The Linguist

I first visited Neasden Temple 22 years ago. Located just off the North Circular, close to where I grew up, its intricately carved form rises up from the grey streets – one of the 'Seven Wonders' of London, according to Time Out. Visits to its Great Hall are encouraged and there is a very well put together About Hinduism exhibition. However, I had not heard of its innovative Gujarati programme until this November, when it won CIOL's Threlford Memorial Cup (p.14). The recent awards take us from Neasden to Lomé, where the winner of the Nick Bowen Award, Lucy Makepeace, is working to improve opportunities for Ewe-speaking children by supporting their education in French (p.10). Although a high level of French is expected in Togo for full participation in adult life, current teaching provisions mean this is often unrealistic. The inspiring work of CIOL's award winners provides an antidote to these gloomy times, but there are still difficulties ahead. News of the pandemic dominates for obvious reasons, but the climate crisis remains the biggest challenge of our time. Language barriers mean information is not readily accessible to everyone around the world, so a group of young people have established a non-profit service to translate climate resources into languages in which information is scarce (p.18). Perhaps a better known linguistic challenge involves the interpretation of insults. With a focus on Mexican Spanish, Darinka Mangino considers the many difficulties and proposes a methodical approach that can be used for any language combination (p.16). Miranda Moore 4 The Linguist Vol/60 No/1 2021 thelinguist.uberflip.com NEWS & EDITORIAL CHAIRS' NOTES As we look forward, into 2021, we can't help but look back on what has been a uniquely challenging year. No one needs to be reminded of the scale of change and disruption because we have all lived it in our working and personal lives. But CIOL and CIOLQ have come through it. We have moved to remote working; we have all adapted to Zoom; and, if anything, we have strengthened our communications systems. Meanwhile, you, our readers, are renewing your membership and signing up to our eCPD webinars and online events in record numbers. Our divisions and societies continue to play a key role in driving remote networking in order to engage with a larger, more global CIOL community. And CIOLQ has delivered major rounds of our flagship professional qualifications wholly online (see page 21). It is wonderful to see the CIOL Awards continue to recognise exceptional achievement. These awards bring to life three very different journeys to best candidate in the Diploma in Translation (DipTrans) – academic, bilingual and practical – with the common denominator of linguistic excellence but also hard work, practice and preparing to deliver very high-quality translations under real- time pressure. They also showcase some amazing work in the community both in the UK and internationally (see pages 8-15). It is especially joyous that we have successfully aligned Bridget Kendall's long- term admiration for the work of CIOL Vice-President David Crystal with the annual award given in his name for excellence in language use throughout one's career. Alongside Bridget's interview with our CEO John Worne, David expresses his deep respect for her work in bringing to life an amazing chapter in world history, with the end of the Soviet Union, as the BBC's Diplomatic Correspondent – wholly underpinned by her fluent Russian. It is also positive to note that CIOL was well represented at the Language Show in November. Working with Speak to the Future and Bilingualism Matters, John and Bernardette joined Council member Sue Leschen, author and screenwriter Mark Pallis, and senior figures from the Ministry of Defence (MoD), British Council, and Education and Employers, making the case that languages matter now more than ever. Leadership for languages and a sustained public policy contribution are part of what the CIOL Royal Charter sets out as our purpose. Looking forward as chairs we are optimistic about our future, even in the face of these uncertain times. Although CIOL and CIOLQ are different entities with different boards, governance and legal structures, we are increasingly working and thinking as 'One CIOL'. We hope 2021 will be an opportunity to bring this to greater fruition, as we seek to chart an ambitious future for CIOL in support of our members, linguists and languages everywhere. Chair of Council Judith Gabler | Chair of CIOLQ Bernardette Holmes EDITOR'S LETTER linguist.editor@ciol.org.uk | @MooreEdits

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