The International Symposium on “Ecology of American Languages and Peoples: documentation, research, revitalization” was held in Cuenca, Ecuador, on December 4th and 5th, 2024, organized by the Network of Linguistic and Sociocultural Archives in South America (RALSAS) and the University of Azuay (Ecuador) in cooperation with CIPL.
The Symposium – conducted using a hybrid modality – sought to contribute to critical reflection on the concept of linguistic ecology from the social and human sciences perspective. The presentations considered around five lines of research and included the participation of the keynote speakers Bruna Franchetto (U. Federal do Rio de Janeiro), Rik van Gijn (U. Leiden), Jorge Gómez Rendón and Marleen Haboud (Pontificia U. Católica del Ecuador), and Anthony Woodbury (U. Texas), as well as 17 prestigious speakers from academic institutions in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Peru (see Program).
The Network of Linguistic and Sociocultural Archives in South America (RALSAS), which has been a member of CIPL since 2018, aims to promote interaction between non-indigenous and indigenous researchers and members of indigenous communities in South America aimed at creating and managing collaborative databases and developing linguistic and sociocultural documentation projects. Currently, RALSAS comprises the following academic institutions: Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad Nacional de Formosa (UNaF) and Universidad Nacional de San Juan (UNSJ), Argentina; Universidad de Chile, Chile; Universidad del Azuay (UDA), Ecuador; Centro de Estudios Antropológicos, Universidad Católica de Asunción (CEADUC), Paraguay; Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú and Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonia Peruana, Perú.
This event would not have been possible without the support of the rector of the Universidad del Azuay, Dr. Francisco Salgado Arteaga, UDA authorities, teaching and technical staff and students, as well as the permanent commitment of professors Dr. Priscila Verdugo and Dr. Jackelin Verdugo in the organization.
The generous sponsorship of the Permanent International Committee of Linguists made it possible for students and intercultural teachers from Ecuador and other South American countries to take part of the event, most of them present in person in the UDA Auditorium. The support offered allowed the enrolment of students from the UDA (26 scholarships), Universidad de Cuenca (15 scholarships), Instituto S.P. Intercultural Bilingüe Quilloac de Cañar (15 scholarships), UNSJ (2 scholarships), UNaF (3 scholarships), Universidad de Chile (3 scholarships), CONICET (6 scholarships) and CEADUC (2 scholarships), 72 scholarships in all. Furthermore, the event was followed by a significant audience through the UDA YouTube channel, clearly confirming the relevance of the topic.
