Mission Statement

Mission Statement

Our anchoring standpoint derives from the Preamble of the 1982 Recommendations of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers, in which they acknowledge the fact

“that the rich heritage of diverse languages and cultures in Europe is a valuable common resource to be protected and developed, and that a major educational effort is needed to convert that diversity from a barrier to communication into a source of mutual enrichment and understanding;

[and …] that it is only through a better knowledge of European modern languages that it will be possible to facilitate communication and interaction among Europeans of different mother tongues in order to promote European mobility, mutual understanding and co-operation, and overcome prejudice and discrimination […]” (Recommendations R (82)18).

Our approach to understanding linguistic and cultural landscapes of Europe is predominantly usage-based and data-driven, but our ultimate goal is always within pedagogical implications and applications of our research findings. The values of plurilingualism and democratic citizenship lie at the heart of our research, pedagogical and professional interests and activities and we are fully comitted to promoting them within and across geographical and disciplinary borders.