SDL announces sponsorship of Translators without Borders

Nov. 5, 2012 - PRLog -- SDL (LSE: SDL), the leader in Global Information Management, and theSDL Foundation (http://sdl.com/aboutus/corporate-citizenship/sdl-foundation/), are pleased to announce that we have pledged our ongoing support to help humanitarian translations reach more people around the world by continuing  sponsorship of Translators without Borders (http://sdl.com/aboutus/corporate-citizenship/sdl-foundation/translators-without-borders.html).

Since the devastating Haiti earthquake in 2010, Translators without Borders has been stepping up efforts to provide humanitarian translations to aid groups, not just to those working in Haiti, but to NGOs, or non-governmental organizations, working across the globe in disaster relief, healthcare and education. Since summer 2011, the organization’s volunteer professional translators have delivered more than six million words for humanitarian needs.

The financial support provided by sponsors is critical to sustaining and growing the organization, particularly in under-resourced languages. "In the course of our work, we've become aware of a huge global need, which is for people in poor countries to be able to access global knowledge in their own language," explains Lori Thicke, co-founder of Translators without Borders.

“According to UNICEF more people die from lack of knowledge than from diseases. People in poor countries are simply unable to access global knowledge in a language they understand. Mobile technology may be bringing this knowledge closer to the bottom three billion, but we still need to bridge the ‘language last mile’. Translators without Borders is delivering this much needed help by developing a scalable training program so that more people will be able to access the knowledge they need in a language they understand."

Commenting on the SDL Foundation’s decision to continue sponsorship, Mark Lancaster said: “We started working with Translators without Borders during the rescue and rebuilding work after the devastation in Haiti.  In crisis situations like that, it is critical that aid groups are able to communicate in the local language.  SDL believes everyone should be able to engage with the information they require in the way they want which is why we are proud to continue our support for an organization that facilitates access to information for those that need it most.”

Lori Thicke adds: “We are incredibly grateful to SDL for this assistance, which is critical to enable us, in turn, to support more humanitarian work around the globe.”

The financial support provided by sponsors is critical to sustaining and growing Translators without Borders (http://translatorswithoutborders.org/). SDL and the SDL Foundation (http://sdl.com/aboutus/corporate-citizenship/sdl-foundation/) are proud to be supporting Translators without Borders in this work.

About Translators without Borders
Translators without Borders, a US-based 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, envisions a world where knowledge knows no barriers. The mission of Translators without Borders (initially founded in France in 1993 as Traducteurs sans Frontières) is to provide people access to vital knowledge in their language by connecting non-profit organizations with our community of translators, building local language capacity and raising awareness about language barriers. Translators without Borders volunteers translate millions of words each year, focusing on three types of humanitarian translations: crisis translations needed urgently to inform people in crisis, translations that support an NGO’s operations, and translations that directly support people in need. The organization is building language capacity in Kenya through its first translator training center where trainees focus on healthcare content in Kiswahili and acquire the skills for a career in translation.

About SDL
SDL enables global businesses to engage with their customers in the language, the media and at the moment they choose. We help businesses manage their brands, drive global revenues, accelerate speed to market and enrich their customers’ experience. SDL’s enterprise-ready innovative technology and service solutions span the entire customer journey and include social listening and marketing analytics, campaign management, language management and services, video and written content creation, web content management, dynamic technical documentation publication and eCommerce. SDL solutions drive global reach across multiple languages, cultures, channels and media. SDL has over 1,500 enterprise customers, 400 partners and a global infrastructure of 70 offices in 38 countries. For more information,  visit www.sdl.com.