Known for its vast beaches, coffee and festivals, Brazil is one of the largest emerging and developing economies in the world. Its well-developed agriculture, mining, manufacturing and service sectors have provided the base for massive growth that has allowed Brazil to expand its presence in the world markets. It is also the subject of this month’s International Education Series at Sinclair.
Each month, a country is chosen and presented to the students of Sinclair by various speakers. The series showcases the various foods, music, history and cultures of countries from around the globe. All events are free to attend and are held frequently on Sinclair’s campus. They also serve free food.
This week, Derek Petrey, a Spanish professor at Sinclair gave a presentation on the culture of Brazil. He has traveled extensively to Brazil and is extremely passionate about their music and culture.
“I try to bring people the music and sort of show people what it is used for, but then also some of the values and experiences that make people think about the culture,” Petry said.
It is his belief that having an interest in the culture of a country creates the passion that allows people to grow to become linguistically proficient.
Brazil has hosted several events. In addition to the 2016 Olympics and 2014 FIFA World Cup, it is home to the world’s largest rock concert, with 4.2 million people in attendance of a Rod Stewart concert in Rio De Janeiro.
It is also home to the world’s largest Catholic population, hosting 123 million Catholics, about 64 percent of the country’s population.
Voting is mandatory in Brazil. This has resulted in some interesting elections. Brazil’s Congress in 2016 includes suspects accused of murder and drug trafficking, a judo champion and a clown. It also has its fair share of corruption. Half of the top 20 cities in the world with the highest murder rates are in Brazil.
The corruption in Brazil has reached into the political sphere as well. Their recent president Dilma Rousseff was impeached in August of 2016. Rousseff was charged with criminal responsibility in the execution of her duties, including administrative misconduct and disregarding the federal budget. Despite her criminal activity, many people believe it was sexism on the part of the Brazilian government that resulted in her impeachment.
Brazil is known for its beautiful women. One Brazilian woman claims that Brazil not only has one of the highest plastic surgery rates, it has the highest rate of invasive surgeries in the world. It is said that it is not the dream of young Brazilian girls to become lawyers or doctors, they want to become Instagram models and do anything they can to achieve that status.
Brazil has a diverse population and it is also a completely energy independent country, making it one of the world’s leaders of the energy transformation.
As the world’s ninth largest Gross Domestic Producer and fifth largest country in terms of land size, Brazil is an up and coming power that has become a major factor in the global market.
Matt Harlan
Reporter