DANBURY, CT USA – 03 February 2016 – Translators without Borders, the world’s leading non-profit translation organization, announces two new senior staff appointments, Executive Director and Director of External Affairs. This an important step in realizing the growth potential of the organization.
This will be an exciting year of growth for Translators without Borders (TWB). Over the past four years TWB has gone from strength to strength, developing partnerships and growing steadily, elevating the message that communications in the right language is vital for humanitarian development. Today more than 3,200 professional translators support the organization, offering their skills pro bono to spread knowledge worldwide. This week TWB reached the major milestone of 30 million words translated for over 500 humanitarian organizations using its web-based Translators without Borders Workspace. Among its projects, TWB is currently responding to the European refugee crisis through its Words of Relief project whereby virtual teams of translators deliver content in real time to address communication needs on the front line of the refugee crisis in Arabic, Farsi, Greek and other languages for those affected. In 2015, 106 health messaging posters and leaflets were translated into 30 languages, to educate and spread awareness about Ebola; and in Nepal, a TWB team assisted search and rescue responders immediately after the earthquake struck.
New Executive Director Aimee Ansari said, “I’m very excited to be leading such an innovative organization with so much potential. There is an ever present need to provide lifesaving information to people in languages they can understand. But seemingly less urgent needs sometimes go unnoticed, such as the need for mothers to understand baby formula instructions or a HIV patient’s need to understand their doctors instructions on how to take their medicine correctly. Translators without Borders will continue to respond to both emergency and longer term needs associated with language and communication barriers.”
“Our volunteer base is the foundation of the organization; we couldn’t provide the services we do, without them. I look forward to leveraging their valuable work to help the organization grow and to have even greater impact. Our workspace, donated by ProZ.com, is one example of how I hope TWB can use technology to help people in crises to live with dignity,” said Amy Rose Mc Govern, new Director of External Affairs.
Translators without Borders welcomes our new staff.
Aimee Ansari, Executive Director
Aimee brings 20 years of experience in leadership positions in large humanitarian and development organizations. She has worked in several humanitarian crises from the Tajik civil war to the earthquake in Haiti, the conflicts in the Balkans to the Syrian refugee crisis and the conflict in South Sudan. Her passion is in listening to people, helping them to create a future for themselves that allows them to thrive. She believes in developing and implementing strategies that apply creative approaches to seemingly intractable problems. Aimee speaks English and French and is conversant in Russian and Arabic.
Amy Rose Mc Govern, Director of External Affairs
Amy Rose has a background in international relations and joins Translators without Borders with over ten years’ experience in program management and communications in the international development cooperation sector. She has worked with NGOs, governments and institutional donors in Africa, Asia and Europe. Amy Rose is a qualified translator and interpreter (French and Spanish) and holds a degree in International Relations.
About Translators without Borders
Translators without Borders envisions a world where knowledge knows no language barriers. The US-based non-profit provides people access to vital knowledge in their language by connecting non-profit organizations with a professional community of volunteer translators, building local language translation capacity, and raising awareness of language barriers. Originally founded in 1994 in France as Traducteurs sans Frontières (now its sister organization), Translators without Borders translates more than eight million words per year. In 2012, the organization established a Healthcare Translators’ Training Center in Nairobi, Kenya.
Please direct all media enquiries to Amy Rose Mc Govern, Director of External Affairs [email protected]
