Maaya - World Network for Linguistic Diversity

Maaya — the World Network for Linguistic Diversity — is a multilateral network created to contribute to the enhancement and promotion of linguistic diversity in the world. -- Maaya serves as a platform of exchange and sharing in the area of shared knowledge, where technology offers a great potential for languages, but is also a risk to them, as to date only a very small number of languages of the 6000 spoken in the world are available in cyberspace. At present, the Network serves as the moderator of the sub-theme on Linguistic Diversity of the action line C8 of the WSIS Plan of Action and has initiated the Dynamic Coalition for Linguistic Diversity of the Internet Governance Forum. The Maaya Network was founded in the context of the recent World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS), where linguistic and cultural diversity in cyberspace was one of the priorities identified. Maaya was initiated by the African Academy of Languages (ACALAN), under the auspices of the African Union. While started in the context of the WSIS, Maaya also includes organizations not solely focusing on cyber issues. It is a multi-stakeholder network, involving all actors including civil society, governments and international organizations. Its mission is to value and promote linguistic diversity as a basis of the unity of human communication.

http://www.maaya.org

International implementation

Ongoing from

African Academy of Language (www.acalan.org) Association YSB Sängö (sango.free.fr) ENSTA (www.ensta.fr) Funredes (funredes.org) Global Knowledge Partnership (www.globalknowledge.org) ICVolunteers (www.icvolunteers.org) International Literacy Institute of the University of Pennsylvania (ILI) (www.literacyonline.org/HTMs/ili.htm) International Telecommunications Union (ITU) (www.itu.int) Intlnet (intlnet.org) Language Observatory (www.language-observatory.org) Linguamón - House of Languages (www.linguamon.cat) Linguasphere Observatory (www.linguasphere.org) Multilingual Internet Names Consortium (MINC) (minc.org) Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF) (www.francophonie.org) SIL International (www.sil.org) Thai Computational Linguisitcs Laboratory (www.tcllab.org) Toile Métisse (www.toile-metisse.org) UNESCO (www.unesco.org) Union latine - Direction terminologie et industries de la langue (www.unilat.org) New members Agence tunisienne internet (www.ati.tn) EUROLINC ( www.eurolinc.eu ) Fantsuam Foundation ( www.fantsuam.org ) Institut des sciences et des nouvelles technologies National University of Computer and Emerging Sciences (www.nu.edu.pk/default.aspx) Orissa Primary Education Programme Authority (OPEPA) (www.opepa.in) REUSSI (www.reussi.org)

* The role of governments and all stakeholders in the promotion of ICTs for development
      * National e-strategies
* Access to information and knowledge
* Cultural diversity and identity, linguistic diversity and local content
* Ethical dimensions of the Information Society

• Network