Join us for a roundtable discussion on themes of creativity, multilingualism and community building. The conversation will be moderated by Assistant Dean International at the University of Limerick, Dr Anca Minescu, an expert in the field of ethnic relations, cultural diversity and group identities. Dr Minescu will be joined by artists and other academics to discuss why artistic communities, policy makers and government bodies need to embrace multilingualism through creative means, and how this can be done.
This discussion will be followed by a participatory Workshop exploring the topic of multilingualism and the arts at a grassroots level.

A reception event will follow at 5.30 pm marking the beginning of the Mother Tongues Festival and the launch of our 2023 Spotlight publication, featuring national and international artistic and creative projects that embrace multilingualism.

Find the enchanted treasures that await you with Kata and her special guests! Join Kata and her puppet friends as they lead you on a magical quest. Along the way, children and their parents will be transported to another world through storytelling and interactive creative projects.

Booking is required. When you reserve a child ticket the accompanying adult goes free. Children must be under the supervision of an accompanying adult at all times.

This workshops series is part of the award-winning Language Explorers programme, which has shown to improve parents’ and children’s confidence in using their mother tongue and enhance children’s language and communication skills. Find out more.

Put your language explorer hats on and delve into the adventure as pirates do! The journey will be led by artist and main piratess Alexandra Gogan, who’s set on building stories, conquering new languages with word games (and beyond!) and, most importantly, unleashing your seeker’s mindset.

Continue the pirate quest at the Interactive Museum of Languages for Young Audiences (IMLYA). IMLYA is an exhibition where children have the opportunity to interact with language-based sculptures inspired by linguistic artefacts, signs, pictographs, and alphabets. By engaging with the art exhibit, children will develop an understanding of other languages and cultures and unlock their creative potential. You will find IMLYA in the Library from February 11th.