The second half of 2009
The Rosetta Foundation is a spin-off of the Localisation Research Centre at the University of Limerick, Ireland, and the Centre for Next Generation Localisation (CNGL), a major research initiative supported by the Irish Government. The primary purpose of The Rosetta Foundation is to make vital information available to individuals all over the word irrespective of their social status, linguistic or cultural background, and geographical location. The Rosetta Foundation intends to deploy a localisation technology platform for volunteer translators and not-for-profit organizations that can contribute to the translation and distribution of life-guarding information to communities in need around the world.
To this end The Rosetta Foundation is implementing an accessible and affordable open-source technology platform around GlobalSight and CrowdSight. Globalsight is an open-source Translation Management System (TMS) that helps automate the critical tasks associated with the creation, translation, review, storage and management of global content. With zero license fees GlobalSight provides a flexible, affordable and sustainable solution for organizations to deliver multilingual content to their end-users worldwide. CrowdSight is another open-source application fully integrated with GlobalSight used specifically for crowdsourcing or to engage the right “crowd,” group or community to deliver quick-turn translation for on-demand content.
Through GlobalSight The Rosetta Foundation has access to a robust platform for managing, translating and delivering global content and can support the translation efforts of non-profit and non-governmental organizations in providing information to communities in need―in their local language. At the same time, The Rosetta Foundation benefits from an existing GlobalSight community of 1,500 members to solicit volunteers dedicated to promoting equal access to information through language and cultural diversity.
Reinhard Schäler, founder of The Rosetta Foundation, explains, “Our initiative to develop an open source translation and localisation platform with GlobalSight as a backbone will widen the narrow focus of current mainstream localisation and bring the digital world closer to the three quarters of the world’s population who currently do not have access to it.”
European Launch
The European launch took place at the AGIS ’09 conference in Limerick, Ireland on September 21-23, 2009. AGIS, Action for Global Information Sharing, provided an opportunity for volunteer translators, localization specialists and NGOs to come together to learn, network and celebrate their work.
North American Launch
The North American launch took take place at the Localization World conference in Santa Clara, California on October 20, 2009. This pre-conference workshop provided an overview of the organizational structure, the aims and objectives, and the strategic plan of The Rosetta Foundation. Participants were introduced to the Foundation’s translation and localisation technology platform – GlobalSight.
“The Rosetta Foundation is a commendable, wide-reaching initiative that is helping extend the benefits of the translation industry to the people that most need it", comments Smith Yewell, CEO of Welocalize and board member of The Rosetta Foundation. "Individuals all over the world are deprived of critical information in their native language that could potentially save their lives. We are honored to support this initiative through the deployment of our open-source GlobalSight TMS and new crowdsourcing tool CrowdSight. We believe that in order to grow and meet global content demands, we must collaborate to innovate. The Rosetta Foundation intends to this in their effort to end global information poverty."
To read Smith Yewell's speech he held on the North American launch click here.