InDialog 5: The technological turn and public service translation and interpreting: challenges and opportunities

Strand 1. The Technological Turn in Public Service Translation and Interpreting

• The evolving roles of human interpreters and translators in the age of technology.
• Technology and accessibility.
• Technological tools in crisis situations.
• The influence of AI and machine learning on PSTI training, practice, and research.
• The impact of new technologies on translation and interpreting quality.

Strand 2. Rethinking Education and Training for Technology-Enhanced Practice

• Preparing future translators and interpreters for a tech-integrated profession: Curriculum design, tools, and pedagogical strategies.
• AI and training of interpreters and translators in languages of lesser diffusion.
• Balancing traditional skills with technological proficiency: What should training programs prioritize?
• Lifelong learning for practitioners: The role of continuing education in adapting to technological advancements.
• Addressing resistance to technology in education and practice.
• Collaboration between academia, industry, and public institutions to shape PSTI training for the future.
• The other side of the specter: Educating translation and interpreting users.

Strand 3. Professionalization and Recognition of Public Service Translation and Interpreting

• National and regional systems supporting PSTI: legislation, certification, education, and awareness-raising initiatives.
• The role of governments, professional associations, and NGOs in promoting the recognition and legitimacy of PSTI.
• Advocacy strategies for raising awareness about the importance of qualified public service interpreting and translation.
• Addressing disparities in access to qualified PSTI professionals across regions and communities.

Strand 4. Policy, Legislation, and Advocacy in Public Service Translation and Interpreting

• The role of legislation and policy in shaping the provision of PSTI services and protecting linguistic rights.
• Equitable access to language services in the public sector.
• The intersection of PSTI and human rights: Ensuring linguistic justice in diverse societies.
• Challenges in policy implementation: Funding, enforcement, and scalability of multilingual public services.
• Global frameworks and international standards: How can they support PSTI professionalization and recognition?

Strand 5. Interdisciplinary and International Perspectives on PSTI

• Interdisciplinary collaborations: How PSTI intersects with fields such as computational linguistics, sociology, law, and public health.
• Cross-border comparisons of PSTI practices, challenges, and innovations.
• The role of PSTI in global crises, including migration, humanitarian emergencies, and climate-related displacement.
• Culturally sensitive approaches to PSTI: Addressing the linguistic and cultural diversity of service users.
• The future of PSTI in a globalized world: Trends, opportunities, and threats.

Oral presentations and posters

It is the individual submitter’s choice to submit for an oral presentation or a poster.

Oral presentations should report on (nearly) completed work.

Posters are suitable for work in progress and/or work that requires personal feedback. Poster presenters are responsible for the production of their posters (format A0 / 841 x 1189 mm or 33.1 x 46.8 inches).

Abstracts for oral presentations and posters should include the following sections:

• Type of contribution 
• Title
• Strand
• Keywords (max. 5)
• Body containing the objectives, methodology and (preliminary) findings 
• [on a separate page] Author(s) details: please provide title, first and last names, e-mail address and affiliation of all authors.

A note on research abstracts: 

Please note that while it is acceptable to submit abstracts with preliminary rather than full results, a lack of results limits the ability of reviewers to fully assess the impact/significance of the work, which can be compensated for by a clear elaboration of methodology and hypotheses.

Panels

Panels capture a coherent set of three to five individual presentations in which speakers briefly address a central issue or question of particular relevance.

An important asset of a panel is that it places individual experiences or research results in a broader context and reserves time for interaction and discussion amongst the panelists and with the audience.

The convener of the panel should consider inviting colleagues from different countries to provide an international perspective.

The available time is 90 minutes per panel.

The panel abstract should be submitted as one single abstract and include the following sections:

• Type of contribution
• Title
• Strand
• Keywords (max. 5)
• Body containing information on objectives, methodology and (preliminary) findings
• [on a separate page] Chair details: Title, first and last names, e-mail address and affiliation
• Panelists' details: Title, first and last names, email address and affiliation of all panelists

Please note: 

• Contributors can be the first author of one contribution only (whether panel contributions, oral presentations or posters).
• Authors may be involved in a second or third paper if someone else is the first author and presenter.