Maria Murumaa-Mengel named Best Communicator of Science and Technology

Professor in Media Studies and Deputy Head of Research and Development, Andra Siibak, emphasised that Murumaa-Mengel’s outreach activities address a wide range of audiences – from older adults to preschoolers. Together with colleague Inger Klesment, she has organised the DigiÄKK digital-safety exercise in Tartu for the past two years, involving 500 preschool children. In cooperation with the children’s magazine Täheke, she has also launched a national comic competition on digital topics for kindergarten and primary-school children. “Maria is able to elegantly use traditional science-communication formats while also creating entirely new, out-of-the-box practical interventions,” Siibak said.

For journalists, Murumaa-Mengel is a knowledgeable and charismatic spokesperson on digital technologies and cyber risks. She is a frequent guest on radio and TV programmes (such as Terevisioon, Ringvaade, Huvitaja) and her clear, research-based commentary often appears in the press (including Eesti Ekspress, Õpetajate Leht, Postimees). She says that working with the media comes with responsibility – both to the public and to science:

The Tiiu Sild Lifetime Achievement Award for long-term, systematic work in the popularisation of science and technology was presented to Ene-Margit Tiit, Emeritus Professor of Mathematical Statistics at the University of Tartu, who has been a leading figure in establishing and advancing the field in Estonia and making statistics understandable and useful for society.

Outstanding communicators of science in Estonia were recognised on 12 November 2025 in Tallinn at the Estonian Research Council’s annual science-communication conference “The Role of Science Communication in Society”. The event also featured Associate Professor of Journalism Studies Marju Himma, the 2024 laureate of the science-communicator award, who delivered a talk on researchers’ responses to people’s everyday questions and moderated a panel discussion. The conference and award ceremony can be rewatched on the Estonian Research Council’s YouTube channel.