Collaboration in the Present and in the Future: Where do we go from Here?

The concept of collaboration has characterised translation processes throughout history and in the field of Translation Studies it has been linked to other fundamental concepts, such as the visibility of translation agents. Visibility and collaboration have not been regarded as polar opposites, but have often proven to be incompatible when looking at the past. The past allows us to better understand the present and act to bring about cultural change. This is the case with translation metaphors, which have hitherto focused on the individual translator, but which we can now conceive of in a plural and collaborative form. From the past we have turned to the present and a future in which translation is increasingly driven by technology, with advantages and disadvantages for translators, who cannot afford to ignore technological progress applied to translation. Moreover, today's practice can no longer neglect an ecological dimension that embraces the entire world around us. It is precisely from the broader perspective that technologies offer us that it is possible to start thinking about forms of communication, and thus translation, that are broadly collaborative and encompass the human and non-human world.