Caux Interpreters

By plane to Geneva (approx. 1.5 hrs from Caux), by train to Montreux, then by funicular to Caux (for more information, visit Swiss Railway: www.sbb.ch)

The interpreters will stay at the Caux Palace in twin bedrooms. Single rooms are an exception and are only available under special circumstances. Bedrooms are equipped with a bathroom, a direct external telephone line and wireless Internet. Some rooms might have to share a bathroom. Male and female bedrooms and bathrooms are separated. Bed linen, towels, and soap are available. We recommend that you bring your own hair dryer and an adaptor for Swiss sockets.

Internet access is free throughout the Caux Palace. Please bring your own device to work on documents for your interpreting work outside and inside the booth. A dedicated interpreter office with printing and photocopying facilities is available to your team at all times to prepare for the upcoming sessions. Your team leader will arrange for print-outs and photocopies to be made available as required.

This year, simultanous booth interpreting will be used in the Main Hall, the biggest conference room. If needed, the conference teams will let you know which other rooms might be used for interpreting during smaller sessions. Consecutive/whispering may also be required.

Apart from general background information on conference topics and speakers, interpreters may have access to presentations, scripts or notes for some of the meetings, but will also need to work without preparation material for other sessions. The conference organizers are asked to provide as much material as possible in advance. Past experience has shown that most documents won’t be available before your arrival at the conference centre. Your chef d’équipe will help enable you to meet speakers and facilitators before they are on to answer questions and convey a summary of their contributions.

For each active language at least two interpreters will be recruited. Organizers and interpreters usually work as a team and aim to achieve the best possible communication, working conditions and outcome. If possible, your chef d’équipe will arrange briefing meetings with the speakers, coordinate smaller translation tasks if required and assign individual interpreters and/or pairs and sub-teams to small group sessions outside of the plenary meetings. The number of interpreters for any given conference depends on the specific language requirements.

There is no definite timeline for the selection process since language needs may change up to the last minute. We do everything we can to inform you as soon as possible whether you have been selected. All applicants who are suitable but are not invited in the first round will be kept on a list of alternates. There is always a chance to join a team of interpreters in Caux until the last conference is about to begin. For this reason, we do not issue any regrets.

Casual to business casual. Please bring one to two business outfits for official events. You may want to bring some warm clothes as it can be chilly at the altitude of 1000m. The Caux conference centre has a laundry room with coin-operated washing machines, driers/ drying rooms, iron board and irons.

The conference centre is located in a beautiful mountain setting, the perfect place for quiet and reflection. Going for a walk or a hike is always worth it. Please bring suitable shoes and outdoor gear. There is no gym, but some sports activities (soccer, volleyball, frisbee etc.) are usually organized informally. It is also possible to walk down to Montreux (approx. 45 min to one hour) or to get there by train (funicular). Going for a swim in Lake Geneva is a great way to relax. However, absences of several hours may be difficult to arrange due to the conference schedule and always need to be coordinated with your chef d’équipe.

The Caux Forum with its many affiliated events can only happen thanks to the generous contributions in time and talent of a large number of volunteers. This includes the work of the  interpreters as well as other services rendered by conference participants e.g. supporting the tech team etc.

Please consult with us on fares before booking to make sure you will be refunded. You will be expected to cover your own cost for travel insurance and any visa fees if required.

Once you have been admitted to the Caux Interpreters Programme, you need to officially register on the conference webpage. You will then be required to provide information as to whether you need a visa for Switzerland. If that is the case, the registration team will send you an official Letter of Invitation on behalf of Initiatives of Change Switzerland to facilitate your visa application.

Please let us know well in advance in case you require a visa, as the application process takes time. However, please kindly note that you will be expected to cover your own cost for travel insurance and any visa fees if required.