Speak Brussels
Learning a language, meeting new people and exchanging cultural experience is possible with Speak Brussels. Open Collective Brussels has talked with Chloé Van Soest, the founder of the Speak in Brussels, about the functioning of the project and the social impact their team would like to create.
Why did you decide to launch Speak in Brussels?
When I was working at the King Baudouin Foundation, I met the founder of Speak in Portugal, that’s where the organisation started back in 2014. We met at a conference. I liked the project and their vision for the future. The founder has done a call for volunteers, so I thought that it might be interesting to launch Speak here in Brussels. I thought the project was already taking place in Belgium but actually it was not. I understood that it was nor or never for me because I didn’t have too many responsibilities in my life at the time. I could just try and go for it. Then, I quit my job at the Foundation and started to work part-time in a coffee bar while launching Speak. There were a lot of doubts involved but in the end, I am very happy with what I did. The project will soon celebrate its 4 years.
Can you explain the activity of Speak and its target audience?
We offer language learning in an informal setting. There are two types of volunteers: buddies, who lead the language group, and ambassadors, who organise different events. Participants are those who sign up via our website to learn a language. We have offline language groups where two volunteers and 15 students are talking about a certain topic (different every time). We also organise events, they are both for volunteers and students, those who want to learn a language, meet new people… The emphasis is always placed on speaking, the idea is that people talk as much as possible.
Who can become a buddy?
Everybody, as long as they are interested in helping others tolearn a language. However, it is a bit of a commitment because buddies need to prepare every conversation.
Which languages can you learn with Speak Brussels?
All languages, as long as we have volunteers in that language. Right now, for example, there is a volunteer for the Persian language, and we are just looking for people wanting to learn this language. Basically, it’s what the volunteer wants to teach, and after we look for participants. Of course, we always have French, Dutch, and English, a lot of Spanish, Italian, Arabic…
What impact do you want to create with Speak Brussels?
I think it is really about community building. We would like to see people connected and to help people that are new to the city. Speak Brussels is here to help create connections so that those who wouldn’t necessarily meet in another context can meet because they learn the same language. Everything happens in such an informal setting that it helps participants to get to know each other, to expand their network in Brussels.
Did coronavirus change something in the functioning of Speak?
During the first lockdown, all the Speaks in different cities went online with smaller groups, and it was very successful. People all over the world were stuck at home, sometimes alone at home, that’s why we have changed the formula of groups and made groups of 5–7 people with one volunteer. It worked well and we are still doing it today.
Why did you decide to join Open Collective Brussels?
When I talked about launching Speak in Brussels, I was looking into founding an ASBL. After finding out about Open Collective Brussels, we decided that joining it was a great first step, which allowed us to focus on the project and not having to worry about admin work, etc.
What is the biggest advantage you have received since joining OCB?
The biggest advantage is that I can focus on the project, its impact, and I don’t need to think about all the administrative work and accounting. I am also happy to see the platform grow giving new possibilities to its members. Open Collective Brussels evolves with projects.
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Would you also like to create a positive impact with your project? We would be happy to answer your questions: info@opencollective.brussels.
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