News

With great sorrow, the University of Tartu announces the unexpected death of Rector Volli Kalm on Saturday, December 23. Volli Kalm was born on February 10, 1953 in Vändra. He graduated from the University of Tartu in 1976 with a degree in geology. In 1984, Kalm earned his PhD in geology from the Estonian Academy of Sciences after successfully defending his doctoral thesis "Formation, composition and usage of glaciofluvial deposits in Estonia." From 1988-1989, he attended postdoctoral studies in the geology department of the University of Alberta.

At the extraordinary senate session on 27 December, the senate of the University of Tartu unanimously appointed professor Tõnu Lehtsaar as the acting rector. In his speech to the senate, Lehtsaar said that his primary goal as the university’s acting rector is to maintain stability and find a new rector. “We will keep the university going. I asked members of the Rector’s Office at the meeting this morning if they were willing to continue in their office. I didn’t expect them to answer right away, but they confirmed that we will go forward together,” he said.

Professor Volli Kalm, Rector of the University of Tartu (10 February 1953 – 23 December 2017)

The University of Tartu is in deep mourning. Our Rector Professor Volli Kalm passed away yesterday. This is a loss difficult to put into words. The University’s staff, students, alumni, collaborators, friends and supporters are all feeling bereft. The goals set by the Rector are in place and the University is firm in its resolve to move forward in the chosen direction. We are grateful for what he has done for the University and for the Estonian higher education, science and society.

A new volume "Russia and the European Court of Human Rights: the Strasbourg Effect" has just been published at Cambridge University Press, which sheds a light on how Russia has managed in the European Court of Human Rights during the last nearly 20 years.

Friday, December 1 2017 marks the 98th birthday of the Estonia’s national university in Tartu. To celebrate the event, several events take place during the week-long celebrations – honorary doctorates and doctorates are conferred, the University’s honorary member named and the laurate of The University of Tartu Award for Contribution to Estonian National Identity named.

On December 8, the sTARTUp Day international business festival was held in AHHAA science centre. On its four stages, one of which was UT IdeaLab pitching stage, business ideas were presented and teams competed. The event brought together a total of 2600 visitors.

On Thursday, the 7th of December, the biggest business festival in the Baltics takes off with over 2500 attendees from 27 countries. The sTARTUp Day 2017 business festival is happening only for the 2nd time, but just as last year, the event has been sold out. The theme of this year’s event “From Zero To Hero” focuses on how to work oneself to the top with limited resources. During the opening day there will be numerous side-events around the city of Tartu: trainings and seminars on production, education, biotechnology, business and export topics.

On Thursday Nov 30, UT IdeaLab student project and business idea competition Kaleidoskoop took place. 43 teams partook in the competition and the top 10 were selected to the next round - Kaleidoskoop Finals at sTARTUp Day on the UT IdeaLab pitching stage. This semester’s competition included ideas from a wide area of topics, a large number of which included apps or websites. This semester’s TOP 10 are:

On December 1-3, Tartu hosts the conference Crossing Disciplinary Borders in Viking Age Studies, the 7th Austmarr Symposium, which brings together experts from different parts of the world.

On November 22 at 16.15, UT Professor of Asian Economy Peter Hwang will deliver his inaugural lecture in the University of Tartu assembly hall. The lecture deals with the rise of Asia and differences in Eastern and Western management styles. The economic and political capabilities and importance of Asian countries, especially China, has been on the rise in the world.

On Friday, November 10, a 48-hour "Social Impact Data Hack 2017" will begin at the University of Tartu, which explores the possibilities of contributing to society by using big data from various public institutions and private enterprises.

On 1 November, Estonian universities, research institutions, the Estonian Research Council and the Ministry of Education and Research signed the Estonian Code of Conduct for Research Integrity Agreement.

On November 8-10, Tartu hosts the Nordic Conference on Secure IT Systems, which brings together experts from different parts of the world.

Meelis Luht, former management board member of Eesti Meedia Group, will start work as the Director of Administration of the University of Tartu on 21 August. Rector Volli Kalm said the new director of administration has been in charge of several different areas of activity in his career and is a top leader with international work experience. We can see his capability as well as his desire and ambition to actively contribute to the implementation of the university’s development goals.

On Monday, 6 November, the University of Tartu celebrates the Day of Gustavus Adolphus, the King of Sweden and founder of the university of Tartu, and the 385th anniversary of Academia Gustaviana. The programme includes lectures, a Baroque concert and an exhibition.

On November 1st, at the international symposium in Tallinn (Suur-Ameerika 1), Estonian research institutions and the Estonian Research Council will sign the Estonian Code of Conduct for Research Integrity Agreement. The symposium is organised by the Centre for Ethics at the University of Tartu in cooperation with the European Commission, the Ministry of Education and Research, and the Estonian Research Council.

The University of Tartu was one of the two Central and Eastern European universities to enter the Times Higher Education Rankings table in computer science. In computer science, UT is ranked among the top 250 universities in the world. Furthermore, the head of Institute of Computer Science Prof. Jaak Vilo was elected as the board member of Informatics Europe.

On 26 October at 16:15, UT Professor of Jazz Music Iñaki Sandoval will deliver his inaugural lecture on the influences of Impressionism in jazz harmony. The lecture is in English and is held in the assembly hall of the University of Tartu.

This week the Faculty of Medicine is marking its 385th anniversary with two conferences, the awarding of its faculty medals and recognising its best students. The focal topic of the traditional anniversary conference is drawing attention to the importance of scientific research in benefiting the health of the people of Estonia.