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News Release
11 June 2001 European Commission Funds European Year of Languages Projects in the United Kingdom
The European Commission today announced co-financing, under the European Year of Languages 2001, for 16 projects based in the United Kingdom. The key themes of the Year are that Europe is - and will stay - multilingual, that learning languages brings important cultural and economic opportunities and that everyone can do it, regardless of age or background.
The Languages Challenge is a flagship UK initiative for the Year. Via the UK’s EYL website at www.eyl2001.org.uk anyone who so wishes can take up the challenge of learning a language, even if it’s only a few words at first. 34 Members of Parliament and several celebrities are already taking part. Successful participants will be encouraged to celebrate their achievement on the European Day of Languages on 26 September.
There are many other innovative projects. Leeds Metropolitan University will take a Language Roadshow to all secondary schools within a 100 mile radius of Leeds between September and December. In Birmingham there will be a Mardi Gras style multilingual street festival held on 15 September. In parallel, local radio stations will be challenged to broadcast weather reports in other European languages. These and several other UK projects emphasise the link between learning European languages and appreciation of the active multilingualism already brought to many UK communities by residents from diverse ethnic backgrounds.
The Commission will also be co-financing a European film festival organised by the Queens Film Theatre in Belfast, with films screened in their original languages and a chance for the audience to take part in language related activities. The festival will open on the European Day of Languages on 26 September, continuing until 24 October.
Twelve schools in South Wales, led by Cyfartha High School in Merthyr Tydfil, will cooperate to organise a series of events involving Welsh, Gaelic and Breton along with French, German, Spanish and Italian. Activities will include sample language lessons for primary school pupils and publication of a recipe book with contributions from local and European celebrities and from schools in other countries.
In Scotland, schools in and around Glenrothes in Fife will participate in a one-day fair entitled 'Languages in the Global Economy'. Concentrating specifically on languages and cultural understanding in the workplace, the organisers, working closely with local businesses, embassies, cultural institutes and the local authority will provide students from 12 towns with a wide range of information and activities to encourage them to pursue language studies within and beyond school. The event will also focus on partner towns in Portugal, France, the Netherlands, Spain and Norway.
The European Theatre Company's circus clown will give over 40 performances, with audience participation, in French and English in primary schools across the United Kingdom between 29 October and 23 November.
European Commissioner Viviane Reding said:
"I am delighted that we received so many high quality applications. This shows the enormous interest in the European Year. These projects will be crucial in getting across our messages that Europe will always be multilingual and that learning languages is an opportunity for everybody."
The European Commission will provide a total of Euros 4,190,546 to 142 projects throughout the European Union, from the 1056 which applied. The projects selected cover the 11 official languages of the EU, plus Irish, Luxembourgish, Icelandic, Norwegian and a wide range of regional and minority languages, community languages and sign languages.
A wide range of highly original projects from across Europe will be funded, including for example a language learning carriage on a commuter train, a multilingual celebration of the philosophical thought of Immanuel Kant and the creation of a replica European town populated with native speakers of various languages. Several projects involve the production of television and radio programmes.
The funding announced today is additional to the €1,744,517 already allocated in January to 43 European Year projects (from 254 applications), under the first phase of the selection process. Those projects are now in progress.
The European Year of Languages is organised by the European Union and the Council of Europe. The European information campaign during the Year includes among many other things a multilingual, interactive Internet site (www.eurolang2001.org) and a booklet 'How you can learn languages', aimed at adults. The European Commission has also organised a wide-ranging 'Eurobarometer' survey of Europeans' foreign language skills and attitudes to languages. Results are available via the website.
A European Day of Languages, including a Europe-wide balloon launch and a host of national and local activities, will be held on September 26.
ENDS For further information and full project list see the European Commission/Council
of Europe website at www.eurolang2001.org.
A list of UK funded projects is available on the UK national site at www.eyl2001.org.uk/developments.htm
and further details can be obtained by e-mailing press@cilt.org.uk
1. European Commission spokesman:
2. European Commission representation in UK:
3. UK National Coordinating Body for the European Year of Languages: |
 
CILT is the UK Co-ordinator of EYL2001 Last updated on 11th June 2001 |