When language is clear, communication becomes more accessible, inclusive and participatory. This is the focus of the hybrid lecture “From Plain English to Accessible Communication: The Evolution of Clarity as a Democratic Value”. Organised by the University of Pavia, the event will take place on Thursday, 17 September 2026, from 11:00 to 13:00 CEST at Kirolab San Felice (Piazza Botta Adorno Antoniotto) and online.
Promoted by the EC2U Alliance, the initiative is part of the activities of the Virtual Institute for Quality Education (VIQE), which brings together education, research and innovation to promote inclusive and equitable quality education, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 4.
The event is open to everyone interested and will be held in hybrid format (in person and via Zoom). To attend remotely, registration is required by completing this form.
English is often regarded as a language that naturally lends itself to clear, accessible communication because of its linguistic structure and long-established writing conventions. The development of the Plain English movement in the United Kingdom since the 1970s, however, shows that linguistic clarity is not simply an inherent feature of the language but also the outcome of sustained advocacy and institutional commitment.
Professional associations, public bodies and scholars have played a key role in promoting and systematising plain language practices across administrative, legal and business communication. Among the movement’s leading figures, Martin Cutts, co-founder of the Plain Language Commission, has made a major contribution to establishing plain language as both a professional practice and a field of study through influential manuals and practical guidance. Placing Plain (and Easy) English/Language within the broader framework of accessible communication, and drawing on the British experience, this lecture explores the relationship between linguistic tradition and organised language reform, arguing that clear communication is not merely a stylistic preference but a fundamental requirement for accessibility, democratic participation and inclusive public communication.
Elisa Perego holds a PhD in Linguistics and is Associate Professor of English Language, Linguistics and Translation at the University of Pavia, Italy, where she also serves as President of the University Language Centre. Her main research interests include audiovisual translation, audio description for blind and partially sighted people, accessible communication, and language simplification, with a particular focus on Plain and Easy English. She investigates these areas from a comparative English–Italian perspective through an interdisciplinary, user-centred approach. Her recent publications include the monographs Audio Description for the Arts (Routledge, 2024) and Accessible Communication (Frank & Timme, 2020), as well as the co-edited volume The Routledge Handbook of Audio Description (with Chris Taylor, 2022). In June 2025, she organised the first Intensive School for Advanced Graduate Studies, Plain English: Accessible Communication across Disciplines and Cultures, at the University of Pavia.