Brazil, fifth largest country and the seventh largest economy in the world, flows with cultural, entrepreneurial, and ecological diversity from the bay of Rio de Janeiro to the Amazon.
Taking advantage of this distinct setting, Professor of Business Administration Dan Duran and Professor of Environmental Science Cinzia Fissore led a group of 10 students on a 10-day excursion through the Brazilian cities of Manaus and Brasilia. Combining issues of international business and environmental sustainability, the packed itinerary literally had students on-the-go, from meeting with multinational Fortune 500 companies, to visiting a local natural preserve, to a full-day trip down the Amazon.
“Our goal was that students [learn] what constitutes a multinational organization, how do they differ from one country to another in terms of organization and set-up, how do strategies differ,” explained Duran. “At the same time, we looked at the environmental policies these organizations have, in terms of sustainability and their impact on the environment.”
As an essential step prior to travel, students prepared for these visits by conducting research on each corporation or agency—a requirement, Duran notes, which never fails to pay off.
“Every time we visit, the [leaderships] we meet with tell me how impressed they are with our students,” he says. “They’re genuinely surprised at how much the students know about their team, their company, just walking in the door.”
Notable on this JanTerm tour was a meeting at Eletrobas, the 10th largest energy producer in the world—and Latin America’s biggest energy producer—with revenues of more than $18 billion.
“It’s not often that you get to meet with the CFO of a multi billion-dollar firm,” said business administration major Rebecca Raya ’14. “Eletrobras is at a pivotal point in their development as they continue to expand their production of hydroelectric power within Brazil, and we got to learn about the challenges such a large corporation faces in its efforts to be more sustainable and promote further growth. It was an eye-opening experience.”
Shifting from the industrial side of Brazil, the group took a trip down the Amazon to see firsthand the ecological beauty of the country.
“One of the most striking things to me was to witness the simplicity of everyday life on the rivers, and seeing how big corporations have slowly incorporated themselves alongside the incredible natural beauty,” said business administration major Isaiah Sneed ’14. “Seeing small shacks on the river selling products that we previously saw being bottled at Grupo Simoes showcased the interconnectedness of our century.”
Making these connections and having these visceral experiences within a short span of time is a hallmark JanTerm stud yabroad experience.
“They get a safe ‘gulp,’ rather than ‘taste,’ of study abroad,” said Duran. “They get saturated culturally for a period of time and learn via three critical channels. First, they apply core concepts from the text to the field. Second, they see, hear, and learn directly from the senior executives, the people that are making it happen. And third, they get the opportunity to see themselves culturally, in terms of global citizenship. It’s a phenomenal return on investment.”
— Veronica Galbreath, M.A. `12
