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We picture prisons as steel and locks. But safer streets depend on prison design that helps people come back whole.
As in other Western prisons, Estonia follows evidence-based strategies to reduce reoffending. That’s why interior design and science matter in shaping rehabilitation. But how is it done?
Prisons often bring to mind gates, barbed wire, cameras, and rigid routines. Yet when you step into the new language café in Tallinn prison, you see something different: round tables, colorful chairs, green leaf-shaped carpets, and Estonian patterns on the walls. Inmates chat over coffee and cookies. What looks like a casual café scene is in fact the most challenging part of language learning: speaking without fear of mistakes.
Similar cafés now exist in all three Estonian prisons. They matter in a country where roughly one-third of the population speaks Russian as a mother tongue, and many lack Estonian skills. A June 2023 study showed that more than half of Estonia’s inmates do not speak Estonian as their first language and face challenges in everyday conversations. But eventually, all of them will return to society, where Estonian is essential for work and everyday life.
According to the 2023 integration monitoring of Estonian society, the biggest challenge faced by language learners is improving their conversational skills. Reading and writing come easier; speaking remains a barrier. Classrooms are often intimidating spaces, with bright lights and strict formality.
From the need to improve conversational skills came the decision to introduce language cafés into Estonian prisons, to lower the fear of speaking and encourage natural conversation.
But prisons lacked suitable rooms. This is when the Department of Prisons turned to the Estonian Academy of Arts (EKA). Students toured all three prisons, studied living conditions, and developed ideas for new spaces. Their designs were refined into the final look of the cafés.
For the students, it was an eye-opening experience of a world they had only seen in films. It highlighted a universal truth: everyone needs cozier, more human spaces. Not only inmates. Feedback confirmed that the new rooms made prisoners feel more relaxed, even “at home.”
The final look of the language cafe in Estonian prisons. Photo credit: Photo by Evert Palmets (EKA)
Design that shapes behavior
Across Europe, the impact of space on well-being has become more visible in hospitals, airports, and schools. Prisons are no exception. In prisons, design does not only serve an aesthetic function. “It’s not art for art’s sake,” explains Bachmann. Funika-Müür states that the project was based on human-centered design and environmental psychology, asking how space can affect behavior, motivation, and rehabilitation.
The goal of prison is not only to lock people up but to help them develop the skills to return to society as law-abiding citizens. That means the gap between prison life and the outside world should not be too wide.
Ultimately, it’s less important how a person behaves in a controlled environment. “We want to avoid the effect of two worlds. The most important moment is when the prisoner switches from outer motivation to inner motivation in their law-abiding behaviour,” says Bachmann.
One approach is the Nordic model of “normalized” spaces, where not everything is bolted down. A room with movable chairs gives inmates a chance to prove, to themselves and to others, that they can solve conflicts without violence. Other design details matter too: round shapes, natural materials, softer lighting, and reduced echo all support calmer communication.
Even small touches build autonomy. In prison, most daily choices are made on behalf of inmates. The lights go on in the morning, the mealtimes are fixed, and food is put in front of you. “Imagine a person going back to real life, where he stands in the shop and has to choose which milk to buy among about 20 different kinds,” explains Bachmann. Thereby, after release, making simple daily decisions could prove challenging and mentally overwhelming for the person. According to Bachmann, it doesn’t matter whether the room serves as a language café or has another function.
What matters is that the room has a real-life feel, which eventually softens the transformation.
Balancing trust and safety
Of course, safety remains the priority. Not all prisoners are ready for normalized furniture, so such spaces are mostly used in shared rooms and group activities. Still, even minor changes can alleviate stress and foster responsibility.
Public opinion is another hurdle. Many taxpayers question why prisons should invest in design. “It might seem like an unnecessary luxury,” says Bachmann. That is why linking projects to research is essential. Science helps explain how certain elements in design can decrease stress and how interior design can have a calming effect on a person who is otherwise anxious. This, in turn, supports the reintegration processes. “If we can show how design can help make our streets safer, then they realize that it’s not such a big cost,” Bachmann says.
Beyond the prison walls
The prison language cafés are more than classrooms. They show how science, design, and policy can work together to solve social challenges. They also highlight Estonia’s unique integration issues, where Russian and Estonian communities often live side by side without real communication. By encouraging dialogue behind prison walls, the cafés address problems that exist far beyond them.
For the students and designers, the project was a rare chance to rethink prison life and its impact on society. And for instructor Ljudmila Funika-Müür, it was personal too: “This project enabled me to use my own experience with integration and language learning and give something back to society.”
This article is written by Marian Männi editor Anete Kruusmägi. This article was funded by the European Regional Development Fund through Estonian Research Council.
If this look at design has drawn you in, don’t stop sketching! Shape your curiosity into our next article and read more about how EKA Researcher Nesli Hazal Oktay Sees Design Co-Creation as a Way to Support Remote Intimacy!
