AIT takes the lead at international MDG conference

 

The conference from 9 - 11 November 2010 was a platform for
professional information exchange that aimed to raise public awareness,
inspire meaningful action and inform decision makers on ways to
effectively incorporate language and education into strategies and
policies to achieve MDGs and education for all.

H. E. Abhisit Vejjajiva, Prime Minister of Thailand, inaugurated the
event which featured keynote speaker Professor Suzanne Romaine from
Oxford University.

The event also highlighted the importance of language as more than a
communication tool. Language informs identity of individuals and
groups, and is a cornerstone of people’s intrinsic social integration
and cultural development, organizers said.
 

Conference goers expressed concern that minorities are being left
behind in the development process as countries act to attain millennium
development goals targets by 2015. Experts feared that increased
marginalization of minorities and greater disparity may hinder efforts
to overcome poverty, illiteracy and disease.
 

The conference’s sessions focused on four thematic areas, with a
number of associated sub-themes also included. All four themes or
tracks: Language and Universal Primary Education; Language and Gender
Equality; Language, Health, Nutrition and Protection; and Language and
Sustainable Development - reflected elements of the eight MDGs.
 

Prof. J.K. Routray of ARCMDG represented AIT as a member of the
Conference Steering Committee and was coordinator of the Track 4
activities on "Language and Sustainable Development”, which was largely
the responsibility of AIT faculty members. The sub-themes of this track
were Language and Achievements of Development Goals (Moderator, Dr. M.
M. Ahmad, AIT); Tradition, Ethnicity and Culture (Moderator, Dr. Raquel
Castilo); Empowerment of Indigenous Communities (Moderator, Dr. Ellen A
Herda); Sustainable Development (Moderator, Dr. Gratien Gualbert
Atindogbe); Linguistic and Cultural Considerations (Moderator, Matthew
Laszewski, AIT); and Education and Training for Sustainable Development
(Moderator, Prof. J. K. Routray, AIT). Prof. Routray
also participated in the final plenary session and presented the
summary of the Track 4 thematic area's findings, along with
final reports from the other three tracks.

Fourteen papers were presented in Track 4 which were screened and
reviewed by AIT faculty members Prof. C. Visvanathan, Dr. Thammarat
Kootatep, Dr. Kyoko Kusakabe, Dr. M. M. Ahmad, Prof. J. K. Routray, and
Dr. Jonathan Shaw, Director of AIT Extension, and Mr. Matthew
Laszewski, Director of AIT Language Center.

The conference was co-organized by UNESCO, UNICEF, the Southeast Asian
Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), SIL International, the
Royal Institute of Thailand, Mahidol University’s Research Institute
for Languages and Cultures of Asia, the Asian Institute of Technology
(AIT), Save the Children, CARE, and the Asia South Pacific Association
for Basic and Adult Education (ASPBAE).