Members of the OU community with a common interest in Brazilian culture will gather today for a series of events scheduled in conjunction with Tuesday’s visit from the Brazilian Ambassador to the U.S.
The College of International Studies’ “Brazil: Development and the City” conference will take place in the Oklahoma Memorial Union’s Meacham Auditorium and includes a breakfast, three speeches focused on different facets of Brazilian culture and a screening of the film “Waste Land,” which was showcased in the Sundance Film Festival.
Brazilian Ambassador Mauro Vieira will deliver a keynote speech at a President’s Associates dinner Tuesday at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, but today’s events will focus on the benefits of partnership between Brazil and the U.S., said Alan McPherson, College of International Studies professor.
“As the two most populous countries in the Americas, the United States and Brazil should be natural partners in trade, energy and education, among other things,” McPherson said. “The events on Brazil this week are meant to encourage those partnerships.”
Today’s featured speakers are Erika Robb-Larkins, OU College of International Studies professor, Washington University in St. Louis professor Derek Pardue and Northwestern University professor Brodwyn Fischer.
Larkins plans to speak about the ongoing pacification project taking place in impoverished urban Brazilian neighborhoods, known as “favelas,” in the lead-up to the 2014 World Cup and 2014 Summer Olympics, she said.
“Brazil’s cities are the site of ongoing experiments in bold new social programs and security campaigns,” McPherson said.” “The United States should watch closely and learn from them.”
Fisher’s speech will delve more deeply into the social and economic conditions that exist in Brazil’s favelas.
Pardue comes from a background in cultural anthropology, and his primary research has focused on hip-hop artists in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where he lived for more than four years, according to the Washington University website.
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