Logbook of my AIIC Assemblies

It's been three days since the 39th AIIC Assembly. Three days in which I've tried to get back into a normal rhythm of life, because - yes – it’s on this occasion that I discover that one can also suffers from jet lag after following an event remotely. Last week, from Monday to Saturday, I lived the rhythm of Lima, Peru: two days for the annual meeting of AIIC's Private Market Sector (PriMS), followed by four days for the association's triennial General Assembly. Sitting in front of my ultra-wide screen, from 3pm until after midnight, I was able to follow the presentations and take part in the debates. I could also vote.

This second version of the AIIC Assembly in hybrid format brings me back to the various assemblies I've attended since I joined AIIC (in 2000, i.e. a round number and a sort of personal promotion after more than ten years in the profession), the stages I've gone through and the evolution of the Association.

Between my membership and my first Assembly, there is Porto (2003) and Brussels (2006), Assemblies in which I do not participate, concentrating mainly on my associative activities in Germany. Information is disseminated mainly through the Bulletin, published two to four times a year, the Directory, and the annual regional meetings. The first version of the website is still under development and there are no social networks. However, the VEGA (Young Interpreters) network has been active since 2001. The VEGA network is now one of the key players in the development of the association and the profession.

Nice (2009)

Then there's Nice in January 2009: I remember having lunch on the beach while Marseille was paralysed by thirty centimetres of snow (today, we'd be talking about climate change). I also remember the sense of gravity in the huge Acropolis auditorium. I sat in the front rows, a little to the left, like at school, to make sure I could see and hear properly. I didn't know anyone except the colleague I was travelling with. I was discovering new faces, the faces of names I'd heard for several years.

But most of all I remember the first meeting of what was to become the AIIC Sign Language Network. A few days before the meeting, I spontaneously - and very late - contacted the AIIC Secretariat and asked if it would be possible to organise a meeting and invite members who were interested in sign language interpreting. We were given an hour in the Athena Room after the plenary session on Thursday. As I had initiated this meeting, it was up to me to chair it. Alone on the podium, in the semi-darkness of the large Athena Room, with the twenty-seven colleagues who remained after the debates, we discussed the situation of sign language interpreting in the different AIIC regions and decided to create a network of contact points to develop cooperation with ILS and to work towards the integration of sign languages as working languages recognised by AIIC. This was the beginning of a great project. Today, the Sign Language Network (SLN) continues to grow and has over fifty members.

In Nice, I am also representing the Training Commission. And for the first time, we're talking about distributing the Bulletin as a downloadable PDF file.

Buenos Aires (2012)

I have an excellent reason for making the long trip to Argentina, because the Sign Language Network (SLN) is presenting Resolution R12401, which recognises sign languages as conference languages in their own right and agrees to take them into account both for membership and for the linguistic classification of conference interpreters. To our great delight, this resolution is adopted by a large majority. The first sign language interpreter will join AIIC in 2014.

The first major governance debate takes place with the adoption of Resolution R12409, which introduces changes to the Association's governing structures and their relationship to each other. In addition to the usual issues relating to running an association, there is also much discussion about technology, standardisation and internal and external communications (redesigning the website, publications, etc.).

I come back from Buenos Aires with a real sense of achievement and victory, which I share with my colleagues in the SLN network.

Addis Ababa (2015)

It's difficult to comment on a meeting I didn't attend. I give my proxy to a colleague and I'm content to read the issue of the Bulletin prior to the meeting and the minutes that are published afterwards. With the development of electronic means of communication, as of 2012 the Bulletin is issued only once every three years, before the following Assembly. Information on our regional, international and thematic activities, as well as exchanges between members, are disseminated through the various virtual channels available (e.g. electronic newsletters, videos on YouTube).

The new governance adopted three years ago is taking shape through resolutions and amendments to our basic texts. Reflections on remote interpreting and the impact of new technologies are underway, as remote interpreting is already the subject of negotiations with the European institutions.

Valencia (2018)

For me, the Assembly in Spain means the pleasure of meeting many colleagues from all over the world again and the opportunity to step down from my last position within AIIC (representative of the German region on the Advisory Board). Two years earlier, I had already cut the cord with the Sign Language Network, which is now thriving in the hands of the first ILS members of AIIC.

For the first time, a debate is organised and webstreamed. The future of the conference interpreting profession is being discussed in the light of the accelerating development of new technologies that are changing the interpreter's work. With the introduction of audio and video conferencing, the sensory information received by the interpreter is substantially altered compared to traditional face-to-face interpreting. This change affects not only the interpreting process but also the conditions for teamwork. It is also conducive to multilingualism, as it widens the scope for simultaneous interpreting. It is up to AIIC to develop an appropriate strategy.

The Advisory Board, established in 2015 following the governance reform, proposed a resolution to improve the running of the meetings by creating an Independent Assembly Bureau (IAB), i.e. independant from the President and the Executive Committee, which would henceforth chair the major tri-annual gathering. Resolution R15414 is adopted by a large majority.

Geneva (2022)

When the time came to organise the 38th AIIC Assembly in Istanbul in 2021, the whole world was still reeling from the COVID 19 pandemic. Many were unable to travel. AIIC is adapting and holds its first hybrid Assembly a year later. With great patience, we are able to follow and participate in the debates, but voting is only possible on site and by proxy. It is also the first Assembly chaired by the three colleagues elected as members of the IAB. In the Germany region, we had organised virtual meetings in advance to prepare the issues to be discussed at the Assembly and to better understand the implications of the proposed resolutions and amendments. During the four days of the meeting, German colleagues attending the meeting in person or online are actively involved in discussions via a messaging application.

The world has changed and remote interpreting dominates the debates. We need to consider what AIIC can do to help its members and the profession as a whole navigate these technological upheavals that affect the way we work and our health. Rules and recommendations need to be adapted.

Personally, I'm very happy that AIIC has managed to overcome the obstacles of the pandemic and allows us to participate without having to travel. I have also been elected as a member of the AIIC Committee on Admissions and Language Classification.

Lima (2025)

Let's get back to this latest version, an advanced model of a remote Assembly: For the first time, online participants are able to vote remotely. Admittedly, there are some technical glitches with the voting platform, but in general, everyone's participation is remarkably well organised. The debates are chaired by a new IAB. This means that all AIIC bodies can take part in the discussions.

In 2025, we are once again discussing a governance reform. And artificial intelligence. Everything to do with new technologies and their impact on the conference interpreting profession is now covered by the new ‘Science Hub’ group. The gravity of the debates on internal AIIC matters is lightened by the interactive interludes organised by the three groups Staff Committee, Training and Professional Development and VEGA.

Despite the general fatigue and earache caused by six days online, I am glad I was able to attend this Assembly live. It allowed me to follow the debates. With each Assembly, I gain a better understanding of the decisions that affect the way our Association operates and the rules of our profession; I benefit from the experience and listen to the opinions of colleagues from all over the world. My sincere thanks go to the AIIC Secretariat for the smooth running of these last two Assemblies in hybrid format.

25 Jan 2025