On December 13th the Ministry of Culture and the Integration Foundation recognized the most outstanding developers in the field of integration for 2018-2019. Integration prizes went to Ida-Virumaa Society of Tatar Culture, Tartu International House, author and editor of Raadio 4 broadcast “Keelekõdi” - Andrei Hussainov, and Logistika Pluss OÜ.
The purpose of awarding integration prizes is to recognize those who, over the past year, have contributed to introducing different cultures represented in Estonia, establishing contacts and developing cooperation between people with different native languages.
The prizes were awarded in four categories and the best project initiator of each category received a prize of € 1,000.
In the category “Introducing the cultures of national minorities living in Estonia to the Estonian public”, the award was given to Ida-Virumaa Society of Tatar Culture for conducting the international European Tatar folklore festival "Sabantuy" on 16th June 2018 in Tallinn. The number of visitors to the event was estimated at 10,000.
The prize in the category “Implementing co-operation projects between native Estonian and non-Estonian residents” was awarded to the Tartu International House for developing co-operation between new immigrants and the local community, covering, among other things, the creation of a network of Estonian and refugee youth, and the lead of joint training programs, meetings and workshops for them.
Andrei Hussainov, the author and editor of the show “Keelekõdi” of Estonian National Broadcasting’s Russian language radio program Raadio 4, received the prize in the category "Developing attitudes in support of integration through media projects". The weekly radio program provided listeners with an opportunity to improve their Estonian language skills in an understandable and exciting way. “Keelekõdi” turned out to be very popular with radio listeners, with an average of 20,000 people listening to each broadcast.
This year, for the first time, a prize was awarded in the category "Implementing initiatives in support of integration in the private sector". The award was given to Logistika Pluss OÜ, which organized free Estonian language courses for its employees during working hours. The courses resulted in a significant improvement in the Estonian language skills of their employees, and the company plans to organize similar courses in the future as well.
A total of 33 applications were received this year for the 2018-2019 Integration Projects Competition.
The Integration Foundation has been awarding prizes for integration development projects since 1999 and for media projects since 2009. The 2018-2019 competition for media and development awards in the field of integration was funded by the Ministry of Culture.
