Academic Program

The Walter Moreira Salles Lecture Series

Named in honor of one of Brazil’s leading figures, the Walter Moreira Salles Lecture Series was created to highlight salient issues in contemporary Brazil by a prominent Brazilian.  The lecture series features four lectures, is open to the public and generally attracts large and interested audiences.

This program was inaugurated in 2006 with the presence of distinguished scholar and politician, Senator Cristovam Buarque, a former Minister of Education in Brazil instrumental in the creation of the Bolsa Escola program. Senator Buarque’s lectures provided an introduction to the economic, social and political problems confronting Brazil as it undertook its 2006 election for president and the congress.  

In Fall 2007 the Center hosted former minister of planning João Paulo dos Reis Velloso, who delivered four lectures on Brazil’s Development and Prospects. 

In Spring 2009, Edmar Bacha will be the Moreira Salles lecturer.

University of São Paulo (USP)-Columbia University  Partnership

This post-graduate program is an association between the School of Economics, Accounting and Business Administration of the University of São Paulo  and the Center for Brazilian Studies.  It allows a group of twenty five executive MBA students from USP to participate in an intensive one-week series of lectures given by Columbia professors. The lectures are complemented by visits to major retail, finance, and media companies in the NY area as well as to the United Nations.  This program was successfully launched in the fall 2005 and the Center is preparing to receive another group in the fall 2008. The coordinators of the program are Professor Thomas Trebat and his USP counterpart Professor Almir Ferreira da Sousa.

Brazil Study Group, Council of the Americas

The study group is the product of an association between Columbia University and the Americas Society-Council of the Americas. It is financed by the Tinker Foundation. The study group consists of policymakers, many representatives of the New York and Miami business communities, academics and journalists, who assess the state of the Brazilian economy and their broader political implications.