Hey Reader,

What if you are somewhere new and you need housing, but you don’t speak the language?
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Could you read rental listings? Could you navigate housing websites or fill out rental applications correctly? Could you read the contracts or legal documents that you need to sign to rent or buy a property?

Across the Omaha area, immigrant and refugee families struggle with this in their search for safe housing. “Many of us tend to take the fact that we have a roof over our heads for granted, and there are people who are struggling to maintain or find shelter to begin with because of language barriers,” says our Interpretation and Linguistic Strategist Ivan B Lopez.

In 2024, World Speaks launched a program – Open Doors – designed to help.

Open Doors is a groundbreaking language access program that supports immigrants, refugees, and people learning English as they navigate housing-related challenges, including filling out forms, understanding legal language, and navigating housing-related language barriers. We provide free interpretation and translation services to ensure that language is NEVER a barrier to stable housing, essential resources, and community engagement.

Since it started, the program has impacted over 9,000 individuals thanks to partnerships with organizations like CIRA, Homewoven, Habitat for Humanity, and Restoring Dignity.

Through Open Doors, World Speaks offers:

• Oral interpretation (in-person & remote) for housing applications, legal resources, and community meetings
• Written translation of vital documents, including lease agreements, rental assistance forms, and housing studies
• Cultural orientation support to help newcomers understand tenant rights, homeownership, and local housing policies

When speaking about Open Doors, Ivan shares that “My favorite thing about the program is the impact it has in alleviating confusion and stress when accessing housing.”

Getting help from the Open Doors team is easy – community members (those seeking housing as well as property owners) can fill out our intake form here: LINK, and nonprofits, management companies, or agencies can contact us here: LINK. We are hoping to impact even more individuals across our community in 2027!

One thing to remember: World Speaks is not an affordable housing or legal agency. We cannot provide any legal assistance or give legal advice. We do not have affordable housing resources or properties available.

Cheers to 10 Years!

On Thursday, October 1, we gathered with friends, family, and supporters to celebrate TEN YEARS of World Speaks.

Looking back on the past decade, we’re reminded of what happens when an idea has the space, support, and community to grow. What started as a vision has flourished into 10 years of connecting people through language, culture, and community.

As we look toward the next 10 years, our commitment to language access remains at the heart of everything we do.

Language access is about more than translation or interpretation. It’s about ensuring people can access the information they need to navigate their lives, advocate for themselves, and live with dignity.

Thank you to everyone who has been part of this journey – especially those who helped us meet our goal of raising $10,000 to support us as we move into the next ten years! If you haven’t given yet – but you want to – click here!

Language Access Learning

Did you know that October is National Bilingual Child Month? In the United States, approximately 12 million kids speak more than one language at home. An estimated 91% of those kids act as informal interpreters or translators for their family. They open mail, interact with utility companies, and even interpret for their parents at school.
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This act of children translating for the adults in their orbit is called language brokering – a term coined by language researcher Lucy Tse in the 1990s. You may remember us discussing this in our August 2026 newsletter, when we asked whether it was okay to use children as interpreters and shared why it’s not a good idea. (Missed it? Take a look here.)
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If you’ve ever had a family bring a child to help them interpret – or you’ve seen it happen often in your organization – here are three things your organization can do to help mitigate this occurring:

• Hire professional interpreters, or invest in on-call or video interpreting for interactions with the public
• Enforce a strict “no minors” policy if you work in legal, medical, or financial settings and train your public-facing staff on how to bring in language support when needed
• Translate your core documents: Make sure you are offering documentation, signs, and forms in the language(s) most prevalent in your community

Want to learn more? Visit: https://www.immigrantresearch.com/research/child-language-brokering​

World Speaks in the Community

How do you explain how to use a much-needed app to someone who wants to use it? Do you show them in person? Do you share a video?
October continued a busy streak for the World Speaks team! We ended September at CIRA's INCREDIBLE community event, Welcome Fest, and celebrated at the Heartland Worker’s Center Cafecito Event. Then, we joined Nebraska’s interpreters and translators for the 2026 NATI conference! Our team also enjoyed the Omaha Chamber's 2026 Power Conference, and Leah put on her learning hat at the Indiana Fundraising School Campaign Training.

We’d also like to thank the team at Together, Inc. for hosting us and letting us learn what World Speaks does. Ivan gave an incredible presentation, walking them through everything World Speaks does and sharing our Open Doors program so the whole team knew what resources were available.

GET INVOLVED

UPCOMING EVENTS

• November 14th - Fall Courses End
• November 26th & 27th - World Speaks Offices Closed for Thanksgiving Break
• December 1st - Giving Tuesday
• December 21st - January 1st - Winter Recess

7914 W Dodge Rd #475

Omaha NE 68114

(Mailing address)

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