which could also be implemented in Estonia.”
Internationally recognised experts from Canada, the United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Estonia will be speaking at the event. Among guest speakers are Queen’s University (Canada) emeritus professor and the founder of the principles of contemporary acculturation psychology, Prof. John Berry; Bradford University (UK) Diversity Professor Prof. Uduak Archibong MBE; German Integration and Migration Foundations Expert Council Deputy Chairman, Prof. Dr Haci-Halil Uslucan; and other leading visionaries from Estonia and abroad. You can find additional information on the conference programme and list of speakers online at www.misakonverents.ee.
The conference will take place on 29 & 30 November in Tallinn. Experts from the field of integration are invited to attend the event, as is anyone who is interested and involved in diversity and integration issues, as well as representatives of companies and organisations with diverse staff.
A reception for speakers and conference participants will take place on 29 November starting at 19:00 in the main hall of the Estonian Academy of Sciences (Kohtu 6, Tallinn).
Registration is open until 22 November or until the maximum number of attendees is reached. You can register here.
Participation is free of charge. The language of the conference will be English, with simultaneous interpreting into Estonian.
The conference is organised by MISA with support from the Ministry of Culture and partner organisations including the British Council, the Royal Norwegian Embassy, the Royal Danish Embassy Tallinn University and other partners.
For further information please contact: Marianna Makarova | Head of Research Development, MISA | E-mail: marianna.makarova@meis.ee | Telephone: +372 659 985
‘Active Youth Forum 2016’ invites young people to join in on discussions
The Mektory Innovation and Enterprise Centre in Tallinn will play host to the ‘Active Youth Forum 2016’ on 22 & 23 November. The two-day event is open for up to 250 active youngsters and people in charge of them from all over Estonia.
“The first day of the forum will focus on young people between the ages of 17 and 26,” explained MISA Head of Cooperation, Natalia Reppo. “On the second day, we hope to see not only youngsters there but also members of organisations who deal with them. The issues we’ll be looking at in the workshops are the same on both days – the impact of voluntary work on the people who do it and on society as a whole, and the effect of civic activity and young people in making the world a better place. We’ll also be looking at the media space from the point of view of young adults – what they should be reading and watching, whether they should be reading it and watching it at all, how much they read and watch and how they read and watch it. Last but not least, there’ll be a focus on the impact of and need for youth organisations as well.”
Workshops will be held throughout the two days on five different topics. Participants can choose two topics that most interests them on each day of the forum. The first day’s results will be discussed during the workshops on the second day with the aim of analysing the participant’s thoughts and to share information with youth organisations. Two moderators will lead each workshop simultaneously – one focussing on the Estonian-speaking participants and the other on the Russian-speaking participants.
Information about the workshops and registering for the event can be found on the youth forum website. Registration is open until 18 November or until the maximum number of attendees is reached. You can also join the forum’s event page on Facebook.
The aim of organising the forum is to get young people living in Estonia involved in shaping social processes and thereby increasing their interest in implementing ideas. It is also designed to provide support in shaping a shared field of information for young people and a more cohesive Estonia.
During the workshops, experts from the field will be giving practical advice on and describing measures for becoming involved in voluntary work, youth organisations and civic initiatives, as well as for getting the media involved in promoting activities.
A number of youth organisations have assisted in developing the concept of the forum and in its organisation, including the NPOs Noorteklubi Active, Shokkin Group and Serve the City.
The youth forum is being organised by MISA in association with the Harju County Entrepreneurship and Development Consultancy. The event is being supported from the resources of the ‘Activities supporting integration in Estonian society’ project of the European Social Fund.
For further information please contact: Natalia Reppo | Head of Cooperation, MISA | E-mail: natalia.reppo@meis.ee | Telephone: +372 659 9840
Citizen’s Day quiz 2016
Citizens Day quiz launching on 21 November
Students from general and vocational education schools can take part in the annual Citizens Day Quiz, being held for the 14th time from 21 November to 2 December. Everyone in Estonia will get the opportunity to take the quiz on Citizens Day, 26 November.
The quiz, comprised of 50 unique questions (some taking into account events from the preceding 12 months), is put together each year for students in grades 7-12 from general and vocational education schools. It covers topics ranging from nature studies to history, as well as general knowledge of sports and sports stars, cultural events and cultural figures. Picture, sound and video questions are included.
A 30-question quiz for students from Grades 5 - 6 in general education schools with Estonian and Russian as the language of instruction is compiled by students from higher grades. The younger participants can choose which language they take the quiz in. For older students, the quiz is always in Estonian.
Everyone is given 60 minutes to complete the quiz. Participants find out their score as soon as they complete the quiz. The correct answers can be checked on the quiz page starting 5 December. Also available on this page are statistics from previous quizzes and the names and results of the best-performing participants.
The links to the quizzes will be made public at 9:00 on 21 November at http://www.meis.ee/citizens-day-quiz.
A total of 61,000 participants have successfully completed the quizzes over the years, with the total number of those taking part being even higher.
The highest-scoring participants will be invited to a reception on 20 December, which this year will be held in the Riigikogu.
The conducting of the quiz is being organised by MISA in association with the Ministry of Education and Research.
For further information please contact: Toivo Sikk | Head of Civic Education, MISA | E-mail: toivo.sikk@meis.ee | Telephone: +372 659 9850
New procurement launched
Organiser sought for awareness-raising campaign to get young people with mother tongues, other than Estonian, working in the public sector
MISA has launched a public procurement entitled ‘Valuing public-sector organisations with linguistically diverse staff and informing people with mother tongues, other than Estonian, of career opportunities in the public sector’. This initiative is being launched in order to help young people, whose mother tongue is a language other than Estonian, to apply for jobs in the public sector.
The objective of the procurement is to plan and implement an awareness-raising campaign in the first half of 2017, which will inspire young people ages 18-30, whose mother tongue is a language other than Estonian, to take up work in the public sector and bind their future to Estonia. The campaign should also help make it clear to senior staff and personnel workers in the public sector why it is a good idea to also recruit people whose mother tongue is a language other than Estonian and how to reach them.
With the help of this campaign, the hope is to foster direct contact in a different form between young people and senior staff and personnel workers in the public sector (e.g. public-sector employees visiting and giving talks at schools and the organisation of workshops). Those submitting tenders will be expected to prepare videos for distribution in online channels and social media, which for example, showcase the success stories of public officials who speak Estonian as a language other than their mother tongue.
The use of innovative approaches and cross-media solutions that enable campaign messages to reach the target group are awaited.
The documentation for the procurement can be viewed online in the e-state procurement registry at https://riigihanked.riik.ee/register/hange/178561.
Tenders should be submitted to MISA via the e-state procurement registry by 16:00 on 12 December 2016.
The procurement is being organised as part of the ‘Activities supporting integration in Estonian society’ project of the European Social Fund.
National minority Sunday school news
National Association of Armenians in Estonia to organise Armenian Cultural Days in Haapsalu
For the fifth time, the National Association of Armenians in Estonia is organising the Armenian Cultural Days in Haapsalu in order to showcase Armenian traditions and celebrate their connection with the city.
Haapsalu is an important place for Armenians, since it was home to Hedvig Büll, a missionary who helped Armenian refugees during World War II. As such, the Armenian community has strong ties to the city.
The event will be taking place at Haapsalu Cultural Centre (Posti 3, Haapsalu) starting at 13:00 on 19 November. Transport from Tallinn to Haapsalu has been arranged.
The programme includes an exhibition of Armenian artists, a concert and performance of Armenian musicians, an introduction to Armenian cinema and a showcase of sights worth seeing in Armenia. Visitors will also have the chance to try some traditional Armenian dishes. The 25th anniversary of the country’s independence will also be celebrated as part of the event.
Everyone interested is invited to attend the Cultural Days, which are free of charge.
Those thinking of attending are asked to register in advance by e-mailing r.ivanjan@gmail.com or calling +372 51 88 966.
For further information please contact: Razmik Ivanjan | Chairman, National Association of Armenians in Estonia | Mobile: +372 51 88 966 | E-mail: r.ivanjan@gmail.com
The event is being supported by MISA via the national minority cultural association project competition, which is financed from the state budget via the Ministry of Culture.
For further information please contact: Kristina Pirgop | Head of Partnership Relations, MISA | E-mail: kristina.pirgop@meis.ee | Telephone: +372 659 9024
Azeri Sunday School opens its doors to visitors
Ragsana Khalilova, the new director of and a teacher at the Azeri Sunday School, is inviting everyone interested to the school’s open day starting at 14:00 on 20 November. At this event, Ms. Khalilova will explain what goes on at the school and present a showcase of Azeri culture.
“Our students will be talking about pictures of Baku, which is the capital of Azerbaijan, and which is also known as the City of Winds,” she said. “It was the first Muslim city in which opera and ballet were introduced, in fact. A lot of people will recognise views of the city from the cult Russian film ‘The Diamond Arm’.”
The students will also be demonstrating what they have learned at Sunday school – they will perform folk dances and recite poems in Azerbaijani.
During the open day, younger visitors will get the chance to draw pictures or make their own plasticine versions of the sights of Baku with students from the school.
“Everyone who comes along will have the chance to try my baklava as well,” Khalilova added. “The honey and nuts I use are brought in from Baku!”
The Azeri Sunday School open day will take place in the school’s rooms at Vilisuu 7 in Tallinn.
Those interested in taking part are asked to register in advance by e-mailing raksana8787@mail.ru or calling +372 5558 1119.
The Azeri Sunday School has been operating since 1989. It was registered in the Estonian Education Information System in 2008. Sunday school activities are led in Estonia by the ‘Ajdan’ Azeri Cultural Centre. The school teaches the language and literature of the country as well as its history and folk dances.
For further information please contact: Ragsana Khalilova | Director, Azeri Sunday School | Mobile: +372 5558 1119 | E-mail: raksana8787@mail.ru
The activities of national minority Sunday schools are financed by the Ministry of Education and Research from the national budget.
For further information please contact: Kristina Pirgop | Head of Partnership Relations, MISA | E-mail: kristina.pirgop@meis.ee | Telephone: +372 659 9024
