Our History
Established in 2001, as the Center for Brazilian Studies by two renowned experts on Brazil, economist Albert Fishlow and political scientist Al Stepan, the Center was endowed and renamed the Lemann Center for Brazilian Studies (LCBS) in 2015. The LCBS offers a place for scholars and students to pursue and share research and scholarship related to Brazil. The LCBS has grown to be one of the premier centers for academic and public policy discussion and debate about Brazil.
The leadership and influence of the LCBS benefits from its privileged location. The New York city region is a major center of Brazilian immigrants, and is home to a variety of Brazilian businesses, diplomatic institutions, and cultural organizations. This environment fosters strong interest in Brazil and unparalleled opportunities for collaborations with external private, public, non-governmental, and intergovernmental organizations.
On campus, interest in Brazil and Brazilian presence is significant and has grown substantially in recent years. There are about 200 Brazilian students at Columbia, as well as 100 Brazilian researchers and visiting scholars. These figures represent a doubling of the population of Brazilians on campus since 2010. Brazilian student enrollments at Columbia have been highest in Business, Professional Studies, International & Public Affairs, Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, Columbia College, Law, and Engineering, but include a wider range of programs including Journalism, Public Health, Arts, and Architecture, and Social Work. The numbers of students, faculty, and researchers on campus substantively engaged with Brazil is much broader, including over 30 faculty members with active teaching and research interests in Brazil.
The location of the LCBS and the on-campus engagement with Brazil have transformed the Center into a uniquely robust space for scholarship and learning about Brazilian history and culture, as well as its political, economic, and public policy dynamics. The LCBS provides support for Columbia faculty research with a focus on Brazil. The LCBS is committed to training future leaders for careers in academia, as well as in the government, nonprofit, and private sectors. Serving as the key focal point for all students and faculty at Columbia with interest in Brazil, the LCBS’s largest constituencies include faculty and students affiliated with Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs, Teachers College, and from the numerous academic units of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
The LCBS also helps to promote collaborations between the Columbia community and Brazilian scholars and institutions, working closely with the Columbia University Global Center | Rio de Janeiro. The Rio Center is a hub for Columbia programs and initiatives relevant to Brazil. Established in 2013, the Center contributes to Brazil's academic and research environment, while also allowing members of the Columbia community to increase their knowledge and explore academic opportunities within Brazil. The Center works in collaboration with local universities, non-governmental organizations, and public institutions to design cross-cutting, innovative programs that aim to improve the understanding of global challenges through a transdisciplinary, transcultural and applied perspective. Ongoing events, lectures, and seminars hosted by the Center build a lively and engaged community of local and international alumni, students, and faculty. Their work is to promote Columbia in Brazil by creating opportunities for the academic community to interact with our local base of partners. In the brief time since its launch, the Rio Center has established critical networks throughout Brazil and generated much research, debate, and educational programming focused on local issues. It informs the University’s approach to analysis and research on Brazil, as well as drawing support for Columbia within Brazil. Through the advance and exchange of knowledge, the Global Center | Rio de Janeiro seeks to strengthen academic investigation, social impact entrepreneurship, and the development of innovative technologies in Brazil.
The Global Center Rio has recently published a report on Columbia Brazil's History. The report features a collection of articles written by Columbia students on the history of relationships between Columbia University and Brazil, which paved the way for establishing the Lemann Center for Brazilian Studies.