COP31 Estonian Pavilion

From Wastewater challenges to Climate Solutions - Eliminating Methane and Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Water Systems

This session will explore how wastewater treatment and aquaculture systems can become important contributors to both climate mitigation and sustainable resource management. Through concrete examples and policy perspectives, participants will discuss how resource recovery approaches can reduce methane and nitrous oxide emissions while improving food security, energy resilience and circularity.

Pär Larshans · Representative of UNEP(TBC) · Jonas Hagman · Representative of Havbruk(TBC) · Representative of Stockholm Environment Institute(TBC)

How Tallinn Reinvented District Heating: From Fossil Dependency to a Resilient Renewable Energy System

Less than two decades ago, Tallinn’s district heating system was almost entirely dependent on imported natural gas. Today, 90% of the city's district heating is already produced from renewable and recovered energy sources. By replacing imported fossil fuels with local energy sources, Tallinn has made decarbonisation and energy security part of the same strategy. This case study explores how Tallinn has transformed its existing district heating infrastructure into a modern and flexible urban energy system, integrating innovative solutions such as large-scale heat pumps, thermal storage and sector coupling. The result is a cleaner and more resilient system, less exposed to imported fuel dependency and price volatility, while ensuring reliable and affordable heat for the city. Tallinn’s experience demonstrates how cities can move towards fully fossil-free heating while strengthening their energy independence.

Robert Kitt · Priit Koit · Additional speakers(TBC)

Closing the Loop: A Real-Life Case of Wind Turbine Decommissioning

The clean energy transition is about more than building new renewable capacity - it is also about taking responsibility for what happens at the end of an asset’s life. As the global wind fleet grows and matures, responsible decommissioning, material recovery and land restoration are becoming an increasingly important part of the sustainability conversation. Using the decommissioning of a turbine at Latvia’s Grobiņa Wind Park as a real-life case, this session will follow what happens to a wind turbine after its operational life ends - from dismantling and recycling to finding new uses for blade materials and restoring the land. The case demonstrates how circularity can be built into the full lifecycle of renewable energy infrastructure and, just as importantly, how making this process visible can strengthen public confidence in the energy transition.

Rene Tammist

From Waste Treatment to Resource Plants: Unlocking Secondary Resources for Resilient and Competitive Economies

Resource security is not only about finding new places to extract virgin materials. It is also about recognising and recovering the resources already flowing through and stored in our societies. By transforming waste treatment infrastructure into Resource Plants, cities and industries can become producers of critical raw materials, nutrients, clean water and energy, while safely removing substances that should not remain in circulation.

Pär Larshans · Karin Forsberg(TBC) · Representative of EY(TBC) · Representative of UNEP(TBC) · Representative from Canada(TBC) · Representative of Stockholm Environment Institute(TBC)

Smart circular solutions driving the transition towards climate neutrality

The event will discuss the role of different circular solutions to make the necessary change of reducing the impact to the climate, environment and human health. The market for secondary raw materials is still not functioning well and necessary policy initiatives are needed. If successful, theses solutions can have a significant impact on reducing GHG emissions.

Solutions to cover the critical materials in the EU

Critical raw materials are essential for the industries and technologies needed in the global transition, including automotive manufacturing, defence, renewable energy, electronics, infrastructure and clean technologies. At the same time, nutrients such as phosphorus are indispensable for agricultural production and global food security. Many countries and industrial value chains remain dependent on imported virgin resources from a limited number of suppliers, creating vulnerabilities linked to geopolitics, price volatility, supply disruptions and increasing global competition for finite resources. This session will focus on enabling the transition to a circular economy.

Kai Realo · Representative of the European Lime Association (ELA) - Pre-recorded video message · Alar Saluste · Tobias Eriksson · Representative of the European People's Party(TBC)

Beyond ROI: Financing the Full Value of Sustainable Infrastructure

What if the greatest returns on infrastructure investment never appear on the project's balance sheet? Sustainable transport infrastructure, such as modern railways, generates value far beyond ticket revenues and freight charges. Fewer accidents, lower emissions, safer journeys, more resilient supply chains and greater business competitiveness deliver substantial economic and societal benefits. Yet these returns are often dispersed across sectors, difficult to monetize and rarely captured by infrastructure investors themselves. High level expert panel explores how financial institutions can look beyond traditional ROI models to recognize the broader economic value, reduced risks and long-term resilience enabled by sustainable infrastructure. The central question: How can we translate wider societal and economic benefits into stronger investment cases for sustainable infrastructure?

André Küüsvek · Lucie Anderton

What Can Historic Buildings Teach Us About a Climate-Resilient Future?

Historic buildings have survived centuries of changing climates, evolving societies and shifting needs. What can we learn from their design, materials, craftsmanship and adaptability as we face the challenges of climate change today? Preserving and adapting our historic buildings is not a question of whether, but how. Beyond their cultural and historical value, these buildings hold valuable lessons in resource efficiency, durability, passive climate adaptation and long-term resilience. This panel explores how traditional knowledge and modern innovation can work together to make historic buildings more energy-efficient and climate-resilient while preserving their unique character. Drawing on European and international research, policies and practical experience, the discussion will examine how heritage can contribute to climate mitigation and adaptation - and what it takes to turn these insights into practical solutions.

Ave Paulus · Riin Alatalu · Lori Ferriss · Philipp Hesse · Gráinne Shaffrey · Filippo Calcerano

Living Soils, Resilient Food: Algae Biotechnology from Estonia to Climate-Vulnerable Farms

Healthy soil is the foundation of food security and one of the largest land-based carbon stores, yet it is degrading worldwide. In the EU alone, 60 - 70% of soils are in an unhealthy state, and the EU's first law on soil monitoring and resilience entered into force in December 2025. Climate-vulnerable regions face the same problem with fewer resources: salinity, erosion, flood damage and rising fertiliser costs. This panel asks how affordable biological inputs can restore soil at scale. Soyl Food, an Estonia-registered start-up developing algae-based biostimulants, will join soil scientists, farmers and policymakers to discuss what it takes to move soil-restoring biotechnology from European labs to farms in South Asia and the Gulf. The panel will cover evidence, field trials, data, regulation and finance, and close with practical commitments for linking Estonian innovation to global soil restoration.

Hira Wajahat Malik · Entrepreneur(TBC) · Soil Scientist(TBC) · Agriculturalist(TBC) · Policy and Finance Expert(TBC)

From Tree Huggers to Unicorns: How Science and Startups Can Build Climate Solutions

How can scientific knowledge become practical tools for better climate and forest management? This event explores how Estonia connects research, data and artificial intelligence to support evidence-based decisions and climate action. Three short pitches will showcase practical approaches from RMK, Kappazeta and Timbeter, followed by a panel discussion on the opportunities and challenges involved in turning scientific expertise into solutions with wider practical applications. Kappazeta uses AI-driven satellite data to monitor forests and assess changes such as disturbances and carbon stocks, while Timbeter develops digital tools for timber measurement, traceability and supply-chain management. Together, the speakers will examine how cooperation between researchers, businesses, forest managers and decision-makers can move climate innovation from knowledge to measurable impact.

Helen Sulg · Meelis Seedre · Anna-Greta Tsahkna · Mikk Marran

Carbon - a resource, not nuisance

Around the world, large volumes of industrial residues and mineral-rich waste streams contain valuable raw materials that could be recovered while simultaneously providing opportunities for permanent carbon storage through mineralisation. However, the absence of clear and internationally aligned frameworks for carbon dioxide management, accounting methodologies, certification systems, and transport infrastructure continues to limit investment in carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) solutions. In this session, we will explore the opportunities of using CO₂ as a resource.

Alar Saluste · Representative of CO₂ Value Europe(TBC) · Laura Remmelgas(TBC) · Cris-Tiina Pärn · Representative of Bioforce(TBC) · Emma Wiesner(TBC) · +1 more

Cultural Heritage in Climate Action - Plans to Accelerate Solutions

Climate science and policy recognize the importance of addressing the socio-cultural enablers of climate action. The session highlights three heritage-centric plans to accelerate climate solutions, where ICOMOS and its Estonian partners are active: Heritage-Informed Building Decarbonization, Heritage Adapts! and Integration of Cultural Heritage in NAPs. Three Coalition-led Cultural Heritage Centric global PAS of the global climate action agenda Axis 5 are concrete measurable ways to highlight the role of cultural heritage in the climate policies and action. Heritage Now! is a campaign to harness the potential of built heritage for a resilient, climate positive and just future. Heritage Adapts! Is a movement of community stewards adapting their heritage sites and cultural practices to climate change. GFCBCA initiative targets cultural heritage-based solutions in National Adaptation Plans.

Kati Lindström · Meredith Wiggins · Andrew Potts · Gráinne Shaffrey · Ave Paulus · Antonio Queterres