Daniel Bögre Udell &Kristen Tcherneshoff

New York (Operating globally)

Project Overview

Language diversity is in peril: today some 7,000 languages are spoken and signed around the world, but acute challenges facing linguistic communities—from forced assimilation to political exclusion—could make 3,000 of those languages fall silent by the end of this century. Such a loss would take a tragic toll upon our collective spiritual, cultural, and ecological knowledge. In response, Wikitongues seeks to build a “language revitalization accelerator” that gives marginalized people resources to launch mother-tongue projects in their communities. By equipping individuals to document, teach, and promote their languages, the project strengthens intergenerational heritage, cultivates self-expression, and builds community resilience. Research shows, for example, that language revitalization promotes better mental health and stronger outcomes in early childhood education. And because Indigenous languages encode expressions reflecting delicate ecosystems, sustaining threatened languages directly supports biodiversity and resource conservation. Through interlocking strategies of language documentation, revitalization, and activism, Wikitongues shows how promoting language justice can forge needed connections for people and the planet. “In preserving and understanding what makes us different,” noted Wikitongues cofounder Daniel Bögre Udell, “we may come to understand what makes us the same.”

Five Questions

1What needs does your project address and how?
2Tell us about a moment that helped inspire your idea.
3What is the biggest challenge you face right now?
4What other leaders have informed your work?
5Describe a participant, client, community member, or someone else who represents what your project is all about.

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