MultiLX – Strategies to strengthen European linguistic capital in a globalised world

Beschreibung

Increased mobility of people across territories has altered the linguistic make-up of Europe, while rapid developments in AI and other digital technology have revolutionised the way people communicate. There is an urgent need for language policy to keep pace with these changes. A key challenge in an increasingly diverse, digital and multilingual Europe is to put in place language policy to shape a future for young people which is inclusive, democratic and equitable. The new research project, which runs for three years from January 2025, will address this challenge by providing policy makers with comprehensive evidence of the communicative practices and language ideologies of young people in Europe. In this multi-site, team ethnographic project research teams will observe the communicative practices of young people in contexts where speakers are concerned with language endangerment (Norway, Switzerland), where people are investing in revitalisation of languages (Spain: Galicia, Catalunya), and where the prevalence of migrant languages renders multilingualism the norm (Germany, Italy). By conducting ethnographic observation in Barcelona, Berlin, Lucerne, Oslo, Santiago de Compostela, and Turin academics will gain a comprehensive knowledge of the everyday languaging practices of young people. With this evidence they will make recommendations for equitable language policy in Europe which reflects young people’s semiotic repertoires. MultiLX is led by Professor Angela Creese at University of Warwick, and is a collaboration between nine universities in eight countries: University of Warwick (Adrian Blackledge and Angela Creese); Universitetet i Oslo (Pia Lane); Fundació per a la Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (Maite Puigdevall Serralvo and Joan Pujolar Cos); Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg (Katharina Brizić); Università degli Studi di Torino (Gerardo Mazzaferro); University of Glasgow (Bernadette O'Rourke); Jyväskylän yliopisto (Sari Pietikäinen); University of Limerick (Helen Kelly-Holmes); Pädagogische Hochschule Luzern (Edina Krompák).