International Conference on Multilingualism at VMU

International Conference on Multilingualism at VMU

The Institute of Foreign Languages of Vytautas Magnus University (VMU IFL), in cooperation with the Language Teachers’ Association of Lithuania (LTAL), is organising the 7th international scientific conference “Sustainable Multilingualism 2023”, which will take place in Kaunas, Lithuania, on June 9-10. Abstracts are accepted until April 1.

The tradition of sustainable multilingualism at VMU

The international conference “Sustainable Multilingualism 2023” is the seventh conference organised by VMU IFL and LTAL, which aims at bringing together language policy makers, language and plurilingual competence researchers, language teachers, students and anyone interested in discussing and sharing their experiences, insights and perspectives in the key issues of multilingualism.

“The Institute of Foreign Languages is a promoter of the tradition of multilingualism at VMU, contributing to this mission through its direct work, offering and facilitating the learning of more than 30 languages for the university, city and national community. In addition to that, we also fulfil this mission through our international activities, bringing together foreign and Lithuanian scholars to solve common problems. Almost 200 scholars from all over the world come to the conference organised every two years. This includes both established scholars with extensive experience and those who are just starting their careers, such as former or current VMU students,” explains Prof. Dr. Nemira Mačianskienė, the chair of the scientific committee of the conference “Sustainable Multilingualism”.

Conference themes and speakers

The two-day international conference will address the topics of multilingualism in society (language policy implementation, language preservation, linguistic human rights, etc.), language education and plurilingual competence development, multilingualism and professional practice, the development of teachers’ plurilingual competence, and the topics on the contemporary Lithuanian language, which is the basis of our plurilingual competence.

Plenary speakers, world-renowned scholars, will present their current research on the challenges of language learning/teaching, translation and the future of a multilingual world. This year’s conference programme includes four plenary presentations by:

  • Enrica Piccardo, the Head of the Centre for Educational research in Languages and Literacies at the University of Toronto, Canada and co-author of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (2020) and The Routledge Handbook of Plurilingual Language Education;
  • François Grin, the Director of the Observatory on Economy, Languages and Training at the University of Geneva (Switzerland);
  • Maria Teresa Zanola, the President of the European Council for Languages (ELC/CEL), the Professor of French Linguistics at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Milan, Italy) and the Director of the Observatory of Terminologies and Language Policies;
  • Lithuania will be represented by Auksė Balčytienė, the Professor at the Department of Public Communication, the Faculty of Political Science and Diplomacy, VMU.

Registration

The deadline for abstract submission and registration for the conference Sustainable Multilingualism 2023 is April 1. Abstracts are accepted in English, French, German, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Spanish and Ukrainian.

You are kindly invited to share your research or just listen to the presentations and chat in a foreign language with the conference guests, improving your plurilingual competence.

Abstract submission and registration are available on the conference website.

SM 2023 CALL FOR PAPERS