INSTITUTE MATTERS
COUNCIL
NEWS
Judith Gabler reflects on
two productive events: the
AGM and annual awayday
Thank you to attendees of the
AGM in March, held online for
the second year running. We
were greatly encouraged by the
confidence placed in our
direction of travel, with all
agenda items approved,
including the inflation-based membership fee
increase from September 2022. This will better
enable us to maintain the service and benefit levels
we currently offer.
At the end of April, existing and newly elected
Council members met online for the first time as
'one team' for the annual awayday. As you will see
from the biographies at ciol.org.uk/governance the
combined portfolio of skills and experience is
exceptional. The awayday is always a particular
highlight, with three interconnected components.
Council started with the annual review of Terms of
Reference for our member-led committees and our
disciplinary framework. Risk assessment and
mitigation were also a focus, to ensure medium- to
long-term financial sustainability, in particular due to
some economic and pandemic-related headwinds
we are still facing.
The AGM of CIOL's associated charity and
Awarding Organisation, IoLET, followed. It received
the annual accounts, welcomed new Trustees and
incoming Chair Jocelyn Wyburd (who takes over
from Bernardette Holmes) and thanked outgoing
Trustees Anne Stevens and Keith Moffitt for their
outstanding contributions.
The awayday concluded with an afternoon
session on strategy and how CIOL can do even
more to meet current challenges, anticipate future
trends, and use the profile, reputation, networks
and wealth of skills of members to advance
everything we stand for within our Royal Charter.
With this in mind, we remain committed to always
acting in the public interest and working closely
with other professional language stakeholders. One
example is our support for Charity Translators in
bringing together a wide range of resources to
support those affected and displaced by the
conflict in Ukraine. Our thoughts are with them.
Wishing you all safe times.
all forms of dementia for up to five
years, and can be of significant help in
cognitive recovery after a stroke.
I'm sure there are other things I
could have listed, but that will, at
least, give a flavour of what's at stake
and how exciting the languages
landscape is. I think the value of
language specialists is much better
understood than it used to be, both
domestically and in international
relations. The UK's success post-Brexit
will require cultural intelligence and
agility, whether in business, diplomacy
or research. Not everyone needs to
be a specialist professional linguist,
but my goodness we need a lot more
of you.
Whether in delivering better public
services, in justice or health care,
improving human rights or negotiating
trade deals, the social, economic and
soft power advantage in the 21st century
surely belongs to the multilingual citizen
and nation. You, as linguists, are in a
fantastic and enviable position,
professionally and personally, and I thank
you for the vital work you do, even if
there is some way to go before your pay
and status are always commensurate
with your contribution to society.
The full text is available at ciol.org.uk.
VITAL WORK
Baroness Coussins delivers her keynote
at CIOL Conference 2022 in March
© RICHARD WASHBROOKE
