Localization Lab Community Wrap-up: April 2024
Hey everybody!
We – Chido, Dianne, Maja, and Adriano – recently had an opportunity to meet each other in person for the first time! We had a sprint/retreat in Malaysia and aligned on some wishes and plans that we can’t wait to share with you all.
Hello friends!!! (L-R: Maja, Dianne, Chido, Adriano)
We will be hiring part-time Regional Coordinators soon: Stay tuned!
Localization Lab will be hiring five (5) Regional Coordinators (East, South, and Southeast Asia; Eastern Europe & Central Asia; Latin America; West, East, and Southern Africa; and Middle East and North Africa) to lead and oversee the organization’s work with communities to respond to digital emergencies and to support rigorous research and community engagement initiatives to bring critical digital technologies to communities affected by censorship.
Stay tuned for more information!
Contributor of the Month
Earlier this month, we published our interview blog with our March 2024 Contributor of the Month, Fadoua Bouaouda. Learn more about one of our amazing Arabic contributors, her culture, and why she contributes to our work!
Now, without further ado, it’s time to reveal our contributor of the month for April 2024!
This month, we celebrate Soledad Magnone, who's been contributing to Localization Lab projects for approximately 4 years!
As a translator and reviewer, Sole's collaborative spirit and meticulous approach have elevated projects like Cybersecurity Assessment Tool (CAT) and Securing Organizations with Automated Policymaking (SOAP), Tactical, and Tella. Her linguistic expertise and cultural sensitivity ensure that our translations resonate deeply with Spanish-speaking audiences. She's also contributed to internet freedom projects as an interpreter!
We are incredibly grateful for her dedication to breaking down language barriers and making information accessible to all. ¡Gracias, Sole, for your vital role in building a more inclusive and accessible digital world for Spanish speakers!
Community Events
We concluded our ‘Getting Started’ series at the end of April. Thanks to everyone who has continued to participate in our events. We have also sent out certificates to everyone who participated. If you did not receive your certificate, please reach out to us so that we can send that over as soon as possible. More to come so stay tuned through our Mattermost community channel and Discussion Forum.
The month in numbers
Over the month, we have translated a total of 17,728 words, edited 12,040 words, and reviewed 6,756 words. We have collectively worked on 36,524 words! We are doing great. We hope in the coming month we get more work done.
Support needed to localize tools and resources
Tor (please see here what the high-priority languages are!)
Tella (Belarusian, Burmese, French, Indonesian, Jingpho, Kannada, Russian, Tamil)
Shira (Hindi, Indonesian, Russian, Swahili)
Mailvelope (Spanish)
SAFETAG (Arabic, Burmese, French, Russian, Spanish)
User feedback needed
Your insights and suggestions about the tools are invaluable for us and tool developers. This feedback is crucial as it helps developers understand what works well, identify issues, and discover areas needing improvement. By actively incorporating user feedback, developers can enhance the app's functionality, usability, and overall user satisfaction, ensuring that the tool remains relevant and effective in meeting the needs of its users. Please play around with the tools we localize and let us know your thoughts.
Tella (available in several languages!)
Bitmask (available in several languages!)
Save app (available in Arabic, Spanish, and Ukrainian)
What do you like about them? Did you encounter any errors or issues with the translation, design, or anything else? Please send us your thoughts at maja@localizationlab.org or adriano@localizationlab.org.
Interested in becoming a contributor?
Or do you know anyone who would be perfect for the community? Do send them this sign-up link. We are happy to also personally contact them and invite them to join. Please respond to this email with their contact details and we will take it from there.
Warmly,
Chido, Dianne, Maja, Adriano, and the rest of the Localization Lab team
PS: While waiting at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, we talked about superstitions and knocking on wood. In Brazil, Zimbabwe, and the Philippines, we knock on wood to counter something that has been said, in a ‘God forbid’ manner. Maja said, however, in Croatia, they knock on wood to support a statement or positive wishes.
For example:
Person A: “In case he gets struck by lightning…”
People in Brazil, Zimbabwe, and the Philippines: *knocks on wood*
Person B: “I hope he does not get struck by lightning…”
People in Croatia (or maybe just Maja 😛): *knocks on wood*