Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies

Brazil Center

Rio Branco Visiting Chair

The main objectives of the Instituto Rio Branco Visiting Chair are:

to encourage the study of and research on Brazil in internationally renowned universities;

to contribute to the further professionalization of Brazilian scholars who are intellectual leaders in the humanities and social sciences;

to foster contemporary, scholarly research and teaching on the dynamics of Brazilian society at major institutions of higher learning in the U.S.;

to strengthen the academic tradition of Brazilian studies in centers of higher education, by facilitating the contribution of Brazilian specialists to new and ongoing research;

to assist and guide research projects on Brazil at the universities hosting the Instituto Rio Branco Visiting Chair; and

to foster scholarly discussion and debate on Brazilian issues throughout the United States.

Previous Rio Branco Chair

The Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento do Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) nominated Professor Pedro Luiz Barros Silva to be the first holder of the Instituto Rio Branco Visiting Chair in Brazilian Studies. The Rio Branco Chair program is one element of the cooperative agreement between the Brazilian Ministry of Education (MEC) and the University of Texas at Austin.

Professor Barros Silva is a member of the faculty of the Institute of Economics at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP), one of the premier universities in the country. He serves as the Coordinator of the Center for the Study of Public Policy (NEPP), and his areas of expertise include the Brazilian economy, politics and social policy, and evaluation of public policy and reform of the state. His appointment is particularly opportune because he serves as a co-PI on a project, based in the Population Research Center, to train social scientists in the use of quantitative methods in policy research. Professor Barros Silva's presence at UT will greatly enhance our university's ongoing collaboration with UNICAMP.

While at UT, Professor Barros Silva taught the graduate seminar "The State, Government and Public Policy in Contemporary Brazil." The course had a full enrollment of 15 students from LLILAS, the Department of Government, and the LBJ School of Public Affairs. The course examined the challenges the Brazilian government faces in the new century and the nature, reach, and limits of governmental intervention available to address these challenges.

In addition, he participated in the seminar "Decentralization of Social Policy in Latin America: The State of Affairs and Prospects for the Future," with Victoria Rodríguez (LBJ School) and Wendy Hunter (Government). The seminar was moderated by Robert Wilson (LBJ School), and Peter Ward and Bryan Roberts (Sociology) served as commentators. The event was co-sponsored by the Brazil Center, the Mexican Center and the Center for Latin American Social Policy (CLASPO) of LLILAS, and the InterAmerican Policy Studies Program at the LBJ School of Public Affairs.

The Brazil Center facilitated his interaction with other universities in the region, with relevant national academic associations, and with business communities interested in the Brazilian markets.

For more information, contact Jennifer Potter-Andreu at 512.471.8418.