AustLit

Monash University Translation Studies (now Translation & Interpreting Studies) was established in 2004 and has since rapidly expanded to become a pioneer in the field nationally. Both of the school’s postgraduate coursework degrees have gained approval from the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters Ltd (NAATI). Translation & Interpreting Studies has also achieved an external profile and recognition through national industry and community partnerships and international research events. The program hosted the Third Conference of the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies (IATIS), attended by over three hundred delegates from all over the world.

The Postcolonial Studies Program in the English Department at the Free University of Berlin is one of the major European centres for the study of Australian Literature. It hosts the prestigious Ludwig Hirschfeld-Mack Visiting Chair of Australian Studies and has set up a twinned Visiting Chair of German Studies at the University of Western Australia. It has extensive research and teaching collaborations with partner universities in Europe, Africa, and Australia.

In October 2010, the Windows on Australia team formed a partnership with AustLit at The University of Queensland to take advantage of the extensive work that AustLit researchers had already undertaken in recording translations of Australian texts within the AustLit database. The Windows on Australia Research Project was formed to ensure that this existing data could be incorporated into the aims of the project. This collaboration will ensure that researchers do not duplicate previous research effort, and that a enriched dataset about Australian writers’ penetration and reception in overseas readerships can be made available through AustLit.

Future plans

Further funding for the project will be sought to expand on the foundation work done in 2010.