UQ and Brazil

UQ is developing a strong presence in Brazil at the turning point of the country's rapid growth and expansion into the global economy. Through deepening engagement with selected partners – including mining giant Vale and the São Paulo State University (UNESP) – research collaboration is addressing the key challenges of our time, and working towards a safer, healthier, and more sustainable future.

52
Brazilian students enrolled at UQ

181
Brazil-UQ co-publications

20
academic staff born in Brazil

149
research project collaborations

796
alumni in Brazil

11
agreements with 7 official partners

Fast facts show full-year 2019 data.

Co-publications

Brazil and UQ have partnered on 731 co-publications in the past 5 years, with key research areas including medicine, public health, and environmental sciences. UQ's top co-publishing partners for this period are the Universidade de São Paulo, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, and Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul.

Research collaborations

In the past 5 years, UQ has collaborated with 7 Brazilian institutions on 17 research projects, covering topics such as the role of snake venoms in adaptive evolution, the nexus between food security and the burden of infectious diseases, and bioleaching of copper in tropical systems. Key collaborators include the University of São Paulo, São Paulo State University, and Vale SA.

Research funding

Seven Brazilian organisations, such as Vale SA, have contributed A$1,183,703 million towards 16 research projects in the past 5 years. Projects investigate a range of topics including developing sustainable dollar notes from feedstock and innovative solutions to today's mining challenges.

Ethanol fuels expansion of Brazil's farming land

A UQ-led study has revealed that future demand for ethanol biofuel could potentially expand sugarcane farming land in Brazil by five million hectares by 2030. The study published in Energy Policy was a collaboration between UQ, the International Institute for Applied System Analysis (IIASA - Austria) and the National Institute for Spatial Research (INPE - Brazil). UQ School of Earth and Environmental Sciences researcher Milton Aurelio Uba de Andrade Junior said that because Brazil produced ethanol from sugarcane, future biofuel demand would directly impact land use. “Our study has modelled scenarios forecasting future ethanol demand based on different trajectories for gross domestic product, population growth, fuel prices, blending policies, fleet composition and efficiency gains,” he said.

Going to the dark side

UQ’s School of Mathematics and Physics Professor Tamara Davis collaborates with São Paulo State University physics Professor Rogério Rosenfeld on the large-scale project, the Dark Energy Survey. To date, almost 500 people across five continents are involved on the project, which is mapping hundreds of millions of galaxies, detecting thousands of supernovae, and finding patterns of cosmic structure that will reveal the nature of dark energy. Professor Davis will travel to Brazil in December 2019 to discuss collaboration on the Survey, which is one of two projects that her Laureate Fellowship will address (the other being the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument).

Building a hub of geomicrobiological knowledge

UQ’s School of Earth and Environmental Sciences has signed an A$2.5 million (BRL 6.3 million) industry alliance with mining leader Vale to design and deliver world-class coal geosciences and geomicrobiology research, as well as education and training programs. The funding has seen two Vale-UQ Coal Geosciences and Geomicrobiology Laboratories established at UQ, where students are recording advances in coal basin analysis, mine safety, palaeo environmental reconstruction, and microbiology. Research at the Vale-UQ Coal Geosciences Program is focused on the interplay of basin evolution, sedimentary environments, palaeo-climate and botanical evolution, and the impact of these geological factors on the mining sector.

Tailored parenting support for Brazilian families

UQ's Parenting and Family Support Centre is working to improve the wellbeing of children in Brazil by helping parents prevent emotional and behavioural problems occurring. Although parenting programs are widely held as a successful strategy for improving child welfare, there are no evidence-based strategies available to Brazilian families in a socially or economically relevant local context. In response, PhD candidate Mariajose Schulz is collaborating with Brazilian family service providers to gauge the efficacy and cultural acceptability of the Group Triple P – Positive Parenting Program. The project is being conducted in partnership with the Itajai Department of Education. Pictured: Ms Schulz (standing) with a Brazilian trial group at UQ.

English for the classroom

UQ's Institute of Continuing & TESOL Education (ICTE-UQ) is helping Brazilian teachers deliver academic courses in English. The Content & Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) programs – an internationally recognised approach to teaching a language and a subject simultaneously – were delivered at the University of Brasilia and the Federal University of Viçosa, with the latter funded by former US President Obama's 100,000 Strong in the Americas program. ICTE-UQ is currently in discussions with the São Paulo State University, the Federal University of Grande Dourados, and the Federal University of Piaui to deliver similar English training programs. The Institute has assisted more than 19 international university and government partners teach academic content in English.

Integrating content and language

In 2019, UQ’s Institute of Continuing & TESOL Education (ICTE) engaged with São Paulo State University (UNESP) to deliver the inaugural Content & Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) and English as a Medium of Instruction (EMI) program to academics. These programs are designed to enhance the application of CLIL methodology to tertiary contexts and support the development of appropriate teaching techniques and strategies. Program evaluation shows significant improvements in participants' self-reported competency and supports UNESP's internationalisation efforts to set and lift teaching standards. ICTE Teacher Trainers delivered four programs across four UNESP campuses.

In the past 5 years, 777 Brazilian students have been enrolled in UQ degrees. Study Abroad and PhD studies are the most popular program choices. Brazilians can apply for the Latin America Global Leaders Scholarship and School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences Latin American Scholarship, as well as scholarships offered by government agencies CAPES and CNPq.

The UQ Latin American Student Association is just one of the clubs and societies on campus that provide a platform for sharing cultures and welcoming Brazilian students to UQ. People with an interest in Brazilian culture can also take Portuguese classes at the UQ Institute of Modern Languages.

Video: Rubens Copia Sperandio, from Brazil, was enrolled in UQ's Study Abroad program studying Biomedical Science. He was chosen as a Brisbane International Student Ambassador in 2013.

Portuguese video | Português

Wildlife rescue and rehabilitation

In 2016 and 2017, UQ veterinary science students travelled to Porto Alegre, where they teamed up with the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul and worked in a local volunteer wildlife rescue and rehabilitation clinic. The students applied their clinical and surgical skills in a range of settings, from emergency care to rehabilitation. Crucially, they participated in animal desexing surgery to help control stray populations. The project, which has enhanced research links between our institutions, is funded by the Australian Government's Endeavour Mobility Grants program.