MCIS AGM 2013
MCIS 2013 GLOBAL COMMUNITY PARTNER OF THE YEAR - CRITICAL LINK INTERNATIONAL
2013 MCIS GLOBAL COMMUNITY PARTNER- 2012 was an inaugural year for MCIS in its commitment to annually honour the outstanding contribution of non-profit organizations working in partnership with public, private and other social sector organizations. These organizations are not only demonstrating the values of their partnership to the communities they serve, but are also stimulating new approaches to developing community standards for sustainability. Further, all of the honorees are leaders in society, share a vision of the future in which collaboration, improved access/ removed barriers and inclusion are the highest values and foster robust economic growth.
We are delighted to honor CRITICAL LINK INTERNATIONAL as our Global Community Partner of the Year for its pioneering efforts in the area of social enterprise that improve the access/ remove the barriers to development of language inclusive communities. MCIS is proud to recognize, support and help to extend the reach of these vital partnerships that unite and strengthen our community capacity.
Critical Link International is an international, non-profit organization committed to the advancement of the field of community interpreting in the social, legal and health care sectors. The Critical Link network began in 1992 in Canada when Brian Harris, at the University of Ottawa, with the encouragement and support of Geoffrey Kingscott of Language International, gathered together a group of people working in the field to organize the first international conference on community interpreting.
In December 2000, Critical Link became incorporated as Critical Link Canada: National Council for the Development of Community Interpreting and in June 2010 Critical Link Canada became Critical Link International. This change to Critical Link better reflects the international community that Critical Link has become. While the name has changed, Critical Link continues as a non-profit organization committed to the advancement of the field of community interpreting in the social, legal and health care sectors. Critical Link works to reflect and connect both the visual and spoken language communities.
Critical Link International fulfills its mandate by:
1 Promoting the establishment of standards which guide the practice of community interpreters
2 Encouraging and sharing research in the field of community interpretation
3 Adding to the discussion about the educational and training requirements for community interpreters
4 Advocating for the provision of professional community interpreting services by social, legal and health care institutions
5 Raising awareness about community interpreting as a profession
The last international conference, Critical Link 7 – Global Awakening: Leading Practices in Interpreting, was held in Toronto in July, 2013 at Glendon, the bilingual campus of York University.
This Conference brought together over 400 stakeholders in community interpreting for over five days together focusing on the ways in which interpreting research and practice have made a solid contribution to the globalized society of the 21st century.