Personal Story: Kristen Tcherneshoff, Programs Director
Throughout her life, Kristen’s interests, experiences, and personality have aligned to bring her to Wikitongues and to where she is today. This piece, using her own words from an interview, talks about that journey. Find Kristen at medium.com/@ktchernes.
Beginnings
Among the first things Kristen said about her path is that there was no clear-cut one. Her connection to language, she supposes, must have started when she was very young — born into a family that often used American Sign Language alongside their English, she remains passively knowledgeable in ASL. A friend of her family was from Ethiopia, and was a native speaking of Amharic — a peculiar connection to have, for someone growing up Alabama. In elementary school, Kristen was further exposed to other languages. She was in an immersive Spanish class, meeting several times a week. Her use of language, though, went even beyond that:
“I got interested in creating my own languages… I was shy and scared talking to other people, so I talked to invisible friends in other languages…”
Language was part of Kristen’s life, then, to a very considerable degree, even from this young age. Almost even more integral, however, was an experience with, and even a family legacy of, social work and human rights; her mother was a special education teacher, her aunt does work with young girls that were victims of sex trafficking, and her father — himself a quadriplegic, and so a wheelchair-user — works as an advocate for those with disabilities, in line with the Americans with Disabilities Act, particularly fighting for accessibility in buildings around the country:
“That was always a part of my childhood, being aware of places inaccessible for a lot of the population, especially because the U.S. has such a high number of people with disabilities”
These causes made social and human rights activism ingrained in Kristen’s world from a young age. The legal struggles they often entailed, in particular, would eventually inspire Kristen to pursue a career in law for some time. For the time being, though, these elemental causes that eventually would rise to prominence in her life took the backseat to another passion:
“I grew up as a pianist — I was a classical pianist for almost all of my life, and so, you know, I did the competitions every weekend, and played in the orchestra… and that took up most of my life”
This took up her time — and it seemed to be her future, being a professional classical pianist was certainly her plan during that time. She eventually would go to school for piano, all while playing with various city-level orchestras in Alabama. It was her life, for quite a while… but, as often happens she says, it was not to last.
“I got really burnt out from that. It happens — if you start your career from the age of 5, you get burnt out really easily”
Da un’esperienza all’altra
From one experience to another — Italian
After this burnout, Kristen wasn’t sure what to do. Her life, even through her first few years of college, was aimed at becoming a professional pianist. She drifted from interest to interest in those few years. This ‘bopping’ was not some adverse reaction to the burnout, though — Kristen’s personality, she says, has always lent itself to that sort of deep dedication to a pursuit over short periods.
“I have this personality that, when I do something, I’m all the way in… so in a personal setting, if one of my friends texts me and says, ‘hey, we should start doing macramé…’ within a week I have bought ten books on macramé, I already have all the things you need, and I’ve already made, like, six things, and am saying ‘okay guys, move on, next craft’. ”
Legal work, though, was a somewhat consistent passion for Kristen — after switching from a purely musical degree, she eventually aimed for law school as her next best option. In order to graduate, Kristen took her experience in the arts from years of piano performance, fused it with her interest in photography, and followed her love for language via a double major in Photography and Italian (which took her abroad to Florence during that degree). From there, though, the future was uncertain.
Kutoka Tanzania mpaka Helsinki
From Tanzania to Helsinki — Swahili
After graduating, law school seemed the most reasonable next step for Kristen — but she decided to take a few years off before that, to pursue other options. She traveled, worked in a museum for a while, as per her varied interests. She eventually moved to Tanzania to work with a pro-bono women’s law firm based there, effectively as a paralegal. It was here, amid applying for international law programs, that another opportunity caught her attention — an MA program, at the University of Helsinki, in African Studies and Linguistics:
“Someone mentioned this program to me in Helsinki, and I thought ‘oh, that’s kind of more my interest,’ because you still have that cultural side to it — I was always interested in law, but I don’t think I was fully committed because I felt like I was losing that cultural aspect, that humanities aspect”
Though legal work was certainly a skill and a passion for Kristen, something had been missing from it. This degree provided that “cultural aspect” she was looking for — as well as connecting to her lifelong experience with language. It would let her look at “how language integrates into our lives in terms of human rights.”
This incorporation of her experience with language was especially relevant at this point. The primary courts of Tanzania, she was told, required not only self-representation, but self-representation in English — which most of the populace did not speak. In some crucial cases, where rights were indeed being violated, this was especially problematic. Those with which Kristen worked were well within that category:
“I worked with mainly women who were faced with domestic violence. The problem was that a lot of these women spoke Swahili as their second or third language… a lot of them were Masai or Iraqw or of a different linguistic background…”
Swahili, used in the higher courts, was only a second or third language for some — and the English required for primary courts was rarely something these women spoke at all. Since self-representation was mandatory, Kristen talks about losing several cases on account of the language barrier:
“There was a large barrier to these women being able to protect themselves… we would have them basically just rote memorize English speeches to just… say. And they memorized them, but if the judge asked them a questions and it wasn’t a question we assumed would come next…we lost a lot of cases [that way]”
These women, victims of abuse and violence, had to defend themselves in a language they did not speak. Cases were lost, not because the women were not legally in the right, but because they did not speak the language imposed on them to defend themselves in. Working with these women, though, instilled in Kristen a deep sense of how important language is as a human right — this would lead to her seeking the African Studies & Linguistics program at Helsinki, and eventually launch her into the career she continues to this day.
“…language is a vital human right, and one of the most important ones; because without access to language and access to support in your language, you can’t fully know what your human rights are and how to defend them”
Coalescence
To come together to form a whole — English
In this way, the disparate interests of Kristen’s life began to coalesce. Soon after, she would find an organization whose goals brought new focus to this coalescence, eventually bringing her to a foremost position in the organization — Wikitongues.
“It was really exciting, it felt like all of my life I had… these interests I had always kept separate in my head. Even though now, looking back, it seems like such an obvious connection between all of them, I didn’t see that… but as soon as I saw Wikitongues I was like, ‘this is the job I’ve been looking for for the past ten years’”
It was while doing language documentation work — specifically, on the tonal systems and noun classes of Bantu languages — through her studies at Helsinki, that Kristen found Wikitongues. This was January of 2017 — the organization had only been an established non-profit for about six months at this point. Her first point of contact was co-founder Daniel Bögre Udell, who would greet all prospective volunteers over a Skype call. That was a point of contact she would use a lot in the time that followed, as she became determined to make the most of the opportunity:
“Like I mentioned, I get a bit obsessed with things… I have very high, unrelenting standards for myself, so I instantly decided I was going to be Wikitongues’ #1 volunteer and do everything!”
Opportunities to travel allowed Kristen opportunities to contribute more and more to Wikitongues (mostly in the form of “oral histories”, or videos featuring people speaking some language).
“And so I talked to Daniel all the time… he was probably like ‘wow, this is… so weird… we’re not even really a non-profit — we’re kinda a non-profit — why is she texting me all the time?’”
That eagerness Kristen had, though, would eventually more than pay off. Alongside Kristen’s own involvement, Wikitongues’ volunteer program in general really took off throughout 2017. Because of that, within a few months Daniel was looking for help with leading that program — naturally, he turned to one of the most active volunteers regarding that position. Kristen accepted. The program’s growth continued to explode — Kristen ended up taking on the role of checking these volunteers, reviewing their applications and the like. The work involved grew as well — dealing with two new volunteers almost every day became a monumental task. As the volunteer program grew, Kristen was realizing the organization needed more help. As Daniel had earlier by hiring her, she found a way to secure that assistance:
“So towards the end of 2017, we asked people if they would be community leaders… I started a community leader program, to get help, so I had people for different regions of the world… I was becoming the volunteer leader… and they were doing the same thing I had been doing, but for their particular regions of the world”
Kristen’s responsibility shifted ‘up the ladder’ in a sense — as the organization grew, she was tasked with managing the “community leaders” around the world, that all did the volunteer processing she had been doing earlier that year. For her, community development would become the focus of 2018:
“I spent a lot of 2018 developing our community, and reaching out, trying to make as many connections as I could… I got us in with UNESCO, and I started going to conferences…”
This was a time where Kristen was working extensively to promote Wikitongues in the world — while herself becoming more and more vital to the organization.
2019 — International Year of Indigenous Languages
The UN declared 2019 to be the International Year of Indigenous Languages. The focus on language documentation and revitalization that this entailed, and the opportunities (funding and otherwise) that afforded, would change Wikitongues for good.
It was just in time for this year that Daniel asked Kristen to take a more regular and central position at Wikitongues — she would be part of the leadership that took the organization into this new era. Before any of those advances, though, a lack of funding required even Daniel and Kristen to effectively work two jobs — one paid, and one at Wikitongues:
“I was doing legal work, Daniel was doing website development at the time, but we were working Wikitongues full-time — we just weren’t getting paid for it.”
Slowly and with hard work, this all changed in 2019. The UN’s program brought about numerous conference opportunities. Kristen traveled all over, speaking at UNESCO conferences and promoting the goal that Wikitongues was set on — equal rights for every language. And people listened:
“That was a very big shaping year for us, a big turning point, because a lot of people started hearing about us. We built a really large fabric”
This ‘fabric’ of connections would secure for Wikitongues more donations, more sources of funding, allowing them to expand their efforts — and even allowing Kristen and Daniel to put themselves on contract pay, so they could devote more of their time to Wikitongues:
“It was minimal, we were paying ourselves part-time, but it was really exciting because we had both given pretty much the bulk of our savings to make Wikitongues work”
This personal investment often involved paying the cost of attending conferences — out of their own savings. It was “a bit of a gamble”, as Kristen reports — to ensure better connections and funding opportunities, Kristen and Daniel were putting their own livelihoods on the line. Kristen had to stop her freelance legal work during this, on account of traveling to a new country almost every week. The risk they took, however, would pay off:
“It really worked out — we got our foot in the door, and now we’re a reputable non-profit in our field.”
Enough donations came in to secure part-time pay for Daniel and Kristen, and to allow the organization to expand its focus. Amid shifting focus to other things — becoming a leading non-profit by taking shape in a more concrete way, and really promoting language activism and getting it moving — they decided to shut down the massive volunteer program:
“Last summer [2019], we reached the point where the community had grown so much… I decided it was time to stop accepting new volunteer application. We still take video contributions, but…we had something like 1,200 volunteers, and almost all of them had my cellphone number!
It was just getting way too much to manage, we didn’t have enough money to hire someone, and it was really just becoming a vanity metric —having that many volunteers is unnecessary.”
With her and Daniel now able to concentrate on Wikitongues, there was more time to advance its mission than ever before. With the volunteer program in the past, that time could be focused toward the organization’s goals for the future.
Aujourd’hui
Nowadays — French
It was after being officially hired as part-time that Kristen took her official, and current, role as Programs Director. The title refers specifically to her focus on the programming or community side of things — matters like “Oral History” videos, reaching out to archival institutions, managing social media, and even leading a new college internship program at the University of Pittsburgh. Daniel’s position of Executive Director refers instead to management responsibilities — but in both cases, there is significant crossover. Kristen and Daniel split whatever work that needs to be done, following their expertise where possible, but not limiting themselves thereto.
Since her taking that position of Programs Director, then, Kristen has effectively shared responsibility with Daniel — despite having joined a few years after Wikitongues’ genesis. Daniel had been part of it since the beginning — but these equal responsibilities fostered a comparable sense of commitment for Kristen, in a way that was considerably facilitated by Daniel’s acceptance of her in doing so:
“It’s nice to feel like I also have a say and to be heartwarmingly accepted as an equal into the organization that I joined into later on”
At the same time, this level of involvement — as shown by the 2018 “gamble” — boundaries between work and personal life can break down, or even cease to some extent:
“That is a challenge when you run a non-profit with a very limited budget, you pretty much don’t have those boundaries. Daniel and I both work all hours and often times we work until midnight or one in the morning…”
It all seems to her, though, a small price to pay. Kristen talks specifically about that issue of the boundary between personal and work life, describing how that can be a small price for fighting for what you believe in:
“That’s fine …when it’s something that you really, really care about, and where you want things to change —sometimes that’s part of the agreement.”
The title of Programs Director, as Kristen describes it, pertains particularly to some of her most recent work at Wikitongues. Before now, most of this programming has consisted of content, and most of that content was oral history videos. In recent times, though, this content has taken more varied forms, like blog posts, and even a new podcast. The goal with content is, for one, to maintain the ad revenue that “keeps the lights on” as Kristen puts it. In a more meaningful sense, though, it’s a way to spread the word about Wikitongues and the cause they fight for:
“It’s an opportunity — during these times, when I’m not traveling and not conferencing and things like that — to… share this work with people that don’t know about it.”
The YouTube channel is one place where they’re trying new forms of content — for example, the video of a conversation Kristen had in Haitian Creole with Michel DeGraff, a native speaker, for Haitian Flag Day:
Spreading the word about Wikitongues and its goals also goes beyond content — much of Kristen’s daily work involves reaching out to other organizations, to form partnerships and work towards promoting language documentation and revitalization efforts. This can take many forms — like deeds of gift containing oral histories or the like, donated from other organizations; or, like how Wikitongues has been working with the Living Tongues Institute to develop a Language Sustainability Toolkit, to guide prospective activists toward helping their language. Tasks of organizational maintenance are also part of Kristen’s responsibilities. This includes editing content, particularly videos, and replying to comments on social media — particularly on YouTube, which she checks every day to respond to comments and keep in touch with the community.
Among her many current projects and plans for the future, Kristen is most excited about supporting language revitalization efforts. She mentioned that they are looking into providing microgrants, to fund such efforts around the world. Work with other organizations like Living Tongues also promises a change to promote such efforts in other ways.
Looking Back
“I don’t see it as a bad thing, because I’ve had so much experience from so many different fields — it really helps see things from different viewpoints, and look at different solutions to problems.”
Overall, Kristen looks back on the wide array of experiences she’s had, treating them all as contributors to where she is now. Their variety allows her to look at things from multiple perspectives. From an upbringing around activism, to legal work abroad; from language studies from childhood, to university studies in Helsinki; everything came together in Wikitongues, and continues to. Disparate interests and background have produced not a fragmented focus, but a range of expertise with something for every situation. Every experience, every interest, past or present, have a place in where Kristen is now. Some experiences, though, do stand out — particularly relating to her Wikitongues work — and, to end the interview, she spoke on some of those, including one in particular:
Hangi
Hangi is not a language, but a person — a speaker of Kihunde, Swahili, French, English, and others — a contributor who stood out in Kristen’s memory.
“Hangi first submitted a video to us about 1.5 years ago. He added me on Facebook and we both speak Swahili and I speak some French…We went to Rwanda last year specifically to meet him. He lives in Goma and he took a 5 hour bus ride across the border to Kigali to meet three random young strangers from the internet.”
As in the last story, this shows the best of language contacts’ enthusiasm to participate in Wikitongues’ work, in Hangi’s willingness to make that journey. The relationship that this fostered, between Hangi and the people at Wikitongues, would continue:
“We bought him a phone while we were in Kigali and he changed his background to a photo of all of us together, it was really endearing. But he has been using that phone to send us more videos for Wikitongues now!”
Hangi’s language activism, furthermore, does not stop with his Wikitongues contributions. One of the languages he speaks, Kihunde, is under-documented, and faces considerable pressure from the Swahili and French dominant in that region.
“He says that most people speak Kihunde at home and are ashamed to speak it in public. He decided to do something about it, and trained himself to be a linguist through books and webinars and things like that.”
As an elementary school teacher, Hangi lobbied his elders to be able to teach Kihunde in the schools. He started a “Speak Kihunde” campaign, that even includes a Facebook group.
“He’s extremely passionate about his work: he posts daily in his [Facebook] groups, shares videos of his students learning and singing, and has been handwriting a Kihunde-French-English dictionary for years.”
Hangi’s dedication and tireless work in activism made an impression on Kristen — his is one of her favorite stories of the many contributors that she has worked with.
If you would like to donate to support the work of Wikitongues or if you would like to get to know our work, please visit wikitongues.org. To watch our oral histories, subscribe to our YouTube channel or visit wikitongues.org to submit a video.
