IW 125: Special Report 2: efsli 2024 Torino Italy - Passionate Practitioners - Fabulous

Where have all the interpreters gone? Is there a lack?

Here the buzzing excitement from sign language interpreters in part 2 of this special report on the 2024 efsli conference in Italy.

We talk about cooperation, commitment, working conditions, and how to reflect and apply what we learn to our everyday work. Excitement and laughter, what more can you ask for?

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Transcript

IW 125: Special Report 2: efsli 2024 Torino Italy - Passionate Practitioners – Fabulous

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[ROCK INTRO MUSIC STARTS]

00:00:02 Tim

Good morning, good evening, good afternoon. Wherever you are, this is the Interpreter's Workshop podcast. I'm Tim Curry, your host. Here we talk everything sign language interpreting the ins, the outs, the ups, the downs, the sideways of interpreting. If you're a student, a new interpreter, experienced interpreter, this is the place for you. If you want to know more, go to interpretersworkshop.com.

00:00:28 Tim

Let's start talking... interpreting.

[ROCK INTRO MUSIC ENDS]

[Sounds of people mingling, talking, dishes rattling, continue through the episode interviews]

00:00:34 Tim

And now the quotes of the day…

00:00:37 Tim

The first quote is by Sam Walton, founder of the American retail store Walmart.

00:00:45 Tim

“If you love your work, you'll be out there every day trying to do it the best you possibly can, and pretty soon everybody around will catch the passion from you like a fever.”

00:00:59 Tim

And the second quote is by Seth Godin, American author and former dot com business exec.

00:01:07 Tim

“Turning your passion into your job is easier than finding a job that matches your passion.”

00:01:14 Tim

You hear me say a lot. ‘The passion of our profession.’ Well, in today's episode, you're going to hear it a lot from the participants, the interpreters, the presenters at efsli 2024 this past month.

00:01:28 Tim

You can hear it in their voices, in their laughter, in the way they talk about the profession, how they're going to use what they've learned, what they have heard, what they've seen, the passion of trying to improve, trying to find the answers to the problems we have, trying to analyze how we talk about the profession.

00:01:47 Tim

In that you can see, you can feel the passion for our profession. And one participant says, “Where are you? We're all here. Where are you?” She's talking about the community. Why aren't other interpreters there, feeling this same passion? Not that she's being negative towards them, but that she wants everyone there. She wants to feel the vibes from the whole group of interpreters worldwide.

00:02:16 Tim

That's what it's about. The excitement and passion that is still with us, even when we have been working in this career for a very long time. Loving what you do means the passion. Finding the passion. It never feels like work when you love it. OK, maybe sometimes it does, but you keep coming back because you believe in it. That's why it's all about. So, let's listen in and hear the passion of our profession.

00:02:48 Tim

Let's get started.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

00:02:53 Tim

And now we speak to Gill from Scotland to remind us why the sound is a little different. Yes, it's live. And that's exciting. You can feel the atmosphere. You can feel the buzz in the air, and you can also hear the buzz of the audio. So why is that? Well, again, here it is.

00:03:13 Tim

So, Gill, you were supposed to bring me your microphone. Why did that not happen?

00:03:18 Gill

Bruce happened.

00:03:20

Bruce Cameron, right?

00:03:22 Gill

Bruce Cameron happened, yes.

00:03:24 Tim

So, it's all his fault.

00:03:25 Gill

Absolutely. His fault didn't come in the post, never got it. Not sight of it, afraid. So…

00:03:33 Tim

I see. Well, we'll just have to make do with this.

00:03:37 Tim

And now it's nice to hear from a former efsli board member and her perspective on how things have evolved in the communication atmosphere. What does that mean? Well, let's see.

00:03:50 Tim

So, Jenny, what is your idea and feeling of this year's efsli?

00:03:55 Jenny

This year is really wonderful, I think, because we have plenty of people who are trying to sign more so I can feel there is much more signing space and so people are really trying to, I mean, implement their international sign.

00:04:12 Jenny

And even though they don't know exactly what to say, but they are trying to mix up with their national sign languages and so on. So, I think it's a really nice feeling and I hope it will be improving also next years.

00:04:26 Tim

Great. Thank you.

00:04:28 Tim

And now we come to someone I surprised with an interview. Camilla, a researcher from Sweden who has a lot to say about how we should come together as the interpreting community.

00:04:41 Tim

Hello, welcome to the podcast. Please give us your name and where you're from and your feeling of this year's efsli’s conference.

00:04:50 Camilla Warnicke

Well, uh, I'm Camilla Warnicke. I'm from Sweden. I'm a researcher and well, I attend this conference, and I really enjoyed it because we're coming together. That's the main thing, I guess. Yes. And we have similar troubles, similar challenges out there.

00:05:09 Camilla Warnicke

And we need to come together. That's, that's one thing that I recognize.

00:05:15 Tim

Yeah. What specific research are you doing currently?

00:05:19 Camilla Warnicke

Well, I'm yes. Uh, I'm working with remote interpreting, uh, research. And I'm also have done my PhD back in 2017 about the VRS video relay service and…

00:05:37 Tim

For Sweden?

00:05:38 Camilla Warnicke 

…for Sweden, within Sweden. Yes, and I've done conversation analysis on those kind of, in, in the setting. And now I've been interviewing 26 interpreters in Sweden about their thoughts and feelings about their remote interpreting change more or less… happened due to the COVID-19.

00:06:02 Tim

And have you found good results that will help us going forward?

00:06:08 Camilla Warnicke

Yes, hopefully the coin always have two sides, [Tim: yeah] so a lot of positive aspects and lot of negative aspects too. But well, I'm coming back to that cooperation. We need to cooperate in the, in the small setting like face to face, remotely, and also in the big community, I guess. So, cooperation is essential.

00:06:36 Tim

Thank you. And hopefully the listeners will reach out and find your research that can help us move on. Thank you.

00:06:42 Camilla Warnicke

Thank you. Thank you so much. [Cheering and clapping in the background]

00:06:47 Tim

Did you hear the cheering at the end of the talk with Camilla? Her colleagues were sitting around and supporting her in the working conditions that she had to deal with this weird interviewer coming up and sticking a microphone in front of her face, and she was surprised, shocked, but delivered wonderful thoughts. Thank you, Camilla.

00:07:07 Tim

So, Caron, how are you enjoying efsli?

00:07:09 Caron

I am having this fabulous time with all my friends. It's fabulous. Thank you.

00:07:14 Tim

Fabulous friends are fab. [Caron laughing: exactly]

00:07:17 Caron

They certainly are in this world.

00:07:19 Tim

Have you learned anything new?

00:07:21 Caron

Have I learnt anything new. I really enjoyed today and some of that research, and I think that's really gonna inform what we showed to bodies that we need more interpreters like the ones you're all here. So, where’re the rest of you?

00:07:33 Tim

Yeah, [Caron: Why aren’t you here.?!] the FAB interpreters. [Caron laughs] Thank you.

00:07:36 Caron

[Still laughing] Thank you. Bye, bye Tim.

00:07:40 Tim

Bye bye.

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

00:07:46 Tim

There was lots of wonderful research that was presented at efsli this year, 2024. We're now going to hear from Isabelle, who a lot of the participants were talking about her research on the lack of sign language interpreters in the world.

00:08:03 Tim

Isabelle, is this your first time at efsli?

00:08:07 Isabelle

No, it's not. I've been coming to efsli since 2008.

00:08:11 Tim

Just about like me, 2006. So, today's presentation on your research was well, is a very hot topic today in discussions throughout the countries about the shortage of sign language interpreters.

00:08:26 Tim

And why and how? What do we do about it. Is there really one? Is it just a perception from your research? What is the most important thing that it tells us?

00:08:38 Isabelle

Yeah. So, I do think it's a perception. I think when we just look at the numbers of people who are qualified to do the job, there should be enough to cover the requests. We just see people don't have the ability to commit full time to this profession or at the stage in their life they have to leave the profession and when we look at why people actually love being a sign language interpreter, they're very intrinsic motivators.

00:09:05 Isabelle

But those kind of are not strong enough or just not enough to keep you going, especially if you find yourself at the stage in your life where you need more security. And I think that's what came out of the research. If people do drop out or they reduce their hours is because of a lot of insecurities financially.

00:09:24 Isabelle

But also, just job insecurity. Will I have enough work, and will I have enough work to have a stable income from this profession, I actually really, really love. So, for me it's important to maintain the things we love about our profession and work on the things that need changing for it to become its sustainable profession. Really. Yeah.

00:09:46 Tim

And I wish I could ask you about 20 more questions, but I know we don't have time from your experience coming to efsli conferences, how has it changed and or what has stayed the same that keeps you coming to efsli?

00:09:59 Isabelle

So, in the beginning I would come to attend the conferences, and I think through the years...

00:10:04 Isabelle

It's like every piece of research I've done I've presented at efsli, so for me it's been an amazing forum to have to actually share my research with practitioners because I'm in academia and it's great if my academic peers read it. I love that, but I want my research to have an impact. It's applied research, so it should serve our community.

00:10:24 Isabelle

With our community, I mean the large community of sign language interpreters, of sign language interpreters service users, hearing and Deaf.

00:10:32 Isabelle

So, I think the topics have changed a bit and that they've become more inclusive. We're opening up more taboos are being discussed, things we would not discuss probably in 2008, we are discussing now. But then again, like we're still discussing a lot of the same things, we're still very much hung up about the role of the interpreter.

00:10:54 Isabelle

So yeah, I think there's new things and there's things that we will keep on discussing because our profession keeps on evolving, yeah.

[ROCK TRANSITION MUSIC STARTS]

00:11:02 Tim

Speaking about things that are taboo, have you donated to the podcast yet? Have you shared the podcast? Go to the show notes, click on support the show or share with a friend, a colleague, a student group. Keep the passion alive. Thank you very much. Now let's go back.

[ROCK TRANSITION MUSIC ENDS]

00:11:19 Tim

Now we speak to another Camilla from Sweden, who has recently returned to the profession after being away for a while, and she speaks to the point of the lack of interpreters and how we need to discuss that.

00:11:34 Tim

So, Camilla, tell us your full name and where you're from and how you're loving or not loving efsli this year.

00:11:41 Camila Eurenius

Well, I'm Camilla Eurenius from Sweden and I've been an interpreter for a couple of years now, but I had a break for about 10 years not working in the field because I've been working as a self-employment...

00:11:58 Camila Eurenius

…at the self-employment Agency in Sweden. But I'm thinking the politicians are making kind of bad decisions and that we just have to adjust to that. No, but I, I my heart has always been in interpreting. So, this is where I should be.

00:12:18 Camila Eurenius

But I, I also think that…

00:12:20 Camila Eurenius

…what is also said at this conference that the pay is not always good. And yeah, a lot of things need to change.

00:12:29 Tim

All of the working conditions, yeah.

00:12:30

Exactly. And I think it's very profound that we really get a change here for all the countries, obviously. Less interpreters now, what does that do with the deaf community? They need the rights to be filled, and so we are needed, and I guess they also need to take care of us.

00:12:51 Camila Eurenius

A little bit better, maybe not. Just have comments on what's quality not… I mean we really need to discuss this and look at this. It's very important, I think crucial you could even say.

00:13:03 Tim

I agree. Thank you very much.

00:13:05 Camilla Eurenius

Thank you.

00:13:06 Tim

And now let's listen to Matt, a newly experienced interpreter and his views on everything efsli, and how we can apply it right now.

00:13:18 Tim

So Matt, you're from the UK and you're a trainee interpreter in the UK, you've been to efsli twice now. [Matt: Yep.] Compared to now, how has your view changed over that time?

00:13:33 Matt

I'm not too sure how my views changed. There's like some consistencies that I think that I've seen, so I think particularly around I think the openness of delegates to, you know, want to communicate with each other has been fantastic.

00:13:46 Matt

I think this year, like there's been a real push like from last year's conference to make sure that this is a signing space. So, that we see more of that and that's been a in a really positive change. I think for everyone involved like to improve their own skills using international sign...

00:14:05 Matt

…making sure that our deaf colleagues are included as well. Yeah. But I think it is really consistent that you know the networking side of things is one of my favorite [aspects] of efsli.

00:14:15 Tim

How has that networking talking with other interpreters from other countries? How has that affected your work in your home country?

00:14:24 Matt

That's a big question. Suddenly try to reflect on a whole year’s worth of work between the, the last conference and now.

00:14:32 Matt

I think…

00:14:33 Matt

It's, it's hard to kind of pinpoint what it is. Like I, I feel like with efsli we, we're exposed to so much information. We have so many conversations with so many colleagues from so many different countries. There's probably nuggets from each of those, umm, conversations that probably entered the subliminal part of my brain. [both chuckling] like they'll, they'll come out somewhere, I think.

00:14:54 Matt

Like maybe on a like a skills focused kind of thing like the… using international sign in this environment that supports us like particularly like from London, so…

00:15:07 Matt

Constantly meeting people from the in the deaf community that aren't necessarily first language, British, British sign language users, but use maybe some international sign or use a different sign language. If I turned up at a booking, I feel a little bit more prepared by having practiced with, with colleagues who are also practicing as well and with deaf colleagues that have more fluency in International Sign.

00:15:32 Tim

Do you feel that the research helped you think about interpreting in a different way now that you're actually practicing?

00:15:39 Matt

Yes, I think now again like trying to run through the whole weekend and like I'm, I'm drinking coffee as I speak, my first coffee.

00:15:49 Tim

As we all should. Go on. [Matt chuckles]

00:15:53 Matt

So yeah, I think that.

00:15:56 Matt

Again, there's, there's like little Nuggets of information that we'll be picking up throughout.

00:16:01 Matt

There's definitely some activities that you know, I'm, I'm going to walk away from. I think actually I need to do this with like my peer group in the UK. So, like we just [had] the lecture about reflecting on you know how we became interpreters. And I think that'll be something we're going to take away as a peer group and use that as an activity to, to reflect like a bit further following the conference.

00:16:26 Tim

All good ideas. Thank you.

00:16:28 Matt

Welcome. Thank you.

00:16:30 Tim

So, Valentina, we're here in Italy.

00:16:34 Tim

The efsli conference has just ended.

00:16:37 Tim

How do you feel about the whole weekend?

00:16:40 Valentina

I feel so good because I met a lot of colleague, a lot of friends, so topics are really interesting, also, about a lot of new stuff and I'm so excited for the next year, it is in Lisbon.

00:16:58 Valentina

So, I prepare my towel for, for the sea, for the beach, just to met interpreter and stay together and learn more and more and more. So, let's, we see, this next year.

00:17:13 Valentina

OK, bye!

00:17:14 Tim

Can't wait, Portugal it is!

00:17:16 Valentina

Bye bye. Ciao!

[SHORT TRANSITION MUSIC]

[ROCK EXIT MUSIC STARTS]

00:17:24 Tim

I truly like doing live interviews in the atmosphere of the buzz, the excitement, the cooperation, the community that's building.

00:17:34 Tim

I should do those more. Let's go over what we just heard. Some of it was very short, but deep things we need to consider. Many people mentioned the cooperation and that starts with communication. Having a signing space that involves everyone is crucial.

00:17:55 Tim

If you're learning in your native language, you do get more information you do understand and comprehend concepts better. But when you have a diverse group of people with many different native sign languages, many different native spoken languages, that's very difficult in many ways to provide native languages for everyone.

00:18:19 Tim

So, there will be compromises, just like in our daily work as an interpreter, there are compromises to what ‘language use’ is in those situations. It's not straight communication.

00:18:32 Tim

So, to see everyone willing to take a chance to make a mistake, to miscommunicate to be wrong and yet still take that chance, that was a good moment for everyone.

00:18:47 Tim

Speaking with Camilla, the researcher from Sweden, not the other Camilla, which we'll talk about in a moment. She made the point that it was nice to see us coming together. The cooperation. Her research showed her that in order to improve, you have to come together. You have to discuss it. You have to work together in teams, you have to work together to figure out what is needed. That she said is critical, essential.

00:19:16 Tim

Caron reinforced the idea that we need to come together. If you can't make it to efsli, make it to your local gatherings, go to workshops, go online to other workshops, if they're not in your country. Come together as a community, support one another, so that we can get those policies changed to improve the working conditions for all sign language interpreters.

00:19:41 Tim

Isabelle working in Ireland gave us her research which permeated throughout the discussions of the day, because that lack of interpreters is a topic everywhere, a perception that it feels like it is a lack of interpreters. But the perception comes because those interpreters who are qualified do not necessarily have the security from the job, financial security or number of jobs available.

00:20:13 Tim

And that research tells us how do we keep the interpreters. We need to improve the working conditions to give that security so those qualified interpreters can stay, can continue, or come back if they have left. They have the passion. They love this profession, but it needs to be realistically available secure for everyone.

00:20:37 Tim

I love her thoughts on coming to efsli to share her research. This is a very important point. Researchers, studies need to be applicable. They need to be transparent and delivered to the practitioners in a way that it is applicable and comprehendible as to how it helps us as sign language interpreters and the stakeholders that are involved in this service.

00:21:07 Tim

And then we hear from another Camilla from Sweden as an example of someone coming back because the profession is a passion. Her heart is in it, and we need to discuss those conditions openly. As Isabelle said, talk about those taboo topics and really discuss them so they are no longer taboo and perhaps even find solutions to those topics that we keep coming back to.

00:21:36 Tim

Matt is a good representation of new interpreters and the others from the other episode can see how they can apply the research, bring it back to their home country, and start reflecting on how to improve the conditions to keep interpreters together to feel connected and unified as one community.

00:21:58 Tim

Beautiful thoughts from everyone and a good ‘So long. See you next year’ from Valentina. I'll see you all in Lisbon, 2025 in Portugal next year. Until then, keep calm.

00:22:13 Tim

Keep securely interpreting. I'll see you next week. Take care now.

[ROCK EXIT MUSIC ENDS AT 00:22:54]