The Lezo City Council, the Mancomunidad de Municipios Euskaldunes (UEMA), Lezo Herri Eskola, Pasaia-Lezo Lizeoa, and the association Ttakun have presented a new collaborative simultaneous translation tool today, September 23, 2026. This tool will facilitate the participation of citizens who do not speak Euskera in educational community events, assemblies, presentations, and lectures, using a messaging system via Telegram.
Iker Salaberria, the Euskera councilor, explained that Lezo is an increasingly diverse municipality in terms of languages and cultures, which is a source of richness but also a challenge. "We must guarantee the right of all citizens to learn Euskera, to speak it, and to live in Euskera; and, at the same time, it is essential that those who come from outside become part of the town's life, and that information reaches them properly. We want to build a model of interculturality centered on Euskera," he stated.
Salaberria emphasized that Euskera should be the language of cohesion for all Lezo residents, and that the presented tool is a resource for building bridges, for mutual understanding, and for staying informed. This initiative is part of the Mandate Plan and aims to strengthen the local linguistic community and develop reception processes for newcomers.
Irati Odriozola, a member of UEMA, specified that in towns with demographic changes, language management proposals are being initiated to respond from Euskera to local realities. "We are clear that in our Euskera-speaking municipalities we want and need to continue living in Euskera, but there are increasingly more people who do not know Euskera in our environment," she said. Therefore, they have chosen to develop strategies from educational centers to ensure that interaction with non-Euskera speaking families is close and to maintain Euskera.
Maddi Etxebeste, a member of Ttakun, explained the system's functionality: after downloading the free Telegram app and providing a phone number, organizers will offer a QR code to those who do not understand Euskera. By scanning it, they will access the translation service and receive the speaker's words in their own language via headphones. "The assemblies where we have used the system have been very positive experiences. We have evaluated them very favorably," she stated.
