Andres Tarand (born 11 January 1940) is an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n geographer, climatologist and politician who served as the

Prime Minister of Estonia The Prime Minister of Estonia ( Estonian: ''peaminister'') is the head of government of the Republic of Estonia. The prime minister is nominated by the president after appropriate consultations with the parliamentary factions and confirmed by ...

from 1994 to 1995. He was also a

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

(MEP) for the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties For ...

, part of the

Party of European Socialists The Party of European Socialists (PES) is a social democratic and progressive European political party. The PES comprises national-level political parties from all member states of the European Union (EU) plus Norway and the United Kingdom ...

, between 2004 and 2009. Tarand was born in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

. His father poet, philologist, philosopher and cultural figure

Helmut Tarand Helmut(h) Tarand (until 1935; Helmuth Takenberg; 8 October 1911 – 1 November 1987) was an Estonian poet, philologist, philosopher and cultural figure. He used also pseudonyms Annus Rävälä and Aili Helm (with Hilja Rüütli). From 1929 to 193 ...

. He graduated from the

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; et, Tartu Ülikool; la, Universitas Tartuensis) is a university in the city of Tartu in Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is the only classical university in the country, and also its biggest ...

with a degree in

climatology Climatology (from Greek , ''klima'', "place, zone"; and , '' -logia'') or climate science is the scientific study of Earth's climate, typically defined as weather conditions averaged over a period of at least 30 years. This modern field of stud ...

in 1963. After receiving his first degree he continued his studies at Tartu receiving a second degree in geography in 1973. He continued to do research at Tartu, eventually becoming director of research in 1979, to 1981. In October 1980, Tarand was a signatory of the

Letter of 40 Intellectuals The Letter of 40 intellectuals, also The letter of 40 ( et, Neljakümne kiri), originally A public letter from Estonian SSR ( et, Avalik kiri Eesti NSV-st) was a public letter dated October 28, 1980 and posted a week later, in which 40 intellectual ...

, a public letter in which forty prominent Estonian intellectuals defended the

Estonian language Estonian ( ) is a Finnic language, written in the Latin script. It is the official language of Estonia and one of the official languages of the European Union, spoken natively by about 1.1 million people; 922,000 people in Estonia and 160,0 ...

and protested the

Russification Russification (russian: русификация, rusifikatsiya), or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians, whether involuntarily or voluntarily, give up their culture and language in favor of the Russian cultur ...

policies of the

Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty, Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of th ...

in Estonia. The signatories also expressed their unease against Republic-level government in harshly dealing with youth protests in Tallinn that were sparked a week earlier due to the banning of a public performance of the punk rock band

Propeller A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...

. Besides serving as director of research at University of Tartu, Tarand has also been a member of the board for the university, since 1996, as well as director of the Tallinn Botanical Gardens, from 1988 to 1990. Tarand has also been a member of the Estonian Parliament from 1992 to 2004. While in parliament Tarand served as the

Minister of the Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of the environment) is a cabinet position charged with protecting the natural environment and promoting wildlife conservation. The areas associated with the duties of an ...

twice, 1992 to 1994 and 1994 to 1995, as well as his term as Prime Minister. He was elected to the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

in June 2004. Tarand has also been involved in environmental and sustainable development concerns not only in Estonia but throughout the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

and Nordic states. His involvement in these concerns has led to his involvement in such organisations as the Estonian Geographical Association, Estonian Institute for Sustainable Development,

Stockholm Environment Institute The Stockholm Environment Institute, or SEI, is a non-profit, independent research and policy institute specialising in sustainable development and environmental issues, with seven affiliate offices around the world. SEI works on climate change ...

Estonian Nature Fund Estonian Fund for Nature (Eestimaa Looduse Fond) or ELF is an Estonian environmental non-profit organisation. Mission Mission of ELF is to preserve the rich natural diversity in Estonia and the world through active cooperation with individual ...

, and

GLOBE International Globe International Ltd. is an Australian footwear, clothing, and skateboard hardware company. It was founded in 1985 by three Australian brothers. Globe International's core business is divided between proprietary brands, licensed brands, and ...

Europe. He has published a title ''Tornadoes in Estonia'' with Éditions Universitaires Européennes. Andres Tarand and his wife, journalist Mari Tarand (''née'' Viiding; 1941–2020) have two sons. The elder son

Indrek Tarand Indrek Tarand (born 3 February 1964) is an Estonian politician and Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Estonia. He is an Independent politician, but a member of the European Green Party. Tarand has served as an advisor to the Prime Mini ...

(born 1964) is a politician, historian and journalist who also won a seat in the

, running as an independent candidate in the 2009 election. The younger son

Kaarel Tarand Kaarel Tarand (born 20 September 1966) is an Estonian journalist and editor. He was born in Tallinn to geographer, climatologist and politician Andres Tarand and radio journalist Mari Tarand. His older brother is politician Indrek Tarand. Durin ...

(born 1966) is a well-known journalist. His first cousin is writer, poet, humorist and politician

Priit Aimla Priit Aimla (born 19 April 1941 in Võru) is an Estonian writer, poet, humorist and politician known for several stage plays and books. During 1992 to 1995, he belonged to Riigikogu, having been elected as a member of the Independent Royalist ...

References

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Tarand, Andres 1940 births Living people Politicians from Tallinn Social Democratic Party (Estonia) politicians Estonian geographers Prime Ministers of Estonia University of Tartu alumni Social Democratic Party (Estonia) MEPs MEPs for Estonia 2004–2009 Environment ministers of Estonia Recipients of the Order of the National Coat of Arms, 2nd Class Members of the Riigikogu, 1992–1995 Members of the Riigikogu, 1995–1999 Members of the Riigikogu, 1999–2003 Members of the Riigikogu, 2003–2007 Members of the Riigikogu, 2007–2011 Voters of the Estonian restoration of Independence Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 1st Class 20th-century Estonian politicians 21st-century Estonian politicians