Translation Center, originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

As we all know, language is, in most cases, far more than just a number of symbols and expressions. Instead, language is a reflection of a nation’s civilization, its unique thinking and behavior patterns and its geographic location as well.

我们都知道，在大多数情况下，语言不仅仅是一系列象征和表现形式。相反，语言能够反映一个国家的文明程度、独特的思维与行为模式以及地理位置。

As a result, translators must do more than merely translating from one language to the other. Translators are also playing the roles of editors and copywriters, as they need to polish their translated work and make it sound as natural and elegant as possible in the target language. Here arises an inevitable dilemma for translators, as they are expected to be faithful to the original language and are usually not encouraged to change the content and sentence orders in the original language and are thus influenced by the original language. That’s why many knowledgeable Chinese call translators “dancers with shackles”. Most of the time, translated texts are slightly, if not too much, different from those directly written by a native copywriter due to different ways of thinking and structure development. At Illuminant, to maintain the high quality of our translation work, our language team always tries its best to offset the abovementioned influences by polishing the text afterwards and by always having a designated internal third party to contribute as a polisher to proofread our finished translation work in an objective manner.

因此，译员要做的不仅仅是将一种语言翻译到另一种语言。他们同时还发挥着编辑和撰稿人的作用，因为他们需要润色自己的翻译成果，从而尽可能地使翻译的目标语言变得自然而优雅。而译员在这里就难免陷入一种困境，因为他们仍然需要忠实于原文，不轻易变更原文的内容或是语句的排列顺序，所以他们将或多或少受到原始语言的影响。这就是为什么人们将译员称为 “带着枷锁的舞者” 。在大多数情况下，翻译出来的文本与直接撰写的文案，二者有一定的区别，这是因为不同的语言总是有不同的思维方式和文章构架。为了尽量减少上述影响，在朔光，我们翻译团队总是尽力保证在翻译完成之后对译文进行润色与审译，并在交稿之前让其他同事以客观的角度再次审查译文，从而保持翻译工作的质量。

So our translation procedure is usually consisted of three parts: translatio； internal proofreading and polishing； external polishing, before we hand our work over to our clients, and from time to time, post-translation communication with clients is carried out to best understand and satisfy our clients’ specific needs and requirements.

因此，我们的翻译工作程序通常包括三个部分：翻译；翻译团队内部的校对与润色；其他同事的审译（有时是我们亲爱的媒体部门的同事）。另外，我们会不时地与客户展开积极的沟通，从而更好地了解并满足他们的特殊要求与需要。

Also, the Illuminant language team takes pride in a number of house glossaries we have compiled for each of our major clients based on their specific fields, such as architecture, mining, high-tech, tourism, and other sectors which our agency is expert in. Glossaries are very important for all of our language-related work at Iluminant, because most of our clients are long-term retainer-based and thus keeping our copywriting and choice of words professional, accurate and consistent is a key priority for our language work. That’s when our glossaries come into play: ensuring accuracy and consistency.

此外，令翻译团队倍感骄傲的是我们针对主要客户以及他们所处的领域而汇编的词汇表，这些领域涉及建筑、矿业、高科技等等。这些词汇表对朔光而言，是一种非常重要的语言工具。这是因为我们的大多数客户都是长期客户，所以保持语言服务的准确性、一致性与专业性是语言工作的重中之重。而通过使用我们所编撰的词汇表，我们就可以简易地找到过去使用的所有专业词汇以及它们的特殊用途。

Graceful language and elegant wording is always appreciated and enjoyed like a refined art. But there are occasional cases where clients don’t want their copywriting – words that powerfully represent themselves and their products – to be “high-brow”. In other words, they want “plain” language to represent them (in the Western sense, this might be thought of as “tabloid” language). When this happens, we will actively communicate with them to know about their specific needs and “play down” our choice of words accordingly, in order to cater to their special requirements. After all, clients’ needs and satisfaction form the priority. But the good news is: most clients LOVE beautiful language the way they appreciate refined arts.

优美的语言、典雅的措辞，如同精致的艺术一般，是一种愉悦的欣赏与享受。但是，有时有些客户却不希望我们为他们撰写的文案太过“风雅” 。换句话说，他们希望用“平实”的语言来表达自己。在这种情况下，我们将积极地与他们展开沟通，从而了解他们的具体需求，并在措辞方面为他们量体裁衣，以满足他们的特殊要求。毕竟，客户的需求与满意是市场经济的重点所在。而好消息就是：我们的大多数客户，正如喜爱精致的艺术一般，也喜爱美丽的言辞。

Article by Illuminant’s head of language services, Monica Lin （林敏）

Illuminant’s chief executive, director of operations, and Australia’s ambassador to China

Illuminant Partners wins 2008 Australia-China Business Entrepreneurial Award

November 10th, 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Hong Kong — Illuminant Partners, a Beijing based multi-disciplinary public relations and strategic communications agency has won 2008’s AustCham Australia-China Business Entrepreneurial Award.

Announced by CNN Hong Kong anchor Andrew Stevens at the Awards gala dinner on Thursday November 6th, Illuminant Partners was one of more than sixty entrants to the awards, now in their 16th year. The ACBA Business Entrepreneurial Award is given annually in recognition of an Australian-originated business which has demonstrated entrepreneurial excellence in greater China.

Australia’s ambassador to China H.E. Dr Geoff Raby described the award as “the most sought-after award of its kind outside of Australia”. Illuminant’s chief executive Simon Cousins said “Our ACBA award recognises entrepreneurial excellence in China, and to that end, we are honoured to have been elected this year’s winner by our peers. The award belongs to our entire team and also to our fantastic clients, without whom Illuminant would not have been able to develop and implement such interesting and effective campaigns over 2008.”

Roger Wolfe, Chairman of the Australian Chamber of Commerce Beijing said “AustCham Beijing extends sincere congratulations to Illuminant Partners on winning at the 2008 AustCham Australia-China Business Awards. Illuminant’s innovative team proved they have the passion, vision and commitment needed to overcome stiff competition and come up trumps.”

Illuminant is based in Beijing with operations throughout China’s mainland and Hong Kong. The agency’s core team first began working together in 2004 and began life as Illuminant Partners in June 2007. Illuminant supports the public relations and strategic communications needs of many of the region’s best brands, including the world’s largest insurance broker Aon, 151-year-old global design and engineering consultant Hyder, China’s largest foreign gold miner Sino Gold and dozens of foreign government agencies and SMEs. Illuminant employs a staff of 25 across its Beijing and Hong Kong operations.

The 2008 Australia-China Business Awards were announced at a gala dinner at Hong Kong’s Grand Hyatt Hotel on November 6th in the presence of Australia’s ambassador, all of Australia’s consuls-general, Austrade’s senior trade commissioner and more than 150 guests from across China.

About the AustCham Australia-China Business Awards (ACBA):

Since its inception in 1993 the AustCham Australia-China Business Awards is a means of recognising companies that have worked to deliver Australian products or services to the greater China region. The awards have grown in stature over the years and are now recognised as a high profile celebration of business success among Australian business communities in the region.

The organizers of the ACBA include the Australian Chamber of Commerce Hong Kong & Macau, AustCham Beijing, AustCham Shanghai, AustCham South China, the Australian & New Zealand Chamber of Commerce Taipei, the Australia-China Business Council and the Hong Kong Australian Business Association. The ABCA is fully recognized and supported by the Australian Government and the Australian Trade Commission.

Tourism Austria and Travel Channel China, originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

Dr. Petra Stolba, CEO of the Austrian National Tourism Office, visited Beijing as one of her major stops on her tour throughout Asia. In cooperation with our friend and Head of the Austrian National Tourist Office Beijing, Josef Stockinger (who amazed journalists and travel agents with his witty speech in fluent Mandarin), Illuminant Partners had the pleasure to arrange an interview with Travel Channel China and Dr. Stolba during a tourism workshop at the Landmark Hotel today.

Austria, which ranks among the top ten tourist destinations in the world, welcomes more than 170,000 Chinese tourists every year, making China the third largest overseas tourist market for the beautiful country in the heart of Europe.

In 2009, Austria will focus on marketing the 200th anniversary of the death of the outstanding composer Joseph Haydn (1732-1809), who started his career as a member of the oldest boys choir in the world, the Vienna Boys’ Choir. The Austrian city of Linz will also be the European Capital of Culture in 2009.

In her interview Dr. Stolba was confident that an ever increasing number of Chinese tourists will discover the beauty and cultural heritage of Austria and invited the audience of Travel Channel China to come and see the home of “Sisi gongzhu” and “Sound of Music” themselves and to discover how Austria has changed in its more than 1,000 years of history.

Blog posting by Illuminant’s Director of Account Services, Anja Knass.

DAN_Logo, originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

Illuminant Partners is excited to be working with our new client, Data Acquisitions Networks (DAN). DAN is a fast growing Australian company with a revolutionary technology that holds exceptionally strong promise for the Chinese market: a comprehensive, secure data logging system that protects the integrity of local data while allowing it to be monitored remotely from anywhere in the world.

We recently assisted DAN in its first China market visit to Beijing and Shanghai, and we were thrilled with the enthusiastic response its technology received from food industry and environmental protection officials, two sectors in which DAN’s technology has particular applicability.

DAN’s technology is two-fold: on-site hardware and web-based software hosted by DAN. The on-site hardware is comprised of a compact black box which can be configured to communicate wirelessly with up to six industrial probes. There are literally thousands of industrial probes commercially available, measuring variables from temperature to pollution levels and much more. Probes send their data back to the blackbox, which utilizes GPRS communication to transmit the data back to DAN’s server.

The web-based software gives users complete control over their data, allowing them to remotely change parameters, set alarm points, and monitor data collection. Using a secure login, users can see their data displayed in a simple format requiring no interpretation. Customized alarm points can be set, meaning that if data points fall outside of chosen parameters, SMS and e-mail alerts will be automatically sent immediately to as many as five designated recipients.

In Australia, DAN’s technology is used to measure everything from salinity in aquaculture – where it has substantially increased harvests – to monitoring chlorine levels in municipal swimming pools, ensuring safety. The advantage of DAN’s technology is not only the flexibility it offers, but also the security: data cannot be manipulated or changed, meaning central authorities can exercise remote oversight without fear of local tampering.

In China, the applicability of DAN’s technology is wide-ranging and exciting. Regulatory authorities constantly struggle with the challenge of centrally monitoring industry round-the-clock to ensure compliance with standards designed to protect safety, environmental quality, and efficiency. Data integrity is frequently suspect thanks to corruption, inappropriate monitoring techniques and tampering. DAN’s system takes the guesswork out of data collection and monitoring, meaning authorities can be independently assured of the integrity and reliability of data.

The disastrous results of faulty central oversight of industry have hit China particularly hard in the last year – from tainted food causing tragic infant deaths to faulty and dangerous products being exported around the world, never has the need for more reliable data logging and monitoring been so apparent. DAN’s comprehensive solutions would give authorities and regulators the oversight they need to ensure food safety, product integrity, and environmental protection. Illuminant is extremely excited to be working with this very promising new client!

Blog posting by Illuminant senior account manager Matt Doran.

mine, originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

It’s a kind of destiny for Illuminant and a leading gold mining company to come together (due to non-disclosure arrangements, we can’t yet state the name of our client).

Two days before the Chinese national day holiday, Mr. Wang called the Illuminant Beijing office for a broad range of PR and communications needs. Senior Account Manager Amy Meng answered the call and took Mr. Wang’s brief and within 24 hours, a full strategic communications plan was delivered to our prospect. On the first working day after the holiday, Mr. Wang called us back, very happy with our professional proposal, and two days after that Illuminant and the leading gold mining company signed their services contract.

Thanks to all the efficient Illuminant team members, the team started work from the next day. Our Beijing-based video taping team was sent out to two remote areas of China while our Sydney-based team was despatched to get corporate images. Simultaneously, our media team, our studio team and our copywriting team got to work on the very interesting brief. We’re really pleased that our client is very happy for our flexible and fast response.

More on this terrific gold mining company soon…

Blog posting by Illuminant Senior Account Manager Amy Meng.

ACBA:08 logo, originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

Illuminant Partners learned today that we have been voted a finalist of the forthcoming Australia-China Business Awards 2008.

In what we believe was a record number of entries, we are down to the final three in our category, “Entrepreneurial Business of the Year”.

Our directors are flying to Hong Kong on Friday 17th October to present to the judging panel.

We’re honoured to have made it this far, and we wish our two competitors in our category, Chongherr Investments of Shenzhen and the Shanghai Pie Company the very best of luck. May the most entrepreneurial Australian business in China win!

More info here.

Update, Saturday 18th October: Well, we have pitched our agency’s performance and philosophy to the judging panel in Hong Kong, and we eagerly await the result!  We won’t know if we’ve won the award until the evening of the awards ceremony, Thursday 6th November.

George Davey with Pan Beilei (1), originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

NSW Food Authority Director-General George Davey met with the President of the China chapter of the International Dairy Federation, Madame Pan Beilei, in Beijing on September 24.

Illuminant Partners has proudly supported the China-side government relations and public relations of the Authority since 2004.

Illuminant Moon Cakes 2008 (2), originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

Each year during China’s Mid-Autumn Festival, businesses and people exchange moon cakes with each other as symbols of friendship and regard.

Illuminant Partners always likes to innovate, so this year we had our friends at awfullychocolate make us a custom chocolate pudding treat for our seasonal gift.

Boxed in cups of four, they were warmly received by our many clients and suppliers.

Some members of the Illuminant Beijing team surprised our chief executive with a happy birthday video, made over one Saturday amongst iron-clad secrecy in August

Carlo Aspri performance at Canada Club Beijing 2008-08-15 (36), originally uploaded by Illuminant Partners.

It’s been an eventful summer for our client Carlo Aspri.

After a wonderfully well-received debut concert July 19 at the YAMAHA Music Performance Center, Carlo Aspri’s success continued with hit performances at the British Columbia Pavilion during the Olympics, a VIP-only mini-concert at the Canada Club, and a once-in-a-lifetime experience at Shaolin Monastery.

Carlo, a phenomenally gifted young composer and pianist from Quebec, entertained crowds at the British Columbia Pavilion’s Pub Night events. Attended by dozens of VIPs, the Pub Nights gave Carlo the opportunity to support his native land during the Olympics. He performed classic favorites as well as his own compositions.

Carlo was also honored when the Canadian Embassy asked him to perform at an exclusive, VIP-only event at the Canadian Club, celebrating the 400th anniversary of his native Quebec. Carlo performed traditional Quebec music and was touched by the opportunity to honor his home.

Fresh off his Gamestime success, Carlo headed off to Shaolin Monastery, for a much deserved week of gong fu training and exercise. It was a terrific chance for Carlo to continue his study of Chinese gong fu, at the world’s premier gong fu center. Carlo enjoyed the opportunity to train with the Shaolin monks and even took the opportunity to create a video chronicling his experience at the monastery.

It’s been a terrific summer for Canada’s next great musical export, with more excitement sure to come this fall.