World Book and Copyright Day celebration

STUDENTS from schools including Swaha Hindu College, Fatima College, the International School of Port of Spain and St. Joseph's Convent, Port of Spain participated in sharing their knowledge of the Spanish language and culture at the National Library yesterday.

They participated in a number of informative educational exercises aimed at strengthening their ability to use Spanish.

Deputy head of mission at the Embassy of Spain Oriol Sola Pardell told Newsday, "Together with the rest of the Latin American embassies, the Spanish Embassy has worked on the promotion of the Spanish language here in TT."

He said TT has so much in common with its Spanish-speaking neighbours: a shared history, present and future. He said sharing languages becomes even more important as the world becomes more integrated.

Pardell said, "We want to help the people of TT to learn, understand and use the Spanish language. It was very important for us to work with the teenagers and the children since they are the future. They are the ones in which we can embed the importance of the Spanish language." He said the event hosted 200 students, from 12 schools, and 40 participants reading on stage.

Manager of corporate communications at Nalis Debbie Goodman said, "This is an effort to really promote the speaking of Spanish and Latin American culture in TT.

"We have been doing a number of things and working with a number of organisations, including the NGC Bocas Lit Fest.

"We have a programme called club de Espanol, Wednesdays 5 pm to 7 pm, to promote the speaking of the Spanish language and culture in TT".

Lower six student from Queen's Royal College Jovon Reuel Williams made a presentation on a piece of Spanish literature. He told Newsday, "This event is very useful, as it promotes the learning of Spanish, which is very important now. Being in TT, we have Venezuelans next door, and many are coming over to TT. So it is very important for us to speak and understand their language so we can communicate with them a lot better."

Christian Lee John, a form four student from QRC who also participated, said he believes learning Spanish is useful for all industries, as it opens up a wider range of markets to people while helping them also to enjoy their culture in a more impactful way.

Ambassador of Chile Fernando Schmidt spoke of the animated film shared by his embassy, saying it was based on the region's shared history of piracy. The film was based on the book Robinson Crusoe, whose first version was set in the waters of TT, in the mouth of the Orinoco River.

Schmidt said, "It is a collaborative production between Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay, financed by the Chilean cinematographic body. It is a rich medium for connecting".

Malene Joseph of Bocas Lit Fest told Newsday the festival is in "its third year of partnership with the embassies to bring the public CineLit – the Latin American and Caribbean Literary Festival.

"What is special this year is the addition of a full programme of animated films for children and specific screenings for schools at NALIS' AV Room today.

"All films were in Spanish and our CineLit screenings today hosted over 200 students today from primary and secondary schools across the island."

Ambassador of Costa Rica Lily Edgerton said, "In my country, we speak a lot of English, so now it is your turn."

She said learning words in other languages is useful and opens the mind in new ways.

"I invite you not to think of Spanish as a boring subject, but think of it as a door that will take you just around the corner. Costa Rica is in a straight line from TT, so we are just across the street.

"Latin American countries surround TT, but we are different, and we have a lot that we want to share with you including our music, movies, and literature."