Language Lines - Newsletter

January 2007

I.  From the Editor

First, from the entire team at Language Translation Inc., we wish you and your associates a happy and prosperous New Year.

Starting this month, we are working from new offices. Here are our new contact details:

4379 30th Street, Suite #7
San Diego, CA 92104-1323
Local: 619-516-4037
Toll-Free: 800-655-3397
Fax: 619-516-4089

With all the talk about business with China, India, and Korea we sometimes forget our closest trade partners. In this issue of Language Lines, our featured topic is our NAFTA neighbors: Canada and Mexico. We will give a quick overview of NAFTA and some of its effects on trade today, take a look at doing business bilingually in Canada, and give you a glimpse of new political and economic contexts at work in Mexico.

The news section will report on the digital divide, and then take you from Beijing to Denmark with items that should put a smile on your face as you start the New Year.

In our next issue, we will focus on the benefits and growth of professional language interpreting.

As always, we would be pleased to receive any comments, questions and story ideas at: editor@languagetranslation.com .

 

II.  This Month's Features: Our NAFTA Neighbors

 

NAFTA Thirteen Years Later

Thirteen years after the North American Free Trade Agreement allowed unrestricted circulation of goods throughout Canada, Mexico and the USA, Southern US shopping centers are reaping huge benefits as Mexican shoppers flock to retail outlets from San Diego to Laredo. “They spend $500 to $1,000 a trip,” said Michael Patrick, director of the Texas Center for Border Economic and Enterprise Development at Texas A&M in a recent article from Bloomberg.com.

Although the trade agreement remains subject to some controversy, the fears that spurred great debate about the accord in the early 1990s have proven to be largely exaggerated. Different US economic sectors, such as banking, are taking advantage of cross-border commerce, and many experts agree that NAFTA has been an aid to growth in all three countries.

The above benefits of NAFTA were emphasized at the second annual “North America Works” conference, held in Kansas City from November 30th to December 2nd 2006. The event brought together more than seventy Canadian, Mexican and US government officials and business executives to discuss and debate NAFTA business relationships. “Trade among the three nations has increased 172 percent after 12 years of the North American Free Trade Agreement,” remarked Eric P. Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas and conference panel participant. He also emphasized the need for continued cooperation among member nations in order to stay competitive in the global marketplace.

Related News Items

U.S. Retailers Cash In as Mexican Shoppers Flock Over Border (Bloomberg.com)

Hard by the banks of Rio Grande, bankers reap the fruits of NAFTA (Assoc. Press)

Executives Explore Free Trade Issues (KansasCity.com)

General Links

Office of NAFTA and Inter-American Affairs

The Canadian Government's NAFTA Site

Bilingual Business in Canada

We all know Canada is a bilingual country, but just how bilingual are Canadians? Despite huge efforts on the part of government agencies, relatively few Canadian citizens speak both French and English. According to 2001 Canadian government statistics, 66% of Canadians knew only one language, and 28% knew two languages – although not always French and English. In comparison, 53% of Europeans speak more than one language. These dismal figures led the Canadian Government to adopt an “Action Plan for Official Languages” in March 2003. Its objective is to raise the proportion of bilingual teenagers from 24% to 50% by 2013.

“Anglophone” Canadians have frequently brushed aside French, and Canadian French-speakers have—often begrudgingly—found it necessary to use English in national business matters. However, there are signs that times are changing. The Hamilton Spectator reports that 72 percent of Canadians think bilingualism is important, up from 56 percent some years ago. And 84% of Canadians see being bilingual as an advantage on the job market.

So, Canadians are recognizing that bilingualism and cross-cultural understanding are trump cards on resumes and in international business. “With a reputation for combining North American-style business smarts with sensitivity toward cultural diversity and language differences,” write Zena Olijnyk and Claire Gagné in Canadian Business magazine, “Canadians are one hot commodity.”

Related Links

Canadian Business Online

Valuing and Validating Bilingualism in Canada

Why French? (The Hamilton Spectator)

Official Government Sites

A Look at Bilingualism

A Newcomer's Guide to Canada

Trade with Mexico: New Political and Economic Contexts

On December 1st, 2006 Felipe Calderón was inaugurated as Mexico’s new President. He appears to be seriously tackling Mexico’s economic problems, and even started his mandate by cutting top government officials’ salaries – including his own – and increasing government aid for the country’s hundred poorest towns. He has promised to focus on reducing unemployment and economic growth, partly as a way to decrease the steady influx of workers into the USA.

Although job growth is not yet significant enough to keep up with demand, there are hopeful signs in the Mexican economy. According to economic analyst Stephen Johnson, foreign investment in Mexico grew 74 percent from 2000 to 2005, and tourism represented a huge growth sector, boasting a 40 percent increase over the same period.

Since the USA is Mexico’s major trading partner, American businesses need to stay abreast of political and economic changes across the border. Mexican trade policy is now among the most open in the world, and the country has become an important exporting and importing power. Of course, businesspeople must be aware of cultural differences when working with Mexican companies. “Because establishing close relationships, trust, and favor are so important in Mexico, one may return many times to Mexico to build these bonds,” explains ExecutivePlanet.com. “You'll find that Mexican business culture has a warm, friendly atmosphere, with a slower pace.”

Related Links

U.S. delegation points to Mexico’s important role (DallasNews.com)

The World Factbook: Mexico

ExecutivePlanet.com: Mexico

Mexico's Economic Progress Can Ease Migration Woes (Stephen Johnson)

In the news

 

Fortune Senior Editor Speaks out on the Digital Divide

At a recent United Nations conference, Fortune senior editor David Kirkpatrick emphasized the economic importance of reducing the “digital divide”: the gap between those with regular, effective access to digital technologies and those without.

His speech emphasized the “unprecedented new power” that information technology can give to developing nations – if they are ready to use it correctly. He also pointed out the astonishing importance of the cell phone in regions where it is the only viable way to connect to Internet. In parts of India, entrepreneurs are starting up e-businesses with no more digital equipment than a simple cell phone.

The IT industry is jumping on the bandwagon by creating products specifically for developing nations, such as a new $100 laptop being promoted by a program called “One Laptop per Child,” or OLPC. The device is specifically designed for primary school pupils in underdeveloped regions.

Kirkpatrick's remarks, which cover digital ground from software to semiconductors, make fascinating reading for businesspeople who wonder where technology is headed in the global marketplace.

Related Links

Complete Text of Kirkpatrick's Speech (CNNMoney.com)

One Laptop Per Child

Beijing to Boost Menu Translation Quality

It's official. If you travel to the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, you will not have to choose between “fried rice with crap” or “saliva chicken” for dinner – at least not if the “Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Program” has anything to say about it.

The government organization has been working for months to eliminate “Chinglish,” especially from menus and road signs. Considering the number of restaurants and hotels in the city, however, this is easier said than done. Rather than setting up a “mistranslation squad” to go from site to site, the “Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Program” has standardized translations of over 1,000 menu items and plans to continue until official names are set for all of the city's dishes and drinks. The translations will be available on Internet.

"I've come across many literally translated, long, confusing or funny dish names,” said Zhang Hui, a dean at Beijing University, in the Sydney Morning Herald. “They are not in line with the image Beijing is pursuing."

Related Links from Language Translation Inc.:

China Plans to Eliminate “Chinglish” for 2008 Olympics

Amusing Mistranslations Found in Beijing Menus

 

Related Links from the press

Read the entire Sydney Morning Herald Article

Beijing takes aim at food follies ahead of Olympics (Yahoo! News)

Happy New Year – Especially in Denmark?

For more than 30 years, Danes have ranked first in surveys measuring happiness and satisfaction among Europeans. So why will Denmark have an especially happy New Year?

A team of British medical researchers has just examined the question in a somewhat serious study published in the British Medical Journal. The researchers considered factors from hair color to food to…soccer. And surprisingly, the latter comes out as one of the reasons for Danish bliss. “Winning the 1992 European Football Championship put Danes in such a state of euphoria that the country has not been the same since,” writes Science Daily.

The second reason identified for Danish delight is that residents' expectations are generally low. So Danes will probably have a very happy 2007, but are not yet convinced of it.

Related Links

Why Are Danes The World's Happiest Nation? (Science Daily)

Read the Complete British Medical Journal Study

 

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