About
Toomas Hendrik Ilves was born in Stockholm to Estonian refugee parents and raised in the United States. He earned degrees in psychology from Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, then worked at Radio Free Europe before becoming Estonia's ambassador to the United States. As foreign minister, he led EU and NATO accession negotiations. President of Estonia from 2006 to 2016, he promoted e-governance and cybersecurity. He later taught at Stanford, Columbia, and the University of Tartu.
* 1953-12-26
Key milestones
- 1993Appointed Estonia's first post-independence ambassador to the United States, also accredited to Canada and Mexico.
- 2006Elected fourth president of Estonia, serving two consecutive five-year terms.
- 2013Received the National Democratic Institute's Democracy Award for promoting e-governance.
Themes
Digital governanceCybersecurityEuropean integrationDemocracyEducation
Sources: vp2006-2016.president.ee · wayback.stanford.edu · ndi.org