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Jaanika Palm Did you know that Estonian sign language has been recognized in the Language Act of the Republic of Estonia since March 1, 2007? The first paragraph of § 5 of the Language Act (2019) states: "Any language other than Estonian and Estonian sign language is a foreign language." Based on this, and also considering that the goal of Tartu Youth Work Center is maximum accessibility for all young people, during the implementation of the project "Reverse Inclusion in Society", we aim to introduce Estonian sign language, which is used as the second officially recognized state language, and more broadly, the community of people communicating in this language, to a wider audience (young people, and thereby also parents; people working with young people). A sub-goal was to increase societal tolerance between different communities by raising awareness about the sign language community. The project takes place in cooperation with the Estonian...

On November 26-27, the Anne Youth Center will host the Hack@Youth hackathon, aimed at developing digital tools to facilitate youth work. The hackathon is organized within the framework of the Erasmus+ project “Digital Tools for Youth Work” in cooperation with the Institute of Computer Science at the University of Tartu. Representatives from various fields who wish to contribute to the development of digital tools for youth work are welcome to participate, including students and experts from both IT and youth work sectors. The hackathon will take place on November 26-27, starting at 12 PM and ending at 3 PM at the Anne Youth Center (Uus 56, Tartu). Participation in the event is free of charge. During the hackathon, we will carefully observe COVID-19 measures. Participants aged 18+ are required to present a COVID-19 pass, a negative COVID-19 test taken within 48 hours, or proof of recovery. We also provide free rapid testing on-site. The event is supported by the City of Tartu, Erasmus+, and the European Solidarity Corps…

Hello everyone! My name is Anargyros, which is quite difficult to pronounce, so you can just call me Argy for short. An interesting fact about me (or perhaps not so interesting) is that my name has a meaning. Specifically, it means 'no money', seriously. The name is formed from the Greek expressions 'an' (without) and 'argyros' (silver), so combined it means 'a person who has no silver/money'. I come from a small island called Syros, in Greece, located in the middle of the Aegean Sea. I lived in Syros for a little over 17 years before moving to Athens, the capital of Greece, to study informatics at the University of West Attica. That went... Well, actually, it's still going, because during my studies I discovered...

At the end of August, staff members of the Tartu Youth Work Center participated in a 3D printing training in Lithuania and are now bringing 3D printing to youth centers. The training took place within the framework of the Erasmus+ strategic cooperation project “Young Creators Discover 3D”. As part of the project, workshops on 3D printing have been developed for young people, and now groups have the opportunity to come and experiment and discover. During the project, workshops will be conducted for at least one hundred local young people, who will be able to try out the entire 3D printing process themselves and develop their skills to succeed in the future job market. Classes, youth groups, or individuals can register for two-day workshops on the following dates: 1. 10.11 and 12.11 2. 17.11 and 19.11 3. 8.12 and 10.12 4. 15.12 and 17.12…

Walking past the Anne Youth Centre building, it doesn't initially look like a youth centre from the outside. Apart from a ping-pong table, there are no attractions in the yard that would invite young people and Tartu residents to spend their free time there or resemble a youth centre. The Anne Youth Centre's yard has remained unchanged since 1969 and is in urgent need of renovation and modernization. In spring, the staff of Anne Youth Centre decided to submit a project to the participatory budget so that the Anne Youth Centre's yard could finally get a more attractive appearance with the help of Tartu residents. Ideas were sought from the local community and young people on what they would like to see in this area in the future. In addition to the open youth centre, several institutions offering leisure activities operate daily in the building located at Uus 56, and the building…

On September 1st, which is this Wednesday, another Tartu Wisdom Day will take place, with this year's slogan being 'Tartu of Wise Thoughts'. This year, the Day of Knowledge will be held in the courtyard of Anne Youth Centre and in various hobby schools. Wisdom Day will conclude with a concert featuring Liis Lemsalu band as the main act. Tartu Wisdom Day is traditionally a back-to-school celebration held in Tartu on September 1st, combining entertainment with finding hobby groups for the new academic year. Various Tartu hobby schools and associations will be present with interactive workshops, and music and dance school performances will take place both in front of and on the stage. In addition to the activities of the Tartu Youth Work Centre, the courtyard of Anne Youth Centre will also host Private School HuviTERA, the Estonia_TUIT iGEM team, American Councils, JJ-Street Dance School, Stuudio Säsi, the Red Cross, OLE…

Jaanika Palm Jaan-Raul Ojastu In the summer youth center located on Car-Free Avenue, it was possible to participate in Estonian sign language learning workshops on several days, which were conducted in cooperation with the Tartu Youth Work Center by the Estonian Sign Language Society (EVS) and the Estonian Deaf Youth Organization (EKNO). The aim of the workshops was to introduce Estonian sign language, used as the second officially recognized state language in Estonia, to city residents of all ages, and more broadly, the community of people communicating in this language. A sub-goal was to increase societal tolerance between different communities by raising awareness about the sign language community. There are approximately 4500 Estonian sign language users: these are native and foreign signers who regularly use Estonian sign language either due to work or for other reasons (Laiapea et al. 2002: 4). Estonian sign language...

Grete Sarap From July 9th to August 8th, young people had their very own youth area on Tartu Car-Free Avenue, where many exciting activities took place every day from Monday to Sunday. There were activities for every taste: from creative thinking activities to active sports activities. In between, there were developmental workshops, city-wide games, science exploration, music introduction, etc. Of course, young people could also simply relax, play, communicate with youth workers and spend quality time with peers. The summer activities were favored by pleasantly warm summer weather, which brought many young people daily. Every Thursday, young people could refresh themselves with ice cream and enjoy evening musical performances by various young musicians, bands, and DJs. Many were not aware of the youth centre's year-round activities...

On August 6-7, the Tartu County Youth Work Camps reunion took place at the Tartu County Health Sports Center in Elva. Over 160 young people attended, from both the Tartu Youth Work Camp and the camps of Luunja and Kambja municipalities. This annual reunion, marking the end of the youth camps, gave young people another chance to gather before the start of school, have a good time, and reflect on the past summer of camp. Together, they competed in various sports, including tug-of-war, relay race, free throws, and volleyball. The youth camp groups had prepared their group flag for the reunion and created a unified look, which was judged on-site by a jury. All groups performed with recitation programs and songs, which were also judged by the jury. This year's theme for the recitation programs was dedicated to the 30th anniversary of Estonia's re-independence. After the performances, on stage...