A Wealth of Books for Everyone!

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A Wealth of Books for Everyone!

Covid has meant deprivation of one kind or another for pretty much everybody.

At the risk of sounding trite, deprivation is difficult, and that difficulty can often take over our field of vision and cause us to lose sight of the many, many things we have in abundance.

So here’s something October has in abundance: Special Days! No, we’re not talking about a day for dressing up your kids and chasing them around the neighborhood as they go mad for sugar. That’s fun, but this is even better…

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Question: How Do You Write a Book When Lives are Literally on the Line?

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Question: How Do You Write a Book When Lives are Literally on the Line?

If you’re alive and have access to the internet (which I think we can safely assume since you are reading these words), then you have no doubt been exposed to some terrible medical messaging over the past year and a half. This is tragic during a global health crisis, as lives often depend on the careful, concise delivery of accurate medical information…

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Problemas de champán / Champagne Problems:

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Problemas de champán / Champagne Problems:

The phrase “champagne problems,” recently popularized by the Taylor Swift song of the same name, describes luxury problems that aren’t so bad in the context of everything else going on in the world. So here’s a little “champagne problem”… our efforts and the efforts of our partner, Juarez & Associates in Guatemala to promote the use of the Bloom book-creation software and Bloom Reader have worked spectacularly well, to the point that the team behind the program has had to scramble to manage all the traffic. We are happy to be victims of such success…

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Grateful New Beginnings: Change at SIL LEAD

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It is with gratitude for our past and enthusiasm for the future that we announce a shift in key leadership positions here at SIL LEAD.

First, Paul Frank has stepped down as Executive Director; and after a well deserved three month sabbatical will return to SIL LEAD in October as the Senior Advisor. Paul co-founded SIL LEAD and saw it grow to a streamlined organization with global reach. We are grateful for his ten years of service, and grateful that he’ll be remaining with us in an advisory capacity.

Succeeding Paul in the Executive Director position is Christof Weber, who has worked with SIL LEAD since 2014 and served as Associate Director since 2019. 

Fraser Bennett has been promoted to fill the Associate Director position. 

Meanwhile, Catherine Young has been elected to serve as the Chairperson of SIL LEAD's Board of Directors, taking the place of Mark Taylor. Mark served in that position for 10 years as well, and will remain on the board. 

We’re grateful that these leadership changes maintain continuity of purpose, as we remain committed to seeing people flourish in community using the languages they value most.

Making a Translation “Snappy”

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Making a Translation “Snappy”

I've heard literacy specialists denounce the translation of stories and other texts from one language to another and state rather proudly that they only promote original, creative writing. While it is essential to promote first language authors and create authentic cultural literature, many good reasons exist to translate other materials, such as multiplying the quantity of literature available in minority languages.

Of course, there are also valid concerns about translating text from one language and culture to another. A translated text can be more challenging to read than prose written naturally. Without care, translated texts can sound awkward and lack the natural discourse style to make them not only easier to read, but interesting, too…

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