I attended the Rose Café presented by Professor Simões. Originally from Rio de Janeiro, Simões is a professor at the Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul (Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso do Sul, UFMS), and is currently working on his PhD. I had no idea that some of Brazil’s major exports are soy beans, as well as chicken and beef meats. Nor was I aware that in terms of continuous land, Brazil is larger than the United States. But more than just learning more about the country, I found most interesting about the presentation was how clear it was that Brazil played an important role in the professor’s career trajectory. Though Professor Simões did not go into great detail about his job, he did go in depth about Brazil’s diverse ecosystem. In doing so, he touched upon (very briefly) the aspects of Brazil that influence things such as agricultural management and the economic issues that affect the country.

The professor is clearly proud of his country, but also reflective on its flaws. For example, he elaborated on the disparity in wealth in the country. A country with one of the world’s largest aerospace engineering companies in the world also has massive slums with people in extreme poverty. Simões also mentioned that the political situation in Brazil is also challenging. Though it has moved from a military dictatorship to a democratic nation (the first democratic election was held in 1985), there have been two presidential impeachments since. Corruption is a major problem, one that the government is working on eliminating. Though Brazil is still often thought of as a developing country, Professor Simões posits a different term: a country in transition. I enjoyed the presentation, and after learning more about the country, I hope to have the opportunity to visit Brazil one day.