To celebrate the International Translators’ Day, a four-hour Powwow was held on September 28th at the Calhoun’s Café, on Vancouver’s West Side.
With a total of 14 attendees, everyone took turns at introducing themselves to the group, and it soon was evident that there was a wide variety of interests and experience present, ranging from technical to literary translation. The languages represented were: English, French, Spanish, German, Farsi, Japanese and Chinese.
After the introductions, we made brief contact with other Proz members in Argentina and Uruguay, via Skype. Unfortunately, due to a poor wireless Internet connection, it was not possible to have live conversations and we couldn’t contact a Powwow in Las Vegas that was being held at the same time.
We also discussed in small groups the biggest challenges in translation work. This was a stimulating focus topic that encouraged further discussion, open communication, and some interesting stories too.
Members from the Society of Translators and Interpreters of British Columbia (STIBC) presented the benefits of being a member and some of the translators discussed their own experiences with STIBC’s membership requirements.
The general consensus was that the Powwow was a great opportunity to meet other translators in person, exchange ideas and experiences, and that this kind of events should happen more often.
Greetings to all translators! Glad to hear the powwow went well. Sorry I was unable to get across the water that day as I would love to be in better touch with local translators. Call if you're in Victoria area. 250-360-4068 - Cheryl Reitz of Yu-Jian-Yo Language Services Ltd.
The translation workplace 
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