In English

Why We Organize

The non-profit organization Estonian Internet Community (MTÜ Eesti Interneti Kogukond) was founded in October 2010, mostly in response to the highly controversial .ee domain reform undertaken by the newly formed Estonian Internet Foundation (Eesti Interneti SA). We are the largest and fastest growing such organization in Estonia’s history and we are involved in starting Estonia’s official ISOC Chapter.

Our organization was kickstarted by an astonishing 22 official signatory founding members with over 800 members on the founding group’s Facebook page, which had been the semi-official gathering place for techies opposed to the .ee domain reform.

A public letter had been written by Tõnu Samuel and Jaan Jänesmäe (with support from hundreds of local internet users, including many well-known tech people in Estonia) to the Estonian Internet Foundation asking for comments on several controversial issues relating to the ongoing domain reform, but no reply was ever received.

The lack of response and the overall attitude of the Estonian Internet Foundation when communicating with the community it was supposed to be serving made us realize that as local internet users we need to organize quickly and efficiently so that our interests are not trampled in the future.

As of December 25th, 2011 the Estonian Internet Community has 66 official members.

Also in English

• Dr. Kaido Kikkas Ph.D. writes about why he joined the Estonian Internet Community
• Public Letter to ICANN regarding the proposed redelegation of the .ee ccTLD

Our Proudest Moments

• Our joint press release with five of the six political parties represented in the Estonian parliament condemning the .ee domain reform
• We launch an automated blog that follows Estonian legislature
• We organized a cloud technologies summer school for Estonian computer teachers

How to Support Us

International supporters can currently help us in the following ways:

• If you have any leftover hardware that could be useful to Estonian kindergartens, such as video projectors, please contact elver.loho@kogukond.org
• Donations of any size are very helpful. Currently we only accept wire transfers. SWIFT/BIC HABAEE2X and IBAN EE64 2200 2210 5073 1645 (Address of the organization as needed by some banks: Vabaduse 15, Räpina, Räpina vald, Põlvamaa, 64506, Estonia.)

The Community’s Goals since April 16th, 2011

1. Offering Estonian internet users a chance to participate in discussions pertaining to the future of the Estonian internet.
2. To be a place where Estonian internet users, enthusiasts, and experts can get together and work together.
3. To support the spread of internet and technology know-how in Estonia.
   1. By supporting and conducting training programs for those who need it.
4. To support internet and technology related Estonian non-profits.
   1. Especially those, which seek to spread and preserve Estonian language and culture online.
5. To enliven public discussions on important internet and technology related topics in Estonia. Topics such as:
   1. Net neutrality / Open internet.
   2. Local internet-related monopolies.
   3. Piracy and copyright.
   4. Citizens’ right to privacy online.
   5. The spread of open document formats.
   6. The availability of state e-services via different software/hardware platforms. (e.g. using only Free Software)
   7. Open Data in government.
   8. The spread of Open Source software.
   9. Legislature pertaining to spam, malware, and cybercrime.
   10. Internet censorship in Estonia.
   11. The future of the Estonian language and culture online.
   12. Biometric and RFID identification.
   13. Electronic voting in Estonia.
   14. Best practices and laws pertaining to online commerce.
   15. The present and future of online media.
   16. Children and the internet.
   17. The impact of technological innovation on society.
   18. Accessibility standards.
   19. Consumer protection online.

How to Contact Us

The board of directors can be reached via e-mail at juhatus@kogukond.org and the chairman Elver Loho at elver.loho@kogukond.org

Inquiries by the press should be directed at our head of public relations Sven Paulus via e-mail at sven.paulus@kogukond.org and via phone at +372 5562 7185