Ad Hoc SIGs
These groups do not have regular meetings. Members may receive invites to join special meetings or focus groups, or receive important surveys related to GALA's programs. Complete the form below to sign up for one or more groups.
Special Interest Groups
GALA Special Interest Groups (SIGs) are committees that connect members on topics of mutual interest and make meaningful contributions to GALA’s knowledge base. Meetings are designed to facilitate networked learning, with mini-presentations, special guests, and plenty of time for discussion. Group members can participate in discussions and ask questions on the group's Basecamp.
Participating in SIGs
You can choose to join the SIG via the form above (which includes access to Basecamp and the official committee members list) or just register to attend individual meetings.
Requests to join a SIG are moderated by GALA staff. When you are approved, the SIG will appear in your list of "Committees" and you will receive a notification from Basecamp that you were added. As a SIG member, you may receive communications from the group, such as surveys and announcements.
You will need to register for SIG meetings. The registration information can be found on the Event Calendar. After completing the registration information, you will receive a confirmation via Zoom with your unique link to join the call. SIG meetings are not recorded in compliance with many of our members's privacy policies.
Note: you will need a GALA user account to join a special interest group or attend a meeting.
SIGs
The following SIGs host regular meetings (monthly) and utilize GALA's Basecamp for discussions. Complete the form below to sign up for one or more groups.
There is little doubt that audiovisual localization, i.e., localization of timed content, is one of the fastest growing and technologically interesting parts of our industry. In some areas it is quite similar to text based work and in other areas it is different and much more complex.
This SIG will work to demystify audiovisual localization, provide a forum for questions and concerns, and try to keep up with the ever-increasing rate of technological change. Meetings will be a mix of service and technology based topics.
Moderators: Andre Hemker (Wordbee), Dave Bryant (Dotsub), Parthena Charalampidou (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki)
Requirement(s): GALA membership
Meetings: second Thursday of each month at 8:00 am Pacific / 17:00 CET
This group connects professionals employed on buy-side localization teams to discuss the unique considerations of managing localization, globalization, internationalization, and translation departments within a larger organization. Discussion topics change monthly and may include internal evangelization, process innovation, technology implementation, resource coordination, and more.
Moderators: Marcus Danei (SAP), Alessandra Binazzi (Alessandra Binazzi Consulting), Trish York (Medtronic), Cornelia Sittel (Salesforce), Pedro Gomez (Microsoft), Johan Sporre (IKEA Retail (Ingka Group))
Requirement(s): GALA membership; Organization Type: Client
Meetings: third Wednesday of each month at 8:00 am Pacific / 17:00 CET
The Inclusive Language + Terminology SIG explores developing linguistic considerations relating to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The group explores different themes, including implementing inclusive language initiatives, technical updates to terminology, and global linguistic developments.
Moderators: Serge Ansar (International Baccalaureate), Amanda Hawthorne (Electronic Arts), Roxana Dinu (New York University), Bettiana Quiroga (Eriksen Translations Inc)
Requirement(s): GALA membership
Meetings: fourth Wednesday every other month at 8:00 am Pacific / 17:00 CET
Interpreting services and technologies have seen rapid growth in recent years and interest in the topic has grown steadily since GALA first began addressing this market segment several years ago. This SIG will work to identify the unique issues, needs, and challenges in the interpreting and technologies segment and will explore collaborative solutions to advance the interpreting sector as a whole. All with an interest in these services and technologies are welcomed.
Moderators: Viviana Bernabe (Welocalize), Aki Hayashi (Dell Technologies), João Garcia (Interprefy Inc.), Giulia Silvestrini (Acolad)
Requirement(s): GALA membership
Meetings: second Wednesday of the month at 8:30 am Pacific / 17:30 CET
The Quality Management group introduces the concept of smart linguistic quality management that is scalable, efficient, user-centric and data-driven. This project-oriented group discusses the adoption of flexible frameworks and best practices in the industry, building towards developing a framework to publish with GALA.
Moderators: Katerina Gasova (Argos Multilingual), Jennifer Vela-Valido (Spotify)
Requirement(s): GALA membership
Meetings: TBD
The findings of this SIG are published in A Common MTPE Handbook for Academia, Clients, LSPs and Post-Editors.
With a steering committee to keep things moving in the right direction and the GALA community to bring the knowledge and enthusiasm, the MTPE Training SIG will operate as a time-limited, collaborative community project between LSCs, clients, and academic institutions. The SIG developed a set of best practices for training professionals who conduct post-editing activities. Now that the handbook is published, the SIG will meet a few times throughout the year to ensure it remains updated.
Moderators: Lucía Guerrero (Expedia) and Viveta Gene (GTH Translation)
Group Representatives: Cristina Anselmi (Electronic Arts), Diego Cresceri (Creative Words), Pete Smith (The University of Texas at Arlington), Sabrina Girletti (University of Geneva), and Jessica Yaacoub (Bromberg Translations)
Requirement(s): GALA membership
Meetings: quarterly to update the handbook as needed
GALA's Global Talent Initiative aims to be an international platform to bring together stakeholders in academia and the industry to address the challenges and share resources to help prepare students and young professionals for successful careers in the global language industry. The SIG will serve as a mutually beneficial ecosystem for industry professionals, academic administrators and instructors, and students to share knowledge, best practices, and the changing industry requirements.
Moderators: Oleksandr Bondarenko (Translatel), Marie Flacassier (BeatBabel)
Requirement(s): GALA membership
Meetings: ad hoc
Questions on joining a SIG? Contact us at [email protected]