Languages (THE_1435);

UNESCO launched the United Nations (UN) International Year of Languages on February 21, 2008, International Mother Language Day, with an information workshop entitled “Standard-setting Instruments Promoting Multilingualism.” UNESCO is the lead agency for carrying out activities related to the international year in view of its extensive work in the area of promoting multilingualism (in education and cyberspace, for example), safeguarding endangered languages, and supporting indigenous languages linked with traditional ecological knowledge and environmental sustainability. The international year is accompanied by the slogan “languages matter!” and this reflects the wider context within which it and its related activities have been conceived.