A Report On The E-C Translation Practice Of Making Climate Change And Sustainability Through Behavioural Transformation(Chapter One)

In recent years,the world has been deeply affected by climate change,which not only affects the environment,but also affects the economy,politics,and so on.Therefore,climate change has become a common challenge for all humankind,and addressing climate change is a matter of the future and destiny of all humankind.In this context,this translation practice is based on the theme of climate change.The source text is selected from Making Climate Change and Sustainability through Behavioural Transformation,which focuses on exploring ways to improve climate change from the perspective of human behavior.It is an essential material for addressing climate change and enhancing the natural environment.The source text belongs to informative texts with long and complex sentences,strong logic among sentences and widely used noun structures and passive voices.Therefore,the objective of the translation task is to correctly deliver the original content and ensure that the translation conforms to the expression habits of the target language and readers.In addition,the problems encountered by the translator in the process of translation are mainly due to the large number of long and difficult sentences caused by the differences between English and Chinese.Based on these difficulties and characteristics of the text,the translator applies Catford’s theory of translation shifts and combines the differences between English and Chinese to polish and improve the translation.Under the guidance of this theory,the translator mainly makes appropriate shifts in lexis,grammar and sentence structure to ensure the accuracy and fluency of the translation.Firstly,the translator shifts from two aspects of singular and plural as well as verb tense to achieve the equivalence between the source language and the target language.Secondly,category shifts,including shifts between active tenses and passive tenses,and shifts between phrases and sentences,are used to make the translation more consistent with the expression habits of the target language and target readers.Through this translation practice,the translator has a deeper understanding of Catford’s translation shifts theory and the translation of informative texts.She finds that Catford’s translation shifts theory plays a vital role in guiding the translation of informative texts.And she also realizes that during the translation of informative texts,the translator must first break the original structure to accurately grasp the original text.Secondly,sacrifice the original formal correspondence when it’s necessary to convey the content of the original text accurately.It is hoped that the translation practice report can awaken readers’ awareness to transform their behaviors for supporting climate change and thus alert them to participate in climate action initiatives actively.At the same time,it is also hoped that the report can provide valuable references for other translators to translate informative texts and help them deepen their understanding of Catford’s translation shifts theory.