In addition, an eye-opening value game and exciting experiment are taking place. Also there is an opportunity to experience the virtual reality of refugee camp in Jordan.

All Migration Area panel discussions are translated simultaneously into English.

AGENDA

10.00-18.00 Virtual reality “Clouds over Sidra” (Organizer: Estonian Refugee Council/UNHCR)
Meet Sidra. This charming 12-year-old girl will guide you through her temporary home: Za’atari Refugee Camp in Jordan. Za’atari is home to 130,000 Syrians fleeing violence and war, and children make up half the camp’s population.

10:00-11:30 „Discovering Values“ (Tartu University Centre for Ethics/Estonian Refugee Council)
The game „Discovering Values“ combines an entertaining format with a serious content that supports the development of one’s value clarification, argumentation ability and empathy. The game is meant to facilitate discussion with the aim of forming, formulating and defending a personal position, with no right or wrong solutions.
Moderator: Mari-Liis Nummert

12.00-13.00 Why are they coming here, to fight on our yard?* (Organizer: Estonian Atlantic Treaty Association)
The migration crisis and refugee problems are discussed through mass media often in a way that anger and fear are following. What is actually going on and what kinds of threats are out there in sense of migration? The discussion is held in perspective of security and collective defense.
Panelists: Hanno Pevkur, Uku Särekanno and Anni Säär
Moderator: Mart Nutt

13.30-15.00 Migration crisis?! No panic, please! (Organizer: Ministry of the Interior)
In recent years, discussions about the migration crisis have dominated Estonian public sphere. Statistics show that there is no mass immigration into Estonia – there are no migrant flows targeting us. But how could we explain then this sense of crisis in Estonia?
Panelists: Mari-Liis Jakobson, Eero Janson, Tiit Tammaru and Raivo Vare
Moderator: Marju Lauristin

15.30-16.45 Immigrant – are you a ghost or a human?* (Organizer: Ministry of the Interior)
Surveys are showing that Estonians are not that open-minded towards immigrants and often have certain prejudices particularly towards those with different ethnic background. At the panel, an experiment is going to take place where the audience can have their say in this matter and the mechanisms of development of beliefs and attitudes are discussed by experts in the field.
Panelists: Karmen Maikalu, Aune Valk and David Vseviov
Moderator: Tarmo Jüristo

17.15-18.30 Estonians living abroad: Brains lost or Estonian ambassadors in the world? (Organizer: European Migration Network/Tallinn University)
From when Estonia regained its independence 25 years ago, more people have left the country than moved here to contribute in Estonia’s social and economic wellbeing. The country needs to promote immigration of foreign specialists as well as to work on its diaspora engagement policies and thats what this panel discusses.
Panelists: Peter Gornischeff, Piret Kärtner, Ave Lauren and Tõnu Pekk
Moderator: Marion Pajumets

*quotes from famous Estonian movies

The Migration Area is organised by Estonian Refugee Council, Estonian Atlantic Treaty Association, European Migration Network/University of Tallinn, Ülemiste City, Tartu University Centre for Ethics and Ministry of the Interior, Government Office.

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The soundwaves of the Opinion Festival create a musical bridge between Aruküla, Gothenburg and Tartu

This year the culture programme of the word-rock festival held in Paide in August wanders along psychedelic and jazzy paths instead of rock music. Filling the Festival Club with sounds is the responsibility of Tartu’s multicultural Genialistide Klubi in cooperation with Möku. Their joint programme attracts audiences with both superb DJs and young rappers.

If you want to escape the discussions for a bit, you can pop into the festival club where you can enjoy the sounds of the hissing old vinyl from the Melodija label, pulsating beats from the Balkans, the best estrada pieces of the Eastern block and the soft breeze of yacht rock.

The keyword of Friday night’s official programme is “Youth”. At the festival club, you can enjoy the performance of 15-year-old rapper EIXD from Aruküla, whose lyrics tackle social issues and may even bring additional thoughts to some of the topics debated at the discussions. Then, Liis Ring aka Cirkl who is studying music and sound production in Gothenburg takes stage with her dreamy indie-pop, a hovering cross between jazz and classical music. To finish off the first day you can listen to playful improvisations by Edmund Hõbe, a multi-instrumentalist from Tartu.

Saturday is all about psychedelic sounds and vinyl. Once the last discussions have ended, Berk Vaher, a multi-talent with an odd taste in music, and Ahto Külvet, a vinyl enthusiast who gets excited by the products of weird-looking record labels, invite you to the first ever Psycho Disco in Paide. The audience will be welcomed by the colourful world of analogue music with repertoire expanding from Kazakhstan to Latvia and from Brazil to Poland. The motto of Psycho Disco is simple − we are all equal before the Moog keyboard!

Translated to English by Piret Raudsepp.

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What are the benefits of Paide being the festival site?

Firstly, we are located in the centre of Estonia so that it’s easily accessible for everyone. Another big advantage is that the town is small and compact. At first, the festival took place only in Vallimägi, which holds many people. Now we have also expanded to the centre, which is actually only a few steps away from Vallimägi. Various themed areas, accommodation places and an opportunity to get to know the town − they’re all close at hand.

Paide already has several years of experience of hosting the Festival. What are the important things to remember when hosting an event this big?

The most important thing is the community and making sure of a smooth cooperation. With these things, you could organise the Opinion Festival anywhere. Any undertaking of this size always relies on people. Therefore, it’s really great that there are so many volunteers who are trying their hardest and are willing to give one hundred per cent regardless of their family and work obligations to make this festival happen. Many of the volunteers are actually from here and every year after the festival they all come together and start planning the next year at once.

What are the festival’s benefits to your town?

The fact that the festival takes place in Paide is a really big gift for us, no kidding. Many people hadn’t been to Paide before or they didn’t have a reason to come here, but thanks to the Opinion Festival lots of people have now discovered our town. Even during those couple of days, it’s good to see young families taking an interest in the abandoned houses of the old town and saying that this place has the right atmosphere that they need to settle down.

Of course, another great thing is that local companies − namely restaurants and shops − earn more money during this weekend than maybe for the entire year.

The festival is also a starting point to many great ideas, many of which have been brought to life right here in Paide or in Järvamaa. For example, last year we had an idea to establish Paide’s own city theatre. We have found some young people from the drama school and they are trying to figure out how to start, what the theatre is going to be like, what the benefits would be for the community; how it would educate kids and so on. We commenced a huge project last year. Paide’s city theatre will be established in 2017 and it will start work in 2018.

Have you had any unexpected obstacles or surprises along the way?

There are always minor bumps on the road, that’s inevitable. It could be anything related to electric power, internet connection, garbage collection or whatever. But everything can be solved. Luckily, we haven’t had any major mishaps and each year we get smarter.

What is different this year?

For example, I know that last year we had some problems with getting access to Vallimägi for disabled people, but this is definitely being organised better this year.

Do you have any wise words for other towns and cities to motivate them to be as brave as you and organise big events like this one?

You have to think big. You can’t be afraid of impossible ideas, you have to put your faith in them and give people a chance to act. It will repay you a hundredfold!

Why do you recommend people to come to the Opinion Festival this summer?

This is a difficult question because I have taken part every year and I wouldn’t even know otherwise. It’s not easy to point out something specific because I believe that there’s something for everyone.

The festival has evolved so fast and it is downright terrifying, in a good way, to think about the future. There are so many discussion stages that there can never be a moment when you don’t have anything interesting to listen to.

Discussing important subjects in the open air creates new ideas and may make you see some things in a different light. Nobody can possibly think all the time, so from time to time you can just ponder on your own or spend quality time with other people.

The positive emotions of the festival last for a long time and once you’ve run out of those, you can start looking forward to the next edition!

Interviewed by Maarja-Liis Mölder.
Translated to English by Piret Raudsepp.

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And so, one fine day I found myself in the Opinion Festival’s Communications team, informing readers about all kinds of exciting discussion topics, people and events that together form the Opinion Festival. It was a fun time. I could make my contribution to one of the coolest events in Estonia by writing up stories and doing interviews over the whole summer. Whether at 6 am on the coach to Tartu or fending off flies in the afternoon sun on Saaremaa, I could help with putting together the big picture of the festival by writing pieces on the festival blog.

And then came August and the festival. I remember sitting in the Opinion Festival’s Press Centre finalising another one of my pre-festival articles and through the open window, I could hear people adjusting the mics all over the place and the tech guys making a racket on the balconies while installing the internet. Excitement and thrill filled the air − just like prior to a birthday party when the table is already set but the guests haven’t arrived yet. We weren’t able to enjoy that peace and quiet for too long though, because the guests began to arrive. Thousands of them. Eight, nine, ten thousand people gathered in Paide to take part in the festival’s discussions.

Yes, these two festival days were rather mental and now when I think about them, I remember the ceaseless chatter, sitting on the grass with my legs crossed and the keyboard, which I was devotedly tapping for 12 hours on a trot. Down the stairs to the discussions and up the stairs to write. Down the stairs to the discussions and… Until all of a sudden it was the evening of the second day and I found myself sitting on the ground and braiding grass rings; the dark and soft August night was flowing past me with its overheard conversations, gales of laughter and good ideas. I was thinking to myself, “Wow! So cool!” And that feeling has stayed with me ever since. And that’s exactly why three months later I sent another email saying that I wanted to help out and work on the Opinion Festival in 2016 as well. This year the festival will be even bigger, even more diverse and even more fun. That’s why the team and I are already in full swing to make the festival happen. There are many great, fun and exciting things on the way. So stay tuned and see you all in Paide!

Written by Jakob Rosin.
Translated to English by Piret Raudsepp.

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