We’re thrilled to announce that we recently wrapped up our third annual TEDWomen subtitling contest, a precursor to the TEDWomen 2021 conference that’s currently underway in Palm Springs, California.
How exactly did the contest play out? With the aim of highlighting women’s voices in the TED community, each translator who participated subtitled either a TED, TEDx or TED-Ed talk delivered by a female speaker, and then partnered with a reviewer to publish their translation. In addition, the pairs briefly explained why the talks they chose resonated with them.
The incredible amount of excellent submissions we received from TED Translators around the world made it difficult to select just five winning teams. A huge thank-you to everybody who took part and thereby made many more talks accessible to their respective language communities.
As for the contest winners, they came away with a suite of sweet prizes: their choice of a digital subscription to Scribd, Lumosity or Babbel, a profile feature on our blog, and complimentary access to the TEDWomen 2021 livestream. Read on below to learn more about these translator-reviewer collaborations and why, in their own words, they published the talks they did.
Ysiana Agalliu and Helena Bedalli
Translated talk: Julissa Prado: 3 rules to help you build a successful business
Ysiana details why she translated this talk into Albanian:
“As a young entrepreneur, always looking for inspiring role models, I took Julissa’s words by heart. It is important for me to offer the possibility to other Albanian women to find inspiration to take a risk, follow that dream that they always had and bring a change in the world, just like Julissa did. I believe that following the 3 rules described in the video can and will help every small business owner, from a small country like Albania, succeed and make a difference!”
Sampa Bestavasvili and Chryssa Rapessi
Translated talk: Lisa Genova: What you can do to prevent Alzheimer’s
Sampa’s interest in neuroscience inspired him to translate this TED2017 talk into Greek:
“This talk raises awareness of the signs that should alert us when we see ourselves or our close ones experience difficulty with being functional in everyday life. Most importantly, however, the speaker provides some solutions that have been evidenced to help us not experience the pathology of this disease… this TED talk gives hope to people who have Alzheimer’s running in their families that they shouldn’t retreat into their shells believing they are condemned. On the contrary, leading an active and healthy life is the key to fighting back and eventually defeating this disease.”
Translated talk: Meg Jay: Essential questions to ask your future self
Hanie explains why she translated this talk into Farsi:
“I know I’m not alone in my struggles with mental health in my mid-twenties, and that is why I chose to translate this talk in the hope that it would help people of any age in my country and especially my fellow Gen Z-ers who have had to live some of the most exciting and defining years of their lives in lockdowns and the Covid era, and might sometimes feel lost or left behind.”
Shimaa Nabil and Nawfal AlJabali
Translated talk: Nili Gilbert: The crucial intersection of climate and capital
Shimaa describes the impact that her Arabic translation of this talk had on how she views her career:
“I realized that I don’t need to be an activist to have an important role in climate change. As a veterinarian, I can make a real impact from my position. Climate change will impact veterinary medicine by amplifying existing health problems, altering global food production and consumption patterns, and creating unanticipated threats (epidemics, fire, drought, species migration). What I can do is to educate and message about how routine veterinary services are part of climate change adaptation and how we will need to be augmented or deployed.”
Ajeng Fajriani Nurasieta and Reno Kanti Riananda
Translated talk: Emma Jane Taylor: It’s not just the strangers we should be careful of…
In translating this TEDxDerryLondonderryStudio talk into Indonesian, Ajeng seeks to raise awareness of a sensitive issue:
“By subtitling this talk I sincerely hope to raise the awareness of this danger to all people, especially my fellow Indonesian citizens whose awareness towards this issue is still lacking. Through this video, I want to show that there are people in this world who are concerned with the issue of child sexual abuse and are willing to take action to prevent it from happening.”