On the occasion of the European Day of Languages on 26 September 2012, the Åland Islands Peace Institute hosted an academic conference entitled “Changing Linguistic Landscapes – Languages Law and Multilingualism in Context”.The European linguistic landscape is experiencing a profound transformation. The acknowledgement of the position of minorities, migration and a general increase of mobility within Europe and beyond demand for the development of language legislation, public services and education as well as other sectors of society.
Within ELDIA 14 Finno-Ugric language groups across eight European countries have been studied and compared. The aim is to acquire knowledge as to how minority languages can be strengthened in Europe and globally. The project runs from March 2010 until June 2012 under the guiding role of the University of Mainz and Professor Anneli Sarhimaa. Responsible for disseminating information and results is Professor Johanna Laaksoat the University of Vienna. The Åland Islands Peace Institute has role focuses on the legal and institutional dimension of the project. The first preliminary results have been published electronically within the publication series Working Papers in European Language Diversity ont eh webpage of the ELDIA project at www.eldia-project.org.
The Conference “Changing Linguistic Landscapes – Languages Law and Multilingualism in Context” took place at Alandica with the following keynote speakers:
Dr Fernand de Varennes, 2004 Linguapax Laureate; Conseiller scientifique, Observatoire international des droits linguistiques, Université de Moncton, Canada; Editor-in-Chief, Asia-Pacific Journal on Human Rights and the Law; Visiting Professor, Faculty of Law, Hong Kong, China; Convenor, 13th Conference of the International Academy of Linguistic Law, Chiang Mai, Thailand, December 2012.
Dr Reetta Toivanen, Associate professor,Department for Social and Cultural Anthropology, University of Helsinki; Academy Research Fellow, Erik Castrén Institute for International Law, University of Helsinki; Senior Research Fellow at the Centre of Excellence in Global Governance Research, University of Helsinki, responsible for the media analysis within the ELDIA-project.
Dr. Sia Spiliopoulou Åkermark, lecturer in Public International Law, director of the Åland Islands Peace Institute, member of the Council of Europe’s Advisory Committee for National Minorities (2010 – 2014); responsible for the legal analysis within the ELDIA project.
