Technical communication calendar

May 2022

The Plain Language Awards are open for 2022

First, have you heard that the Plain English Awards have changed their name? It’s now the Plain Language Awards, and we think that’s a great move.

The awards are open once more for entries, closing on 31 July 2022.

TechCommNZ sponsors the Best Plain Language Technical Communicator category, so naturally, we're keen to see our members entering and getting the recognition they deserve for their skills and hard work.

Please consider entering the awards, or encouraging and supporting someone else you think should be recognised as a fantastic technical communicator. There’s plenty of time to craft your entry, although we recommend you start soon.

Check out this year's award information.

Plain Language Awards website

Events coming up

TechCommNZ webinars

Make it Memorable

At the end of June, TechCommNZ will host another webinar, this time looking at how to present better virtually. Danielle Hennis has run workshops for science communication groups and for general audiences. The webinar covers principles of presentations, engagement, and creating content that's easier for your audience to process.

We'll have the webinar registration details available soon, so make sure you’ve signed up to receive email notifications for our upcoming webinars.

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Māori Language week

Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (Māori Language Week) is 12 to 18 September.

Te Wiki o te Reo Māori (more information)

Plain Language Week

Plain Language Week is in October, usually around the same time as the Plain Language Awards ceremony.

Recap on past events

We think these events are definitely worth marking in your calendar for next year.

New Zealand Sign Language week

New Zealand Sign Language Week ran from 9 to 15 May, and the theme this year was ‘New Zealand Sign Language is essential’. We see this reflected in the increasing demand for accessible and inclusive content that doesn’t let anyone miss out on important information.

During the week there were some great learning opportunities available for all, including NZSL taster sessions and free webinars run by Victoria University of Wellington.

New Zealand Sign Language Week official website

If you missed out, you can still learn some basics for free online. We also recommend you download the app for the New Zealand Sign Language dictionary, to look up signs anytime.

Learn NZSL – free learning portal

New Zealand Sign Language dictionary

Did anyone else get a little (or a lot) distracted watching the sign language interpreters during those COVID-19 announcements? Did you pick up the signs for COVID-19 and Aotearoa New Zealand?

COVID-19 (New Zealand Sign Language dictionary)

Aotearoa New Zealand (New Zealand Sign Language dictionary)

Do you know or use NZSL?

We’d love to know if any of our members are fluent in or learning NZSL, or work with it as part of their job. Do you have any examples of using NZSL in your work that you’d be happy to share with our members? If you’d like to tell us your story or share your experience, please get in touch.

Email comms@tcanz.org.nz or message us on Slack.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day

Global Accessibility Awareness Day was on 19 May. This is a great one to keep in your calendar, especially if your work has a strong focus on creating accessible content.

Global Accessibility Awareness Day website