The workshop aims at reflecting on the integration of multilingualism and sustainability, drawing from the experience and outputs of the Erasmus+ KA220 "Ecostories" and the "Io vado al museo" (I go to the museum) projects.
Critical action project
Ecostories is an international project involving universities and secondary schools in Italy, Austria, and Spain. It aims to promote environmental literacy skills among English teachers and students while connecting ecological and linguistic diversity. On the other hand, "Io va al museo" is a critical action research project designed in collaboration with the Peggy Guggenheim Collection (Venice, Italy). It aims to promote intercultural exchange and challenge stereotypes by engaging visitors from diverse backgrounds in translanguaging activities centred on works of art.
During the visit, participants are encouraged to use their full linguistic repertoire, especially their native tongues, reinforcing the idea that all languages are equally vital to a multicultural society.
Reflection on the Ecostories Teacher Competency Framework
The workshop will begin with a reflection on the Ecostories Teacher Competency Framework, specifically focusing on the importance of promoting multilingualism as part of a sustainability pedagogical paradigm. After this initial phase, educational outputs (such as didactic units and materials, in-class, museum, and outdoor creative activities, student-generated artefacts) from both projects will be presented.
These examples demonstrate a variety of creative methods used to build learning environments where linguistic diversity is seen as a resource for building a more just and sustainable society.
Storytelling activity
Finally, participants will engage in a storytelling activity aimed at visualising their professional and personal growth as multilingual and ecological educators/researchers. The core activity involves creating a symbolic tree using any medium, including drawing, collage, recycled materials, or digital tools, where each part of the tree metaphorically represents a stage of development (roots, trunk, branches, and fruit).
Following the creation of this artifact, participants write a short description explaining their metaphorical choices. Finally, the workshop will conclude with a discussion focusing on the potential of using this creative activity for both research and pedagogical purposes, specifically addressing the interconnections between languages, cultures, and environments.
Bio
Fabiana Fazzi is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Educational Linguistics and the Coordinator of the Master’s degree programme in Foreign Language Teaching at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Italy. Her research focuses on the use of eco-critical and plurilingual pedagogies to transform education in both formal and non-formal contexts. She is the author of the monograph Museums as Sites of Transformative Foreign Language Learning Beyond the Classroom, published in 2026 by Palgrave Macmillan.
Claudia Meneghetti is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Educational Linguistics at Ca’ Foscari University (Venice), where she explores innovative approaches to language education. Her research focuses on plurilingual education and L2 teaching in traditional classrooms and beyond. In 2020, she co-founded the MILE (Museums and Innovation in Language Education) research group with Fabiana Fazzi to design transformative language experiences that spanned the boundaries of schools and museums.
Organiser