Crowdsourcing localisation for non-profit projects

Abstract

Trommons is an open-source, web-based platform administered by The Rosetta Foundation. The Rosetta Foundation has worked since 2009 to eradicate the information gap faced by communities under-served by commercial localisation, by making information accessible in the languages of those communities. In recent years we have conducted several studies into crowdsourced volunteer translation from the perspective of the client organisations. In this paper we are reporting on the finding of those studies, which include two survey questionnaires as well as semi-structured interviews with representatives of the non-profit organisations and staff at the Rosetta Foundation. The studies conducted provide insights into the following questions: Do organisations work with volunteers, and why? What reasons would make them not work with volunteers? What expectations do organisations have of volunteers, as well as a platform like Trommons, and are those expectations being met? What are the interactions between organisations and staff at the Rosetta Foundation?