Translation's Role in Sustainable Development

By Maeva Cifuentes

I was discussing sustainable development with a friend when she brought up one of the obstructions in implementing sustainable behavior: getting people to care and getting them to act. Motivating people to behave sustainably is a delicate and complex act. Most people’s motivation for buying a hybrid or electrical car is to save money—not necessarily to reduce their carbon emissions, that part is just a bonus (I suspect they would choose the fossil fuel guzzling vehicle if it cost less). Others are motivated by reasons other than monetary incentives, but they all differ. Though people clean their homes, maintain their cars, and treat their immediate living spaces with respect, there is a callous indifference to taking care of their true home, the Earth, unless there is an immediate benefit for them. One of our biggest challenges is to find a way to present this essential information in a way that appeals to everyone. This, however, cannot be done on a global level: it must be done at a local and personal level, which is where translators come in.

Sharon Ede, writer and activist from South Australia, provides different perspectives in the effort to motivate people to behave sustainably¹. More importantly, she highlights the importance of knowing your audience and speaking their language, metaphorically. The various characters they illustrated included the prospector (outer-driven, success-oriented, emphasis on status), pioneers (inner-driven, ethics, innovation-motivated), and settlers (comfort, community, security, family); according to her, each character should be approached with values that match their own. She argues that the better you know your audience and their values, the more you can influence their sustainable behavior. Accordingly, it is crucial that the information be provided in their own language. Though climate change is a global affair, it should be dealt with at a local level.

With globalization booming through translation, the latter will also be the key to informing the world about sustainable development and fostering sustainable behavior. Social inclusion, one of the pillars of sustainable development, represents “an inclusive society […] in which every individual, each with rights and responsibilities has an active role to play,”² at a local, national or global level. Clearly this should include linguistic diversity, as the language hierarchy can easily lead to social exclusion, especially for those speaking a minority language. SIL, an international language advocate, demonstrates how the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) can be met through local languages. They argue that the development and support of minority languages are key to helping people meeting the challenges in their lives.

Language services are vital to sustainable development. Paralleling its influence in globalization, translation and supporting cultural and linguistic diversity will be key to localizing information and educating the world on how to behave sustainably. There is no alternative to reaching your audience personally, learning how they think, and providing information through their own perspectives.

• http://postgrowth.org/motivating-sustainable-behaviour/
• http://www.unrisd.org/unitar-social-inclusion