Does Interpretation Really Matter? Mental Health and Interpreting

Spoiler alert: Yes, it does matter.

Too often, bilingual and multilingual people have been asked to provide interpretation (spoken) or translation (written) without having any training. When it comes to ordering food or finding a venue in a country foreign to you, this may work just fine. Even machine translation applications suffice. But in many cases, such as medical or mental health appointments, judicial hearings, or yes, even meetings with heads of states, people should think twice.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction - What Am I Going To Do With My Life?

24:09 We Can't Interpret What We Don't Understand

47:34 Interpreters Don't Sing

58:38 Machine Translation and AI

79:05 Cova and Jenn Role Play Consecutive Interpreting

81:57 'I'm Happy to Yell.'

Meet Covadonga Soto, a conference interpreter and translator with 20 years of experience. Covadonga received her M.A. in Translation and Interpretation at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey (a.k.a., MIIS) and is also a Member-at-Large of the Council with The American Association of Language Specialists (a.k.a., TAALS).

Covadonga has provided professional interpretation in a variety of settings ranging from courts to military to medical appointments to working at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Listen in as Covadonga shares her personal and professional stories with us -- you will leave with a better understanding of this highly skilled profession, and your respect and empathy for interpreters will grow. She's also just a hilarious and warm person to listen to.

Resources

https://www.linkedin.com/in/covadonga-soto-b984305/

CTBH? is a Kin-nection production.

The commentary, opinions, and analysis provided by any guests during their interviews are for informational purposes only. They represent the personal perspectives of the speakers and do not constitute an official statement, endorsement, or reflection of the views of Kin-nection or its affiliates or any other institution, organization or business entity.

https://www.kin-nection.org/

https://www.instagram.com/kin_nection_/

https://www.linkedin.com/company/kin-nection/

https://www.youtube.com/@Kin-nection

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.