United we Grow

LEO's 5th International Virtual Conference

Location: Online

Date: June 23-24, 2022

Time: 4-6 PM EDT/1-3 PM PDT on Thursday

10 AM-6:30 PM EDT/7 AM-3:30 PM PDT on Friday

The conference starts in...

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International Conference for Interpreters and Translators!

Our theme for 2022 is United We Grow. We grow as a profession and as individuals contributing to this profession. The conference will aim to explore this vital concept, and talk about ways we can be more united and supportive of one another on a personal and a professional level.

Who is this for? Interpreters, translators, language company owners, court and hospital language service administrators.

Why join? Learn from expert speakers, get answers and be a part of discussion, network with the best in the industry and get inspired!

CEUs (see the numbers below): RID, CCHI, IMIA/NBCMI, AZ, CA, CO, DE, MD, MI, MN, MO, NB, NM, NV, OH, OK, OR, PA, TN, TX, UT, WA, WI.

Perks and bonuses: Your participation automatically enters you into LEO’s raffle where you can win an LEO course of your choice without instructor evaluation ($109-$1,100 value) or LEO Plus membership ($99 value). Each attendee will also get a free one-year digital subscription to our Media sponsor MultiLingual magazine

Can’t attend the live event? No worries, the recorded video of the conference will be available to everyone registered!

Questions? Check out our Conference FAQ.

Previous conference feedback

It was a wonderful virtual conference! I attended 4 of the 5 LEO conferences and learned a wealth of knowledge every time!

I found this conference to be very enlightening. I truly believe that “united we grow” and I am looking forward to getting more involved in this fascinating industry to help raise the bar in our profession.

I found the conference very motivating. Many of us freelancers work solo and rarely encounter colleagues in the field. It is encouraging to know there are many out there pushing to have our work recognized and pushing forward to advance our training.

I really enjoyed the conference. I am not sure if this was intentional, but advocacy was a big theme, and I am leaving the conference inspired to apply some of the suggestions and advocate for improvements in language access and our profession.

I loved the conference, and I cannot wait for the next one.

I am so fortunate to be part of something like this, amazing professionals in the language field that gave me so much hope, and I look forward to growing not only as a professional but as a human being. Thank you.

Thank you for this excellent program! I deeply enjoyed getting to hear from these experts, and while I loved and miss going to conferences in person, these LEO conferences have kept me going, inspired, and encouraged.

The LEO virtual conferences have been the most welcome channel of access to the community of interpreters because they are virtual, they are timely and discuss topics of great importance to the profession, and because they offer a community voice to the individual freelance interpreters like me. Thank you!

Extremely pleased with the conference and truly knowledgeable presenters who are not just professionals but also individuals that care about our industry and are advocating for it. Every presenter had something insightful, new and contributed greatly to making the conference a great source of information and education. What a great experience for interpreters as a community. Kudos to LEO!!

I continue to be impressed by the quality of the presentations and the affordability of the LEO conferences. Thank you for doing such a great job.

An amazing conference from LEO, incredibly informative and instructional, looking forward to the next one.

I really enjoyed LEO’s 5 conference. Extraordinary presenters. Please keep me informed on future events. I learned one of the most valuable tools to improve myself: Communicative autonomy.

This was a great conference. I appreciate the quality and scope of the topics and the experience the presenters brought to the table. Thank you for making it happen.

Great line-up. Absolutely loved the live captions.

I am thrilled to have attended and not missed this 5th International conference. Thank you, LEO, and to all the sponsors and presenters for this conference. For me, it’s more than just a comprehensive linguistic education. Informative, supportive, productive, inspiring, compassionate, relevant, professional, ethical, legal, and advocating. I had never been a professional interpreter as grateful and proud as I am now after my attendance at this conference. Let’s Go, Lingo!

The conference generated insightful knowledge that continues to expand my skills and my professional qualifications. I really enjoyed it. Really informative and very engaging.

This was my very first conference and I absolutely loved it! Looking forward to the next one in December!

Once again, LEO’s Conference was for me a great learning opportunity, with excellent presenters/panelists. The presentation material was very current, insightful, and relevant to the profession.

This is my first virtual conference, and I learned a lot. I’m very impressed with all the panelists and presenters, and the very important information they presented. Thank you all so much!

LEO 5th was my first experience with linguistic education online. It was perfect. There is so much I learned. I really like the way everything was presented; everyone was happy, smiling, willing to share what they know. I was amazed. Thank you to everyone the organized this online event and thank you to all the participants, they did fantastic.

Such great panels. I have learned a lot. It helped me to make my decision to stick with what I am currently doing.

Thank you for the very informative and modern-style conference!

This was my 1st LEO conference… it was fantastic… top level panelists! Lord willing, I’ll be back in December for the next one.

I recently became a Certified Healthcare Interpreter with CCHI, therefore this was the 1st CEU event I’ve attended, and I found it to be very educational, friendly, and very professional. I am very grateful to have been able to learn different aspects and important information related to my profession from all the panelists. I gained a lot of pertinent information and learned from the participants’ comments. I was very pleased and am very grateful!! Thank YOU!!

A very dynamic and thought-provoking conference. Thank you.

This was a really beneficial conference. It helped me realize how important and challenging my profession is. I have been an interpreter for 20 years and it is something that I was looking forward to since I was a 7-year-old. Please keep providing these types of events. Looking forward to many more of them.

The variety of panels and individual presentations was a hit. I enjoyed each and every session. Thank you for your dedication in providing excellent content and lively presenters.

This was my first LEO conference. The variety of expertise and experience of the panelists was fantastic, I learned so much about not only my own field, but about other fields within the domain of language access. It was encouraging to see so many people committed to growing these professions together.

I am really glad that I attended! It helped me to understand and to get to know my profession on so many different levels, that we are a community that has a lot of work to do for the future of our profession and business. Thank you so very much.

Thank you, LEO, for the wonderful conference with a wealth of knowledge and tools to use as we continue to move into this new layer of interpreting. Panelists were knowledgeable and some “celebrities” within our profession. Thank you for the topics covered.

It was my first time attending this conference and I loved it. The caliber of all the presenters was first class. Having subject matter experts elevates our profession too. I feel empowered to advocate and defend my profession even more. Thanks for making it happen.

The conference was wonderful, and I am very grateful to LEO for bringing these topics to the forefront. For reminding us of our roles as advocates for the profession and for the LEPs we work with. It motivates me to continue, but it made me anxious. There is still so much work that needs to be done. From an educator standpoint, I know I can work with my students and apply some of the above, but there is still so much institutionalized discrimination that we need to fight against.

Thank you for providing such a great variety of knowledgeable presenters. The length of the conference was perfect and I enjoyed the virtual medium. (I think it is always better in person, but the conference was very well done) An additional benefit from a virtual conference is, while you can reach out to more presenters, you were able to keep the cost down.

Thank you so much for the great conference and great content. This is my first LEO conference but won’t be my last for sure.

Thank you for putting together such an impressive group of panelists and giving interpreters the opportunity to hear from them on such a wide range of topics. I learned a lot, felt motivated, and also gained perspective on areas of the field that I did not know much about. Thank you.

Although lengthy (advantageous for obtaining CEUs), this conference was very informative and was the motivation I needed. This conference challenged me in the area I am least confident in which is advocacy for the profession and taking more initiative when promoting the profession. Danielle Meder was fantastic!!!

It was a very, very informative conference! I really enjoyed the talk Mr. Bruce provided. All the presenters were fenomenal! I’m very pleased with all the information shared.

I am beyond pleased with attending LEO conferences. This is the second one for me and the information learned is so valuable. I am grateful to be able to participate and learn updated information in the Interpreting industry. Thank you!

I truly enjoyed the virtual conference. More time for Carla and Bruce. They are a wealth of knowledge. Everything was well-organized.

I loved all the sessions, I found all of them very interesting, insightful, and inspiring on how to become a better interpreter in the profession and for the community. This was my first time attending a LEO International Virtual Conference and certainly it won’t be the last!!! Looking forward to seeing you next time. Thank you.

This conference was absolutely phenomenal. Every presentation was very interesting and talked about relevant issues in our industry. It is such a pleasure to hear from such experienced and intelligent people.

Part of the proceeds will be donated to

Agenda

June 23, Thursday: Preconference

16:00-17:00 EDT

Baseline vs Building – It's Neural Machine Translation Journey

Learning Objectives:
1. Learn the difference between baseline and custom;
2. Learn what type of MT to use, when and why;
3. Learn to select the correct approach with MT.

Presenter:

Dominick Kelly

, Technology and Sales Director at Keywords Studios

17:00-18:00 EDT

What interpreting skills are critical to certify healthcare interpreters of ALL languages

Learning Objectives: Understand the objectives and results of the EtoE Study; Identify which interpreting skills/subskills can be tested in an English-only modality; understand types of activities on the ETOE exam that measure interpreting skills

Presenter:

E. Zoe Schutzman, MA

, Certified Interpreter, Co-founder and CEO of Cloud 18 Productions, Inc., CCHI Commissioner

June 24, Friday: Conference

10:00-10:05 EDT

Opening remarks by

Jinny Bromberg Executive Director of Linguist Education Online

10:05-11:15 EDT

What the Future Holds panel

With 2022 in full swing, our Future panel will have a lot to discuss: from the state of the pandemic to the global impact we are only beginning to feel brought on by the war against Ukraine. While we may be living in a history textbook, we can certainly help to write it.

Panelists:

Katharine Allen,

Interpreter, Translator and Trainer,

Lorena Ortiz Schneider

, Interpreter, Translator, ATA Director, and Founder of CoPTIC,

Paul Tracy,

CI & CT, Co-Founder of Partners Interpreting

11:15-12:15 EDT

Advocacy for Language Access

Learning Objectives:
1. Understand the basis for language access in the US;
2. Understand what you can do to advocate for language access.

Panelists:

Dr. Bill Rivers,

Principal at WP Rivers and Associates,

Giovanna Carriero-Contreras

, Chair of AAITE and CEO of Cesco Linguistic Services

12:15-12:20

5 MIN BREAK

12:20-13:20 EDT

Interpreting in Times of War

It's hard to stick to interpreter ethics and impartiality while interpreting for such a brutal violation of human rights as war. Our panelists with firsthand experience in interpreting and working in active conflict zones will share their stories and provide input on various topics from language inclusion to coping with vicarious trauma and PTSD.

Panelists:

Ahmed Ali Saleh,

Interpreter, National Capacity Building Officer at Translators without Borders,

Dr. Kateryna Rietz-Rakul

, Ukrainian-German Interpreter,

Tarjman,

Dari/Pashto Interpreter

13:20-13:50 EDT

LUNCH BREAK

13:50-15:00 EDT

Legal panel: What Do We Do Now?

Learning Objectives:
1. Learn about legal developments that may impact your career;
2. Learn about prospective regulatory efforts and best practices that could impact how interpreters conduct business;
3. Acquire talking points and best practices to advocate for your colleagues and clients.

Panelists:

Bruce Adelson, Esq.

, Federal Compliance Expert,

Carla Fogaren

, National Consultant on Equity and Language Access in Health Care

15:00-15:30 EDT

Language Professionals Are a Company of One

Learning Objectives:
1. Become familiar with the profile of translation students in the digital age;
2. Learn the differences between academic environment and real-life experiences ;
3. Translation students will get an idea on how to better prepare for the transition of becoming independent contractors.

Presenter:

Rafa Lombardino

, Certified Translator and Voice Over Talent

15:30-16:30 EDT

Marketing Fundamentals for Interpreters and Translators

Learning Objectives:
1. Learn different marketing techniques;
2. Learn to collaborate with colleagues;
3. Learn to collaborate with clients.

Panelists:

Marion Rhodes

, ATA-certified Translator, copywriter, marketing specialist,

Alessandra Checcarelli

, Conference and community Interpreter, expert networker,

Mireya Pérez,

K-12 Interpreter and Translator, Owner and Host of Brand the Interpreter

16:30-16:40 EDT

10 MIN BREAK

16:40-17:25 EDT

Looking Back to Go Forward: Self-Evaluation for Skill Development

Learning Objectives:
1. Learn why thoughtful self-evaluation is necessary for professional interpreters;
2. Explore the self-evaluation tool and identify strategies for implementing it;
3. Develop questions to ask that focus on why decisions were made and how to use the responses to create a skill development plan.

Presenter:

Danielle Meder

, Director of Organizational Quality and Partner Support at Martti, ASL Interpreter

17:25-18:25 EDT

Creating and Supporting the Need for a Language Access Program in Various Organizations

Learning Objectives:
1. Who do we talk to about the need for a Language Access Program;
2. How do we organize information pertinent for the implementation of a Language Access Program;
3. How do you work to create and maintain this program.

Presenter:

Jorge Mejia

, Medical Interpretation Coordinator at Natividad Hospital

18:25-18:30 EDT

Closing remarks by

Jinny Bromberg Executive Director of Linguist Education Online

CEUs

RID: 0.7

Healthcare interpreting: 7 CCHI, 0.525 IMIA/NBCMI CEUs (5.25 contact hours)

Court interpreting: 9.25 CEUs in AZ, 7 in CA, CO, DE, MD, MI, MN, NB, NM, OH, OK, PA, UT, WA and WI, 5.5 in MO and OR, 9 CEUs in NV, 9.5 CEUs in TN and 9.75 in TX.