On December 10, 1867, Sakamoto Ryoma was assassinated in the Omiya Inn in Kyoto at 31. The young samurai from the Tosa Domain during the last years of Japan's Shogunate rule may not have lived to witness the legendary Meiji Restoration that ended but left a legacy that would shape the soul and spirit of the newly modernized country. Not only did his Eight Proposal become the basis of forming the new Meiji parliamentary system after his death, but his vision and ideas also inspired many of those who learned of his story. Sakamoto is not a common name in Western education, but he was a man who was heavily influenced by the Western spirit of freedom and democracy. Unfortunately, he was branded a criminal under the Tokugawa regime for being vocal against the isolationist policy and government. Still, he never once gave in to opposition and fought for what he believed until his last breath. Sakamoto was a man who dreamed of sailing the seven seas, opening the closed doors to accept a new era of modernization, even at the cost of being branded as a traitor by his beloved country. It's not easy to maintain the light of one's morals in a world that continuously challenges and oppresses. Still, Sakamoto Ryoma held his head up against all odds, pursuing a marvelous dream that seemed almost like a fairy tale during his time. He did not live for fame or wealth, and I also wish to become someone who can walk down even the most despairing path with an inextinguishable torch in my heart.

The hubris of mankind has reached its peak today in all of human history. Never before was a man able to amass the kind of wealth we see with billionaires today; never before have we seen any regime systematically destroy the lives of common people for their own selfishness; never before has any human organization held the destructive powers of nuclear weapons in mass; never before have we faced such an urgent climate crisis. The elite few who run the show on this global stage through their authority are too disconnected from the commoners that humanity is now disposable assets to their personal agendas. There are few people in power who can truly impact the world with their influence, but in sheer numbers we, as the younger generation, are in the lead. This is no longer a time to stay conservative and do things "the old way", and the key to solving global issues comes from the combined power of political and social activism among young people. People who wish to see changes should vote, support local and grassroots movements, or even run for office and change the corruption internally through their respective governing bodies. Technology must also be regulated and measured with ethics, especially in the realms of AI and virtual simulation systems. Convenience cannot become an excuse to give up rights to freedom, to submit to monopolies that will begin to dictate one's life. Equality is not given but created.

Creativity applies to all aspects of life, even in places people often least expect--such as translation. Growing up as a self-taught artist with a passion for creative activities, it may be a surprise that I am now pursuing a degree in something that seems far from the realms of the creative industry. However, as I learned more about different translation types, I realized that this practice is more closely related to art than science. Literary translation, in particular, is an artistic conversation between languages through words and a timeless act that connects people around the globe. Stories and knowledge are shared with the world through the work of translation, and that was the foundation of my independent press company that specializes in publishing translated fiction from underrepresented groups. Translation takes myriad skills and a keen sense of nuance behind words, and literary translation combines both language and creative writing skills to deliver a product that new readers can appreciate. However, the works of translators are often disregarded, and many misconceptions arise due to the public's biased view of the significance of translation. I aim to elevate the value and quality of creative translation through my studies and publishing company, challenging American readers to engage in multicultural narratives that we bring over and show how translations impact our everyday lives.

I was born into a unique immigrant family with multicultural traditions from Taiwan. However, unlike many Asian Americans, my interest in my family heritage was never discovered through auspicious events in life. Instead, I would like to say it was an instinct in my bloodline. Primarily inspired by my great-great-grandfather, renowned as the father of Chinese chemistry for being the first person to translate the periodic table into Chinese, and my late grandfather, who was the first to introduce revolutionary technological advancement in Taiwan, I've always had a firm grasp of languages. My family had shaped the history of modern China in the early 20th Century; similarly, after years of struggle and hard work, I firmly believe in the work I do to elevate my culture outside of Asia as a descendant of these great minds. Especially in a rapidly globalizing world, inclusiveness and diversity have quickly echoed across cultures in ways unimaginable only a few decades ago. Language education is now a method of cultural preservation, and my study in translation is something I believe is rudimentary but often undermined in the area of multicultural empowerment. The pandemic outbreak in 2020 was a significant turning point in my life. Unable to work in my previous job, I decided to quit and apply to a graduate program that had always been my plan since I received my bachelor's degree. During the same year, I founded a company with the help of several good friends that is now the leading voice in its niche: an independent publishing company focused on translated Asian books into the English market with a heavy focus on inclusive voices in the LGBTQ+ and ethnic minority communities. We have published at least four translated Chinese novels into English, with more scheduled to be released later in the year. In addition, I was honored to win the 2022 Influential Businesswoman Awards by Acquisition International for the Most Inclusive Publishing Businesswoman (North America) for my work with my company. In January 2022, I was also interviewed by my local Chinese-American news channel, Chinese in LA, for my work on introducing Chinese literature and fiction into the U.S. Currently, my company is the first and only business in North America dedicated to publishing translated Chinese web fiction into English from China, Taiwan, and other regions in Asia. In addition, our company regularly donates to critical social causes that fight against Asian-American hate and improve other local Asian-American communities within the state of California and beyond. As a trilingual individual fluent in Mandarin Chinese, English, and Japanese, pursuing a master's degree at New York University is an essential step for me, both professionally and personally. With the rise of demand for multilingual options in the technology and entertainment fields, it has never been a better time for East Asian media to rise on a global stage. However, it is also a fact that many translators and localizers remain underpaid and underappreciated despite being the driving forces behind essential translations we see every day. Translators of the Chinese language, in particular, have often received the short end of the stick with companies cutting corners by using machine translation or hiring underqualified translators to create defective products; many translators have been forced to step out of the field due to the increasing low pay and forgone opportunities. The depreciation of human translation value harms the final product and contributes to the devaluation of the source language and culture. I firmly believe this is a battle to be fought. My publishing company is determined to change the industry's status by offering affordable, high-quality translation regardless of the medium and ensuring translators are visible for the work they bring to monolingual audiences.

My family was never considered well-off, even as a middle-class household, but we never struggled to the extent of falling into poverty. However, perhaps since we swim between the line of stability and poverty, we never qualified for any benefits that could help improve our financial situation. As the eldest daughter of our nuclear family, I was pressured with expectations from an early age. I fell ill due to stress during the first semester of my undergraduate career and was hospitalized for a week. Still, the recovery process, both physically and psychologically, had been a trudge through purgatory throughout my 20s, even after graduation. I was someone who had always been stuck in the middle ground, not underprivileged enough to earn external support but not privileged enough to have internal support. I never won a scholarship competition and was never selected for even a free dollar to help me pursue my studies. Outside of school, I similarly never had the support to pursue my passion or act for a cause I believed in with material support. Plagued by mental illness, lingering physical condition, financial burden, and personal troubles throughout my 20s--the supposed prime time of my life, I lost a near-decade to a fight I still am not sure I won. Yet despite acknowledging that I would have no choice but to rely on myself for the road ahead, I persevered with gaining professional experiences. I've successfully gotten accepted into New York University's Graduate Program, all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA the first year of my attendance in the program translating and interpreting. And the one driving motivation that allowed me to persevere this far is my firm belief in inspiring grassroots, fundamental change in the world on behalf of the unsung heroes that shape the fundamentals of our society today. The field of translation is something that many look down upon; why are people still studying translation when Google translate exists? Many people have misconceptions about translation study, so I pursued this field in higher education. The role of translation and interpretation in this globalizing society is paramount, and it will not be an understatement to say that today's society would not have advanced this far without translation bridging cultures across the globe. Yet, due to the ubiquitous and subtle nature of translation, people often overlook its importance and are unfamiliar with the long process it takes for translations to become available. Thus, my ultimate goal can be defined into three interrelated smaller plans: first, to build a career in the growing industry of creative translation and localization. Second, through the building of my career, to educate existing and new industry professionals on the value of human translation over machine work. Finally, to revolutionize and create a better global working environment for professional translators through concrete proposals of workplace policies that can respect translators as irreplaceable assets. The transformation of the translation industry will be a long and challenging road to fight for, but I believe there is no better time than now to push for change. The success of foreign media and inclusive, multicultural entertainment globally has reached a record high with the success of works such as Squid Games, Shang Chi, Crazy Rich Asians, and many more. Yet despite these success stories, mass media and the general Western cultural circle still hesitate to accept Asian creative works. As a result, less than 3% of all books published in English yearly are translated works, and only half of them are literature from Asia. Yet even with these statistics, a miracle occurred in December 2021-- three contemporary fiction titles translated by a Chinese author made it to the New York Times Bestseller's list during their first week of publication. Never in history was there a better time for Asian media to be translated into English than now. My goal as an M.S. candidate at NYU's Translation and Interpreting program is to educate professionals and the public on the merits of translation in all fields of study. The unsung heroes who help bridge communication are no machines but real people behind keyboards who work hard to research and convey a story. Everything from our favorite software, game, story and even signs on the road that originate from a different country are only made available to us through the process of translation. Microsoft and Apple would not have become global corporations without their software localization. Squid Games would not have been made available to non-Korean-speaking viewers without subtitles. Shakespeare would not have become a globally renowned playwright without translating his plays into other languages. Yet corporations and the public still refuse to offer credit where credit's due, treating translators, interpreters,s and disposable tools comparable to machines like Google translate. And the way to amend this inequality is through education, both academically and through general guidance. This is a fight to transform our mindsets of translation and translators. This is a challenge for schools, businesses, and even individuals to reconsider their opinions of translated works. The classic epics we learn in school from Antiquity have all been translations; students in Latin America, Asia, Europe, and non-English-speaking countries read about Shakespeare, Homer, and other canonical works of literature through translation. Even today, communication as high-level as diplomatic relations between nations down to a chat with someone who does not speak your mother tongue is only made possible through translation, so why is the discipline of translation considered lesser? Translation is the communication of knowledge, the method of allowing scholars in medicine, law, politics, science, and every imaginable domain to exchange ideas. I firmly believe that learning translation is a revolution in education and the rudimentary component to elevate education methods further.

Depression and anxiety hit me right after my lungs collapsed spontaneously during my last year of undergraduate studies. I had been afraid even to admit that I may have had symptoms of depression before this medical shock, but the panic attacks only worsened my already strained mental health. It wasn't until I started medication and therapy that I realized my relationship with my family had already been showing signs of collapse due to misunderstanding and miscommunications. But this wasn't the only thing that went south in my life. For the first few years after graduation, I struggled to maintain steady work and felt myself going down a spiral of helplessness. Depression and anxiety had made me an undesirable employee; I've been let go from a job, taken advantage of at a workplace, and seen the cruelness of the real world. I've spent nights wondering what was wrong with me and why it had to be me; why couldn't I have grown up to be an average child, free of mental illness, and lead a successful but average life? Many years later, after coping with the black void in my mind, I learned to accept and coexist with the bit of demon that lived in my head. The world often says that the millennial generation-- my generation-- had staggering higher rates of mental illness than previous generations, but this didn't help ease my worries. Of course, mental illness should be addressed and spoken of without stigma, but I don't believe it's fair to assume that everyone should be subject to them. Mental illness didn't develop because I wanted them to, and learning to come to terms with them genuinely allowed me to see the world in a different light. Over the last few years, I've seen the discussion of mental health rise from the woodwork to be advocated publicly, then how quickly it became a vehicle for some people to use as an excuse for gigs or criminal acts. Mental illness isn't quirky, hip, or something that should be treated as a trend, and I genuinely believe the toxic environments of social media have contributed to the rise of mental illnesses. However, my own experiences with depression and anxiety also allowed me to see the systematic problems within our societies. The helplessness we feel at the visage of more powerful figures contributes to the weight we shoulder daily. As a graduate student with looming debt worrying about when or if I will be able to afford my next payment, the structural pressure set up to stigmatize mental illnesses and fatigue is a slow poison that seeped into our lives. Ultimately, my experiences as a mental illness patient allowed me to view the world with more compassion and empathy. One of the most important lessons I learned was that mutual respect is the key to a better environment; the world isn't perfect and society is not always as amiable as we assume. It is okay to voice out negativity and criticisms in adequate amounts. However, just as pessimism is toxic, zealous optimism can sometimes be an even more deadly venom that bores more problems than solutions. Mental illness is like having a broken or smaller plate; what a mentally healthy person can carry on their plates at ease may not be something that a smaller or chipped dish could hold. Equality is not equity, and thus mutual respect and empathy are the foundation of effective progression to a more accepting and supportive society.