Author: Mariann Saar

The summer holiday season brought a large number of passengers to Viking Line’s ships, and this year the peak season lasted longer than usual – until the end of August. The summer was of landmark significance – for the first time, passengers were able to choose a completely fossil-free travel option.

From June to August, Viking Line served a total of 1,780,000 passengers, slightly more than last year. The company’s freight volume across its five ships grew by 3.6 percent. At the same time, Viking Line continued to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions: the purchase of biofuels was significantly increased, and passengers were given the option to choose a completely fossil-free trip when booking their tickets.

On the Tallinn–Helsinki route, Viking Line carried nearly 740,000 passengers during the summer months, as Viking Cinderella and Gabriella joined Viking XPRS on the route. On the Turku–Stockholm route, there were nearly 740,000 passengers, and on the Helsinki–Stockholm route 305,000 passengers.

“Summer passed as expected, and we are satisfied with passenger numbers on all routes. The cool early summer somewhat reduced passenger numbers, but the heatwave in July once again attracted more people to sea travel. We are especially pleased that the Estonian route has continued its growth for several years now, despite intensified competition. We firmly believe in this route and, earlier this summer, presented the concept of a fully electric ferry planned for the Tallinn–Helsinki connection,” said Viking Line Vice President Peter Hellgren.

Viking Line’s NPS score, which measures customer satisfaction, reached its highest level of all time during the summer peak season.

“Summer is a busy time on the ships. The clear increase in customer satisfaction compared to last year shows that our teams onboard and onshore have done an excellent job and taken great care of our customers.”

The largest increase, 3.1 percent, in Viking Line’s passenger numbers was recorded on the Turku–Mariehamn route.

“The boom in short-distance travel has lasted for nearly five years and shows no signs of slowing. The popularity of Åland is also reflected in the fact that its tourist season now extends well into autumn,” said Viking Line Communications Director Johanna Boijer-Svahnström.

In August, the Baltic Sea summer season continued thanks to international travelers. Among Viking Line’s customers there is a growing number of tourists from Germany and other Central European countries, while the fastest growth is seen among passengers from China.

Viking Line passenger numbers, June–August 2025:

• Helsinki–Tallinn: 737,848 passengers
• Turku–Stockholm: 738,684 passengers
• Helsinki–Stockholm: 303,562 passengers
• Total passengers: 1,780,094

In Nomine was on site with cameras and microphones when the cornerstone was laid for the Jõhvi Film Campus – a multimedia and creative industries incubator due to be completed next year. 

The film campus consists of three components: a creative industries incubator with film studios, a digital and multimedia incubator, and related infrastructure. The campus, funded by the Just Transition Fund, will cost €16 million to build. It is being constructed by Mapri Ehitus, with Novarc Group as the designer.

Teet Kuusmik, head of the Ida-Viru Investment Agency, is pleased with the construction pace: the foundation work is complete, trusses have been installed on the smaller studio, concrete elements are being placed, and truss installation on the larger studio has just begun. “We have been very fortunate with our builder, as they have proposed innovative solutions already during the design process that have helped us save on the budget compared to the initial tender. The solutions chosen meet our core needs – most importantly, ensuring that sound does not penetrate the buildings and that the rooms have good sound insulation,” Kuusmik said in an interview with ERR.

Urmas Adson, project manager at Mapri Ehitus, notes that construction is progressing at a good pace: “Concrete is arriving, steel is arriving. The construction market is picking up, and producers of reinforced concrete and steel seem to have a lot of work, as delivery queues have formed.” According to the project manager, a film studio of this size has never been built in Estonia before.

Tarmo Roos, CEO of Mapri Ehitus, is an avid film enthusiast and looks forward to other blockbuster productions in Estonia alongside Tenet: “I often think Estonia has many ideal locations for apocalyptic stories – abandoned buildings, wild landscapes and forests straight out of a horror film,” he says. “The magic of movies is that sometimes they even foreshadow real-life events – I recently saw Brad Pitt’s new F1 film, and at Silverstone, Hülkenberg replayed a similar scenario.” Life, however, is like a film in which we ourselves are the main characters. In the dramedy of Estonia’s economy, we see strong resilience from entrepreneurs who continue to invest and look forward to a better future. At the same time, they are constantly monitoring their core costs and quickly adapting to find new ways to save time and resources.

Photos by Erik Riikoja

Põllumeeste ühistu KEVILI tähistab tänavu 20. sünnipäeva ning vaatab tulevikku ambitsioonikalt. Filmis on meenutatud 20 aasta märkimisväärsemaid tegevusi ühistu elus, samuti tublisid inimesi, kes seda vedanud on. 

„Maa meid toidab, ja sind ka,“ ütleb Hannes Prits.

Every year, communication interns assist at the communication agency In Nomine. Last December, we received a wonderful letter from Liisbeth Pomber, a second-year journalism and communication student at the University of Tartu. The first month of the year is usually quieter, but this January has been particularly busy, and Liisbeth has participated in projects related to cosmetics, tourism, construction, and vocational education.

Observing the noise generated by artificial intelligence, she states that since misinformation and manipulation are becoming easier to spread, communication experts must invest more in fact-checking and verifying authentic information.

Why did you choose to study communication when you originally wanted to become a hairdresser?

The short answer is the pressure of societal expectations and the environment… To elaborate, I always knew I wanted to go to university at some point. Studying to be a hairdresser would have been an intermediate step—learning a trade, getting a job, and studying at university while working.

For a long time, I wasn’t sure what exactly I wanted to study at university, which led me to explore different options. I felt a strong societal pressure that I had to go to university, which caused me a lot of stress and anxiety.

I even applied for food and biotechnology at TalTech, but it wasn’t the right path for me. I was certain I would study in Tallinn, but then life took a different turn. When I opened the list of programs at the University of Tartu, the first one that caught my eye was journalism and communication.

Has this choice proven to be the right one?

Yes, my choice has been justified, but sometimes I still wonder what if… My journey has developed in a rather logical direction. Since I have a background in economics from high school, I am also studying economics alongside communication. I am most drawn to marketing.

In the future, I could see myself obtaining a master’s degree in marketing and perhaps working full-time in marketing communication. But we’ll see what life brings.

How would you subjectively assess the journalism and communication program at the University of Tartu? Is it sufficient, or is something essential missing?

I am a bit skeptical. In the first year, journalism and communication students study together, but the courses are mostly journalism-focused. This made me question a lot during my first year whether I was in the right place.

However, in the second year, we have more specialized courses, and the communication studies are well-structured. So yes, I think there should be more communication courses in the first year, but otherwise, in the second year, there is enough of everything.

Which media channels are important to you in 2025?

It’s impossible to ignore social media—for me, user-generated content is crucial. I also listen to podcasts, both entertainment-focused and news-oriented.

Regarding traditional media, I mostly trust Estonian National Broadcast ERR, but I occasionally check Estonian largest internet portal Delfi as well. I don’t read print newspapers much anymore because print media has become a luxury—if you want to read multiple publications, it gets quite expensive.

Is your perception of PR different from what you experienced during your internship?

I didn’t expect to have to do so much translation—both from Estonian to English and vice versa. Other than that, since I’ve learned from professionals who practice this field daily, nothing has been a complete surprise. Instead, I have had the chance to apply theoretical knowledge in real-life situations.

Is AI good or bad, and how do you use it today?

I find the rapid development of AI both terrifying and valuable. AI helps save time, organize information, and correct punctuation.

During my internship, I used AI primarily for translation. Since it’s not human, it lacks emotional nuance, but it excels at statistics and data analysis. In the future, those who know how to integrate AI into their daily work will have a significant advantage.

For example, in marketing, there is a huge amount of data to categorize, and AI can do this much faster than a human. While humans perform the analysis, AI can optimize marketing processes based on the analysis results, making company costs lower and target audience segmentation more precise.

What is your vision for the future of communication? How will information be shared and consumed?

As the volume of information and noise increases, AI-driven algorithms will play a growing role in filtering and personalizing content for consumers. This can be useful, but at the same time, it poses a risk—people might get trapped in their own “bubbles”, only encountering information that aligns with their worldview.

Instead of one-way information flow, communication is becoming more interactive. People are not just consumers but also co-creators—they don’t just share content but actively shape it.

Since misinformation and manipulation are becoming easier to spread, communication experts must invest more in fact-checking and verifying authentic information.

Where do you see yourself working in ten years?

I think that in ten years, I will fulfill my dream and train as a hairdresser. But most likely, I’ll still be working in a communication agency, enjoying the variety of topics and fast-paced work environment.

Interview by Heikki Sal-Saller
Photo by Erik Riikoja

The “Concrete Building of the Year” competition, organized for the 25th time by the Estonian Concrete Association and the Estonian Building Materials Manufacturers Union, has received 12 nominations this year.

The jury has started its work. The winners of the “Concrete Building of the Year 2024” award will be revealed on Concrete Day, March 20.

In Nomine is assisting with the event organization.

In Nomine is delighted to announce that the festival of knowledge, skills, and experiences—Haridustreff 2025—will take place on August 14, 2025. The annual event for education professionals, held for the fourth time at Paide Vallimägi, will center around the theme: “Learning. Experiencing. Achieving Results.” The event offers a comprehensive perspective on the education journey, encompassing preschool, general education, and vocational training. The tradition of awarding scholarships will also continue.

The keynote speaker and one of the workshop facilitators for the fourth Haridustreff is Gunter Pauli, a Belgium-born educational innovator and lecturer. Pauli has developed a teaching method that integrates storytelling, scientific knowledge, and experiential learning. As a global visionary, entrepreneur, and creator of the Blue Economy model, Pauli has authored over 20 books and actively collaborates with universities worldwide as a lecturer.

Kristi Jõeorg, one of the event organizers, explains that every year, efforts are made to make the program more engaging, and this year’s keynote speaker is globally renowned. “We’ve also improved the content based on feedback from teachers over the past three years. In 2025, we plan to organize separate workshops and discussions alongside the main stage program. Different topics will be delivered through the main stage as well as hands-on workshops in tents. This helps direct information more precisely to the audience and also allows us to adapt to unpredictable weather. Although, last year, even rain couldn’t deter the teachers because education is important in all conditions,” says Kristi Jõeorg.

The scholarship tradition will continue, recognizing a Bold School and an Innovative Teacher. A bold school or preschool is an institution that makes and implements its own decisions. An innovative teacher is one who contributes to the development of their subject area and has adopted new teaching methods in the past three years.

The main sponsor of Haridustreff 2025 is LHV Bank, and the event is organized by Meaningful Talks.

At the 2024 Haridustreff in Paide Vallimägi, the Bold School Scholarship was awarded to Pärnu Ühisgümnaasium, as determined by the jury. The Innovative Teacher Scholarship went to Veronika Grigorjeva, a mathematics teacher from Tallinna Tõnismäe Riigigümnaasium. A total of 10 teachers and 18 schools applied for the scholarships, which were provided by the event’s main sponsor, LHV Bank. The third annual Haridustreff drew nearly 800 participants.

In Nomine announces that the new building for Tänavapuhastuse AS, a Tartu-based road maintenance company, was officially opened last week. The building spans over 2,000 square meters of net area and includes staff facilities, relaxation areas, repair and maintenance bays for road maintenance vehicles, a car wash, a sorting room for street sweepings, and storage areas for bulk materials. The construction cost was approximately €3 million, designed by architect Anders Jaano from Atect Projekt and built by Mapri Ehitus. The project manager was Olari Orm, and the site manager was Rasmus Jaagant.

The new building was completed at an impressive pace, precisely meeting the expectations of the Tartu road maintenance team. “The builder did an excellent job—the project was finished on time, and completing such a structure in 140 working days is almost miraculous. The team led by project manager Olari Orm and site manager Rasmus Jaagant was very professional! There’s also nothing negative to say about the quality of construction,” said Kink. He emphasized that the new facilities provide a significant morale boost for the street maintenance staff, making them happier and more motivated.

Tarmo Roos, CEO of Mapri Ehitus, noted that delivering the building within such a short timeframe was a significant challenge, but the experienced construction team handled it well. “We know that working in a new building is always much better than in an old one. We wish Tartu residents an even cleaner and greener city. Of course, the City of Good Thoughts is already tidy and lush during summer. This year, we are working on several projects in South Estonia, including residential developments near Raadi in the city’s outskirts, a cheese warehouse for Valio Eesti in Võru, and earlier this spring, we handed over an office building to Eesti Energia.”

The building features an innovative solution: a Cor-Ten facade. This material is a type of weathering steel slightly alloyed to form a patina layer that protects the surface from weather conditions. Initially reddish-brown and resembling rust, the patina darkens over time, creating a durable and unique appearance.