Every year on International Translation Day, we have an opportunity to celebrate the professionals who make communication possible across languages, cultures, communities, and borders. We also take this opportunity to show that translation and interpreting are ultimately about much more than words. They are about understanding. Context. Culture. Judgment. Curiosity. And, perhaps most importantly, people.
This year, the Portuguese Language Division of the American Translators Association invited members of our community to help us mark International Translation Day by sharing their own perspectives in a series of short videos. The response reminded us of something that has always been at the heart of the PLD: there is no single path into our profession and no single way to experience it. Our community includes translators, interpreters, educators, terminologists, and other language professionals whose careers have developed across different countries, specialties, generations, and professional environments. What brings us together is Portuguese and a shared commitment to helping people communicate.
Voices from Our Community
We would like to extend a very special thank-you to the colleagues who took the time to participate in this year’s International Translation Day initiative:
Alexandra de Vries
Clarissa Clark-Surek
Cris Silva
Georganne Weller
Giovanna Boselli
Jeffrey Stuart
John Ellis
Jonas Nicotra
Tatiane Bertoni
Their videos are being shared across the PLD’s social media channels as part of our International Translation Day celebration. Rather than trying to capture their individual perspectives here, we invite you to hear directly from them. After all, a celebration of language professionals should make room for their own voices.
Please follow the PLD on social media to watch the videos and join the conversation:
PLD on LinkedIn
PLD on Instagram
One Profession, Many Journeys
Translation and interpreting are professions built on differences: different languages, varieties, cultures, specialties, experiences, and ways of seeing the world. Those differences are not obstacles to our profession. They are among its greatest strengths. The Portuguese-speaking world itself reflects extraordinary linguistic and cultural diversity, and the professionals who work with Portuguese bring equally diverse experiences to their work.
International Translation Day gives us an opportunity not only to recognize what language professionals do, but also to recognize one another. It is a chance to celebrate the colleagues who teach us, refer us, challenge us, answer our terminology questions, share their experiences, volunteer their time, and help build the professional communities that allow all of us to grow. This spirit of community has been part of the Portuguese Language Division since its beginnings, and it continues through the participation of members who are willing to contribute their knowledge, experiences, and voices. The PLD itself began as a community of Portuguese translators seeking greater connection and professional exchange and was formally accepted as an ATA division in 1990. ATA Divisions
Thank You
To everyone who contributed a video: thank you for lending your voice to this project.
And to translators and interpreters everywhere, whether you have been working in the profession for decades or are just beginning your journey:
Happy International Translation Day!
May we continue learning from one another, supporting one another, and building bridges through language.
Portuguese Language Division
American Translators Association
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