UIA Newsletter 2 August 2016: Speaking a "common" language?

2 August 2016

Upcoming International Congresses

Europe

24th Pacific Voice Conference of the Pacific Voice and Speech Foundation, 05-08/10/16, Warsaw and Lublin +++ 31st International Congress of the Centre International de Recherches et d'Information sur l'Economie Publique, Sociale et Coopérative, 21-23/09/16, Reims +++ 9th World Conference on Bioethics of the International Society of Bioethics, 17-19/10/16, Gijón

Asia

12th Congress of the Indo-Pacific Association of Law, Medicine and Science, 17-23/09/16, Bali +++ 13th Congress of the International Society for Experimental Microsurgery, 25-28/08/16, Tianjin +++ 16th World Congress of Anaesthesiologists of the World Federation of Societies of Anaesthesiologists, 28/08-02/09/16, Hong Kong

America

10th Annual Conference of the International Liver Cancer Association, 09-11/09/16, Vancouver +++ 3rd Biotechnology Summit of the International Foundation for Biotechnology Research and Early Stimulation in the Culture of Health, Nutrition, Sport, Art, Science, Technology and Society, 24-28/10/16, Ciudad Obregón +++ 17th Congress of the International Pediatric Nephrology Association, 20-24/09/16, Iguaçu

Africa

6th Annual Conference of the African Accounting and Finance Association, 31/08-02/09/16, Nairobi +++ 4th Congress of the College of Ophthalmology of Eastern Central and Southern Africa, 25-26/08/16, Arusha +++ 7th International Congress of the African Association of Physiological Sciences, 05-08/09/16, Lagos

Pacific

Biennial Scientific Conference of the Marcé Society, 26-28/09/16, Melbourne +++ 37th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Australasian Dermatopathology Society, 09-11/09/16, Auckland +++ 27th Annual Conference of the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, 14-17/09/16, Queensland

Speaking a "common" language?

by Denise Farrar, Communications and Fundraising Manager, CISV International

When we think about communicating, we often carefully consider our message, target audience, the best way to say it or send it – even the timing. But have we really done enough to make sure that we have communicated our message? Has the person receiving our message not only understood it, but are they ready to act on it in some way?

Good communications, whether they are international and electronic or talking with the person next to us, rely on mutual understanding and a fair amount of trust. When we have the barrier of language, good communications get more complicated. We can’t use ‘turns of phrase’ or idioms, or even humour, easily. What is obvious or funny to us may be unclear or just strange, perhaps even rude, to others. To make things even more complicated, we might be speaking or writing in our second language or addressing an audience of multiple languages.

Your organisation may have decided that English (or French or Spanish) is your operating language but that doesn’t mean everyone in your organisation (or your partners and clients) shares a common understanding of it. Are you really speaking the same language?

Saying something or sending an email does not mean that you have communicated; you may have been completely misunderstood. What is worse is, as a result, your message can be disregarded or ignored. How often have we heard people say, “no one told me about this” or, “I didn’t get that message”, when we know that they were told and they were given that message? In addition to the frustration this causes for all concerned, the time, effort, and cost of misunderstanding can be enormous...

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Our right to knowledge

Joint publication. Download the summary of Our right to knowledge: Legal reviews for the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty for persons with print disabilities in Asia and the Pacific, a joint publication by the UN Development Programme and the World Blind Union – Asia Pacific.

Yearbook Online data refreshed

2,708 organizations. The Yearbook Online data have been refreshed again. 2,708 organization profiles have been edited since last update, 381 organization addresses changed, 68 new organization profiles added.
www.uia.org/news

4th UIA Associations Round Table Asia-Pacific

Meet, learn, share. The UIA Round Table Asia-Pacific on 28 and 29 September in Busan, South Korea is an opportunity to meet representatives of other international associations, to learn from their experience, and to share knowledge on: the challenges of first establishing then expanding an association, the tools available to drive growth and engagement, and ways to stay relevant and on track.

Boost performance and impact of your association

Training. Executive Master in International Association Management will resume in January 2017. This 16-day modular training for association professionals is operated by the Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management in cooperation with UIA, FAIB, ESAE and Visitbrussels. Contact Asja Kamenica at asja.kamenica@solvay.edu for more information.

Why Busan?

Peter Jang, Managing Director, Busan Tourism Organization

Did you know?

+ Busan has been the most popular tourist destination for summer vacation in Korea for the last 30 years.
+ Busan was ranked 10th in the world, and 5th in Asia according to A+C criteria in UIA’s convention city ranking.
+ The primary convention facilities, pre-eminent hotels and tourist attractions are all situated just 10 minutes from each other, in what we call the ’10-minute zone’