The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2019 - 8

OUTREACH REPORT

BY MADALENA SÁNCHEZ ZAMPAULO

Collaboration among Language Professionals:
Representing ATA at the ACES: Society for
Editing Annual Conference

C

onference attendees buzzed over
the latest updates to the Chicago
Manual of Style and Associated Press
(AP) Stylebook. Crowds of word nerds
filled the hallways between sessions.
Colleagues who had only corresponded
electronically for the past year hugged
one another, excited about the fun
weekend ahead.
Now, you might be thinking, "Wait,
there are other word nerds who go
on and on for hours about all things
language-related?" You bet! It was my
great pleasure to represent ATA at this
year's annual conference of the ACES:
The Society for Editing (formerly known
as the American Copy Editors Society)
in Providence, Rhode Island. With over
800 attendees from various fields and
backgrounds, I felt right at home among
this bubbly group of professionals.
ACES is an organization for editing
professionals in various industries, as
well as educators and students.1 I also
represented ATA at the ACES conference
in 2018 in Chicago. My presentation and
attendance at that conference were so well
received that I decided to propose another
session for this year's event. As it turned
out, there were a few other translationrelated proposals this year! The conference
organizers contacted us and requested that
we work together to form a discussion
panel on translation. We were delighted!
Fellow ATA member and current ATA
Interpreters Division Administrator
Helen Eby presented with me on the
panel, along with Helaine Schweitzer, the
senior editor of Watching America, which
provides news and opinions about issues
involving the U.S. published in other
countries.2 We each brought a different
perspective and skill set to the table,
something the organizers recognized early
on and had the vision to request that
we work together to share our expertise
on translation with attendees. At the
8

The ATA Chronicle | July/August 2019

end of Helen's portion of the panel,
she noted, "I'm impressed that ACES
noticed how our topics complemented
each other and brought us together for
a stronger presentation where we could
connect the dots. This shows thoughtful
programming." I couldn't agree more!

It was clear to us that attendees
were happy to see translation being
represented at this conference,
since ACES attendees are known
for being inclusive and welcoming
of others who study language.

Our panel (entitled "Language: Barrier
or Bridge?") was well received, with 30
to 40 people in attendance. When it was
my turn to speak, I asked if there were
any translators in the room, and several
hands shot up! A few even mentioned
being ATA members and working both
as professional translators and editors
in their areas of specialization. It was
clear to us that attendees were happy to
see translation being represented at this
conference, since ACES attendees are
known for being inclusive and welcoming
of others who study language.

GETTING THE WORD OUT ABOUT
ATA AND THE IMPORTANCE OF
HIRING PROFESSIONALS
Some editors attending our panel
mentioned previous experiences working
with translators. There were a few
who regretted having learned the hard
way about working with a specialized
translator. After hiring someone they
believed to be a professional, they realized

that the presentations they had paid to
have translated were unusable with their
target audience. They were happy to
know about ATA, and those who hadn't
yet worked with language professionals
were very interested in finding ways
to collaborate with translators and
interpreters in the future.
This is where we stepped in! I
directed attendees to ATA's Directory
of Translators and Interpreters as a
prime resource for finding professional
translators and interpreters. I mentioned
the various search filters they can use
(e.g., sort by location, language, or
services) to find the right professional
translator/interpreter to work with
on their projects. ACES members and
conference attendees are very receptive
to working with freelancers, as most
are freelancers themselves. They have a
good understanding of what it means to
be a true professional in an unregulated
field, shouldering the responsibility
of relaying the meaning of the words
on the page as they were intended.
They were very thankful to have a
resource like ATA's online directory
to access. This understanding and
common appreciation of one another's
work might be what I find most
compelling about building collaboration
between translators, editors, and other
professional associations.

Taking the time to attend
conferences in related industries
provides us with the chance to teach
people about what we do and raise
the visibility of our profession.

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The ATA Chronicle - July/August 2019

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