About us test

We are producing an app for you to learn languages through cultural activities and to show others how to carry out your favourite cultural activity in your own language. Example cultural activities can be Origami in Japanese or how to carve pumpkins for Halloween in English.

The ENACT project is developing a web app to bring culture to life by employing an innovative task-based digital learning pedagogy offering a real-world, interactive learning experience.​ It aims to foster intercultural and intergenerational social cohesion and understanding through two-way knowledge exchange; create inclusive higher education systems through a local learning ecologies approach; and model an innovative task-based digital pedagogy for learning and online (virtual) exchange between communities.

ENACT is a free web app for anyone to explore and create cultural activities in multiple languages. It will appeal to various groups of users, such as language learners and teachers, people interested in heritage languages and cultures, organisations working with migrants and communities, people interested in developing their digital skills, but also university lecturers interested in introducing interculturality and community engagement in their teaching.

Communities, Languages, and Activities App (ENACT) project is co-funded by the European Commission, Erasmus Key Action 2 Strategic Partnerships for Higher Education, project number: 2019-1-UK01-KA203-061567. The project is led by Newcastle University (UK), and the consortium partners are: Boğaziçi University (Turkey), Cultura Foundation (Finland), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain), and University of Helsinki (Finland). In the UK, our associated partners are Action Foundation and North East Solidarity Teaching

Meet the team

Ahmed Kharrufa
Newcastle University
Bio
Alison Whelan
Newcastle University
Bio
Anna Sidorova
Cultura Foundation
Anna Sidorova is a head of the Culture and Dialogue programme at the Cultura Foundation. Her background as a Finnish-Russian interpreter and literature translator, and instructor of Finnish and Russian as a second language has formed her large experience and expertise in intercultural communication. At the Cultura Foundation, Anna actively contributes to mutual understanding and dialogue between cultures as well: the projects she is in charge of seek and test innovative ways and models to enhance participation and inclusion of the Russian speaking of Finland. Anna is super enthusiastic and always open to new ideas.
Belma Haznedar
Boğaziçi University
Belma Haznedar holds a PhD in Linguistics from Durham University, UK. She is currently a full Professor of Applied Linguistics at Boğaziçi University. Her expertise area focuses on early childhood bilingualism, with special reference to the acquisition of morphosyntactic properties of successive and simultaneous language acquisition in children. In her recent work she also investigates (i) language teaching to young children; (ii) literacy development in monolingual and bilingual children; (iii) creating online materials for teachers who work with migrant populations (adult and child immigrants with low literacy skills). In line with her recent work for teachers of immigrants, Prof. Haznedar and her co-authors presented portions of their findings at the United Nations Headquarters in 2017 in New York.
Colin Bone Dodds
Newcastle University
Bio
Elifcan Öztekin
Boğaziçi University
Elifcan Öztekin is currently a PhD candidate in English Language Education program at Boğaziçi University. She also works as a research assistant at Foreign Language Education Department and is involved in various ongoing research projects. Her research interests include L2 and L3 listening skill development, L3 learning and cognitive individual differences in language learning.
Gülcan Erçetin
Boğaziçi University
Gülcan Erçetin is a Professor of Applied Linguistics at Boğaziçi University, İstanbul and has a PhD in Language, Reading and Culture from the University of Arizona, Tuscon, Arizona, U.S.A. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate level courses on language skills development, language testing and assessment, language learning and working memory. Her research interests are second language learning in multimedia/hypermedia environments, mobile assisted language learning, gamification of learning, game-based language learning, working memory capacity and L2 reading, eye movements in L2 reading.
Irina Spazheva
Cultura Foundation
Irina Spazheva is coordinator of international projects at the Cultura Foundation. Her main expertise is in developing, fundraising, and coordinating international cross-border projects. Her background is in management, research, and international cooperation in the field of culture and arts. From 2020, she acts as a project manager for the “Agents of Change: Mediating Minorities” project funded by the Creative Europe programme. Irina believes in creativity, knowledge exchange and interdisciplinary approach.
Johanna Buitrago
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Bio
Lari Kotilainen
University of Helsinki
Bio
Melinda Dooly
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Bio
Müge Satar
Newcastle University
Bio
Paul Seedhouse
Newcastle University
Paul Seedhouse is Professor of Educational and Applied Linguistics at Newcastle University, UK. He has published 9 books and over 60 articles and book chapters in the area of applied linguistics and language teaching. Working with colleagues in Computing Science over 10 years, he has had 3 grants to build kitchens which use digital technology to teach users languages and cuisines simultaneously. The French Digital Kitchen project won the European Language Label Prize in 2012 and the Linguacuisine app is now available on https://linguacuisine.com/
Salla Kurhila
University of Helsinki
Bio
Sara Ganassin
Newcastle University
Bio
Sumru Akcan
Boğaziçi University
Dr. Sumru Akcan received her PhD in second language acquisition and teaching from University of Arizona in 2002. She specializes in second/foreign language teaching methodology, language teacher education, distance education, blended-learning contexts for pre-Service and in-service language teachers. She is involved in the English language teacher education program as a supervisor and has been teaching courses at graduate and undergraduate programs at Foreign Language Education Department at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul.
Pekko Kohonen
Cultura Foundation
Bio
image Ahmed Kharrufa Newcastle University bio
image Alison Whelan Newcastle University bio
image Anna Sidorova Cultura Foundation Anna Sidorova is a head of the Culture and Dialogue programme at the Cultura Foundation.
Her background as a Finnish-Russian interpreter and literature translator, and instructor of Finnish and Russian as a second language has formed her large experience and expertise in intercultural communication. At the Cultura Foundation, Anna actively contributes to mutual understanding and dialogue between cultures as well: the projects she is in charge of seek and test innovative ways and models to enhance participation and inclusion of the Russian speaking of Finland. Anna is super enthusiastic and always open to new ideas.
image Belma Haznedar Boğaziçi University Belma Haznedar holds a PhD in Linguistics from Durham University, UK. She is currently a full Professor of Applied Linguistics at Boğaziçi University. Her expertise area focuses on early childhood bilingualism, with special reference to the acquisition of morphosyntactic properties of successive and simultaneous language acquisition in children. In her recent work she also investigates (i) language teaching to young children; (ii) literacy development in monolingual and bilingual children; (iii) creating online materials for teachers who work with migrant populations (adult and child immigrants with low literacy skills). In line with her recent work for teachers of immigrants, Prof. Haznedar and her co-authors presented portions of their findings at the United Nations Headquarters in 2017 in New York.
image Colin Bone Dodds Newcastle University bio
image Elifcan Öztekin Boğaziçi University Elifcan Öztekin is currently a PhD candidate in English Language Education program at Boğaziçi University. She also works as a research assistant at Foreign Language Education Department and is involved in various ongoing research projects. Her research interests include L2 and L3 listening skill development, L3 learning and cognitive individual differences in language learning.
image Gülcan Erçetin Boğaziçi University Gülcan Erçetin is a Professor of Applied Linguistics at Boğaziçi University, İstanbul and has a PhD in Language, Reading and Culture from the University of Arizona, Tuscon, Arizona, U.S.A. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate level courses on language skills development, language testing and assessment, language learning and working memory. Her research interests are second language learning in multimedia/hypermedia environments, mobile assisted language learning, gamification of learning, game-based language learning, working memory capacity and L2 reading, eye movements in L2 reading.
image Irina Spazheva Cultura Foundation Irina Spazheva is coordinator of international projects at the Cultura Foundation. Her main expertise is in developing, fundraising, and coordinating international cross-border projects. Her background is in management, research, and international cooperation in the field of culture and arts. From 2020, she acts as a project manager for the “Agents of Change: Mediating Minorities” project funded by the Creative Europe programme. Irina believes in creativity, knowledge exchange and interdisciplinary approach.
image Johanna Buitrago Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona bio
image Lari Kotilainen University of Helsinki bio
image Melinda Dooly Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona bio
image Müge Satar Newcastle University bio
image Paul Seedhouse Newcastle University Paul Seedhouse is Professor of Educational and Applied Linguistics at Newcastle University, UK. He has published 9 books and over 60 articles and book chapters in the area of applied linguistics and language teaching. Working with colleagues in Computing Science over 10 years, he has had 3 grants to build kitchens which use digital technology to teach users languages and cuisines simultaneously. The French Digital Kitchen project won the European Language Label Prize in 2012 and the Linguacuisine app is now available on https://linguacuisine.com/
image Salla Kurhila University of Helsinki bio
image Sara Ganassin Newcastle University bio
image Sumru Akcan Boğaziçi University Dr. Sumru Akcan received her PhD in second language acquisition and teaching from University of Arizona in 2002. She specializes in second/foreign language teaching methodology, language teacher education, distance education, blended-learning contexts for pre-Service and in-service language teachers. She is involved in the English language teacher education program as a supervisor and has been teaching courses at graduate and undergraduate programs at Foreign Language Education Department at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul.
image Pekko Kohonen Cultura Foundation bio