Case Study

The Client
A project undertaken by the City of Greater Sudbury, with its multiple departments and programs, provides services for a citizenry that includes a significant francophone population. The City's Corporate Communications and French Language Services Department oversees the translation of all internal material, website documents as well as printed material for the general public. Projects such as the 2000 Municipal Elections and the Leisure Guide publications involve several decision-makers and departments.

The Challenge
The City was the creation of a book titled Healing the Landscape. The Vegetation Enhancement Technical Advisory Committee's challenge was to tell the story of Sudbury's success at regenerating a devastated landscape. The document would need to appeal to a broad range of people in Canada and around the world and tell the story in a creative style in both Canadian official languages. The City hired Mots pour Maux on this project to translate the book. The committee recognized that the firm's creative translation ability would be needed, as well as its expertise in cultural subject matter.

The Solution
Three Mots pour Maux translators and the VETAC Committee teamed up to discuss the scope of the project in depth, and to clearly transmit all translation and editing concerns. The key was to understand the technical aspects of the subject material, the creative style requested, and the workflow process that would be used to guide the translation.

The Result
A prestigious book of great quality detailing the environmental process of re-greening the region of Sudbury, incorporating also the historical and economic aspects of mining and lumbering in the region. The proceeds from the sale of this book are donated to the Tree Fund of the Sudbury Community Foundation. Visit the book's website (in English only) at www.city.greatersudbury.on.ca/healingthelandscape/.

"Sudbury is one of the few places on the planet where our generation will pass on to our children an environment that is healthier than the one we inherited from our parents. It will be sweet irony if Sudbury, once the world's infamous capital of environmental devastation, becomes a center of re-greening excellence. Sweeter yet will be the day when a 'Sudbury' comes to symbolize what a community can accomplish when it puts its collective mind and heart into the healing process."
-excerpt from Healing the Landscape.