Translating Wikipedia Healthcare Information for People in India

Cameron Rasmusson
June 24, 2022

Multilingual Magazine | May 18, 2022

Abhishek Suryawanshi

How do you localize content for a country of 1.38 billion people speaking hundreds of languages?

There’s no easy answer for that question. But there are few people who understand the herculean task better than Abhishek Suryawanshi. As the Director of the Special Wikipedia Awareness Scheme for the Healthcare Affiliates (SWASTHA), Suryawanshi’s professional mission is to supply accurate, trustworthy health information to the people of India by localizing Wikipedia English’s healthcare information one article at a time. If that sounds like a sisyphean task, think again. Thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers and Wikipedia’s time-tested localization processes, Suryawanshi and his team are making tremendous progress every day.

In addition to his work with Wikipedia, Suryawanshi is the first visiting scholar hosted by the University of Virginia School of Data Science. Given all that experience and expertise, we reached out to ask him about his work history and the journey that brought him to Wikipedia. The result is a conversation about language, culture, teamwork, and how the power of ice cream can change a person’s life.

Read full article here.