By Plenary Sessions: Margit Sutrop

The speaker's main position is advocating for nuclear energy, specifically supporting the construction of a nuclear power plant in Estonia. They stress a value-based approach, considering the sufficient energy, clean natural environment, and security needed to achieve 'the good life.' The political focus is directed at how policymakers (the commission) weigh these opposing values against each other.

The political stance centers on the insufficient funding and support for fundamental research in the humanities compared to the natural and exact sciences. The speaker strongly advocates for the need to prioritize basic humanities research, noting that the current funding threshold for ETAG grants is far too low. This position is driven by policy and values, emphasizing the necessity of balanced development across all scientific disciplines.

The political debate centers on two main issues: the preservation of the school network in sparsely populated regions versus the quality of education and teachers' pay, and boosting the prestige of the Estonian language in government communication. The positions taken are strongly policy- and value-driven, with the Reform Party supporting the valuing of the Estonian language but opposing the categorical elimination of Russian-language websites. The issue of conflicting objectives is being raised, for example, between maintaining rural life and providing quality education.