About every two weeks another language dies, taking with it an unwritten account of history and culture. In an effort to save languages from extinction, DESIGN 21: Social Design Network–an online platform founded by Felissimo and UNESCO to inspire and promote design for the greater good–is proud to announce its latest call to action for designers. Developed by DESIGN 21 to help UNESCOraise awareness about the importance of multilingualism, Languages Matter! is a competition for its international base of 14,000 members to design the official poster for International Mother Language Day February 21st, 2009.

Linguistic and anthropology experts predict that within the span of a few generations, more than half of the world’s 7,000 languages will disappear because they are absent from education systems, the media, publishing and the public eye in general. As stated by UNESCO’s Director-General, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, “languages lie at the heart of all social, economic and cultural life. They matter when we want to promote cultural diversity, and fight illiteracy, and they matter for quality education, including teaching in the mother language in the first years of schooling.”

The Languages Matter! Competition was developed to benefit UNESCO and support its critical role as the leading agency for International Mother Language Day. Through this initiative, DESIGN 21 hopes to utilize the remarkable creativity of its global base of designers while harnessing the power of design for the greater good. “We understand that cultural diversity is closely linked with linguistic diversity,” says DESIGN 21 founder Haruko Smith. “As such, we are pleased to offer the talents of our large pool of designers to help promote the importance of multilingual education and preserve native dialects.”

Entrants are asked to design a poster for UNESCO that honors International Mother Language Day based on the slogan, “Languages matter!” To be considered for the Competition, the poster must present a visually compelling message that contains the slogan, date, and name of the celebration in both French and English. The winning entry will be chosen by representatives from UNESCO’s culture sector and will receive $3,000 as well as an invitation to attend Mother Language Day at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. In addition, $1,000 will be awarded to two DESIGN 21 Advisory Board members’ picks and $500 to the Most Popular design as voted on by DESIGN 21’s members.

Deadline for entries is January 19, 2009. For more information, please visit http://www.design21sdn.com/competitions/17

About DESIGN 21: Social Design Network DESIGN 21: Social Design Network is a joint venture of Felissimo and UNESCO (The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization). Functioning as an online community that brings together socially conscious designers, non-profits, individuals and organizations, DESIGN 21 promotes better design for the greater good. To date, the network includes over 14,000 members from more than 170 countries and over 275 organizations from the non-profit, corporate, education and government sectors. Membership is free. www.design21sdn.com

The DESIGN 21 Competitions, produced in cooperation between Felissimo and UNESCO with select member organizations as beneficiaries, invite member designers of all disciplines to find solutions to social and global issues. They are guided by UNESCO’s premise that education, science, technology, and culture are critical tools to disseminate knowledge, create awareness and foster dialogue.