What Are Languages Worth? Community Languages for the Future of New South Wales

This report reviews literature on the value of community languages to economic, social and cultural life. It draws on Australian and international research to evaluate the contribution of community languages to the future of New South Wales in these three domains. Community languages contribute to economic growth in two main ways: throughthe contribution of employees' multilingual skills to businesses that trade globally and through the contributions of language-related industries....
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This report reviews literature on the value of community languages to economic, social and cultural life. It draws on Australian and international research to evaluate the contribution of community languages to the future of New South Wales in these three domains. Community languages contribute to economic growth in two main ways: throughthe contribution of employees' multilingual skills to businesses that trade globally and through the contributions of language-related industries. Community languages have two kinds of social value: the value of bilingualism toeducational achievement and wellbeing and the value of language maintenance to the integration of community language groups. Community languages also contribute to the cultural life of New South Wales by enriching the lives of its residents and branding the state, and Sydney in particular, as a centre of arts and culture. The loss of languages in the second and third generations is identified as the main threat to the future of community languages in New South Wales. Mainstream schools and community language schools are identified as the main sites in which this threat can be met. The report concludes by identifying five language needs that call for discussion and debate in planning for the future of New South Wales.