Yoko Alender facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Yoko Alender
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Official portrait, 2015
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| Minister of Climate | |
| In office 23 July 2024 – 25 March 2025 |
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| Prime Minister | Kristen Michal |
| Preceded by | Kristen Michal |
| Succeeded by | Andres Sutt |
| Member of the Riigikogu | |
| Assumed office 30 March 2015 |
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| Member of the Tallinn City Council | |
| In office 15 October 2017 – 3 March 2018 |
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| In office 20 October 2013 – 30 March 2015 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Yoko Alender
13 June 1979 Tallinn, Estonia |
| Political party | Estonian Reform Party (2014–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
Isamaa (2013–2014) |
| Spouse | Priit Juurmann |
| Children | 4 |
| Parent | Urmas Alender (father) |
| Alma mater | Estonian Academy of Arts |
| Occupation | Architect • Politician |
Yoko Alender (born 13 June 1979) is an Estonian architect and politician. She has been a member of the Riigikogu, which is Estonia's parliament. She is also a publisher and educator. Yoko Alender was a candidate in the June 2024 European Parliament elections for the Estonian Reform Party.
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Yoko Alender's Early Life and Education
Yoko Alender attended Tallinn 7th Secondary School from 1986 to 1989. She then studied at the Estonian School in Stockholm from 1989 to 1995. After that, she went to Södra Latin Gymnasium from 1995 to 1999.
From 1999 to 2010, she studied at the Estonian Academy of Arts. She focused on Architecture and Urban Planning. She earned a Master of Architecture degree. In 2022, she started her doctoral studies.
Career as an Architect and Advisor
Yoko Alender helped start Kultorg OÜ, a production company, from 2001 to 2004. She was also a board member there. From 2005 to 2006, she co-founded ZiZi & YoYo OÜ. This was an architecture and production company. She worked as an architect and project manager.
From 2006 to 2007, she was an architect and project manager at Urbanmark OÜ. From 2008 to 2012, she worked for the Tallinn Cultural Heritage Authority. She led the Department of Heritage Protection. From 2012 to 2014, she was an advisor. She gave advice on architecture and design at the Ministry of Culture.
Since 2012, she has been a board member of Yoko Oma OÜ. She also served on the boards of other organizations. These included AS Riigi Kinnisvara and the National Library of Estonia. She was also on the board of the State Forest Management Centre. Since 2021, she has been a board member of the Estonian-Swedish Cooperation Fund.
Yoko Alender's Political Journey
Yoko Alender joined the Reform Party in 2014. She has been a member of the Riigikogu for three terms. These are the 13th, 14th, and 15th terms.
Roles in the Riigikogu
In the 13th Riigikogu, she was a member of the Culture Committee. In the 14th term, she was Vice-Chair and then Chair of the Environment Committee. Since April 2023, Yoko Alender has been Vice-Chair of the Reform Party group. She is also a member of the Environment Committee.
Serving on the Tallinn City Council
She was a member of the Tallinn City Council from 2013 to 2015. She also served on the council from 2017 to 2018. In 2013, she was Vice-Chair of the Tallinn City Council. At that time, she was part of the Isamaa and Res Publica Union. She was also involved in local district boards.
Riigikogu Elections
In the 2015 Riigikogu elections, she ran in electoral district №. 4. She was on the list for the Estonian Reform Party. She received 2,715 votes and was elected. She was a member of the 13th Riigikogu. In 2019, she was also the Vice-Chairman of the Culture Committee.
In the 2019 Riigikogu elections, she ran in electoral district №. 5. She received 997 votes and was elected. From 2019 to 2021, she was Vice-Chairman of the Environment Committee. Since 2021, she has been its Chairman.
In the 2023 Riigikogu elections, she won 2051 votes. She ran in electoral district №. 10 (Tartu). She was elected directly from her district.
European Parliament Elections
In the 2014 European Parliament elections in Estonia, Yoko Alender received 1,633 votes. In the 2019 European Parliament elections in Estonia, she received 1,739 votes.
Other Activities and Interests
Yoko Alender has worked as an event organizer and project manager. She has also been a spokesperson, publisher, and trainer.
She has worked to preserve the creative works of her father, Urmas Alender. She helped publish his music and poetry. This included CDs, poetry books, and DVDs. She also helped publish a book about his life called "ALENDER" (2020). Other poetry collections she published were "Truu Nailonkuu" (2020) and "Elu-sina_mina" (2023). She organized concerts to celebrate her father's anniversaries.
She also wrote the book "Roostevaba raamat. Ruja" (1999). She was also the author of the book "ALENDER" (2020). She has translated books by other authors. These include Jan Gehl's "Cities for People" (2015 and 2017). She also translated "How to Study Life in Public Space" (2023). Other translations include David Sim's "The Soft City" (2022) and Gaia Vince's "The Century of Nomads".
She was one of the people who started the Estonian Institute of Buddhism in 2001. She was also a board member. She has studied and taught about Buddhism, yoga, and mindfulness. She also leads trainings on personal development.
In 2015, she completed a special course in national defense. Since 2019, she has been a trainer for the Alliance of Her. This program helps women politicians in Europe.
Personal Life
Yoko Alender is the daughter of the famous rock singer Urmas Alender. She was named after Yoko Ono, who was John Lennon's wife. Her father admired John Lennon.
Yoko Alender co-wrote and sang a song with her father. It was called "My childhood hero." This song was a cover of a Finnish band's song. She is married to Priit Juurmann, who is also known as DJ P. Julm. Yoko has four children: Kaarel Bo, Herta Ing, Uma Chantal, and Dag Ferdinand.
Together with her husband, Yoko helped create several popular places in Tallinn. These include FHoone, Frank, Frank Underground, Tabac, and Fono.
