Language Advocacy Days 2026

SAVE THE DATE:

February 23, 2026 12:00 pm- 1: 30 pm

Language Access as a Civil Right: Advocacy Across North America - Equity, Policy, and Power

Join leading advocates, policymakers, and practitioners for a timely panel discussion on language access and education across North America, presented by the Language Access Coalition of Canada, sponsored by MCIS Language Solutions.

As language increasingly shapes debates around belonging, equity, and democratic participation, this conversation examines how policy decisions in both the United States and Canada affect students, immigrants, Indigenous, and minority-language communities. Panelists will explore the real-world impacts of underinvestment in language education, interpretation, and translation—particularly in healthcare, justice, and social services—and why multilingualism must be treated as a civil rights issue, not an optional service.

Celebrating Canada's sixth annual Language Advocacy Day, February 22nd, this event is both a moment of reflection and a call to action. Through critical insight and practical experience, panelists will explore how language advocacy advances civil rights, strengthens democratic institutions, and fosters social cohesion. In a polarized climate that favors oversimplification, this event creates space for nuance, dialogue, and concrete pathways forward.

Now is the time to move beyond symbolism—and toward sustained action on language access across North America. This is a critical conversation for anyone committed to equity, access, and the right to be heard and understood.

Contributors

Amanda Seewald, Executive Director, Joint National Committee for Languages (JNCL-NCLIS)

Seewald has spent more than 25 years teaching children, coaching educators, and developing multilingual, multicultural PK–12 curricula, with a particular focus on dual language immersion. She served as New Jersey’s state representative to the National Network for Early Language Learning (NNELL) and on the Board of Directors of the Northeast Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (NECTFL). In 2020, she received NECTFL’s Nelson H. Brooks Award for Outstanding Leadership in the Profession. Her advocacy in New Jersey helped secure the Seal of Biliteracy into law in 2016. As Executive Director of the Joint National Committee for Languages–National Council for Languages and International Studies (JNCL-NCLIS), Seewald champions the organization’s mission by providing strategic leadership, cultivating key partnerships, overseeing staff and legislative initiatives, and ensuring effective execution of programs and events with an eye toward innovative, forward-looking solutions. She previously served on the JNCL-NCLIS Board for over a decade, most recently as President.

Katharine Allen, Director of Language Industry Learning, Boostlingo

If there is ever a “Language Industry Hall of Fame,” Katharine will surely be among the inaugural inductees. Katharine is an established healthcare and community interpreter with over three decades of experience. As co-founder of Interpret America, Katharine worked for 10 years to raise the profile of interpreting. She helped form the Coalition of Practicing Translators and Interpreters of California and was a member of the American Translators Association Advocacy Committee. Katharine is former president of the California Healthcare Interpreting Association and is a founding member of the American Association of Interpreters and Translators in Education. An accomplished author, Katharine wrote The Indigenous Interpreter, The Community Interpreter, The Medical Interpreter, among other books.

Nazanin Azari,

Director of Operations, Nations Translation Group

As a Director of Operations, Nations Translation Group. Nazanin Azari blends technological expertise, deep language industry experience, and a strong commitment to client-centered design. A trusted leader in Canadian localization and language technologies, she channels her passion for innovation to deliver solutions that consistently exceed expectations.

An Iranian Canadian artist and former Farsi–English interpreter in social, legal, and medical settings, Nazanin also witnessed firsthand how language barriers impact survivors of violence; that insight drives her storytelling practice, illuminating clients’ frustrations and constraints. Her body of work, including the Duct Tape Ribbon Project, is theatrical in form, weaving sound, visual media, and installation to evoke stories from pivotal moments in people’s lives.

MODERATOR:
Craig Carter-Edwards

Craig is a policy and communications veteran with more than 20 years of experience at the federal and provincial levels. He has worked as a government relations consultant and has consistently advocated for social solutions to structural challenges. Craig helped guide the creation of the Language Access Coalition of Canada in 2021-23.

He also co-founded WelcomeHomeTO, a not-for-profit that has convened community events connecting settlement sector partners, grassroots groups, and newcomers; developed the Hearts and Minds Library of settlement stories; and produced summary reports that have been referenced by the New York Times and presented as case studies before the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Why Attend? You will learn how to:

FRAME language access as a civil right, not a discretionary service - establish that access to language education, interpretation, and translation is foundational to equity, democratic participation, and the protection of human rights across North America.
EXAMINE policy impacts across the United States and Canada - analyze how policies, funding decisions, and institutional practices in both countries shape outcomes for language students, immigrants, Indigenous peoples, and minority-language communities, noting similarities, differences, and shared structural challenges.
UNDERSTAND the consequences of underinvestment - surface concrete examples from healthcare, justice, education, and social services showing how insufficient language support drives exclusion, inequitable outcomes, and barriers to essential services.
CONNECT language advocacy to power, belonging, and participation - explore how language influences who is heard, who participates, and who is marginalized—especially where language is used to define national identity and access to rights.
MARK Canada’s sixth annual Language Advocacy Day as reflection and accountability - use the milestone to recognize progress while candidly assessing persistent gaps, underfunding, and unmet needs for people not fluent in official languages.
ELEVATE cross-sector and cross-border strategies - share practical approaches from advocates, policymakers, and practitioners to advance language access through coalition-building, policy reform, and institutional change.
CREATE space for nuanced dialogue in a polarized environment - counter oversimplified narratives with informed, evidence-based discussion grounded in lived experience, ensuring respectful, constructive exchange.

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