Candidates for institute director positions at the Estonian University of Life Sciences announced

Aret Vooremäe is standing for the position of Director of the Institute of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, a role he has held continuously since 2010. From 2007 to 2010, he served as Head of the Research and Development Department at the Ministry of Agriculture. Since 2014, he has been Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Tartu Environmental Education Centre.

The current Director of the Institute of Forestry and Engineering, Professor of Forest Ecology Marek Metslaid, is seeking re-election. He has held the position since 2022. Before the university's structural reform, he headed the Institute of Forestry and Rural Engineering from 2020 to 2021. He has also been a member of the Supervisory Board of the State Forest Management Centre since 2023.

Toomas Tiirats and Külli Vikat are standing for the position of Director of the Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences. Toomas Tiirats previously served as Director of the Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences from 2005 to 2011 and from 2016 to 2021, and has held the position again since 2022. He has represented the Estonian Veterinary Association in international organisations since 2011 and the Estonian Veterinary Chamber since 2024. Külli Vikat is an animal husbandry specialist and entrepreneur who has worked as a trainer and as an official at the Agriculture and Food Board.

Brief profiles of the candidates and their vision statements are available on the university's websitelink opens in new page. Questions can also be submitted to the candidates through the same page. A public debate featuring the director candidates will take place on 11 November at 13:00 in the Assembly Hall of the university's main building. The debate will be moderated by Professor Paavo Kaimre.

Jüri Lehtsaar, Chairman of the Election Committee, explained that institute directors play a key role and bear considerable responsibility in guiding the university's teaching, research and development, as well as overseeing day-to-day operations.

"We are pleased that all three positions have attracted highly qualified candidates who have already demonstrated their abilities both in their respective fields and as leaders," said Lehtsaar.

To be eligible for the position of institute director, candidates must hold an academic degree, have experience in managing an academic organisation or one of its units, and possess expertise in at least one field of teaching or research related to the institute.

The election meeting will take place on 16 November at 14:00 in the Assembly Hall of the Estonian University of Life Sciences, after which voting will open. Those eligible to vote include university academic staff whose workload is at least 20 hours per week and members of the institute councils. Veterinarians are also included in the electorate of the Institute of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences. Voting will be conducted by secret ballot through an electronic voting system and will close on 18 November 2026 at 17:00.

The directors' five-year term of office will begin on 1 January 2027.