Biography

President Kaljulaid is a supporter of a nonrestrictive legal space for the ongoing digitalization of economies and governments. She is an active promoter of sustainability and halting climate change. She advocates for publicly speaking up against violence and for giving a voice to those affected by it.

In 2016 Kersti Kaljulaid was elected President of the Republic of Estonia. Previously she served from 2004 to 2016 as a Member of the European Court of Auditors. Kersti Kaljulaid was the CFO and CEO of the Iru Power Plant of state-owned energy company Eesti Energia and prior to that Prime Minister Mart Laar's Economic Advisor.

Kersti Kaljulaid has graduated from the University of Tartu in the field of genetics in the Faculty of Natural Sciences and she has a master`s in Economics and Business Administration. She is fluent in English and French and also speaks German, Finnish, Russian. 

Kersti Kaljulaid is married and has four children.

INVOLVEMENT IN ORGANISATIONS
Since 2018 co-chair of UN High-Level Steering Group „Every Woman Every Child“
2016-2019 Leading Estonian campaign to UN Security Council
2012-2016 Chair of the Council of University of Tartu
2001-2004 Member of the Supervisory Board of the Estonian Genome Centre

Kersti Kaljulaid is also a member of World Bank’s Advisory Panel for the World Development Report 2021 and member of the European Council on Foreign Relations Council.

DECORATIONS

2016 The Collar of the Order of the National Coat of Arms (Estonia)
2017 Order of the White Rose of Finland, Grand Cross with Collar
2018 Grand Cross in the Order of the Netherlands Lion
2018 Grand Cross with Collar, the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
2019 Commander Grand Cross with Chain in the Order of the Three Stars (Latvia)
2019 Grand Collar of the Order of the Infante D. Henrique, Portugal
2019 Order of Merit for Distinguished Service of the Republic of Slovenia   
2021 Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Austria
2021 Chain of the National Order of the Star of Romania
 

HONORARY TITLES
2018 Honorary Doctor of EWHA Woman´s University, South Korea
2018 Honorary Citizen of Seoul, South Korea
2020 Honorary Doctor of Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki

RECOGNITIONS
2019 Friend of the Estonian Press
2019 Friend of the Bees of the Year
2019 Friend of the Estonian Wooden House
2020 Rainbow Hero