On February 10, the Brazil Gateway hosted Brazilian Buckeyes’ Abroad Experiences During COVID-19, where current undergraduate, graduate students and visiting scholars from Brazil shared their experiences of starting education and research at Ohio State during the pandemic. Thirty-two attendees joined to listen to Andre Mascarenhas, current engineering undergraduate student, Marcia Macedo, current Spanish and Portuguese graduate student, and Kaue Riffel, current visiting scholar at the Edison Joining Technology Center - Ohio State Welding Engineering, as they shared important tips on overcoming challenges and finding opportunities even while in-person activities were suspended.
“I enjoyed participating in the event and sharing about this new experience that is learning online, especially doing a PhD program,” said Macedo. “I could never have imagined it would be possible, and it has been great to study in this way. The comfort of being able to learn from your own home and study with high level professors has been very positive, especially because I know when I get to Columbus, I will be used to the rhythm of studies and will already know my classmates and professors.”
On February 23, the International House Learning Community (iHouse) and the Brazil Gateway hosted the Greater Connection – Brazil event with alumni/students from Brazil or who have visited Brazil. Twenty student attendees participated, and the discussion ranged from leadership involvement on campus to Brazilian politics and everyday general topics.
“It was a great experience to be able to share the things I learned when studying abroad in Brazil, especially some of the more logistical ones that came from situations I went through,” said Taisse Torres, a fourth-year undergraduate student majoring in psychology and Portuguese. “I also enjoyed listening to the different viewpoints and advice of the other panelists. Seeing how many people are interested in a country that has become very important to me was amazing.”
The Brazil Gateway has continued to collaborate with the Office of International Affairs’ Education Abroad team to host events related to Brazil as part of their Buckeye Bridge series. On February 25, the Brazil Gateway joined the College of Engineering to welcome Rodolpho Feijo, head of foreign affairs at the City of Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil as he spoke about Smart Cities. On March 18, the Brazil Gateway invited 2009 alum, Alexandre Nogueira, Master of Business in Engineering Logistics, to speak about sustainability and the railroad sector.
On March 11, the Brazil Gateway hosted two events for prospective students and interns. The first event was a law master class, a Brazil Gateway annual event in collaboration with the Moritz College of Law. Twenty-three attendees heard from attorneys Norman Nadorff, counsel for the Rio de Janeiro office of Tauil & Chequer, and Michel Sancovski, partner at Tauil & Chequer Advogados in association with Mayer & Brown, as they discussed worldwide anti-corruption laws with special emphasis on Brazil and the United States. At the end of the event, Jane K. Aparecido, Brazil Gateway director, hosted an information session for attendees who wanted to learn more about the LL.M. program. The second event that day was a presentation about The Ohio Program (TOP) by the Brazil Gateway and Pedro Pereira, a former TOP intern, to 36 attendees who are studying English in preparation for the program.