Sorry! We just couldn't resist getting in all the Royal excitement. :)

According to one of our favorite sources of all things "language, culture and immigration", the Migration Policy Institute (http://www.migrationinformation.org/)...

Several of the invited guests at yesterday's Royal wedding of Prince William and now Princess Kate included a number of Brits who reside and work in the United States.

Such as David Beckham, a former captain of the England national football (soccer) team who now plays for the Los Angeles Galaxy.

Which brings up the question, just how many UK-born immigrants are here in the U.S.? The answer is... approximately 695,000.

The British Diaspora* in the United States is much larger: nearly 35.5 million strong!

Here you will find "Select Countries Discussed in the News in 2011: Size of the Country's Immigrant Group and Its Diaspora in the United States".

* Diaspora: "the movement, migration, or scattering of people away from an established or ancestral homeland". (Wikipedia)

In light of the terrible storms across America over the past couple weeks, this April 11th article on EmergencyManagement.com is both timely and useful.

The United States is home to more than 308 million people, comprising many cultures and subpopulations - such as diverse and vulnerable groups of people - who may interpret messages differently or distrust the government.

Perhaps no disaster has illustrated the need for emergency planning and preparedness with these communities to the extent that Hurricane Katrina did.

Almost six years ago, the nation watched as more than 1,800 perished, 80 percent of New Orleans flooded and nearly 100,000 citizens remained in the water-ravaged city rather than evacuating.

When preparing residents for disasters, officials must think not only about the different cultures within their community, but also about the vulnerable populations - the disabled, very young, elderly, homeless and people who speak limited or no English.

Emergency managers and public health officials have wrestled with developing relationships with these groups for decades, and it's still a challenge for many.

Luckily there are resources for officials to use; examples of successful initiatives can assist state and local agencies with their plans, helping them to reach as many people as possible in ways that create positive relationships and changes.

The following three examples demonstrate how governments have worked with diverse and vulnerable populations and the organizations that serve them.

Read the rest of this EmergencyManagement.com here >>

A researcher analyzing the sounds in languages spoken around the world has detected an ancient signal that points to southern Africa as the place where modern human language originated.

The finding fits well with the evidence from fossil skulls and DNA that modern humans originated in Africa.

It also implies, though does not prove, that modern language originated only once, an issue of considerable controversy among linguists.

The detection of such an ancient signal in language is surprising. Because words change so rapidly, many linguists think that languages cannot be traced very far back in time.

The oldest language tree so far reconstructed, that of the Indo-European family, which includes English, goes back 9,000 years at most.

You will find the rest of this New York Times story here >>

Instant, over-the-phone interpretation helps schools reach out to parents in over 170 languages.

MONTEREY, Calif. and LYNNWOOD, Wash., April 18, 2011 -- Language Line Services has partnered with TransACT Communications, a company that helps K-12 school districts navigate complex compliance issues in communicating with limited-English speaking parents.

TransACT will offer its customers -- now in about one quarter of the nation's school districts -- immediate access to over-the-phone interpretation services for registration and welcome center events, parent meetings, parent-teacher conferences and disciplinary hearings.

"Language Line Services shares our mutual goal of breaking down any barriers to parent involvement, one of the most important factors in improving schools and student performance," said Rick Passovoy, president and CEO of TransACT Communications.

"School districts rely on our expertise, and now we have eliminated the language barrier by making conference calls or face-to-face meetings with parents available in any of 170 languages."

Read the rest of this announcement here >>

If your school district has a growing population of limited English speaking student parents, see how TransACT can help you >>

PS: Special offers are available right now to schools that sign up for the telephone interpreter service by May 15, 2011.

Language Line Services, the leader in language interpretation, is seeking to increase its interpreter team in many languages, as well as offering a wide variety of corporate openings.

Dual Role Interpreters in California

An exciting new opportunity is available to experienced medical interpreters living in or near Palo Alto, California. Interpreters will now be able to do both on-site, face-to-face interpreting as well as over-the-phone interpreting in the following languages: Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Cantonese, and American Sign Language.

Experienced on-site interpreters of Punjabi, Tagalog, Mandarin, and Arabic that reside in the Contra Costa County area of California are encouraged to apply for the position of On-site Interpreter.

As for work-at-home, over-the-phone interpreters, we have openings, especially in Spanish, and in a number of other languages including:

• Arabic
• French
• Somali
• Cantonese
• Korean
• Lithuanian
• Nepali
• Portuguese
• Russian
• Vietnamese

As well as...

• Amharic
• Bengali
• Burmese
• Cakchiquel
• Cape Verdean (Portuguese Creole)
• Chru
• Edo
• Garre
• Hausa
• Indonesian
• Karenni
• Kurdish
• Lingala
• Malay
• Mankon
• Mixteco
• Nepali
• Punu
• Susu
• Trique
• Uyghur
• and several others (see our Web site)

And, finally, top Corporate opportunities include:

• Sales Executive - Federal Government-Washington, DC
• Senior Sales Executives-Healthcare, Government, General Markets, and Face-to-Face Interpretation
• Account Managers in Healthcare, General Markets, and Government

For non-interpreter positions, please apply at: www.languageline.com/careers. Click on "Apply Today" under "Corporate Careers" and follow the directions to add your profile.

EEO/AA Employer.

* Some positions may have been filled by the time you apply. However, new positions open up every week.

Visit our Career Center here >>

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