Origin

I grew up in Abitibi, in northwestern Québec, among loggers, miners, moose and mosquitoes. “Abitibi” means “where the waters divide” in Anishinaabe: the Harricana River runs north to James Bay while the Kinojévis flows south toward the Atlantic. For me, north meant wild spaces where my father worked and took me hunting and fishing; south meant big cities with cafés, theatres and festivals. I kept flowing along these two rivers, which shaped my personality.

From pine to palm

For the first fifteen years of my adult life, I planted trees every summer so I could study and travel the rest of the year. A professor who liked my writing eventually asked me to translate his weekly column for a bilingual magazine — an opportunity that set me on my professional path.

Slowly but surely, I planted 1.5 million trees, travelled the world and completed my master’s degree at Seoul National University. Just as steadily, I translated millions of words.

I now live in Thailand and don’t plant trees much beyond my backyard, but I still aim to make the world a little better — this time through language. If you’re ready to see your message take root and thrive in French, I’d love to help.

  • "Our experience working with David was superb. He does meticulous, thoughtful work. More than just a translator of text, David works to understand technical content, weed out errors, omissions or ambiguities in text, and he ensures that the essence of written language is communicated accurately and well. David’s editorial suggestions helped to improve the clarity of our work in both languages. His attention to detail and the thoroughness of his work is commendable and we very strongly recommend his services!"
    Teika Newton, Managing Director
    Climate Action Network Canada
  • "David is a delight to work with – he is reliable, fast-working and committed to delivering translations of the highest quality. We really appreciate his attention to detail and nuance, and his insights on inclusive language, which have helped ensure our communications in French really reflect us as a Partnership. Thank you!"
    Emma Sadd, Publications Officer
    Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage
  • "Working with David was a charm. He understood the subtleties, overall meaning and tone of the text and delivered a flawless translation. His attention to detail also helped to identify certain errors in the original English version."
    Émile Boisseau-Bouvier, Analyst, Climate Policy and Ecological Transition
    Équiterre
  • "We very much appreciate to work with David. He takes the time to understand everything perfectly in the source language so he can do a translation of good quality. He has an eye for detail and his perfectionism has added value to many of our reports and publications."
    Tatjana Aebli, Communication Officer
    Terre des hommes
  • "I had the opportunity to work with David on the translation of a report and communication materials for a coalition of environmental organizations. David is a very talented translator; his passion for words and for the French language shines through in his work. I highly recommend him."
    Cyrielle Maison, Senior Manager, Communications
    David Suzuki Foundation
  • "David’s translations meet every expectation. He has a remarkable attention to detail and takes great pride in producing quality work. He dives into the ocean of words and clearly enjoys swimming there — you can feel it. I recommend him without hesitation."
    Jennifer Couëlle, Translation and Interpretation Services
    L’Arche Canada
  • "Mr. Malenfant provides quality service and makes sure to meet the needs of the client in a swift and professional manner that is highly satisfactory."
    Merette Mathieu, Manager, Québec Outreach
    Windmill Microlending
  • "Thank you very much David for the excellent work. We only have good things to say about it, the translation is excellent, we are very pleased."
    Catherine Farmer, Education Specialist, E-learning
    Equitas