Language Policy and Planning Issues in Promoting Cultural and Linguistic Diversity
A special issue of Societies (ISSN 2075-4698).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 318
Special Issue Editor
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The preservation and promotion of cultural diversity as a common heritage of humanity has been one of the prominent developmental goals in postmodern societies. According to the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, “culture is at the heart of contemporary debates about identity, social cohesion, and the development of a knowledge-based economy”, and “respect for the diversity of cultures, tolerance, dialogue and cooperation, in a climate of mutual trust and understanding, are among the best guarantees of international peace and security” (UNESCO, 2001). Similarly, issues of language choice and behavior have a leverage on the social, economic, and political stability of multicultural societies (Williams, 2015). UNESCO’s Yuelu Proclamation states that linguistic diversity is ultimately concerned with “the equal opportunities to access quality education and other basic public services, employment, health, social inclusion and participation in society”; thus, the protection and promotion of linguistic diversity is crucial to achieve sustainable development of humankind, advance economic development, and improve social inclusion and partnerships (UNESCO, 2019). However, despite the potential benefits of cultural and linguistic diversity in societal and human developments, there are concerns that the growing diversity of cultures and languages in society may increase the risk of language and cultural conflicts and become a potential source of social problems.
The main objective of this Special Issue is to explore the role and effect of language policy and planning in the preservation and promotion of cultural and linguistic diversity in the society. This serves as a response to the call “from policy makers, educationalists and language policy makers to promote diversity, address the issues of racism, and develop, through policy initiatives, positive cross-cultural attitudes in the wider society” (Hatoss, 2004). Contributors are invited to examine the language policy discourse or language planning endeavors in particular polities and analyze the theoretical, practical, ideological, and ethical issues involved in the promotion and management of cultural and linguistic diversity in various domains.
Contributions have to follow one of the three categories of papers (article, conceptual paper, or review) of the journal and address the topic of this Special Issue.
References
Hatoss, Anikó. 2004. Promoting Diversity through Language-in-Education Policies: Focus on Australia and the European Union. Current Issues in Language Planning, 5(4), 438–454.
Williams, Colin H. 2015. Language Policy and Planning Issues in Multicultural Societies. In Colin H. Williams (ed.), Linguistic Minorities in Democratic Context (pp. 74–119). Palgrave Macmillan, London.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 2001. UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity. Accessed from https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/universal-declaration-cultural-diversity.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). 2019. The protection and promotion of linguistic diversity addressed by UNESCO. Available online: https://www.unesco.org/en/articles/protection-and-promotion-linguistic-diversity-addressed-unesco.
Prof. Dr. Guowen Shang
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as conceptual papers are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Societies is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- language planning and policy
- cultural diversity
- linguistic diversity
- language-in-education planning
- multilingualism
- multiculturism
- human rights
- identity
- (in)equality
- conflict
- solidarity
- sustainable development
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.
