Ambassador Rubens Barbosa To Visit University Of Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Rubens A. Barbosa, Ambassador of Brazil to the United States, will lecture on "More than Soccer and Samba: Brazil as a Global Economic Partner" on Friday, October 24, at 1:30 p.m. in Giffels Auditorium, Old Main. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Ambassador Barbosa, a career diplomat, was named Brazilian Ambassador to the United States in June 1999, after having served as Ambassador to the Court of St. James in London since January 1994. Since 1960, he has been active in international affairs, playing a key diplomatic role in the construction of Mercosul, the Southern Common Market, while serving as the Brazilian Ambassador to the Latin American Integration Association. As Secretary for International Affairs at the Brazilian Finance Ministry, Ambassador Barbosa was instrumental in negotiating Brazil’s long-term financial relationships with multilateral financial institutions, creditor countries, and commercial banks.

"Brazil easily has the largest economy in Latin America, and the eighth largest in the world," said Steven Bell, Director of the Latin American Studies Program in Fulbright College. "Technologically, industrially, and commercially, the country has become quite sophisticated, and its universities have produced world-renowned figures in both humanistic and scientific fields. In this respect, the tantalizing title of Ambassador Barbosa’s talk, 'More than Soccer and Samba,’ couldn’t possibly be more apt."

Bell said he hoped that the Ambassador’s visit could lead to new exchange opportunities for University of Arkansas students and faculty across campus.

His appearance is being sponsored by the Fulbright Institute of International Relations, the Latin American Studies Program, and the International Studies Program in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences;. the International Business Program in the Sam M. Walton College of Business; the Agricultural Economics Program in the Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences; the International Law Studies Program, Sigma Chi Fraternity, and Kappa Sigma Fraternity. His appearance is also being sponsored through a generous grant from the Kappa Sigma Man of the Year Lecture Fund and the Kappa Sigma Xi Educational Foundation.

NOTE TO MEDIA: The ambassador will be available to speak to the media at 1:15 p.m. in Giffels Auditorium, immediately prior to his lecture.

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