By Paula Arellano Geoffroy, 11 August 2025
The Merriam-Webster English Dictionary defines interest groups as ‘a group of persons having a common identifying interest that often provides a basis for action’ and states that the term’s first known use in the US was in 1908.
SENSE currently has nine Special Interest Groups (SIGs) that meet in person or online and whose meetings are open to all members. Guests are welcome to attend one or two meetings before deciding whether they would like to join SENSE. This month, I invite you to meet the Zuid-Holland SIG and its convener, Hans van Bemmelen.
You have been supporting SENSE in so many ways since you joined back in the early 90s, and currently as our Treasurer. Can you tell us a bit about your background?
I’m actually one of the founder members and wrote the initial constitution, together with Susan Hunt. At that time most of my work as a translator was in chemical engineering and related subjects. These days I do more in fields such as heavy lifting and transport, and I write more than I translate.
When and why did you start serving as the Zuid-Holland SIG convener?
That is lost in the mists of time. I think this is the second or third time I’ve served as convener ‒ the SIG tends to peter out after a while.
I believe you usually meet in The Hague. What are the main topics you bring to the table?
We occasionally select specific topics, e.g. the impact of AI on editing, the development of the translation market, or doing business. But quite often we just have a general discussion about editing, translating and writing.
Can you walk us through the last Zuid-Holland SIG meeting?
We last met in November 2024. As this was a busy time of the year, there were just a few of us. The discussion mostly focused on the impact of AI on our work and the shrinking translation market. After that it broadened out to cover CADS (Commercial Anglo Dutch Society) and chestnut honey.
Have you read something interesting recently?
As I spend most of my time at work dealing with words I tend not to read that much in my spare time. Instead, I focus on sound and set building for the Anglo-American Theatre Group (AATG), conservation volunteering, slowly learning to play the recorder and going to concerts (mostly early and contemporary music). I recently finished reading Tim Harford’s ‘How to Make the World Add Up: Ten Rules for Thinking Differently About Numbers’, which was very interesting and informative. I’m currently dipping into ‘Switched On: The Dawn of Electronic Sound by Latin American Women’ which covers a number of interesting composers and sound artists.
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Blog post by: Paula Arellano Geoffroy |
