Closing date: 31 Oct 2018
Levantine Arabic Language Lead
The mission of Translators without Borders is to provide people access to vital knowledge in their language through translation and interpreting, building language translation capacity at a local level, providing translation and simplification services that are culturally appropriate, accessible and open source, and raising awareness globally of language barriers.
Contract length: 2 months with possible extension, starting November, 2018
Hours: Part time
Location: Home-based, flexible; (GMT to GMT+2 preferred)
Travel: No
Due to the urgency of the vacancy, screening and interviews will commence immediately and the candidate can be selected at any stage before the closing date.
About Translators without Borders
Translators without Borders (TWB) 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 community of language professionals, building local language translation capacity, and raising awareness of language barriers. Originally founded in 1993 in France (as Traducteurs sans Frontières), TWB translates millions of words of life-saving and life-changing information every year.
In 2013, TWB created the first-ever crisis relief translation service, Words of Relief (WoR), an initiative that intends to improve communications between crisis-affected communities and humanitarian responders before, during, and after a crisis, by eliminating linguistic barriers that can impede vital relief efforts. Words of Relief has since been used to respond to humanitarian crises every year.
Background
Every year, TWB translates millions of words of life-changing content. Arabic is consistently one of TWB’s most requested languages. We are looking for an exceptional Arabic Language Lead with specific knowledge of Levantine Arabic to help manage our community of Arabic volunteers, oversee overall translation quality and also provide linguistic support for our exciting new project Gamayun: The Language Equality Initiative. Gamayun is focused on developing machine translation capabilities in underserved languages. Over a two-month period you will work closely with the Gamayun Project Manager to help build a workable machine translation prototype in Levantine Arabic.
The role
The Levantine Arabic Language Lead will be enthusiastic about the importance of increasing access to knowledge through language. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced linguist with a curious and creative mind who is passionate about the latest advances in language technology and interested in being part of a potentially groundbreaking project. We are looking for a flexible and energetic team player who agrees with TWB’s Core Values and can work virtually to collaborate with team members and volunteer translators based throughout the world.
Responsibilities
Mining and preparing datasets in Levantine Arabic
Monitoring and evaluating machine translation output
Developing and defining terminology databases in Levantine Arabic and Modern Standard Arabic
Managing, cleaning and maintaining TWB’s Arabic translation memories
Assessing and evaluating the translation competencies of Arabic translators
Onboarding new Arabic translators, providing training on the global TWB translation platform.
Overseeing the quality of TWB’s translations into Arabic including following TWB’s quality assurance procedures.
Contributing to and/or writing language factsheets, drafting guidelines and tutorials
Actively building and engaging our community of Arabic volunteers
Understanding the volunteer community, their goals and needs, to support the Community Management Team to improve engagement and incentive metrics.
Collaborating closely with the Gamayun Project Manager
Collaborating closely with the Translation Team
Developing and delivering training
Please note that these roles and responsibilities are approximate and may change over time.
Qualifications
5+ years of experience in translation
Good understanding of language technology and familiarity with Translation Memory (CAT) tools, Terminology Tools and QA Tools (knowledge of MateCat is considered a plus)
Awareness and interest in Machine Translation (post-editing experience and/or qualification is considered a plus)
Knowledge and experience of Quality Assurance procedures for translation
Requirements
Native or near native knowledge of Levantine Arabic
Complete fluency in both written and spoken English and Modern Standard Arabic (good knowledge of French is considered a plus)
Ability to work remotely, including own stable, broadband internet connection and a desktop/laptop computer
Ability to innovate and find creative solutions
An analytical mind combined with precision and attention to detail
Humanitarian aid experience is considered a plus
Core Values
Translators without Borders employees and volunteers are made of people who believe passionately about the value of this work and take personal responsibility for achieving the mission. Translators without Borders’ mission and organizational spirit embody the core values established in its strategic framework:
Excellence: As the leading voice for communicating humanitarian information in the right language, Translators without Borders is a leader in the translation industry and in the non-profit sector.
Integrity: Translators without Borders believes that every person, whether it’s the people who we serve, our volunteers or our staff, has value, deserves respect and has inherent dignity.
Empowerment: Translators without Borders believes in using language to empower people around the world to control their own development and destiny.
Innovation: Translators without Borders recognizes and celebrates the power of innovation to address humanitarian and crisis issues around the world.
Sustainability: Translators without Borders recognizes that meeting our mission necessitates establishment and maintenance of a solid financial and organizational infrastructure.
Tolerance: Our staff and volunteers are highly knowledgeable and skilled; value each other, our partner and our recipients; create a supportive work environment; and, conduct themselves professionally at all times.
Translators without Borders is an equal-opportunity employer, committed to diversity and inclusion, and encourages qualified candidates of all genders and from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization.
How to apply:
Click here to apply https://twb.bamboohr.co.uk/jobs/view.php?id=41