Brazil

18 in Latin America: From a Favela to the World, Via Social Media

Reading Time: 5 minutes

How Sabrina turned love of community, a way with words and a talent for communication into a career.

Brazil Is Tired. Guess Who Benefits?

Everywhere you go in Brazil, it’s the same thing. Circles under the eyes, hushed voices. A shrug. “Fazer o que?” In the bakeries of Eastern São Paulo. In courtrooms. In President Michel Temer’s government. Outside shuttered storefronts. At City Hall. In the 50-person line for jobs at a yogurt shop. In corporate suites. The anger … Read more

Brazil Is Tired. Guess Who Benefits?

Rio de Janeiro’s Party Is Over. Who Pays the Bill?

I teach at the State University of Rio de Janeiro, one of the most important educational institutions in Brazil, with more than 30,000 students. Broad programs of affirmative action have ensured that many of those students are from poor backgrounds, often the first members of their families to go to college. They are part of … Read more

Lula’s Sentencing Should Be a Sober Moment for All Brazilians

Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s sentencing on Wednesday was long expected, but no less of a bombshell. Lula may have fallen from the pedestal of international acclaim and approval ratings north of 80 percent; a majority of Brazilians may think he broke the law, at a time when citizens are becoming more aware … Read more

For Brazil’s Lula, It’s Not Over Yet

Well, now it’s officially part of the judicial record: Lula is in a category all his own. The most striking aspect of Wednesday’s ruling against former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was the judge’s admission that Lula warrants special treatment. This, more than any other detail, suggests the man who has dominated Brazilian politics … Read more

Brazil’s Rollbacks Jeopardize the Amazon’s Future

Brazilian President Michel Temer’s June 26 indictment on corruption allegations marked a new peak in the country’s political crisis. While the charges grabbed global headlines, they also overshadowed the environmental crisis unfolding in the Brazilian Amazon, where vast tracts of protected forests and indigenous territories are under growing threat. Brazilian forests are being felled … Read more

How a New Program Is Cutting the ‘Brazil Cost’ for Entrepreneurs

Marcelo Sasso worked in the finance department of a São Paulo advertising firm, and was good at his job. So good, in fact, that friends and acquaintances often came to him for advice. This raised a question: Why not start his own financial administration and consulting company? For starters, the risks were daunting. The country … Read more

What’s Driving the Eerie Calm in Brazil’s Markets?

Just two weeks ago, corruption allegations involving Brazil’s President Michel Temer tipped the economy into turbulence: the stock market plummeted, the Brazilian real fell sharply, and headlines of the country descending into political and financial panic were everywhere. Again. By June 1, however, the economy had found an eerie calm. The Bovespa, Brazil’s stock market, … Read more

Brazil’s Year of Living Dangerously

In May 2016, the Brazilian Senate impeached President Dilma Rousseff in the middle of her second term, amid economic recession, corruption scandals and street protests. She was replaced by her vice president, Michel Temer. One year later, Brazilians are discussing Temer’s impeachment, amid economic recession, corruption scandals, taped recordings that could incriminate the chief of … Read more

We Need to Talk About Lula

He is – still – the most popular president in Brazil’s history. He is as responsible as anyone for its worst recession on record. He is facing numerous corruption-related charges that could imprison him for the rest of his life. He is leading in the polls to be elected president again in 2018 – and … Read more