Sustainability news

On 2 February, IT Office will delete Teams and SharePoint groups without an owner. Before this, automatically selected group members will receive a notification email with instructions on how to proceed.

Communication seems simple… until you realise you’re talking to a wall. We invite you to a conference where we ask when dialogue is actually needed in society and which shared agreements form the basis of good dialogue.

On 5 February 2026, the symposium “Semi-natural grasslands in the European agricultural landscape: plants, pollinators and people in the winds of change” takes place.

On Friday, 30 January, at 14:15, an English-language colloquium will take place at the University of Tartu Philosophicum (Jakobi 2–336), exploring how Stoic ideas and practices can be applied in contemporary psychotherapy to help people cope more effectively with difficulties.

From 5 to 30 January, digital clutter will be cleaned up at the University of Tartu. The university invites everyone to spend at least 30 minutes every week tidying up their personal or unit’s digital space.

In 2025, the study that drew the most attention in public digital channels was led by Professor of Botany Meelis Pärtel and confirms the negative effect of human activity on wildlife biodiversity.

We wish our university community and friends a joyful holiday season and a Happy New Year!

In the recent call for the European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator Grants, University of Tartu researchers received funding for three projects: to study the climate impact of air pollution particles, the formation of cell patterns in plant leaves, and women’s hormonal sensitivity. Each grant amounts to nearly two million euros, and the projects last for five years.

Adult learners are welcome to participate in micro-degree programmes starting in the spring semester to acquire an additional specialisation or competence in a narrow field. Applications can be submitted until 25 January.

As possible ways forward, participants proposed strengthening digital and health literacy, providing institutional support for professionals, and raising awareness among both healthcare workers and patients.

University of Tartu computer scientists have developed artificial intelligence based tools that help companies in Ida Viru County use technology in their day to day operations. These solutions aim to make data driven planning and decision making simpler, more transparent and accessible to all.

University of Tartu Asia Centre Annual Conference: Asia Update. Transformations and Futures of the Middle East will be held in Tartu on 23-24 April, 2026.

From the University of Tartu, 110 students and 205 staff members signed up for the step challenge that took place from 1 to 31 October.

University of Tartu Professor of Nanomedicine Tambet Teesalu has become the first Estonian researcher to receive a Synergy Grant from the European Research Council, which supports collaboration of top-level research teams in tackling highly complex and ambitious scientific challenges.

On 27 October from 13–18, the University of Tartu development conference “A university for us, Estonia and the world” took place in the university assembly hall and online. Keynote speakers were Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Kersti Kaljulaid and Kristina Kallas.

On October 24, as part of Academia Gustaviana 393, a public discussion took place on the topic “(Mis)measuring Human Prosperity: Reconciling Economic Growth with Environmental Well-being.”

Presentation of misleading environmental claims has become one of the major communication problems.

From 13 October to 16 November, the university family and all others are invited to complete the orienteering course “160 years of making sense of weather observations”.

From 1 to 31 October, FitSphere invites students and staff to take part in the step challenge Sügissammud 2025, aiming to promote regular physical activity. Also, the most physically active higher education institution in Estonia will be determined .

Announcement of public talk on shift of China’s strategic concerns including geoeconomics, geopolitics, green energy, and the Arctic.