In the globalised, technology-driven world, many ‘traditional’ aspects of society seem threatened; among them, minority languages, such those spoken by lowland Scots and the Nuosu of China, and the practice and study of literature and translation. Just as minority cultures are threatened by globalisation, enrolment in the Humanities is dropping and (so some pessimists claim), human interpreters and translators will soon be replaced by chatbots. This talk challenges these assumptions of inevitable decline by showing that literary translation is a fundamentally human activity, that, among other things, can support minority languages and sustain traditional cultures. Moreover, literary translation in and out of minority languages can sustain marginalised cultures, not in a static but in a dynamic fashion. This talk draws on examples of verse by the Chinese writer, Jidi Majia, whose poetry about the Yi Minority, and in particular the traditions of the Nuosu people, has been translated into over 40 languages, including Scots. This talk draws on translations into Scots to demonstrate how literary translation can be an effective strategy for linguistic and cultural survival. John Corbett was appointed Professor of English at Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University (BNBU) in September 2020. He served as Programme Director of English Language and Literature Studies (ELLS) from May 2021 until June 2022, when he became Associate Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (FHSS). He has many years of experience of university teaching, research and administration in Scotland, Macau and Brazil, having formerly been a Professor at the Universities of Glasgow and Macau, and Visiting Professor at the University of Sao Paulo. He has wide teaching and research interests, with numerous publications in the areas of applied linguistics, translation studies, Scottish literature and the Scots language. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx