IALC Conference, Wales 2024
Live your language: Increasing the use of minority and official languages
The eighth conference of the International Association of Language Commissioners (IALC) was held in Wales on 11 June 2024. The conference provided an opportunity to explore the real effects of legislating in favour of languages in Wales and beyond. As well as practical sessions sharing the experience of Welsh institutions there were contributions by the following main speakers:
- Raymond Théberge, Commissioner of Official Languages, Canada
- Professor Fernand de Varennes, Former UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues
- Professor Rob Dunbar, UK representative on the Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Language
Recordings of these sessions can be found here: https://languagecommissioners.org/Videos-IALC-conference-2024.
Official photos from the conference can be found here: International Association of Language Commissioners - Gallery Page
Watch Professor Colin H. Williams welcoming IALC members and delegates to Wales:
A short video celebrating the highlights of the events can be viewed here:
The event was supported by Welsh Government.
Official Launch of the IALC Conference
A launch event was held prior to the conference on 10 June in Cardiff Bay. The launch was an opportunity to celebrate ten years since the establishment of the IALC in the company of:
- Efa Gruffudd Jones, Welsh Language Commissioner and Chair of the IALC
- Delyth Jewell MS, Chair of the Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
- Professor Fernand de Varennes, Former UN Special Rapporteur on minority issues
Renowned poet Mererid Hopwood read her specially-commissioned poem to mark the occasion and entertainment was provided by the musician and composer Gwilym Bowen Rhys and the Ysgol Hamadryad choir.
The launch was sponsored by Delyth Jewell MS.
A special thanks to Darwin Gray for their generous sponsorship.
Annual General Meeting 2024
