Erasmus+ ELEDEEU

Principal investigators: Professor Kadri Männasoo, Professor Tanel Kerikmäe

Senior research staff: Dr. Simona Ferraro, Dr. Maria Claudia Solarte Vasquez, Dr. Archil Chochia

Other research staff: Evelin Pärn-Lee, Helery Tasane, Hakan Berber

Project assistant: Tarmo Tuul

The project offers the following courses:

Special Topics in Digital Ecosystems I, 3ECTS
Special Topics in Digital Ecosystems II, 3ECTS

The events offered within the project:

Guest lectures
Roundtable debates
Visit to the Innovation and Business Centre Mektory
Dedicated session(s) to digital ecosystems in International Conference of Economic Challenges in Enlarged Europe (ECEE)

Guest lecture by Dr. Marco Giacalone on 5 April 2022

On 5 April 2022, the Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law will organise an open online lecture under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU). The lecturer will be Dr. Marco Giacalone (Marie Curie Fellow at Seraphin.Legal and Postdoctoral Researcher at Vrije Universiteit Brussel) who will give a presentation titled „Access to Justice in the Digitalisation Era“.

The lecture will start at 17:45 and can be followed on MS Teams (link)

Abstract: In the age of artificial intelligence and big data, one wonders to what extent the sheer amount of information gathered will be used for good. This lecture focuses on digitalised tool, which can be applied in civil and commercial disputes, both in European as well as in national contexts. New technologies are capable of assisting judges and other legal professionals in dispute prevention and their early resolution. They also lay the foundation for out-of-court dispute resolution and the digitalisation of courts and tribunals. Whether digital procedures can be equated with classical court procedures is part of a permanent discussion that has recently been fuelled by COVID-19 crisis measures blocking not only the normal functioning of societies, but also of their court procedures. How important is proximity in litigation and dispute resolution for citizens? In other words, we highlight the concrete possibilities for online mechanisms to guarantee effective access to justice.

Roundtable discussion "Digital Ecosystems for Public Sector" on 12 October 2021

The Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law will organise a roundtable discussion "Digital Ecosystems for Public Sector" under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU).

The event will take place on October 12, 2021, from 18:00-19:15 and will be broadcast on MS Teams (link).

Discussants:

Dan Shefet, Lawyer, Individual Specialist to UNESCO, Adviser to the Council of Europe on the Internet Ombudsman
Robert Krimmer, PhD, Professor of E-governance at the Faculty of Social Sciences at Tartu University
Kadri Männasoo, PhD, Professor at Department of Economics and Finance, TalTech
Tanel Kerikmäe, PhD, Professor at Department of Law, TalTech (Moderator)
Simona Ferraro, PhD, Senior Lecturer at Department of Economics and Finance, TalTech
Maria Claudia Solarte Vasquez, PhD, Visiting Lecturer at Department of Law, TalTech

Guest lecture by Alexander Norta on 28 September 2021

On 28 September 2021, the Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law organised an open online lecture under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU). The lecturer was Dr. Alexander Norta (Associate Professor at the Department of Software Science of TalTech) who gave a presentation titled „Smart-Contract Language for DAOS“.

Abstract: The presentation introduces the intersection between smart-contract blockchain systems, internet of things (IoT) and security and the problems and opportunities that emerge. First, I address the current trends in IoT and the rising importance for business. Next. I introduce the exciting topic of blockchain technology and the extension towards smart contracts. Finally, the main properties of security are addresses. After the elementary introductions, the keynote investigates the intersections between IoT and blockchain, IoT and security, and blockchain and security. This intersection investigation reveals problems that open up scope for future research work. The keynote culminates in the presentation of various industry applications in the supply chain domain.

ELEDEEU Guest Lecture by Alexander Norta

Roundtable discussion "The new normal in public education: re-skilling for teaching and security in learning digital platforms" on 9 March 2021

The Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law organised a roundtable discussion "The new normal in public education: re-skilling for teaching and security in learning digital platforms" under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU).

The event took place on March 9, 2021 and was broadcast on MS Teams.

Discussants:

Linnar Viik, Co-Founder and Programme Director of Smart Governance at e-Governance Academy
Kaire Põder, PhD, Professor at Estonian Business School
Kadri Männasoo, PhD, Professor at Department of Economics and Finance, TalTech
Tanel Kerikmäe, PhD, Professor at Department of Law, TalTech (Moderator)
Simona Ferraro, PhD, Senior Lecturer at Department of Economics and Finance, TalTech
Maria Claudia Solarte Vasquez, PhD, Visiting Lecturer at Department of Law, TalTech

Guest lecture by Ott Velsberg on 2 February 2021

On 2 February 2021, the Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law organised an open online lecture under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU). The lecturer was Ott Velsberg (Government Chief Data Officer, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication) who gave a presentation titled „Regulation of the next generation e-government“.

During the lecture Ott Velsberg discussed the legislative changes needed to build the next generation e-government. The lecture focused on the regulation needed to utilise artificial intelligence and to drive data economy.

Interdisciplinary course: „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU”

In the Spring 2021 semester, “The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU - Special Topics in Digital Ecosystems II” course will be taught under the auspices of the Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module. The course aims at closing the gap in approach and method between the students from economics and law and brings together interdisciplinary teams to explore economic and legal issues that arise with the use of digital ecosystems. It also features a guest lecture and a roundtable debate with experts in the field.

The course will be fully on-line: from Week 1 to Week 8 Microsoft Teams sessions will take place on Tuesdays (16:00 – 19:00). For more details, click on the poster below.

Roundtable discussion "Digital Ecosystems: Implications of COVID-19"

The Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law organised a roundtable discussion "Digital Ecosystems: Implications of COVID-19" under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU).

Discussants:

Siim Sikkut, Government CIO at Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications
Tea Kookmaa, Assistant Attorney, Associate at NJORD Law Firm
Kadri Männasoo, PhD, Professor at Department of Economics and Finance, TalTech (Moderator)
Tanel Kerikmäe, PhD, Professor at Department of Law, TalTech
Simona Ferraro, PhD, Senior Lecturer at Department of Economics and Finance, TalTech
Maria Claudia Solarte Vasquez, PhD, Visiting Lecturer at Department of Law, TalTech

The event took place on November 12, 2020 and was broadcast on MS Teams.

Guest Lecture by Jaanus Kroon on 5 November 202o

The Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law organised an open lecture under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU). The lecturer was Jaanus Kroon (Bank of Estonia, Head of the Statistics Department) who gave presentation titled „Bank of Estonia experience in using big data for official statistics“.

The event took place on November 5, 2020 in room SOC-313 and also virtually on MS Teams.

Jaanus Kroon has been working at Eesti Pank since 1993 in different areas of central bank statistics as an economist and head of division, and since 2013 he has been the head of the Statistics Department. He holds Master’s degrees in Economics (M.Sc) and in Organization and Management (MBA) from Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech). Jaanus Kroon represents Eesti Pank in several international committees, notably the Statistics Committee of European Central Banks, the Irving Fisher Committee, and the Committee of Monetary, Financial and Balance of Payments Statistics.

Guest Lecture by Katrin Nyman-Metcalf on 29 October 2020

The Department of Economics and Finance and the Department of Law organised an open lecture under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“ (ELEDEEU). The lecturer was Katrin Nyman-Metcalf (Adj. Professor at TalTech Law School, and Head of Research at e-Governance Academy) who gave a presentation titled "Will states be rendered irrelevant in the digital ecosystems of giants?"

The event took place on October 29, 2020 in SOC-415 and also virtually on MS Teams drawing more than 50 students from various disciplines.

Abstract: Human rights are rights that all humans have, primarily vis-à-vis the state. The state must not violate our rights and furthermore must protect us against violations by private parties. The legal system provides states with various tools to fulfil this role, including legislation setting out the limits for what can or cannot be done, police forces with the rights to enforce rules, courts that will determine how laws should be interpreted, and so on. Each state can act in its territory and in some other instances where it may have jurisdiction, based on rules of international law. Then, internet came...The lecture will discuss whether we can still expect the state to protect us by creating norms for what is acceptable, enforcing norms, and providing us with tools of protection against others. Who decides what is ethical content on YouTube? Is Facebook responsible for our privacy? Where does Google have jurisdiction?

Interdisciplinary course: „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU”

In the Autumn 2020 semester, “The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU - Special Topics in Digital Ecosystems I” course will be taught under the auspices of the Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module. It offers a hands-on approach to evaluating different aspects of digital ecosystems in the EU and features guest lectures and a roundtable debate with experts in the field.

The course will be fully on-line: from Week 5 to Week 12 Microsoft Teams sessions will take place on Thursdays (16:00 – 19:15). For more details, click on the poster below.

Student Presentations on 12 May 2020

We have successfully completed the first year of our Jean Monnet Module activities. On 12 May 2020, the international students from different study programs presented their reports and draft articles on various legal and economic aspects related to digital ecosystems. Our instructors contributed to the discussion with their field experience and the academic fora evolved into an exciting interdisciplinary blend of opinions and viewpoints. Here are listed just few of the topics, which were subject to discussion:

The development and future directions of AI in Europe: Review of ODR platform
Competition law challenges for digital eco-systems: The EU approach
Application of big data for criminal justice
Innovation ecosystems as leading species

ELEDEUU student presentations on 12 May 2020

Guest Lecture by Meelis Kitsing on 11 February 2020

The Department of Economics and Finance organised an open lecture under Erasmus+ Jean Monnet Module „The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“. Dr. Meelis Kitsing from the Foresight Center at the Parliament of Estonia gave a presentation titled Scenarios for Digital Platform Ecosystems and Estonian Digital Governance. The event took place on February 11, 2020 in SOC-311 and drew together students from various disciplines.

Abstract: This presentation explores the role of governance in digital platform ecosystems and potential future developments. It makes four contributions. First, the concept of digital platform ecosystem is introduced instead of platform economy. Second, the future of digital platform ecosystems is explored on the basis of scenario planning which allows to consider alternative future trajectories rather than rely on extrapolation of current trends. Third, presentation compares different digital governance scenarios developed by international and national organizations which also highlight potential futures for digital platform ecosystems. Last but not least, five Estonian digital governance scenarios are discussed in the context of actual policy making. This reveals that the trend is towards centralization of digital governance in Estonia rather than towards decentralized networked governance approach.

Professor Kadri Männasoo gave a presentation under the auspices of the Jean Monnet project

Professor Kadri Männasoo gave a presentation on the linkages between digital skills and labour market effects in European countries under the auspices of the ERASMUS+ project ELEDEEU 2019-2022 „Euroopa Liidu digitaalsete ökosüsteemide majanduslik ja õigusalane hindamine“ ("The Economic and Legal Evaluation of Digital Ecosystems in the EU“).

According to the research results, individuals’ digital capacity improves their labour market outcomes and increases labour productivity at the regional aggregated level. The results were presented at the international conference „8th Dialogue on Social Market Economy” (Tartu, 31 January – 1 February 2020) which focused on the role of education in different economic systems.

Kadri Männasoo conference presentation Tartu

Guest Lecture by Jon Pareliussen on 17.12.2019

On December 17, OECD economist Jon Pareliussen gave a presentation on digital technology adoption. The event took place from 14:00-15:00 in room SOC-416. More information below:

Title: "Digital technology adoption, productivity gains in adopting firms and sectoral spill-overs – Firm-level evidence from Estonia"

Abstract: With a newly constructed firm-level dataset combining various survey- and registry data from Statistics Estonia, this paper sheds new light on the labour productivity premium from adopting digital technologies and boosting digital skill use. The productivity premium is decomposed into a direct effect benefitting the firms actually increasing their digital intensity, and an indirect effect of belonging to a sector with high digital intensity. The firm-level productivity premium of being an adopting firm is consistently positive and sizeable across different digital technologies and measures of skill intensity. The evidence also suggests positive spill-over effects in manufacturing sectors and sectors with a high routine task content and thus a high automation potential.

Kick-off meeting of newly selected Jean Monnet Projects was organised in Brussels on 18 November 2019. More information
The Closing Conference of the 30th anniversary of the Jean Monnet Activities focusing on the challenges of digitalisation within education and how EU studies are affected by it, was held in Brussels on 19 November 2019. More information
More information about Erasmus + Jean Monnet - Modules can be found here