Language diversity and inclusion in humanitarian
organisations: mapping an NGO’s language capacity and
identifying linguistic challenges and solutions
Tesseur, WineORCID: 0000-0003-4882-3623, O’Brien, SharonORCID: 0000-0003-4864-5986 and Friel, Enida
(2022)
Language diversity and inclusion in humanitarian
organisations: mapping an NGO’s language capacity and
identifying linguistic challenges and solutions.
Linguistica Antverpiensia, New Series – Themes in Translation Studies (LANS – TTS), 21
.
ISSN 2295-5739
This article examines whether language diversity among staff in humanitarian organisations
may affect inclusion and, if so, in what ways it does. We draw on the findings of a survey on
staff’s language skills in the international NGO GOAL. We also draw parallels with practices
noted in other international NGOs in previous research. Prior to the survey, data were lacking
on the languages GOAL works in, which staff work multilingually, and whether gaps existed in
language capacity and translation provision. The data provide evidence of the rich multilingual
landscape in GOAL and reveal some patterns in the language use and multilingualism of staff.
The survey investigates the notion that inclusion also has a linguistic dimension: staff and local
communities speak a variety of languages, yet the main working language of the international
humanitarian sector is English and, by extension, a handful of other major former colonial
languages such as French and Spanish. Data-gathering such as that done in this study is
important for two main reasons: without such data, INGOs cannot fully understand the level
of exclusion that some of their staff may be facing because of language differences; and they
are unable to grasp the extent to which they rely on the multilingual skills of their staff to
provide ad hoc translation solutions that ensure effective communication and successful
humanitarian assistance. The article aims to advance the debate on language challenges in
the NGO sector by offering concrete data on informal translation and interpreting practices
in one example that is representative of language practices in the international humanitarian
sector. This contribution will hopefully encourage other international NGOs to collect similar
data on language use and barriers that will help organisations to deal positively with the
linguistic dimension of inclusiveness.
Metadata
Item Type:
Article (Published)
Refereed:
Yes
Uncontrolled Keywords:
inclusion; language diversity; informal translation; Core Humanitarian Standard; aid effectiveness