Fred Jüssi

Fred Jüssi (born January 29, 1935) is an Estonian biologist, nature writer and photographer.^[1]^[2]

Jüssi was born in Aruba, Netherlands Antilles, where his father worked for a Venezuelan oil company.^[3] His family returned to Estonia and settled in Tallinn when Jüssi was 3 years old. After finishing high school in Tallinn he studied biology and zoology at the University of Tartu, graduating in 1958. He has worked as a school teacher (from 1958 to 1960 in Emmaste, Hiiumaa), as inspector for nature protection (1962–1975),^[3] radio broadcaster for Eesti Raadio, freelance writer and nature campaigner.^[1] In Eesti Raadio he ran the program Looduse aabits (ABC book of nature) from 1976 to 1986.^[3]

In October 1980, Jüssi was a signatory of the Letter of 40 Intellectuals, a public letter in which forty prominent Estonian intellectuals defended the Estonian language and protested the Russification policies of the Kremlin in Estonia.^[4] The signatories also expressed their unease against Republic-level government in harshly dealing with youth protests in Tallinn that were sparked a week earlier due to the banning of a public performance of the punk rock band Propeller.^[4]

In the beginning of the 1990s he was for a few years the president of Estonian Nature Fund. Jüssi has published numerous books, articles and audio recordings related to nature.^[3] He was the first recipient of Eerik Kumari Award, given to him in 1989.

Jüssi is probably the most influential person in Estonia engaged in writing, talking and popularising nature.^[5]

Notes

^
ISBN 1-85743-089-1
.

^ "Pilgrim Books". Retrieved 2009-01-27.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Nõmm, Andre (2006). "Fred Jüssi äratav õpetus". GO Discover (in Estonian) (4). Retrieved 2009-01-29.
^ ^a ^b Vahtre, Lauri (28 October 2005). "Ajaleht Pravda ja 40 keisri hullu". Postimees (in Estonian). Retrieved 25 August 2019.
^ Tüür, Kadri (2001). "On Estonian nature writing". Estonian Literary Magazine (13). Archived from the original on 2012-07-09. Retrieved 2009-01-27.