Strasbourg, 25.09.2009 -
Statement on the European Day of Languages by Council of Europe Director General Gabriella Battaini Dragoni

‘Speaking to other people in their language breaks down linguistic and cultural barriers’, said Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni, Council of Europe Director General for Education, Culture and Heritage, Youth and Sport and Co-ordinator for Intercultural Dialogue, on the occasion of the 9th edition of the European Day of Languages (EDL) - 26 September. - ‘Language learning stimulates our awareness of different cultures and indeed can help us stand back and get a new perspective on our own culture.’

Gabriella Battaini-Dragoni recalled that the importance of language learning is stressed in the Council of Europe’s White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue ‘Living together as equals in dignity’ as a means of developing curiosity and openness to otherness, avoiding stereotyping, and finding out just how enriching an experience interacting with others can be. Intercultural understanding is a basis for productive dialogue.

The European Day of Languages was declared by the Council of Europe in 2001, European Year of Languages, to celebrate linguistic and cultural diversity.

More information on the EDL website: www.coe.int/JEL

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