On 21 October 2026, the Council of Europe participated in the “A² Conference 2026: Public Information and Open Data – Knowledge Creates Confidence” in Tallinn, which was jointly organised by the Estonian Data Protection Inspectorate and the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs of Estonia. The Conference brought together practitioners working in the fields of public information and open data, as well as all those involved in the publication, management, and use of information in their professional activities.

The first panel dedicated to the Tromsø Convention raised awareness on the findings of the Council of Europe Access Info Group (AIG)’s baseline evaluation report on Estonia published in July 2024 and the recommendations of the Consultation of the Parties in respect of Estonia.

The panel was moderated by Ms Kristi Värk, Director at the Ministry of Justice of Estonia and involved key stakeholders including Ms Helena Jäderblom, the AIG President, Ms Nele Siitam, Judge of the Supreme Court of Estonia, Mr Joan Barata, international expert on freedom of expression and media regulation and Ms Marju Himma, Associate Professor of Journalism Studies at the University of Tartu. Panellists discussed the recommendations of the Consultation of the Parties notably those on the definition of official documents, the overriding public interest principle, and referrals of access requests by private bodies acting as public authorities under the freedom of information legislation. They shared their perspectives on the opportunities and challenges that the implementation of these recommendations presents in the Estonian legal and institutional context.