TED Talks are available in 102 languages, from Albanian to Vietnamese, thanks to the tireless work of our volunteer translators. So far, more than 10,000 volunteers have created 47,000 talk translations — and today, the TED Blog brings you a Q&A with one of them. Here, meet French translator 

1. Where do you live? And what do you do by day?

I am a student and a space enthusiast. While I currently live in Paris (and I should say: Paris lives within me!), I’ll move to the US this summer to pursue my graduate studies in mechanical engineering at UC Berkeley. I start each day with a cup of tea, and I end it the same way. When I am not studying, I spend my time trying to find something new to study and I let everything surrounding me amaze me in new, unexpected ways.

J.J. Abrams: The mystery box 2. What first drew you to TED?

Serendipity! As a huge fan of LOST, I stumbled upon J.J. Abram’s “Mystery box” talk where he passionately makes a case for nurturing mysteries to enhance creativity. I loved it and I immediately wanted to know more about TED. I have never found my way out of it. The love story continues…

3. What was the first talk you translated and how did you pick it?

Zainab Salbi: Women, wartime and the dream of peace It was Zainab Salbi’s talk, “Women, wartime and the dream of peace.” I chose it because Zainab’s story was very powerful and moving and it conveyed a universal, peaceful message: beyond any fear, there is hope.

4. What have been your favorite talks to translate? Why?

There are so many! Cesar Harada’s “A novel idea for cleaning up oil spills” is definitely among my favorites, mainly because I met Cesar at TEDGlobal 2012 and we’ve been friends ever since. Cesar Harada: A novel idea for cleaning up oil spills But I also truly believe that Protei — his shape-shifting sailing robot — will be a game changer in the global effort to protect the ocean. Salman Khan’s talk “Let’s use video to reinvent education” is also on my list, as I felt like a part of the learning revolution and a witness to a major shift in education as I was translating this talk. Peter Diamandis’ talk “Abundance is our future” is also one I felt honored to translate. I’d like more people to live by the underlying principles in each of his entrepreneurial endeavors: faith in the future and in humanity’s ability to solve grand challenges. Then there is also Paul Nicklen’s “Tales of ice-bound wonderlands” but I have to stop here as the unfathomable list of explorers and geniuses goes on… Paul Nicklen: Animal tales from icy wonderlands

5. Which talk was the most difficult for you to translate and why?

Most certainly Thomas Barnett’s talk about America’s military strategy. He is very idiomatic, talks very fast, uses a lot of acronyms and refers to important parts of history I had to know well in order to do my job. As translators, we always spend a lot of time searching the web to learn more about the topic of a talk. Thomas Barnett: Let's rethink America's military strategy But I think this is the talk I spent the most time on.

6. What’s a phrase in your language that you wish would catch on globally?

“C’est en forgeant qu’on devient forgeron” or “practice makes perfect.” Everyone can start a new project and succeed through hard work. I think that’s also what TED is all about: the future is ours to create.

TED Talks are available in 102 languages, from Albanian to Vietnamese, thanks to the tireless work of our volunteer translators. So far, more than 10,000 volunteers have created nearly 45,000 talk translations — and today, the TED Blog brings you a Q&A with one of them. Here, meet French and Urdu translator 

1.     Where do you live? And what do you do by day?
I am from a place after which heaven was copied — Mauritius. (Mark Twain said it!) But I have been studying at the Sorbonne in Paris since 2009 — first computational linguistics, then communications. I am more of a night person though, and that’s usually when I translate.

2.     What drew you to TED?
A friend of mine posted a talk about physics on Facebook. I didn’t get most of it, but I clicked on another video. Then another. Then another. And I was hooked. TED is now my daily dose of inspiration, that small kick of energy and enthusiasm that boosts me up for the day.

3. What was the first talk you translated and how did you pick it?

Devdutt Pattanaik: East vs. West -- the myths that mystify It was Devdutt Pattanaik’s talk about myths that shape how we conceive and perceive the world. As a child, I used to satisfy my voracious appetite for stories by reading Greek and Egyptian myths, and for the very first time, I was seeing how these stories mold our present and reality.

4. What have been your favorite talks to translate? Why?

There are too many of them, but three is a good number, so here goes.

Lalitesh Katragadda: Making maps to fight disaster, build economies First, a fun one: Hillel Cooperman on Legos for grownups, because we can’t ever have enough of Legos.

A serious one: Lalitesh Katragadda on harnessing knowledge from the crowd for a more efficient world.

And a poetic one: Sarah Kay, because her spoken word poetry reminds me of the wittiness of Ghalib, the sensitivity of Aatish and the vivid imagery of Iqbal — my three favorite Urdu poets.

5. Which talk was the most difficult for you to translate and why?

All talks come with their own intricacies, but recently I found Tarig Hilal’s ode to a lost Sudan quite tricky to translate. He talks eloquently — his talk is a poem in prose and I strove to do it justice. Poems and songs are the most difficult to translate — it is hard to not mess up the form or corrupt the content.

6. What’s a phrase in your language that you wish would catch on globally?

“Dilo lor bred sonz.” It’s a phrase in Mauritian Creole, my native language, describing how water droplets roll down the taro leaf, without seeming to touch its surface. It’s a bit like the expression, “Keep calm and carry on.” Because we should always stand strong, no matter what.

These TEDx Talks in French, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish are as delicious as carved watermelon. Photo: TEDxBanskáBystrica

With the increased teaching of English around the globe, world languages are dying at a rate of one every 14 days. Patricia Ryan: Don't insist on English! In her classic talk from TEDxDubai, Patricia Ryan — an English speaker who has lived and taught in Arabic countries for over 30 years — argues that the focus on English is limiting creative thought. If one language can express thoughts that others can’t, why do we insist on equating intelligence with knowledge of English?

Dozens of TEDx events take place around the globe each week and, at them, talks are delivered in a wide variety of languages — celebrating the inherent creativity of a speaker’s native language. Here, collections of TEDx talks in Portuguese, French, Spanish and Russian, courtesy of the TEDx Blog. Because, as Ryan says, some things are just untranslatable.

Uma playlist de TEDx em portugues: 5 talks in Portuguese
These five talks in Portuguese bring us a little flavor of Brazilian and Portuguese culture. Travel with a microbiologist as he explores frozen climes and encounters carnivorous plants; learn about Girl Geek Dinners; and enjoy some hilarious stand-up comedy.

Une playlist de TEDx en francais: 5 talks in French
In the language of love, these five talks range far and wide across francophone culture, touching on topics from the impending zombie apocalypse to the Romani people to the five senses of computers. This playlist also includes Florence Servan Schreiber’s talk from TEDxParisSalon on the connection between gratitude and longevity that has been watched more than 45,000 times.

Una playlist de TEDx en espanol: 5 talks in Spanish
With just short of 400 million speakers worldwide, the Spanish language has a huge influence on international culture. In this series of talks, we hear from the son of a famous drug lord, a transgendered biologist working in Colombia and the creator of a cup made from 100% organic material.

5 Talks in Russian: TEDx’s first Russian playlist!
How can we consider a museum a living organism? Who really controls the internet? What would it be like to be a journalist in Kyrgyzstan? All these questions and more will be answered in this series of talks in Russian.

For more information on TEDx events and speakers, head to the TEDx Blog »