Dr. Mahendra Kumar Mishra, a pioneer in Multilingual Education and a folklorist, has been awarded the UNESCO International Mother Language Award-2023. Mishra has been working for 30 years on using community knowledge, culture, and language in school education, as well as preserving endangered languages in India. Mishra emphasizes the importance of preserving tribal languages for cultural conservation, social features, and self and group identity. He also highlights the relevance of traditional tribal knowledge in addressing global environmental issues. Mishra suggests incorporating eco-pedagogy and indigenous knowledge into Multilingual Education to foster a deeper connection between students and their environment.
