I am a conference interpreter and translator with a master’s degree in each of these distinct fields.

I grew up in western Canada, with English as my mother tongue. I also have a native-like command of Spanish, thanks to years of living and freelancing in my beloved adoptive country of Colombia. I speak fluent French, having lived in Montreal for more than a decade, and I have a good command of Catalan from a year spent in Barcelona.

I expect to continue to divide my time between the two countries I call home, Canada and Colombia, but for now I am based in Montreal.

Not all interpreters are translators and not all translators are interpreters. My passion for the Spanish language drew me first towards translation, but I quickly came to see interpreting as the ultimate test of language ability and set my sights on joining that profession as well.

I have discovered that these two very different fields complement one another superbly: Translation allows me to build my vocabulary and background knowledge, things that come in handy when I’m working as an interpreter. Interpreting trains my mind to push pesky words aside and extract meaning, a skill that helps me produce more natural translations.

Like most freelance conference interpreters and translators, I focus on knowing a bit about everything rather than specializing in a single field. My interests have led me to work primarily in the non-profit sector, including subjects as varied as human rights, environmental science, technology and finance. I take research and preparation very seriously and consider myself fortunate to work in a field where learning new things is just about the only constant.