The leadership council of the Dutch Language Division wishes all its members a Happy, healthy, professionally and personally successful New Year!!
Now that the DLD has a blog coordinator again, you will see more blog posts from the DLD. The blog subscription feature is currently down, so stay tuned for news about how to subscribe so that you don’t miss any posts!
As you all know, DLD members elected a new Administrator and Assistant Administrator at the end of 2024. To get to know both of them a little better, we will introduce them to you in two separate blog posts. This month’s post features Saskia Placke, our brand new Assistant Administrator.
Q: How long have you been working as a translator and how did you start working in this profession in the first place?
A: I began my career as a translator about 18 years ago. At the time, I met Astrid Homan (our new Administrator) who introduced me to translating and she mentored me when I first started out.
Q: What’s your background/education?
A: I have a legal background and worked in the Netherlands as an attorney for 6 years.
Q: What field do you specialize in?
A: Legal and business.
Q: What are your working languages?
A: English <> Dutch
Q: Any subject you would love to venture out in, but haven’t had the opportunity yet?
A: Not really.
Q: How long have you been living in the USA & how do you keep up-to-date with the Dutch language?
A: I have been living in the USA since 2004. I regularly read Dutch newspapers, websites, blogs, articles and other content on social media, and also watch Dutch TV shows and movies. In addition, I have regular conversations with people who speak Dutch.
Q: Why did you decide to become the Assistant Administrator of the DLD?
A: Our industry is facing unprecedented challenges from AI and Large Language Learning Models and I think it is important that we support each other while we are dealing with this and I would like to play an active role in this effort.
Q: Any last thoughts?
A: I just started a full-time job working as an in-house translator, which I enjoy very much.
Thank you, Saskia, for allowing us to find out more about you!
If anyone has a suggestion for a blog topic or would like to write a post, feel free to contact Irene Stoel, Blog Coordinator at irenestoeltranslations@gmail.com