May I have a beer please?

How to order a drink in multilingual Europe.

EUNIC Netherlands has the pleasure to announce the fourth appointment of its series on multilingualism, and invite you to join us for this online event on December 16, at 19:30.

The focus of the series’ upcoming event will be on language diversity and everyday practices of multilingualism in polyglot environments. Whether you feel confident switching codes according to the group you interact with, or you rather prefer using your mother tongue even when you are abroad, this evening can be an inspiring and insightful opportunity to reflect on linguistic themes that are becoming more and more topical in our interconnected and always in movement societies.

Does the promotion of language diversity hinder the protection of nations’ official languages, or is it an initiative to speed up inclusion? To what extent does language determine someone’s identity, and does this intertwined relation change when a person moves to other countries? Experts from different countries and with a different academic background will address these questions, and guide the public into a discussion addressing, among the others, multilingual education, the role of English in modern Europe, and the use of a lingua franca beyond borders.

Marc van Oostendorp, Dutch writer for Onze Taal and professor at Radboud University Nijmegen, will lead the debate with international panellists:
Harro Glastra (EU), information and communication officer at the European Commission;
Jonathan Bernaerts (Belgium), researcher at KU Leuven Centre for Public law;
Corinna Tammenmaa (Finland), language law advisor at the Finnish Ministry of Justice;
François Grin (Switzerland), professor in economics at the Faculty of Translation and Interpreting at the University of Geneva.

This conversation will be an occasion for multiple European perspectives to raise, and for the public’s reaction to inspire future policy making and practices. No need for registration! The introduction will be given by Daria Bouwman, former President of EUNIC Netherlands. A Q&A session at 20:40 will follow the panel discussion.

You can rewatch the programme here.

This programme has been organised and financed by EUNIC Netherlands and the Directorate-General for Translation of the European Commission.