FOSTERLANG (Fostering linguistic capital: a roadmap for reversing the diversity crisis and activating societal benefits in Europe) is the new three-million-euro flagship European project aiming to safeguard and promote Europe’s endangered and minoritised languages which launched on May 1st 2025.
Speaking to the media project co-ordinator Prof. Justyna Olko (University of Warsaw) said: “We are thrilled by the opportunities generated by this collaborative project uniting academic and social partners. We will be working together to foster linguistic diversity and the self-empowerment of language communities, enhancing their potential for Europe’s wellbeing and socio-cultural prosperity.”
One of the major outcomes will be a Linguistic Capital Road Map which will set out a substantive set of recommendations for the short, medium, and long-term on effective and meaningful strategies for fostering Europe’s linguistic capital and safeguarding minoritised languages.
The project will focus on fostering linguistic capital not only from the perspective of protecting language diversity, but also showcasing how speakers of contested languages can enhance economic, demographic, social and health-related components of human capital.
The project will focus on fostering linguistic capital not only from the perspective of protecting language diversity, but also showcasing how speakers of contested languages can enhance economic, demographic, social and health-related components of human capital.
The three-year project will be led by the University of Warsaw in partnership with the European Language Equality Network (ELEN), along with Linguapax International, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea/University of the Basque Country, University of Oslo, University of the Highlands and Islands, Prifysgol Cymru Y Drindod Dewi Sant/University of Wales Trinity Saint David, Dublin City University, and Pädagogische Hochschule Kärnten/University of Teacher Education in Carinthia. They will be joined by NGOs representing Kashubian, Lemko, and Wymysorys (Naja Skola, Association Ruska Bursa, and Association Wilamowianie), ELEN member organisations and other collaborating language communities. (Fosterlang 2025)
