In 2020, I led Poetry in Translation: East Meets West seminars, receiving excellent feedback from participants and audiences. In 2021, my bilingual anthology Mirrors and Windows, featuring 59 poets translated between Chinese and English, was published by Guernica Editions and selected by CBC as one of 45 Canadian poetry collections to watch. These initiatives demonstrated how poetry translation can foster meaningful cross-cultural connections.
Building on this experience, I launched the 2026 project Borderless: Translating Across Divides to Foster Dialogue and Harmony. This intercultural initiative brings together Chinese- and English-speaking poets, translators, and readers to explore how poetry can bridge linguistic and cultural divides. Through collaborative workshops, participants translate and discuss selected poems, gaining deeper understanding of each other’s languages, traditions, and perspectives. The project will culminate in a bilingual anthology celebrating poetry’s power to connect communities.
I have already received strong support from previous project sponsors, including poets DC Reid and Katherine L. Gordon, Chen Jie (President, Triple J Tax), and Zelko Odorcic (President, Nova Marketing Group Inc.). Leveraging my role as Ontario Representative for the League of Canadian Poets and my past collaborations, I have established a strong network of potential participants.
Since Mirrors and Windows, I have continued translating works by over forty Chinese and Canadian poets—including Armand Garnet Ruffo, Alice Major, Molly Peacock, Richard Greene, Micheline Maylor, Yvonne Blomer, Rayanne Haines, David Stones, Kyeren Regehr, Lorna Crozier, Kate Rogers, Bruce Hunter, Bänoo Zan, Yan Li, Yen Ai-Lin, Luofu, and Yang Lian， Yuan Fan, Wang Zi Liang—many of which have been published in renowned literary media. I plan to invite additional poets, particularly those based in Mississauga. Together, their poems will foster dialogue, share knowledge, and cultivate collective wisdom across cultures.
As this project is non-profit, I plan to apply for grants to support it, though funding is increasingly difficult to secure. Nevertheless, I aim to complete the project by the end of 2026.
More updates will unfold as the project develops.
BTW, I would also like to celebrate that our 2025 Peace and Harmony through Poetry and Music project has been selected as a MicroGrant Success. Thank you to everyone who contributed to making that project meaningful and memorable.
We thank our sponsors: Nova Marketing Group, Triple J Canada, Sureway Press, CPAC and Canadian poets Katherine L. Gordon and D.C. Reid.
