16.06.26 OPINION ... In the background series, this time the focus is on Nicholas Wade's views on politics and evolution. The rules of evolution are aimed at ensuring the survival of human groups and do not care about happiness or freedom, Tiido notes.

16.06.26 NEWS ... Estonia is consolidating its core IT services under a single agency, first by merging the State IT Center (RIT) with the Information System Authority (RIA) and then, no later than three years from now, by also incorporating the State Infocommunication Foundation (RIKS).

15.06.26 NEWS ... Estonia has granted temporary protection to 1,805 Ukrainian war refugees this year, while 295 people applied for international protection in the first five months, with the vast majority of applicants coming from Ukraine, according to officials.

15.06.26 NEWS ... Starting Sunday, new honey labeling requirements will take effect and Estonian beekeepers hope the change will lead to fairer competition.

15.06.26 NEWS ... Opposition parties are heading into the elections promising to cut taxes if they come to power. At the same time, Estonia's state budget faces a steadily widening deficit and economic analysts say closing the gap will instead require tax increases.

15.06.26 NEWS ... The Emergency Response Center wants to introduce video calls to help better understand the situation at the scene of an incident, and the Ministry of the Interior is looking for technological solutions.

14.06.26 OPINION ... History teaches us that crimes left unpunished give rise to new crimes, Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna (Eesti 200) said on the 85th anniversary of the June deportation of Estonians to Siberia by the USSR.

14.06.26 NEWS ... A new observation tower was opened earlier this week in Meriküla, Harku Municipality, which connects the clifftop and the seaside area.

14.06.26 NEWS ... The Complaints Choir project is back in Estonia, debuting a seven-minute collaborative lament led by alternative artist Florian Wahl at Tallinn's Balti jaama turg on Friday.

13.06.26 NEWS ... Police say most stolen bicycles in Estonia are quickly resold, often online or through pawn shops, making them difficult to trace and leaving little chance of recovery.

13.06.26 NEWS ... Fresh off the passage of Estonia's consent law, Social Democrats (SDE) are pushing to criminalize the nonconsensual creation and spread of sexually explicit deepfake images.

13.06.26 NEWS ... Banks in Estonia are rolling out a more secure version of the Smart-ID authentication system designed to better block common scam tactics with small extra steps for users.

13.06.26 NEWS ... At the Sõru Maritime School on the Estonian island of Hiiumaa, children gain their first knowledge of sailing, behavior at sea, and safety. Around 20 students are currently enrolled, but interest in the school is high, with more applicants than places available.

13.06.26 NEWS ... As Estonia heads into a busy summer event season, consumer protection officials are reminding ticket holders of their rights if an event is canceled or postponed.

13.06.26 NEWS ... Estonian officials removed hundreds of abandoned fishing nets from Lake Peipus during a four-day cleanup effort aimed at clearing long-lost and illegal gear.

12.06.26 NEWS ... Eighteen cattle recently died in a bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) outbreak on a Pärnu County farm, Pärnu Postimees reported.

12.06.26 NEWS ... Two people were killed in a collision between a truck and a passenger vehicle in Kehtna, Rapla County, on Friday afternoon.

12.06.26 NEWS ... Despite a new law requiring local governments to provide kindergarten placements before a parent returns to work, some Estonian families have still been left waiting.

12.06.26 NEWS ... Eesti 200 leader Kristina Kallas said that the party does not agree with the governing coalition backing away from the goal of making family benefits means-tested and thereby saving €100 million annually.

12.06.26 NEWS ... Fast-moving thunderstorms brought heavy rain, lightning and strong winds to Southern Estonia Thursday evening, with unconfirmed reports of a possible tornado in Võru County.

12.06.26 NEWS ... According to data from Statistics Estonia, residents of Estonia entered into 5,998 marriages in 2025, 363 fewer than in 2024. This included 139 marriages between same-sex couples.

12.06.26 NEWS ... The City of Tallinn is commissioning street art to transform an underpass on Pärnu maantee, with a committee set to review designs for the large-scale project.

12.06.26 NEWS ... Next week, the Riigikogu will hold the second and third readings of amendments to the Prosecutor's Office Act that, among other changes, would limit the prosecutor general's term in office to a single consecutive seven-year period.

11.06.26 NEWS ... A wave of spa and spa hotel projects is spreading across Estonia's tourism and hospitality sectors as developers respond to cautious consumers and changing travel habits.

11.06.26 NEWS ... Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) has proposed terminating its contract with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications (MKM) to develop online courses for occupational health and safety specialists, citing significant differences between the parties' views on the scope and methodology of the courses.

11.06.26 NEWS ... In a remote lake in Southern Estonia's Emajõe-Suursooo marshland, a small bog island is covered in blooming Siberian irises, rewarding visitors up for making the watery trek.

11.06.26 NEWS ... The Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs has circulated a proposal to amend the Code of Enforcement Procedure that would allow debtors to keep more of their income than they do currently, thereby encouraging them to work in the formal economy.

10.06.26 NEWS ... The Riigikogu on Wednesday approved amendments to the law allowing prisoners from foreign countries to be housed in Estonian prisons. Estonia also ratified a prison leasing contract with Sweden.

11.06.26 NEWS ... The Education and Youth Board (Harno) wants to reach troubled young people through social media, online games and forum platforms and offer them support. The agency plans to spend nearly €1 million on providing such online youth work.

11.06.26 NEWS ... The Rescue Service is asking Estonian residents to submit feedback by the end of the week about the impact of the nationwide EE-ALARM test that took place on Wednesday.

10.06.26 NEWS ... A memorial ceremony took place at the European Parliament in Brussels on Tuesday to mark the 85th anniversary of the USSR's mass deportations, which sent tens of thousands of Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians to Siberia and Kazakhstan.

10.06.26 NEWS ... Tallinn would face serious problems if tens of thousands of people suddenly had to look for shelter, architect Toivo Tammik warns.

10.06.26 NEWS ... The agricultural sector is struggling to fill workplaces both for seasonal berry-picking jobs and for more tech-skilled agricultural work.

10.06.26 NEWS ... Both coalition and opposition politicians have said there are no plans to link the child benefit system in Estonia to income.

10.06.26 NEWS ... Emerging social media trends are prompting some teenagers to take extreme risks to enhance their appearance, including striking their own faces with hammers or fists in hopes of achieving more "masculine" features, youth advocates warned.

10.06.26 NEWS ... The Estonian Marine Institute was set to install mussel and seaweed farms in Haapsalu Bay this summer, but failed procurement processes and equipment unsuitable for the bay's shallow waters have delayed the project by a year.

10.06.26 NEWS ... A survey of students found that young people see significant potential in ITI, an artificial intelligence-based learning application developed specifically for Estonia's education system, but also find it "really annoying," AI Leap program head Ivo Visak tells ERR in an interview.

10.06.26 NEWS ... The Ministry of Climate has completed a housing sector development plan that aims to bring new homes or rental apartments to areas lagging behind in real estate development over the next decade.

10.06.26 NEWS ... At 15, Türi student Roosi Põllu is already driving herself to school in a moped car, boosting her independence well before Estonia's standard driving age of 18.

10.06.26 NEWS ... Trains will be stopped on Wednesday afternoon as Estonian Railways (Eesti Raudtee) and Elron practice their response to a drone attack as part of a nationwide exercise.

10.06.26 NEWS ... Tallinn Social Democrats want to make city museums free for children and teens 18 and under, with the proposal up for city council debate Thursday.

09.06.26 NEWS ... The City of Tallinn is hiking school lunch funding starting this fall, increasing the daily lunch rate to €2.10 to help maintain meal quality amid rising costs.

09.06.26 NEWS ... Prosecutors have charged a man with attempted murder following an explosion which took place at the Ülemiste keskus mall in Tallinn just before Christmas last year.

09.06.26 NEWS ... More than 60 handmade scarecrows from across Estonia now stand watch over a meadow at Heimtali Museum in Viljandi County, giving old textiles a colorful new lease on life.

09.06.26 NEWS ... Critics of the plan to simplify divorce procedures argue it would come at the expense of the safety of domestic violence victims and children, while Minister of Justice Liisa Pakosta says the goal is precisely to better protect victims of violence.

09.06.26 NEWS ... City of Tallinn and Estonia's Ministry of Education are exploring a major overhaul of the capital's school network, including a possible expansion of state-run high schools, but any final decisions will depend on available funding in the national budget.

08.06.26 NEWS ... Estonia's interior minister said Monday that the country's Supreme Court's decision upholding amendments to the churches law means the Estonian Christian Orthodox Church must sever its subordinate ties to the Moscow Patriarchate.

09.06.26 NEWS ... While the scourge of ticks is often associated with summer in Estonia's countryside, the towns aren't tick-free either and may even pose greater risk, one expert said.

09.06.26 NEWS ... While trailcams provide a unique window on to Estonia's wildlife, care must be taken when processing images and footage of people, Chancellor of Justice Ülle Madise said.

08.06.26 NEWS ... A memorial stone has been unveiled at the site of a Lääne-Viru County engagement involving four members of the Forest Brothers, who held off a much larger Soviet force.