Outreach Skills Part 2 – Language

On September 27, 1822, Jean-François Champollion finished translating the famed Rosetta Stone, 23 years after it was discovered in Egypt. The Stone was created in 196 BCE by the newly crowned Ptolemy V to announce his new decrees. Ptolemy understood that his laws and directives would only work if they were understood by all of the diverse population, so he had his message carved in the three major languages of the populace.

When translated, the Stone helped us understand those languages – but when written, it helped people understand important information affecting their lives. Make sure that your outreach efforts and materials use language – including vocabulary and phrasing choices – that will be understood by the people you are trying to reach.