Designing a multilingual future: A conversation with Laura Godfrey
Cultural nuances shape language, and it’s important to understand them. For example, a direct translation of a phrase from English to Spanish might not convey the same meaning or intent in different cultural contexts.
This foundational philosophy is a widespread, accepted best practice for multilingualism. It’s also a core philosophical and practical pillar of language translation in federal spaces, and its stronghold in these spaces is thanks in large part to the work and contributions of Laura Godfrey, a pioneer within the federal multilingual community.
I recently had the pleasure of speaking with Laura just before her retirement, and we talked about the past and future of multilingualism in federal digital services. While technology has made significant strides in machine translation, Laura’s message is that it’s crucial to remember that language is more than just words.
“ Machine translation is great, but if you are in any type of real, human communication, it’s not done by algorithms. Your tone is different, choice of words is different. When we communicate from a government perspective, we have an audience, so we write for that audience. ”— Laura Godfrey
Laura humbly credits her colleagues for her knowledge and insights. She acknowledges that leadership involves bringing a team together, and she also recognizes the valuable contributions of the many multilingual experts in the government who deeply understand the languages and cultures they serve.
“I don’t consider myself an expert,” Laura said. “I learn every day. I came into this space 20 years ago, and I was prepared to learn from my colleagues who were all very knowledgeable. This space — the multilingual government community — is full of very qualified people, people who know the language and who they are writing for.”
Designing for translation
Before retiring, Laura was the bilingual senior editor of USAGov, where she created the USAGov bilingual style guide and served for 19 years as a leader within the Digital.gov Multilingual Community of Practice. As a leader, she cultivated events, conversations, and shared learning for hundreds of community members.
In the Multilingual Huddle: Designing for Translation, Laura and her fellow community leader, Fedora Braverman, put forth the concept that designing for translation involves more than just translating words. It requires planning content with multilingual audiences in mind — considering factors like text direction, cultural nuances, and image appropriateness to ensure effective communication across different languages and cultures:
To create truly inclusive digital experiences, it’s imperative to design for multilingualism from the outset.
“Plan and ask questions,” Laura said. “Who is the audience? If the audience is the public, how many languages? English or Spanish? Are we going to offer other languages? And if so, consider different characters. Some languages move right to left, others left to right. For this, bring the designers in, because that will save you a lot of headache, money, and time.”
By considering language and cultural factors early in the design and translation process, agencies can ensure that their products and services are accessible to all. It seems this is an approach that many digital practitioners take for granted now. But as Fedora, Spanish health communications specialist at the National Institutes of Health, said, “Laura was a trailblazer in the multilingual world. She not only shaped the Multilingual Community with her vision and expertise, but also led with focus, perseverance, and collaboration. Laura’s dedication to building bridges between people, and her unwavering commitment to language access, fostered continuous learning and growth. Her impact will be felt for years to come.”
What’s next after looking back on a career in multilingual digital services?
Laura emphasized that communication in the appropriate language can be lifesaving. As we move forward, it’s essential to prioritize multilingualism in government. By embracing equitable access, we can create a digital future where everyone can participate fully and benefit fairly.
“In the digital age, government agencies have a responsibility to ensure that everyone, regardless of language, can access essential services,” Laura said.
Looking back on her career, Laura is most proud of “the multilingual adoption in the government as a whole, because people have realized that it’s not just English. We have an obligation to reach as many people as possible, especially in an emergency. FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) is a lot more expansive with their language reach now, for example. And I’m very proud of Digital.gov, as well because they are constantly thinking about multilingual leadership.”
Perhaps just as striking as the impact of Laura’s philosophy and leadership has been this genuine connection with her colleagues. Renata Bartlett, a product manager at the Technology Transformation Services, shared, “I worked with Laura on a few different projects within the last four years. In this short time that I had an honor to work alongside her, I can tell without a doubt that her dedication and achievements have made a tremendous difference in the federal multilingual community. Laura is an inspirational leader and, above all, a genuine and kind friend.”
