International Translation Day “A World Without Barriers: Translation and Interpretation in Indigenous Languages”

UNESCO and Translation Commons (TC) will organize a joint virtual event to celebrate the International Translation Day (ITD) on 30 September 2022.

At the 71st session in 2017, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 288 (A/RES/71/288, para 2), recognizing “the role of professional translation in connecting nations, and fostering peace, understanding and development”, and declaring 30 September to be International Translation Day.

The International Translation Day aims to raise awareness of the importance of professional translation as it brings nations together, facilitates dialogue, understanding and cooperation, contributes to sustainable development and strengthens world peace and security.

They play an important role in enhancing effective communication between people from different regions, while contributing to people’s right to communicate in their language of choice, to create meaningful interactions with one another and to share cultural expressions in a variety of forms.

We need to ensure that people have the right and freedom to use their chosen language, as this is an essential element for human dignity, for the life of the community, for peaceful co-existence and for sustainable development. Languages allow us to interact with each other, convey our thoughts, share and learn from each other. They also help us to maintain, safeguard and transmit our histories, identities, centuries-old wisdom and knowledge.

UNESCO defends the fundamental right to use the language of one’s choice in all domains of life without fear of discrimination as a prerequisite for inclusiveness and equality, which are key conditions for the creation of open and participatory societies and it is entirely committed to lead actions towards the protection, revitalization and promotion of Indigenous languages.