Expanding and strengthening partnerships in language-related activities for more inclusive and knowledgeable society in the Nordic-Baltic region

The aim of the project is to organise an experience exchange trip to meet with three Swedish organisations in the name of future cooperation in language-related activities.

The Language Museum Association works to stimulate interest in languages and their learning, promote positive change in society and create the Language Museum in Latvia, thus has started cooperation with different organisations worldwide to broaden perspective and learn new methods and techniques on how to work with language in a more inclusive, equal, sustainable and positive way.

That is why three cooperation partners have been chosen for the project: Språkkraft, Kompis Sverige and Språkmuseet Sweden.

The expected outcome of the project is strengthened cooperation between organisations in Latvia and Sweden in order to collaborate on the different projects in the future and familiarise themselves with new methods, perspectives, resources, best practices and tools on how to work with languages and language related issues in a more positive and inclusive way.

Efforts to expand partnerships in language-related activities result in a greater recognition and promotion of linguistic diversity within the Nordic-Baltic region. This involves supporting minority languages, promoting multilingualism, and encouraging language learning and preservation efforts by the development and dissemination of language resources that are accessible to diverse communities within the region.

By fostering inclusive language-related activities, the project contributes to greater awareness and appreciation of the cultural diversity present within the region. This helps strengthen social cohesion and promote mutual understanding among different linguistic and cultural communities.

Organizations

Språkkraft is a non-profit organisation, founded in Sweden in 2015, for the purpose of facilitating and increasing the efficiency of language learning for migrants to Sweden. Språkkraft has reached over 650,000 migrants and enabled them to learn Swedish through media-integrated digital language learning, made available in the apps Språkkraft Reaching Coach, SVT Språkplay, and UR Språkplay. The apps make various types of mass media more accessible for learners of a new language, and converted automatically into interactive learning materials.

Kompis Sverige was founded in 2013 by Pegah Afsharian and Natassia Fry. They had a dream of creating a more inclusive Sweden by facilitating meetings between different people in society. They have developed a program called The Buddy Program which provides a mutual exchange that broadens perspectives, reduces language barriers and breaks down prejudice. Its basis is friendship between a Swede and a future-Swede thus making inclusion and language learning easier and more sustainable creating a basis for positive social change.

Språkmuseet Sweden is a new establishment, in the process of creating the first museum of Swedish, supported by the Swedish Academy of Sciences. The museum is devoted to the Swedish language and to all other languages spoken in Sweden today and in the past, including the national minority languages (Sami, Roma, Jiddisch, Finnish and Meänkieli) as well as more recent immigrant languages. All the varieties of Swedish are also to be covered, such as different dialects and sociolects. A feasibility study was conducted during 2023 and a partnership was established with the Swedish Academy.