Preface by Viviane Reding, European Commissioner Responsible ...

EUROPEAN YEAR OF LANGUAGES 2001: SOME HIGHLIGHTSLanguage learningis for everyoneThe language train throughthe Tyrol attracted plenty ofcommuters every day51% of the EU populationwould be preparedto learn languages for anhour or more a week.festival in a specially created "European village",with guests and performances from many EUand non-EU countries.In Austria, meanwhile, the "Marktplatz derSprachen" (Languages marketplace) project sentteachers from adult education centres to offertasters and advice in shopping centres and otherpublic places in Vienna, St. Pölten, Graz, andEisenstadt.Bringing languages to the publicMillions of people in Europe travel to work onpublic transport ever day. Why not use that timeto learn a language ? That was the idea behindthe Sprachenzug (Language train) project alsobased in Austria, this time in Innsbruck.Over a six week period, in a special carriage ofa daily commuter train through the Tyrol,passengers had the chance to take free conversationlessons and computer based courses infive languages. As the organisers, the TyrolBerufsörderunginstitut (vocational training institute)put it: "It is great to be able to bring theactivity to the target group rather than the otherway round".The "language chat cafés" in Norway, alsobrought languages to potential learners in aplace where they were likely to be receptive tonew ideas. The Tønsberg Folkeuniversitetet(University for all) worked with café owners inseven towns in south-east Norway to offercustomers food, wine, music and literaturefrom various countries.Organiser Judy Fossgard said : "Our emphasis wasthat language is so much more than words."Partly as a result of the chat cafés the Folkeuniversitetethas experienced a 40% rise inenrolments to learn languages.A little goes a long waySome language learners become discouragedbecause they do not become fluent immediately.But one does not need a perfect command of alanguage to use it successfully. It is possible tounderstand the gist of something, especially inwriting, by knowing or guessing the meaning ofjust some of the words. The "E-pedia" Internetcompetition launched on 26 September inThessalonaki, Greece, aimed to raise interest inlanguage learning and show that a littleknowledge could go a long way. Entrants had torecognise different languages from short extractsof newspapers, reports or web-sites and translateshort texts into Greek.Business opportunitiesBetter language skills can increase businessefficiency, reduce costs and improve competitiveness.Many projects reflected this.On 26 September in Copenhagen, a partnershipof 14 organisations attracted 3000 participantsto a national exhibition and conference called"Europa - sprogenes arbejdsplads" (Europe –the workplace of languages). The event broughttranslation agencies, publishing houses andlanguage technology companies together withpotential clients.employees and to adapt their business practice todifferent cultures. As one speaker put it:"Language skills are not only a professional toolbut part of the corporate identity. They shouldalso be a source of corporate pride".Speaking the languages of trading partners is asimportant in agriculture as in any other business.More contacts between rural areas can helpmake Europe more environmentally friendly andimprove the quality of production. These werekey themes of the "Helpdesk" project managedby the Confederazione Italiana Agricoltoridell'Umbria (Federation of Umbrian farmers)with rural partners from Ireland, France andSpain.As part of the main Italian celebration of theEuropean Day of Languages in Perugia, theFederation organised a conference and distributedregional farm products. The project also setup a Internet forum for language teachingexperts, agricultural businesses, farmers andfarmworkers.Special needsThe "Freunde sprechen viele Sprachen"(Friends speak lots of languages") project inHamburg illustrated how children and youngpeople with disabilities or special needs can enjoylanguage learning. The project organised 50different events across the city from 17-21September, involving mainstream and specialschools, further education colleges, teachers’trade unions and local politicians, including themayor of Hamburg.Among the activities were a video competition, amusic and dance festival attended by 2.500disabled children, and a photo-exhibition aboutthe many different nationalities of children livingin Hamburg.The challengeIn several countries, the "Languages Challenge"showed that learning languages is fun and thateven busy people can do it.Part of the languages marketplace in St Pölten, Austriato reach achievable learning targets. Some raisedmoney for charity at the same time throughsponsorship from friends and businesses.Over fifty well-known UK public figures includingactors, television personalities, sports stars andMembers of the UK, Scottish and Welsh Parliamentsalso took part. Former England footballcaptain Gary Lineker urged people to take up thechallenge, saying : "I've really enjoyed learningSpanish and Japanese. Getting to grips with anew language can be great fun, and you learn somuch about other people and what makes themtick."The challenge theme was enthusiastically takenup by the media. Many of the national andregional radio stations which cooperated withthe Commission over the European Day ofLanguages ran their own versions of thechallenge.22% do not learnlanguages becausethey believe they are"not good" at them.The Help Desk project inItaly produced this posterThe aim was to encourage companies to developa language strategy for their business and theirIn the UK, where the idea originated, thousandsof members of the public challenged themselves89