On September 10, Chen Zhongliang, Chief of the Chinese Translation Service, Documentation Division, Department for General Assembly and Conference Management of the United Nations, visited the Songjiang Campus of Shanghai International Studies University. Vice President Wang Xin met with the delegation at the International Education Center, where the two sides held in-depth discussions on the joint training of high-level translators and interpreters for international organizations, reform of translation education in the age of artificial intelligence, and closer practical cooperation between SISU and the United Nations.
Wangextended a warm welcome to Chen and expressed sincere gratitude for the longstanding interest and support from theChinese Translation Service to talent cultivation at SISU and for jointly building a regular exchange and cooperation mechanism. She noted that SISU is among the world’s first batch of universities to sign a cooperation framework agreement withthe UN Headquarters. The university has taken an active role in the development of platforms such as the Memorandum of Understanding networkand the University Contact Group (UCG)of theInternational Annual Meeting on Languages Arrangements Documentation and Publications (IAMLADP). Furthermore, the Graduate Institute of Interpretation and Translation (GIIT) at SISU serves as a key domestic base for cultivating high-end translation talents, having sent numerous outstanding interpreters and translators to the UN over the years. Wang expressed the hope that both sides will continue to leverage their respective strengths, improve the collaborative talent training model between international organizations and universities, further broaden pathways for SISU faculty and students to undertake internships and employment at the United Nations, and jointly meet China’s demand for talents participating in global governance.
Chen expressed his gratitude to SISU for cultivating numerous outstanding translators and interpreters for the UN language service, noting the important rolethe Chinese Translation Service undertakes in support of Chinese‑language translation of meeting documents for the UN inter‑governmental and expert bodies. With a great degree of professionalism, the service delivers high‑quality document services in a timely manner, building a vital communication bridge for delegates to effectively participate in discussions and decision‑making on major global issues.He pointed out that artificial intelligence is profoundly reshaping the translation industry, and human‑machine collaboration has become a practical working model for UN document translation. The ability of human translators to add value on the basis of machine‑translated output constitutes their core value, and UN translators are positioned as language experts who lead human‑machine collaboration. This not only fully affirms the role and value of human translators but also places higher requirements on them.While China is the second‑largest contributor to the UN budget, there remains considerable underrepresentation in the number of Chinese citizens serving at the United Nations, and language proficiency serves as an important threshold for entry into UN language services and other departments. Chen expects domestic universities will continue to consolidate students’ multilingual competencies and, in alignment with the job requirements of international organizations, foster more interdisciplinary translation talents with solid linguistic competence, professional expertise and global vision.
During the talks, both sides reviewed their long-term cooperation outcomes. Since SISU signed the Memorandumof Understanding with the United Nations, the UN has provided robust support for the university’s talent development in multiple dimensions, including curriculum consultation, teaching material development, expert lectures and recruitment information dissemination. As a signatory institution of the Memorandum of Understandingnetwork, GIIT of SISU upholds its alignment with UN talent selection criteria, building a robust training system for conference interpreters and translators.
During the meeting, the two sides reached multiple consensus on future pragmatic cooperation: first, to jointly advance collaborative talent training. Senior UN translators and interpreters will deliver online and offline lectures and participate in curriculum design to help align translation and interpreting training with UN professional standards. For its part, SISU will open relevant courses and lectures to UN translation professionals. Secondly, to expand practical opportunities for faculty and students, further improve the student internship mechanism, enhance capacity for cultivating talents for international organizations,and create space to explore mechanisms for dispatching student interns. Thirdly, to jointly examine how AI is reshaping the competency requirements for translators and interpreters, and explore directions for reforming translation teaching in an era of human–AI collaboration.Finally, to accelerate negotiation and implementation of the revised UN MoU to underpin long-term cooperation.
Mao Xiaohong, Director of the International Office; Yang Bo, Executive Vice Dean of GIIT; Li Zhengren, Senior Advisor for Strategic Development of GIIT; and Zhang Ailing, Professor at GIIT and Secretary-General of China National Committee for Translation & Interpreting Education, attended the meeting. After the talks, Chen interacted with faculty and students of GIIT, shared the selection requirements of the UN competitive examination for translators, and discussed career development paths within international organizations with the students.
