In the eyes of foreigners, Moldova’s story is often either unknown or filled with misconceptions. Russian propaganda is in full swing to ensure that it stays that way. It’s time to show there is much more to Moldova than misery, poverty, and Russian influence.

Because, trust us, there is!

We visited a company with a primarily self-taught team that makes the thinnest and longest wires in the world, helping the top brain scientists in their labs worldwide. We spoke to engineers who make the famous San Francisco trolleybuses safer. We published an article on Politico showing how Moldovan priests are moving away from Russian influence. The Estonian Internal Minister quoted our article statistics, calling Estonians to take the example of Moldovans.

We pitched the stories to bigger outlets like Euronews, Politico, Fair Observer, and Balkan Insight. We partnered with Moldova Matters, Emerging Europe, and moldova.org. We reached over four million people in one year.

A big effort was also made on social media where we shone a light on ordinary Moldovans and, with the help of subtitles, helped English speakers understand how Moldovans think and live. We published on Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

Trust is built on familiarity, stories, and relatable examples. There is a significant void in English-language content about Moldova, a gap that the Estonian media agency Journo Birds is positioned to fill. We regularly and systematically create an understanding of Moldova through storytelling and journalism.

Marian Männi lives in Moldova, but Tiina was flying to Moldova monthly.

Read more about the team here.

This one-year project, powered by the Western NIS Enterprise Fund, finished in August 2024.