This year was particularly significant for Estonian Business School (EBS), as two of our doctoral students were featured in the final: Samuli Johannes Saarinen, whose research focused on “From Information to Price, in Time of Social Media,” and Mehruba Shabaab Haque, with her study on “Redefining Beauty for Young Girls in the Age of Social Media.” Both doctoral students highlighted pressing societal issues and challenges, offering fresh perspectives and solutions through their research.
19 foreign PhD students, representing seven Estonian universities, reached the finals. At the final gala the finalists had to summarize their years of research in three minutes in a way that is interesting and comprehensible to all listeners, regardless of background or prior knowledge.
The jury of the contest at the final event included: Tarmo Soomere, US Ambassador to Estonia George P. Kent; Management Board Member of Inclusive Financial Technology Foundation (InFTF), Kristjan Järve; Secretary-General of Estonian Commission for UNESCO, Kerli Gutman-Normak; entrepreneur and Member of the Digital Council of the President of the Republic of Estonia Mr Alar Karis, Kaidi Ruusalepp; entrepreneur and Chairman of the board of Tuleva Commercial Association, Annika Uudelepp; journalist of the Estonian Public Broadcasting, Joosep Värk.
The laureates of the contest are:
- Francis Gracy Arockiaraj with the lecture “Seeing through Fog, Mist and Skin Tissues” (University of Tartu, country of origin India)
- Baiba Brumele with the lecture “TRMT112 – the mysterious link between different diseases“ (University of Tartu, country of origin Latvia)
- Mehruba Shabaab Haque with the lecture “Redefining Beauty for Young Girls in the Age of Social Media” (Estonian Business School, country of origin Bangladesh)
- Sharib Khan with the lecture “If not plastics, then what? ” (Estonian University of Life Sciences, country of origin India)
- Lucía Mariel Arana Peña with the lecture “Caring through quality: Enhancing Mammography from afar” (Tallinn University of Technology, country of origin Guatemala).
We also managed to get a brief comment from Mehruba. We asked what her doctoral thesis has taught her, and what the award means to her. Mehruba Shabaab Haque: "The doctoral thesis is still ongoing, but there’s one message I’m confident enough to share even now: stop using filters on social media. Filters distort reality and present an image of what you can never truly be, leading to unrealistic standards and self-doubt. Instead, embrace your natural self and find confidence in your authenticity. Let go of the pressure to edit every image and celebrate who you genuinely are. Honestly, this journey has taught me that what may be easy for me isn’t always easy for others. The intensive training highlighted the importance of keeping everything clear and relevant for the audience. It wasn’t just about storytelling; people want to understand the reasoning behind the research, and visuals play a crucial role in conveying that. At first, condensing everything into a three-minute presentation seemed impossible, but the trainers were incredible—they refined my approach after each rehearsal until it all came together. Achieving this felt amazing; standing on stage without a hint of nervousness was indescribable. This confidence came from the rigorous practice and the physical exercises the trainers instilled in us."
The five winners will get the opportunity to participate in the most prominent global science communication conference, PSCT, in Aberdeen, Scotland, on the 27th-29th of May 2025. The Estonian Research Council will cover participation and travel costs of three winners through Research in Estonia activities. The prizes are co-funded by the European Union. The costs of two winners will cover Estonian Academy of Sciences with the help from main sponsor.
Announcing the jury's decision, the President of the Academy of Sciences of Estonia Tarmo Soomere said, that the presentations of finalists were technically almost perfect, with powerful start, clear introduction and hooked the audience strongly. The text was excellently merged with visuals, finalists used clear and finished sentences and sparingly words. “Only few used all the allocated time – which is good: the more compact you are, the more convinced you are.”
The editors of the science portal Novaator also chose three favorite popular science articles written by finalists. Highlighted were:
- Larissa Barbosa Curi for the article “Horror film viewers might actually want to listen to stories” (Tallinn University Baltic Film and Media School, country of origin Brazil)
- Sajeesh Vadakkedath Gopi for the article “Estonia’s Cutting-Edge Solar Cells Aim to Tackle Growing Forest Fire Threats” (Tallinn University of Technology, country of origin India)
- Vittoria Ecclesia for the article “A 13-Keyed Clarinet May Transform Classical Music Practice” (Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, country of origin Italy).
They will get an opportunity to participate in the science writing workshop in Tartu in November this year. The workshop will be conducted by Seth Mnookin, a Professor of Comparative Media Studies/Writing at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and the Director of the Institute's Graduate Program in Science Writing. Seth Mnookin's travel expenses to Estonia are covered by the Baltic American Freedom Fund (BAFF), and the Estonian Research Council covers the workshop expenses through Research in Estonia activities that are co-funded by the European Union.
The finals have been preceded by internal contests in participating universities and trainings on presentation and writing skills organized by the Estonian Academy of Sciences. Also, each finalist has written a popular science article on their research, which will be published on the Research in Estonia portal. The contest is organized by Estonian Academy of Sciences in cooperation with the Estonian Young Academy of Sciences and supported by InFTF and the Estonian Research Council through Research in Estonia activities.
Photos of the final event (by Reti Kokk) can be found here.
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