The Language Friends Program brought together almost a thousand people

From February to May 2021, 504 Estonian language learners were able to practice Estonian with the help of 448 volunteer mentors within the framework of the Language Friend program initiated by the Integration Foundation. The aim of the program is to offer Estonian language learners additional opportunities to practice the Estonian language of communication and to encourage them to use the language on a daily basis.

Volunteer mentors helped Estonian language learners to practice the spoken language by talking to them a few times a week via e-channels on various vital topics in Estonian. Some mentors helped several language learners to practice the language. The teachers of the Estonian language houses of the Integration Foundation and the Estonian language methodologists involved in the project instructed the mentors by offering short trainings and recommending study materials. Mentors actively exchanged information and experiences in assisting language learners.

Most of the mentors were from Estonia, but in addition to them, Estonians from many other countries around the world joined the project: for example, Great Britain, the USA, France, Sri Lanka, Finland, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Iceland, Serbia, etc.