Marco Polo Project
A$3,020
of $3,000 targetyrs ago
Successful on 24th Dec 2012 at 12:00AM.
Marco Polo Project
A digital community translating new writing from China
http://marcopoloproject.org
The Marco Polo Project is a website where users can read and translate contemporary voices from China.
We publish a selection of pieces from emerging and established Chinese intellectuals and writers, giving direct and authentic access to China as it is today, and as Chinese people see it.
Are you curious to know what people are writing on 豆瓣 or 牛博 ? Do you want an insider's perspective on the difference between 北京 and 上海? Or are you looking for parallel readings of 孔子 and 马克思？Come check out our beta version at marcopoloproject.org !
Tell me more about your model
Our website proposes to derive value from the by-products of language education.
Language learners regularly practice translation, at home or in class, to maintain or improve their skills. Some of their translations are not bad - they can even be quite good - but they all end up in the bin.
Our website offers an opportunity for them to practice online, and their translations are directly made available under a creative commons license, giving non-Mandarin speakers access to authentic and diverse voices from China. By doing that, we're also creating a community where language learners and translators can learn from each other, and gain the motivation to go further in their study.
So we're working on both ends, bringing more voices from China to non-Chinese readers, but also helping more people become better readers of Chinese.
How is this working so far?
We incorporated as a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee in 2011, and our core team brings together language educators, web developers, social entrepreneurs, and China experts.
We launched a beta version of our website in March 2012, and our online community has been growing steadily since. Our platform has over 90 registered translators who translated over 90 pieces from a selection of over 350, and 2,500 visitors a month are coming to read them. We also received interest from the media - with interviews on ABC radio (here, here and (in Chinese) here), in That's Shanghai (November 2012), and on two French innovation blogs (by Jean-Michel Billaut and Serge Soudoplatoff).
We’re not going the road alone: we're buiding partnerships with various learning institutions, including the Monash centre for translation, Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris, and La Trobe University. We're also publishing regular posts on Danwei, a Beijing based website about China, and now on ANU's The China Story blog.
So, with only $3000 of investment so far, I think we've done rather well.
And, where will my money go?
Our website is fully-functional, but it's still a bit dry, especially for the translators - and they're the ones doing all the work. So to make their life better, we want to make our interface more user-friendly, more interactive, and simply more fun.
We've designed a series of new features for that, and we're now raising funds to pay for the programmer to do them.
The new features will promote collaboration through internal discussion forums, and encourage translators by giving them rewards for contributing to the website. Each user will have a personal page recording their contributions, which they can use as an online portfolio. And we'll tidy up a few loose ends in the current version - improve our search engine, and make our back-end system more efficient.
If you're wondering whether we'll run out with your money, check our current website, and see what we did with $3,000. We can definitely do what we propose with another $3,000.
What's the long-term plan?
We're looking to make this project sustainable in the long run through diversified income streams: guest-blogging, China consulting, a customized magazine, arts or community grants, digital education research funding, and philanthropic donations.
But the crucial point for us is really to build a critical user-mass. For that, we plan to build up our partnerships with universities around the world, and with media reporting on China. And our first step is to make our interface fun enough that users will keep coming back and tell their friends about us.
So the money we're looking to raise now is to give us that initial boost - and give our translators a nice Christmas gift. '圣诞老人' - that's Chinese for Santa. So do you wanna be '圣诞老人'?
A virtual Chinese Santa card.
1 chosen
Est. delivery is Dec 12
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign.<br />
8 chosen
Est. delivery is Dec 12
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.
10 chosen
Est. delivery is Jan 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> A sampler set of Chinese tea.
16 chosen
Est. delivery is Jan 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /><br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /><br /> A sampler set of Chinese tea. AND A copy of 'The Travels of Marco Polo' with a personalised thank you note. <br />
11 chosen
Est. delivery is Jan 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> One session of personalised language learning advice (30 minutes, Melbourne CBD location or via Skype) <br /><br /> OR <br /><br /> One session of general introduction to the Chinese language (30 minutes, Melbourne CBD location or via skype).
2 chosen
Est. delivery is Jan 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> Invitation to a three-course French home dinner with 5 other donors (Melbourne CBD location). <br /> <br /> [Note, the number of guests may vary slightly depending on the number of donations received. Different dates will be offered, and special food requirements catered for.]
9 chosen / 21 available
Est. delivery is Feb 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> A walking tour of the Melbourne Chinatown - includes prune tasting and bubble tea.
2 chosen
Est. delivery is Feb 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> Personalised language learning or cross-cultural advice over Sichuanese lunch (Melbourne CBD location, lunch included).
0 chosen / 20 available
Est. delivery is Feb 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> Invitation to a three-course French home dinner with 5 other donors (Melbourne CBD location). AND A text of your choice, or on a topic of your choice, translated on the Marco Polo Project website, with permanent acknowledgement of your sponsorship.<br />
4 chosen / 14 available
Est. delivery is Apr 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /> <br /> Three hours of language classes (English, French, Beginner's Chinese) or personal advice on cross-cultural challenges.
1 chosen / 19 available
Est. delivery is Feb 13
Your company's name, corporate logo and link to your corporate website permanently displayed on our website as corporate sponsor in our first pozible campaign.
1 chosen / 3 available
Est. delivery is Jan 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /><br /> Your name permanently listed on our website as early supporter in our first pozible campaign, with a link to your personal website or a website of your choice.<br /><br /> A three course French dinner for you and three other guests cooked and hosted at your house. <br /><br /> Food and matching wine included, special dietary requirements catered for. <br /><br /> [Extra guests welcome for $50 per guest, up to 8 in total]<br /><br />
0 chosen / 5 available
Est. delivery is Feb 13
A virtual Chinese Santa card.<br /> <br /> Your company's name, corporate logo and link to your corporate website permanently displayed on our website as corporate sponsor in our first pozible campaign.<br /> <br /> A facilitated workshop on cross-cultural questions for you and your team (up to twelve participants, duration 1h/2h). <br /> <br /> OR<br /> <br /> A day of consulting work on cross-cultural challenges in your organisation.
0 chosen / 5 available
Est. delivery is Mar 13