Irish colleges across the country have the chance to get their Gaeilge going this summer by taking part in Glac Leis, an exciting Irish-language roadshow run by Conradh na Gaeilge informing young people of their language rights in Ireland and in Europe.
Conradh na Gaeilge will visit over 30 Irish-language courses again this year for the third summer running to get college cinnirí (prefects) involved in fun motivational Glac Leis workshops, and to tell all the students about the advantages of having Irish as an official working language at a European level, the services they are entitled to receive through Irish from public bodies at home in Ireland under the Official Languages Act of 2003, and of the job opportunities for them in the future in Ireland and in Europe.
Aodhán Ó Deá, Summer Colleges' Coordinator of Conradh na Gaeilge's Glac Leis campaign says: "It is vital that we encourage and enable the community of Irish speakers - especially young Irish speakers - to always to ask for service through Irish from state bodies, public companies and European institutes, and Conradh na Gaeilge is now informing the Irish-speaking community of the advantages and opportunities associated with the language, in Europe and here at home, with the language-rights' campaign Glac Leis."
The Glac Leis campaign team are encouraging people to assume that services are always available through Irish and telling young people that they can get their age card, driver's licence and passport in Irish; that it is everybody's right to use the Irish version of their name; that car tax and eTolls can all be paid online in Irish; that driving tests and NCT tests can be done through Irish; and that everybody has a right to look for an Irish-language service from the Gardaí Síochána, for example.
Brenda Ní Ghairbhí, Development and Office Executive with Conradh na Gaeilge says: "New employment opportunities in Irish are being continuously generated as not only do European institutes and public sector bodies in Ireland have Irish-language responsibilities, but international private businesses such as Microsoft, Samsung, Accenture and even Facebook are looking to the Irish language to give them a competitive advantage in Ireland; the Glac Leis awareness campaign informs young people attending summer colleges of their language rights and of the advantages of using their Irish."
Conradh na Gaeilge is advising people to assume that services are available through Irish and in doing so, show the need for more services in Irish. Conradh na Gaeilge also provides a support service to people who experience problems getting services through Irish, and you can contact the Head Office by sending an email to
MORE INFORMATION:
Aodhán Ó Deá,
Summer Colleges' Coordinator,
Glac Leis, Conradh na Gaeilge.
+353 (0)1 4757401 / +353 (0)86 3102691
Brenda Ní Ghairbhí,
Office Executive, Conradh na Gaeilge.
+353 (0)1 4757401 / +353 (0)86 3649776
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Conradh na Gaeilge is the democratic forum for the Irish-speaking community working to promote the language. There are 200 branches of Conradh na Gaeilge and since its foundation in 1893, members of the Conradh have been actively promoting Irish in every aspect of life in Ireland and especially its use in their own areas. Conraitheoirí are at the forefront of campaigns to secure and strengthen the rights of the Irish language community. It is also possible to register as an individual member of the Conradh. www.cnag.ie
The Department of Foreign Affairs has provided support for Conradh na Gaeilge's Glac Leis campaign through the Communicating Europe initiative which supports projects that explain the European Union to the Irish people, improve the quality of communication between the Union and its citizens, and celebrate the connection Ireland enjoys with Europe. www.eumatters.ie
