Common Languages

❤️ We’re proud to have translation support at the festival provided by @commonlanguages.collective , helping us make the space more accessible and inclusive. 🫶🏾 We believe that our struggles are interconnected and there is much to learn from each other. We don’t want language to be a barrier that stops us from connecting, so we are really pleased that @commonlanguages.collective can help us bridge linguistic gaps. 🌎We’ll have live French, Spanish, Arabic and Portuguese translation available. If you are attending the festival and require translation support, please visit an information station located on the First Floor & Second Floor Lobby.

Last month we supported the in person gathering of climate groups in Wilga, Poland. The gathering, organised by Collective Abundance, a collective supporting redistribution of wealth to climate justice organisers in Europe, aimed to nurture collective organised power amongst organisers on the periphery of the mainstream climate movement. 10 groups meet up during three days to discuss the struggles they are part of. It was energizing to assist this gathering and being able to accompany processes of redistribution and climate justice!

Starting your journey in interpretation can be a bit overwhelming, especially with all the specialized language involved. To help our interpreters who come from diverse levels of professional experience, we provide a glossary of key terms encountered in interpretation settings. Whether you’re a newbie or have some experience, here are some concepts we talk about often! 📍Interpretation– The oral process of conveying a spoken message from one language to another. 📍Multilingual Spaces– A group setting that is intentionally structured to fully incorporate 2+ languages, and therefore sultures, in all aspects of the group process. 📍RSI– Stands for (Remote Simultaneous Interpretation) Interpreters convey the speaker’s message in real-time remotely. This requires special audio equipment and advanced listening-talking skills. 📍Whispering Interpretation– Form of in-person interpretation where the interpretation is whispered into 1 or 2 participants ears rather than working from a mic. Understanding these terms will give you the knowledge you need to guide your interpreting journey! 🌍✨ – #LanguageJustice #Interpretation #LanguageAccess #InterpretingSkills #Glossary #LanguageLearning

Language Justice is an essential part of building strong global movements 🌎 At Common Languages, we firmly believe that to build powerful transformative and global movements: Language justice is vital Decolonizing and decentralizing our practices from with in create truly inclusive spaces Everyone deserves to participate fully in our global community 📍Our vision is rooted in recognizing the power of language; Moving towards language justice in our movements supports cultural organising, self-determination, racial justice and mobilisation across language barriers. We're committed to creating a more effective and inclusive movement. Together, we're working towards creating a world with more effective and inclusive movements so everyone can participate fully. Join us in reshaping our established practices and building bridges across cultures.🗣️✨ – #LanguageJustice #GlobalMovements #Inclusivity #Decolonize

Have you visited our website? 👀✨ Did you know Common Languages has a comprehensive website? It’s a handy resource for everything about our organisation! On our site, you’ll find: 📍Information about our mission and how Common Languages works 📍Opportunities to get involved in our interpreter community 📍Details about what support we can offer your organisation 📍Ways to contribute and support 📍Updates on ongoing projects and who we’ve worked with Visit our linktree in our bio for the link to our website 🔗 Follow us here on Instagram for regular updates, inspiring stories, and community highlights. – #LanguageJustice #CommonLanguages #StayConnected #website

Financial transparency and fairpay for all! We do much more than a typical language provision agency, we’re a collective supporting language justice. Our unique solidarity payment system works in the following ways Core funding to run our activities comes from grants and fundraising efforts We prioritize supporting orgs that can’t afford professional rates Collaborators who use our services contribute based on their means 100% of contributions go to our interpreter/translator pool The contributions fund supports our interpreter/translator community’s development and fair compensation for those who have worked with us as part of our community Our goal? Having a steady redistribution system every 6 months, which is when we assess and redistribute funds, prioritizing: Volunteers with 10-15 active hours Hard-to-source and non-colonial language supporters Global South-based volunteers Keep a look out for when we do our next round of redistribution payments to apply! Want to see our finances? Check out our Open Collective profile in our linktree for full transparency! 💸👀 – #LanguageJustice #SolidarityPayments #CommunityInterpreting #Redistributionfinances

As part of our vision to transform social movements, financial transparency is key! We’re committed to openly sharing how we manage our finances to ensure security and fairness for our community. ✊🏼 Common Languages team and core costs are covered through grants and funding sources. 📌Revenue Sources Through our collaborations with groups we receive donations and contributions. We have developed a sliding-scale contribution system by which we invite large organisations to pay competitive rates for our services to fund working pro-bono or at solidarity rates for small organisations and communities. 📌What Your Support achieves Every contribution from our services directly supports our interpreters and collaborators growth, ensuring they receive fair compensation and continued development opportunities. Some of the uses of contributions are: Interpreters’ Fair Pay, Development and Training for Interpreters, Coordination by Language Justice Leaders Thank you supporting our journey towards language justice! 🌍💬 – #Transparency #NonprofitFinance #languagejustice

Language justice is about building and sustaining multilingual spaces in our organizations and social movements so that everyone’s voice can be heard; both as an individual and as part of a diversity of communities and cultures. It helps us build power by opening doors to new members, leaders, and forms of leadership expanding our capacity to form a brighter future. There are many organisations and collectives that have been working to make language justice possible across movements and communities over the past years. We walk on the path of organisations, community leaders and organisers that have open the way forward to bring language justice to everyone. You can find some of the resources we’ve collected from other collectives on our Linktree in our bio 🔗. – #LanguageJustice #resources #socialjusticereadinglist #expanding knowledge

Ensuring effective and equitable communication across languages is at the heart of language justice. For interpreters working in community settings or when sharing important ideas across language barriers, following best practices is crucial to bridging understanding. ✳️ Here are some best practices ✳️ ⚡️ Accurate and Meaningful Interpretation Interpreting is more than just translating words; it’s about conveying the full meaning and cultural context. Take the time needed to ensure your interpretation is accurate and meets the communication needs of the individuals involved. 📝 Create glossaries for sector and themes Using glossaries for the topic of discussing when interpreting can be an essential way of considerately communicating the speaker’s intention. It can also help when live interpreting. 📍Prioritize Cultural Competency Understanding the cultural background of the people you are interpreting for is essential. This helps in providing interpretations that are not only linguistically accurate but also culturally appropriate. 🪢 Foster Inclusive Spaces Work towards creating multilingual spaces where all languages are valued and represented. This includes translating materials, providing interpretation services, and ensuring non-dominant language speakers are included and heard. By adhering to these best practices, interpreters can play a pivotal role in promoting language justice and ensuring equitable access to services for all! – #LanguageJustice #LanguageEquity #InterpreterLife #MultilingualWorld #BestPractices

Linguists Wanted 🗣️ Does your voice flow seamlessly between multiple languages? We’re seeking passionate bi/multilingual individuals fluent in Japanese, Persian, Swedish, Farsi, and Amharic to join our community championing language justice. We believe that the ability to communicate and access vital services in one’s native tongue is a fundamental human right. Yet millions around the world face linguistic barriers that marginalize their voices and limit opportunities. As an interpreter, you’ll play a crucial role in tearing down these barriers and empowering underrepresented language communities to be seen, heard and understood. Your skills will: ✨ Facilitate understanding between diverse cultures 🌐 Shape antiracist struggles, healthcare struggles, feminist groups and more 🕊 Foster dialogue, connection and mutual respect 💬 Amplify voices too often unheard or overlooked We’re looking for those with high proficiency in Japanese / Persian / Swedish / Farsi / Amharic / and others Prior experience is a plus, but we also provide training opportunities. Join our community using language as a force for positive change globally. Visit our website to learn more and apply today! (🔗 in our bio) – #LanguageJustice #LanguageEquity #Interpreters #TranslationJobs #MultilingualHire #VoicesForChange

Interested in language justice? Eager to be involved in meaningful work? Join our community of language workers by signing up for our newsletter! Quarterly, we’ll deliver updates straight to your inbox highlighting: 📚 Educational resources to learn about language justice and best practices ✨ Inspiring projects and events on language justice globally 📣 Highlights on powerful voices amplifying underrepresented linguistic communities 🗓 Upcoming events, campaigns and ways to take action 💡 Updates on the exciting new software we are developing and ways to contribute Whether you’re a linguist, teacher, activist, student, or a multilingual person, our newsletter has something for everyone. Let’s connect and celebrate the world’s rich linguistic diversity together. Sign up now on our website (link in bio) 🔗 . – #LanguageJustice #Infohub #LanguageActivism #MultilingualWorld

The loss of languages is tragic precisely because they are not interchangeable, precisely because they represent the distillation of the thoughts and communication of people over their entire history - Marianne Mithum These words from linguist Marianne Mithun cut straight to the heart of why we fight for Language Justice. ✊🏼 Languages are not just methods of communication - they are living embodiments of a people’s culture, identity and centuries of ancestral knowledge passed down through generations. When a language goes extinct, it’s an irreplaceable loss of human heritage. Today, there are over 7,000 living languages globally. However, linguists estimate that at least half of those tongues are at risk of falling silent forever within this century due to cultural assimilation, lack of education resources, and global language dominance. Language diversity is about preserving traditional stories, oral histories, epistemologies and practices. That’s why we’re committed to language justice, to fight and support communities in language reclamation and self-determination. Language is key to essential struggles we need to defend communities’ language rights and fight against the colonisation of language and knowledge. Join us in this crucial work to keep languages and cultures alive for future generations. The world is richer when all voices can be heard. – #LanguageJustice #RevitalizeLanguages #LanguageEndangerment #MotherTonguesMatter #QuoteOfTheDay