Interpreter and Translator
patricia@languagejustice.org
Patricia Zavala is a native Austinite—proud to be born and raised in Austin. Despite the fact that her father is an immigrant from Peru, she did not grow up speaking Spanish at home, however, that did not stop her from acquiring native fluency. She relentlessly dedicated herself to learning the language of her Latin American relatives by traveling extensively and studying in Argentina, Bolivia, Spain, Mexico and Peru. She holds a B.A in Global Studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara and is currently pursuing two mater’s degrees at the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Policy and the Lozano Long Institution of Latin American Studies. Patricia was trained as an interpreter in 2012, which transformed her understanding of interpreting as more than just providing a service to non-English speakers but as a way of defending civil rights. Passionate about language justice, Patricia helped to found the Austin Language Justice Collective and currently serves as the group’s Director of Organizing. In her free time, Patricia dances samba with the Austin Samba School, plays Brazilian music and hangs out with her lively 100 year old grandma.