This collection re-imagines language and communication through an ethnographic sociolinguistic lens, foregrounding perspectives on collective projects that grapple with the relationship between past, present, and future towards confronting structural inequalities.

Bringing together work from critical sociolinguistics as well as related scholarship in literary studies, social theory, and anthropology, the volume features contributions from established and emerging scholars which showcase collective initiatives whereby people reckon with the semiotic and multilingual practices that contribute to social difference while seeking to envision a radically better future. Chapters feature analyses of narratives, audiovisual artefacts, and everyday discourse in “projects of re-imagination” within such spaces as educational institutions, religious organizations, NGOs, community groups, and urban development initiatives. In focusing on social groups that are mobilized into action by reimagining the present through narratives and linguistic practices, the book highlights the disciplinary implications for sociolinguistics as a field more broadly.

This innovative volume will be of interest to scholars in sociolinguistics, applied linguistics, and linguistic anthropology, as well as related disciplines such as sociology, political science, and educational studies.