Whenever something at Tallinn University needs fixing, organizing, or saving, Vivian Põld is sure to appear. A third-year student, Vivian has made an outstanding contribution to improving student life both at the university level and beyond. She serves as the deputy chair of the student council and works actively as an advocate for students’ interests, leading the policy committee and initiating important changes to enhance the learning and living environment. In 2025, she championed topics such as accessibility, mental health, and sustainable living, organized large-scale student events, and contributed to the university’s development processes.

Vivian has said she sometimes feels like “a plug for every hole” – when a problem arises, she already has a solution. Her academic dedication hasn’t been neglected either: in her first year, she was among the top 100 first-year students at Tallinn University. Vivian manages to devote herself fully to scientific work in the lab while also focusing on her studies and improving student life. In 2024, she was the author and project manager of the ELU project “Cancer Science Day at Tallinn University”, bringing scientific and health-related discussions into the university community. She has also been one of the main organizers of Green Month and Mental Health Month – in 2025, these included over 40 events. Vivian can be perfectly described with three words: dedication, responsibility, and the desire to inspire those around her.

Upon receiving the award, Vivian directed her words of gratitude to all students: “I’d start by saying that I’m an ordinary student, but as the Chancellor of Tallinn University said, there are no ordinary students – all our students are special. So I believe that each of you here is very special and just as deserving of this award.”

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With a 33-year history, EPSÜ not only connects psychology students from Tartu and Tallinn but also builds bridges with international students and shares knowledge with the wider student community. To achieve this, they organized traditional Psychology Evenings with experts in the field and visited various institutions practicing psychology together with their members. They also participated in the Opinion Festival with two discussions and, alongside seven other student organizations, led the acclaimed collaboration project SXNAPS. Upon receiving the award, EPSÜ’s president said: “EPSÜ is something special, and I’m glad that this organization – all our members, alumni, and former boards – are receiving more recognition.”

EPSÜ values both science-based education and the creation of friendships, finding ways to combine the two while communicating the importance of psychology to young people. Among other achievements, they contributed to shaping youth health policy by participating in the WHO youth delegate roundtable and organizing the popular event Deep Talk Express.

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The Estonian Psychology Students’ Association’s event series SXNAPS took place throughout 2025 in Tartu, consisting of seven interdisciplinary discussion evenings. It was born from the vision of two young science enthusiasts – Annabel Agasild and Marika Adson (University of Tartu, EPSÜ Board 2025) – who wanted to bring student organizations closer together, promote an interdisciplinary future in science and society, and encourage diverse ways of thinking about the world. Members of the organization said: “When you see something missing and move toward what you want to create in the world – doing that is the coolest experience ever. It’s even more fun to do it together with all of you and your friends. Without other student organizations, SXNAPS wouldn’t have been what it was.”

SXNAPS brought students and researchers from different disciplines into a shared discussion space. The series was aimed at bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral students interested in science and society. It made interdisciplinary thinking a natural part of student life, popularized research careers, and fostered cross-field relationships essential for the future. And after all – why take home one Golden Raven when you can take two? The Estonian Psychology Students’ Association is also this year’s laureate in the Student Organization of the Year category.

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“I truly hope that thanks to this campaign, we will see more and more hedgehog-friendly gardens across Estonia, including fences with small openings for hedgehogs, which we call ‘hedgehog gates’.” Driven by this exact vision, the title for this year’s most impactful marketing achievement was claimed by “The Hedgehog-Friendly Tartu,” a project that seamlessly bridged science-based nature conservation and marketing. With its clever approach, the project made headlines across nearly every major Estonian media outlet, gaining prominent coverage on the evening news Aktuaalne kaamera and the radio show Huvitaja. The initiative called upon the residents of Tartu to make their gardens more hedgehog-friendly by installing “hedgehog gates” – small openings in fences that allow the Animal of the Year to move more freely and safely through the urban environment.

The undisputed highlight of the campaign was the “hedgehog gate” signs, which residents could pick up free of charge from the Tartu Town Hall information centre. When placed next to a hedgehog gate, the sign transformed a simple opening in a fence into a meaningful statement, explaining its purpose to passersby. In this way, a practical grassroots solution evolved into a highly visible, city-wide awareness campaign. It was these very signs that first captured the interest of both the media and the public, becoming the most recognizable symbol of the campaign with a clear message: everyone can contribute to supporting urban nature and biodiversity.

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This year’s laureate, “Foreign Languages in Healthcare” (“Võõrkeeled Tervishoius“), brought much-needed attention to a major challenge in Estonian society – the language barrier between doctor and patient. Drawing on a survey completed by nearly 2,300 respondents, the initiative demonstrated just how many healthcare professionals require translation assistance in their daily work to ensure safe and high-quality care for their patients. The project focuses both on raising awareness and seeking practical solutions, including increasing patient awareness and exploring potential digital solutions to help healthcare workers and patients communicate more effectively.

The initiative has succeeded in raising awareness among healthcare professionals and patients alike, sparking a public discussion on everyone’s right to receive clear and safe medical care regardless of their native language. “Our goal here is to ensure that absolutely every patient, regardless of their language, receives equal quality of care. At the same time, our second objective is to support our own invaluable healthcare workers – both young and experienced – so that our healthcare system remains sustainable. This recognition gives us the confidence that we are doing the right thing,” stated the project leaders. Furthermore, the project raises awareness that patients can bring an interpreter to their medical appointments if necessary, ensuring more accurate understanding and smoother communication. In the long run, this initiative will help reduce the burden on the healthcare system and support the vision of Estonia as a nation of healthy, well-informed people.

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This year, the title of Student Sports Contributor of the Year was awarded to Ragnar Rooba. Proactive and innovative, he continuously finds creative ways to make initiatives engaging and impactful, even when working with a very limited budget. He is willing to experiment with new ideas, and these efforts have had a notably positive effect on students. Ragnar is deeply committed to the activities of the University of Tartu Sports Representation, dedicating a significant amount of his time and energy to its development. As a master’s student at the University of Tartu, he is passionate about ensuring the university remains visible and active, while also fostering strong and positive relationships with other higher education institutions. Upon receiving the award, he spoke with genuine emotion, emphasizing the importance of collaboration in sport: “You won’t get far in sports alone. Let’s collaborate more—universities should work together, let’s be together. Before I thank my teammates, I would like to thank our competitors—we need them in sports because they drive progress.”

Through his leadership, Ragnar has initiated and organized numerous sports events and community-building activities that bring students together. His efforts have led to the creation of a student running community, sports quizzes, and student supporter sections at sporting events, all of which have encouraged greater participation in both sports and university life. His work has strengthened students’ sense of belonging, increased interest in physical activity, and created new opportunities for students to connect, collaborate, and integrate through sport.

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The Estonian Law Students’ Union consists of around twenty active law students who, alongside their studies, have dedicated time to the development of legal knowledge and awareness, as well as the provision of legal education. Every week, they organize lectures, workshops, and quiz nights that are open to all law enthusiasts. The topics are wide-ranging, from the work of judges to the legalization of euthanasia. The Union also collaborates with major stakeholders in Estonia’s legal field and has created the Stardiplatform initiative to help students find internships and apply their studies in real-life contexts. In addition, they actively promote international cooperation by organizing, for the fourth consecutive year, a student exchange program with Ghent University in Belgium.

This year, the Estonian Law Students’ Union also launched a unique Moot Court Club, which allows students to practice both written and oral argumentation skills under the guidance of experienced mentors. Thanks to this initiative, students have been given the opportunity not only to gain insight into the “behind-the-scenes” of the legal world, but also to see what a lawyer’s actual working day looks like—how contract negotiations or interrogations are conducted, what the role of a patent attorney entails, and much more.

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This year, the recognition was awarded for the first time in cooperation with the Estonian Defence Resources Agency to a second-year business IT student at Tallinn University of Technology and an active member of the Defence League youth organisation – Andreas Idavain.

In addition to his studies, Andreas dedicates time to voluntary work in youth organizations such as Noored Kotkad and Kodutütred, where since last year he has served as an instructor of unmanned aerial systems across Estonia. His main passion is bringing drone education to high school students, for which he actively collaborates with the Estonian Aviation Academy and the Estonian Defence Resources Agency. As an instructor, he guides young people across the country and adapts curricula to support responsible technology use and to improve young people’s readiness to act in complex situations.

In addition to working with high school students, he has also brought together drone enthusiasts at TalTech by launching a drone club, offering opportunities to learn about building, programming, and operating unmanned aerial vehicles, as well as participating in projects and competitions. His activities combine technology, youth work, and national defence, shaping a generation that is both digitally skilled and ready to contribute to a safer and more crisis-resilient society. After receiving the award, Andreas said: “I’m very happy to be here today. Growing up in the Defence League youth organizations, I’m now very glad to be in a position where I can give all of that back.”

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TalTech x TTK Folkrace is a youth-focused robotics competition where participants build and programme autonomous robots to navigate an obstacle-course racetrack, putting speed, precision, and creativity to the test. With multiple competition classes, the event welcomes both beginners and experienced robotics enthusiasts. The first Folkrace took place in November 2025 at Tallinn University of Applied Sciences, followed by the second stage in April 2026 at the Mektory Innovation and Business Centre. In their acceptance speech, the laureates described the project perfectly: “We wanted to do a nice little thing, but it didn’t turn out small at all – so at least it was very nice.”

The strength of Folkrace lies in its inclusive and practical format, offering hands-on testing opportunities even for those without prior experience or access to expensive technology. Young people can try their hand at engineering, programming, and problem-solving, bringing their ideas to life in the real world. At the same time, the project brings together TalTech and TTK students alongside school pupils, strengthening the cooperation between the two universities and helping to build a tech-driven community.

For the students, Folkrace is much more than just a technology event. It is an opportunity to develop teamwork, project management, and technical creativity, to challenge themselves in real-world scenarios, and to forge connections that extend far beyond a single day of competition.

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But who is this year’s Student Friend of the Year, Tiit Land? Students might often see him presenting awards and giving speeches at official events, but you are just as likely to spot him playing ping-pong against opponents dressed in cow costumes during a game of Longero-pong, or cheering from the front row for the mud wrestlers at the Student Summer Games. Above all, however, he is known as the Rector of TalTech.

Rector Tiit and the rest of the university leadership stand out because they never need to be persuaded to attend student events—often, they have already planned to come before even being asked. They are also widely recognized for supporting student organizations and advocating for their interests. The Student Union feels genuinely included in the university’s development and strategic discussions. According to student organizations, knowing that the university firmly stands behind them and values their contribution is truly priceless.

While actively cheering on the students and making good-natured appearances in social media videos helps boost the visibility of student initiatives, the students themselves consider one contribution to be among the most vital: under the leadership of Rector Tiit Land, the university always strives to secure the financial resources needed to bring their various projects to life.

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