Andres Simonson

Seattle 1950 family

The Estonian American National Council (EANC) needs your help to tell the Estonian-American story.  

They are out there somewhere. Maybe in an old shoebox in a dark forgotten corner of the attic. Maybe inside the front cover of a dusty book, whose pages haven’t felt a turning thumb in a decade. Or, maybe in plain view, quaintly framed on the fireplace mantle. They are highly treasured for sentiment, but are also invaluable to tell the story of Estonian-Americans.

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Published: September 29 2015

A group of mycologists and truffle hunting dog Rocky found a new species of truffle, never seen before in Estonia, in Valga county on September 17.

The find, Tuber aestivum, is so new, it doesn't even have an official Estonian name yet. For now, mycologists have christened it summer truffle.

The discovery was made by 4-year-old Rocky, who Italian mycologist Alessandro Saitta bought just five months ago and trained to hunt truffles.

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Published: September 29 2015

On September 24 the Atlantic Council and Stanford's Center on Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law will present a public address by President Toomas Ilves of Estonia on the future of technology in elections.

Estonia is the only country in the world to use internet voting at the national level, and President Ilves will discuss how technology can promote transparency, inclusion, and stronger democracies. This conversation will be moderated by Dr. Francis Fukuyama.

The Atlantic Council effort is being led by the Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center because of Latin America's leading role in the creation and implementation of election technology. The largest democracy in the region -- Brazil -- conducted its last election completely electronically, and the largest election technology company was created in Latin America.

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Published: September 22 2015

General Martin Dempsey in Tallinn. Photo by ERR News

General Martin Dempsey, the highest-ranking military officer in the United States Armed Forces, who was on a two-day working visit to Estonia, said that both countries benefit from the mutual military co-operation and the American presence in the country might continue for at least a decade.

Dempsey, who has been the Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff since 2011, is shortly leaving his post and visit to Estonia was part of his last tour, which also included Germany and Turkey.

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Published: September 22 2015

“1944”. Photo by Taska Film

The Estonian submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards will be Elmo Nüganen’s "1944".

Nüganen’s film depicts the events of the war in 1944 as Estonia faced advances from both the Red Army and the German Army.

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Published: September 22 2015

A shorter, 15 minute presentation of this material was given by me at the EANC annual meeting in Stamford, CT on 27 Sept, 2014. It was part of panel discussions covering 1) the past, 2) the present and 3) the future of Estonian community in the US. The panel discussion was moderated by Linda Rink, the executive director of EANC. My and Arne Kalm’s presentations jointly covered the past.

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Published: September 14 2015

The Estonian American National Council, Inc. (EANC) requires a full-time director for its Washington, DC, activities and programs.

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Published: September 14 2015

Estonian start-up ReLaDe is developing reusable biological enzymes that will change the way you wash your clothes. And with the company recently taking third price at ClimateLaunchpad 2015 competition, chemical detergents could soon become a thing of the past.

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Published: September 14 2015