UNESCO launches Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation
18-07-2005 (Paris)
Increasing its efforts to provide project agents with the necessary tools for the safeguarding of languages in danger of extinction, UNESCO's Endangered Languages Programme is launching a world-wide call for submissions to its new 'Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation'.
The Register will serve as a nexus of knowledge supply and demand where experience in language protection projects can be accumulated and made publicly available, in order to give future preservation projects a head start.
The rationale behind the newly-launched Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation is simple: a collection of positive experience reports from past and current project agents shall provide a rich source of problem-solving approaches, hands-on solutions, practical information, adaptable models, and do's and don'ts of language preservation, to be easily accessed as a self-help tool by current and future project agents, empowering them in their ongoing efforts.
The lessons learned in the face of language endangerment can thus be passed on to a wider circle and a 'new generation' of activists world-wide.
For submission to the Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation, reports on any kind of community-based projects by governmental and non-governmental organisations, field agents, community members, and related experts are welcome. A Call for Submissions to the Register is currently being disseminated via international networks and listservs; the Call is also accessible via the Register's website hosted by the Endangered Languages Programme.
Each of the world's roughly 6.000 languages reflects a unique world-view and culture complex, thus representing an integral part of living human heritage. Yet experts estimate that today, over 50% of all languages are in danger of extinction. In accordance with UNESCO's Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, it is therefore the Endangered Language Programme's mission to aid in the preservation of linguistic diversity, and to provide assistance to language safeguarding efforts across the globe. The Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation will be a valuable tool for this purpose.
The rationale behind the newly-launched Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation is simple: a collection of positive experience reports from past and current project agents shall provide a rich source of problem-solving approaches, hands-on solutions, practical information, adaptable models, and do's and don'ts of language preservation, to be easily accessed as a self-help tool by current and future project agents, empowering them in their ongoing efforts.
The lessons learned in the face of language endangerment can thus be passed on to a wider circle and a 'new generation' of activists world-wide.
For submission to the Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation, reports on any kind of community-based projects by governmental and non-governmental organisations, field agents, community members, and related experts are welcome. A Call for Submissions to the Register is currently being disseminated via international networks and listservs; the Call is also accessible via the Register's website hosted by the Endangered Languages Programme.
Each of the world's roughly 6.000 languages reflects a unique world-view and culture complex, thus representing an integral part of living human heritage. Yet experts estimate that today, over 50% of all languages are in danger of extinction. In accordance with UNESCO's Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, it is therefore the Endangered Language Programme's mission to aid in the preservation of linguistic diversity, and to provide assistance to language safeguarding efforts across the globe. The Register of Good Practices in Language Preservation will be a valuable tool for this purpose.
Related themes/countries
· Communication and Information
· Multilingualism in Cyberspace: News Archives 2005
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