The Translators Association of China (TAC) Annual Conference 2025 opened in Dalian, Liaoning province, on April 24. The event was guided by China International Communications Group (CICG) and co-hosted by the TAC, CICG Academy of Translation and Interpretation, and Dalian University of Foreign Languages.

A team of faculty members from Beijing Foreign Studies University (BFSU) was invited to attend the conference.

Sun Youzhong, executive vice president of the TAC, unveils the "2024 Global National Translation Capacity Index". [Photo/bfsu.edu.cn]

Sun Youzhong, executive vice president of the TAC, presented the "2024 Global National Translation Capacity Index" to the attendees during the major translation achievements release session for member organizations. The report highlighted the United States, China, and the United Kingdom as the leading countries in the overall ranking. China excelled in translation development capacity, ranking first globally, securing second in its translation service capacity and ranking eleventh for translation governance capacity, indicating room for improvement.

The index, independently developed by a research team led by Ren Wen, director of the BFSU Research Center for Country-Specific Translation and Interpretation Capacity and dean of the Graduate School of Translation and Interpretation, was updated from the 2020-2023 version, transitioning to a more comprehensive and stable 3.0 version. This new version includes three primary indicators, National Translation Governance Capacity, National Translation Service Capacity, and National Translation Development Capacity, along with nine secondary indicators and 27 tertiary indicators. The release drew widespread attention and lively discussions among conference participants.

The appointment ceremony for the experts of the "Translation Talent Project" and the first batch of joint training bases for the "Translation Training Project" [Photo/bfsu.edu.cn]

The opening ceremony featured the launch of the "Four Translation Projects" initiative, which covers translation talent, translation dissemination, translation research, and translation training. Reports on the development of China's and the global translation industry were also released, along with the announcement of five group standards, the recognition of outstanding branches, and the presentation of major translation achievements by member organizations. The conference further included 28 thematic forums and an exhibition showcasing the accomplishments of the translation industry.

At the launch ceremony for the "Four Translation Projects", Ren Wen was appointed as a distinguished expert for the "Translation Talent Project", receiving a certificate on stage. She also represented BFSU at the signing ceremony for the "Translation Training Project".

Wang Huashu, professor at BFSU's Graduate School of Translation and Interpretation and secretary-general of the TAC's Translation Technology Committee, accepts the certificate for the "Outstanding Branch Institution of the Year" on behalf of the committee. [Photo/bfsu.edu.cn]

During the thematic exchange sessions, Ren Wen delivered an in-depth explanation of the structure and methodology of the 3.0 version of the "2024 Global National Translation Capacity Index" at the "Industry Report Interpretation and Analysis" forum. She also proposed policy recommendations for reshaping the concept of translation in the age of artificial intelligence and strengthening national translation capacity. Ren Wen participated in a roundtable discussion, offering valuable insights.

Meanwhile, Wang Huashu released the "Guideline for Generative Artificial Intelligence Applications in the Translation Industry (2025)" during the forum on "New Transformations in Translation Technology Driven by Large Language Models".

Ren Wen, Yao Bin, vice dean of BFSU's Graduate School of Translation and Interpretation, Zhao Tianyuan, director of the Center for Academic Development of the Graduate School, and Xu Xiuling, faculty member of the Graduate School, served as consulting experts contributing to the compilation of the China Translation Industry Development Report 2025 and the Global Translation Industry Development Report 2025, both of which were released at the conference.