1. the objectives of the Second Inter-American Languages Management Seminar, which are to

create a forum to discuss linguistic and cultural policies that guarantee respect for and appreciation of the languages and the cultural diversity of our continent

propose strategies that strengthen and promote the languages and cultures of the continent

2. the Declaration of Cartagena, adopted on July 13, 2002, at the first inter-American meeting of culture ministers and senior officials, which stressed the need to develop greater awareness and better understanding of the importance of cultural and linguistic diversity in the Americas through dialogue, studies and research and through exchanges between countries, governments, regional and international organizations, civil society and the private sector

3. the processes of globalization and continental economic integration, which demand with increasing urgency, that discussion regarding the future of languages and cultures in a framework that fosters respect for and preservation of linguistic diversity be placed on the international agenda.

4. that mutual understanding is indispensable to co﷓existence and to the exercise of the democratic rights of citizens and that using a single language to communicate in international and intercontinental bodies seriously endangers the sovereignty of nations and peoples

5. that it is necessary and urgent to adopt strategies that genuinely aim to promote languages in inter﷓American exchanges and that, for this to take place, the languages have to be made functional and able to serve as useful and practical instruments that can reflect the continuous changes in societies

6. that existing experience with regard to linguistic and educational policies and the research work that has been performed constitute a rich base that can give direction to future actions with a view to facilitating democratic, efficient management of the languages of our continent

the participants in the Second Inter-American Languages Management Seminar, in Asunción, after presenting, analyzing and discussing the questions on the agenda, make the following recommendations:

1. Take certain linguistic planning principles into account during discussions about multiligualism in supranational and international organizations, in particular

design a diagram that explains the main functions of languages and demonstrates the need for tailored solutions

work to promote multilingualism as a mean of expression and communication in international forums and in regional integration initiatives

encourage the multiplication of agreements containing sociolinguistic objectives (between international organizations, for instance)

actively participate in the supply of and demand for languages

2. Couple the recommendations of future seminars with proposals for implementing them, in order to help governments make policy decisions and implement these decisions effectively.

3. Intensify research comparing the economic consequences of a linguistic policy of exclusive monolingualism with a linguistic policy of plurilingualism.

4. Recognize that the value of knowledge goes hand in hand with the quality of the language in which it is expressed and that, consequently, linguistic resources are an integral part of the added value of any product or service that has an affect on market interactions.

5. Encourage governments and intergovernmental organizations to take the necessary measures to ensure that language rights are respected in inter-American exchanges.

6. Further promote the right of citizens to be informed, work, consume and live in the languages used in their respective territories and urge governments to take the necessary measures to do this by requiring, for example, the multilingual labelling of products that come from abroad.

7. Recognize that respect for cultural diversity means respect for linguistic diversity.

8. Promote French, Spanish, English and Portuguese equally, to respect linguistic and cultural diversity.

9. Help in the compilation of terminology and the creation of new terms to enhance the languages spoken on the continent by drawing on existing heritage and encouraging new research [1].

10. Take steps so that the four official languages are used effectively in the negotiations and work carried out by the international organizations on the continent and promote the use of the other American languages during these occasions.

11. Encourage the development of the language industries, especially the multilingual machine translation systems industry, in order to provide the languages of the continent with the technological resources that with allow them to be used fully on the Internet and in various other prestigious fields of worldwide importance and increase the use of the languages in educational materials, to help combat the trend toward dominance by a single language (particularly English) in these fields.

12. Establish mechanisms for co-operation among all the countries in order to facilitate the sharing of physical and intellectual resources specifically aimed at properly and equitably equipping the languages of the continent.

13. Develop educational policies based on the early acquisition of languages and promote the training of real multilingual speakers.

14. Promote bilingual education, both indigenous and non-indigenous, to respect diversity and promote the various languages and cultures of the continent.

15. Request that Guarani be considered an official language of the Mercosur, just as Spanish and Portuguese are, and propose that the members of the Mercosur adopt linguistic policies that ensure the equal treatment of the three languages in the negotiation areas.

16. Standardize the linguistic system of the Guarani language and develop Guarani terminology to facilitate its use by speakers inside and outside Paraguay, give it more solidity and render it more competitive and easier to use in communications of all types.

17. Hold the Third Inter-American Languages Management Seminar in 2005 in Brazil, with the specific objective of reviewing the first two seminars and promoting multilingualism as a mean of expression and communication in international forums and regional integration initiatives.

18. Have representatives from every country in the Americas, including the United States of America, participate in the next seminar to ensure it has the broadest possible representation and the greatest possible impact.

19. Disseminate the recommendations of the Inter-American Languages Management Seminars in each country or region so that they serve as a common base from which to work, in order to produce concrete results that can be presented at future meetings.

[1] The Office québécois de la langue francaise has offered to make available the contents of its database and its multilingual system.