About us

The Rutu Foundation for Intercultural Multilingual Education is a non-profit organization based in the Netherlands. We work to secure the right of all children to have an equal right to a quality education that respects their cultural identity including their languages (art. 29, Convention on the Rights of the Child).

Most education systems are centered around one language and a dominant culture, ignoring and cutting off millions of children from their cultural and linguistic roots. In the process the world loses valuable knowledge that has been passed on for many generations, while children losing their self-esteem, affecting their achievements. We want to change this.

Mission

The mission of the Rutu Foundation is to make linguistic and cultural diversity the norm in education. The Rutu Foundation believes that all children, especially indigenous children and children from migrant and minority backgrounds, should have every opportunity to learn in and through the languages they and their families use and understand well.

Our name

The word ‘rutu’ means ‘roots’ in Sranan. This is the Creole (mix) language of Suriname, where the idea for the Rutu Foundation was born. Strong roots are essential for growth and to allow flourishing in all directions.