University Marketing & Communications: Mike Rigert (801) 863-6807
Written by: Jolene Jones (801) 863-8342
Brent Rushforth, partner at Day Pitney LLP in Washington, D.C., will discuss “Life and Death in the Amazon: The Case of Dorothy Stang” on Sept. 20 at 11:30 a.m. in the Utah Valley University Library auditorium, room 120.
In February 2005, 73-year old American nun and rainforest activist, Sister Dorothy Stang, was murdered. For more than 40 years Stang fought for land reform and for the rights of rural workers and peasants in Brazil. She was killed by gunmen.
Rushforth, acting as co-lead council for the prosecution, was successful in the conviction of the defendants. He attributes the success of the case to the steadfastness exhibited by the Brazilian prosecutors. The case of Dorothy Stang has been heralded as a lead to reform for the Brazilian legal system by establishing the precedent that criminals will be held legally accountable.
Rushforth practices in the Antitrust and White Collar Defense and Internal Investigations Practice Group. He has extensive litigation experience in antitrust and unfair competition, intellectual property and trade regulation. He has represented such clients as VISA, MCI, Cox communications, and Black & Decker. During his tenure as deputy general counsel of the Department of Defense during the Cold War years, he was actively involved in the Strategic Arms Limitations Treaty negotiations.
Click here for "They killed Sister Dorothy" video.
Miguel serves as the Regional Director for Latin American and Canada, International Trade and Diplomacy Office, Governor’s Office of Economic Development. Previously, he was the Executive Director of the Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Miguel currently serves on the Wells Fargo Hispanic Advisory Board; the World Trade Association of Utah; the Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Board; the Utah International Trade Commission; the Board of Directors of the Pete Suazo Business Center and the Board of Directors of the Nature Conservancy, Utah Chapter. He received his Bachelor of Arts in English-Philosophy and his Masters in Philosophy from Colgate University in New York State. He received his Jurist Doctorate degree from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
University Marketing & Communications: Mike Rigert (801) 863-6807
Written by: Jim Rayburn (801) 863-8504
Edison Lobão, the Brazilian minister of mines and energy, and one of the South American country’s most prominent government officials, will speak at Utah Valley University on Sept. 28 about the challenges of developing energy alternatives while protecting the environment.
Brazil is a leading country in developing new sources of energy while also balancing the related environmental concerns, such as global warming.
“Brazil is a global energy giant, including hydro and ethanol,” said Rusty Butler, UVU associate vice president of International Affairs & Diplomacy. “Minister Edison Lobão oversees the nation’s energy policies and practices and, as such, is an international authority on energy issues.”
Recently, the Brazilian government announced financial incentives to producers of sugar cane to ensure the country has an adequate supply of sugar-cane-based ethanol, an increasingly popular fuel source in Brazil.
“As part of UVU’s ‘Global Spotlight: Brazil,’ Minister Lobão’s visit to the University is a unique opportunity for our students and community to engage with a key world energy leader. It helps establish UVU’s reputation as a serious institution on the international stage,” Butler said.
Lobão is a former journalist and lawyer, and governor of the Brazilian state of Maranhão. He has been elected to three terms in the Brazilian senate, and is currently on leave from his third term to serve his second stint as Brazil’s top energy official.
University Marketing & Communications: Mike Rigert (801) 863-6807
Written by: Melissa Hempel (801) 863-6743
Utah Valley University’s Woodbury Art Museum is premiering two new exhibitions this month that have ties to the UVU International Center’s 2011-2012 Global Spotlight series on Brazil.
The museum will present “Sensing Brazil,” an exhibition showcasing the largest country in South American through a combination of visual art, dance and music Oct. 18-Nov. 30. This sensory experience includes such prominent artists as Romero Britto, Walter Goldfarb and José Bechara.
Melding tradition and contemporary art, “Sensing Brazil” explores the rich culture of the country. Texture, perspective, and composition will be particularly engaging to visitors. Artist Romero Britto’s work infuses color and pattern, reminiscent of Brazil’s Carnival. Recorded dancing and drums from the Samba Fogo dance group offers a glimpse of the celebratory Brazilian spirit.
Melissa Hempel, interim director of the Woodbury Art Museum, said “Our exhibition has been selected as a small preview to Brazil. Ensuring visitors gain a sense of art forms from the country, we have included visual works along with dance and music, hoping to reach visitors through sight and sound.”
Also kicking off Oct. 18-Nov. 30 at the museum is the exhibition “Dichos: Words to Live, Love and Laugh By in Latin America.” Truck and bus drivers across Latin America delight in inscribing “dichos” —sayings or amusing expressions — on their vehicles. Hand painted in an endless variety of graphic styles and colors, dichos address subjects ranging from religion and love, to puns and earthy humor. Unfortunately, with the emergence of corporate trucking, this vibrant folk art is gradually disappearing.
“Dichos: Words to Live, Love, and Laugh By in Latin America” offers an engaging look at this endangered tradition. The exhibition draws from the private collection of Grant La Farge, MD, of Santa Fe, N.M. For over a decade, La Farge braved encounters with suspicious drivers at truck stops across Mexico, Peru, Ecuador, Guatemala and Panama to document the many variations of the dichos tradition. Visitors will experience this tradition through 46 color photographs accompanied by select miniature dichos-laden vehicles, including one painted by well-known Latin American artist Arturo Sosa Perez. In addition, full-size metal bumpers featuring dichos appear with the four thematic text panels: “Love; Faith and Devotion;” “Wit, Commentary, and Egotism;” and “Buses of Panama.”
Artworks for “Sensing Brazil,” are on loan from the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach, Calif. The “Dichos: Words to Live, Love, and Laugh By in Latin America” exhibition is curated by Barbara Mauldin, Ph.D., curator of Latin American folk art at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, N.M., where the exhibition was organized.
The public is invited to an opening reception for both “Sensing Brazil” and “Dichos: Words to Live, Love, and Laugh By in Latin America” on Oct. 18 from 6 to 8 p.m. with refreshments from Tucanos Brazilian Grill at the Woodbury Art Museum.
The Woodbury Art Museum is located in the University Mall, 575 W. University Parkway in Orem, on the second floor between Nordstrom and the Gap. Admission is free. For more information please call 801-863-4200 or go online to www.uvu.edu/museum.
Cosponsored with the Department of College Success Studies
University Marketing & Communications: Mike Rigert (801) 863-6807
Written by: Brie Joseph, (801) 863-5421
Utah Valley University’s International Center will present New York Times journalist Larry Rohter’s lecture, “Brazil on the Rise: The Story of a Country Transformed,” on Wednesday, Feb. 8, at 11 a.m. in the Sorensen Student Center, room 206b.
Two decades ago, Brazil was emerging from a military dictatorship and faced a crippling debt. Today it has the world’s sixth largest economy, overtaking the United Kingdom, and has achieved energy independence. With its successful bid for the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016, Brazil, at last, is ready to take its place on the world stage.
In his lecture, Rohter will account for the country’s rebirth and its transformation into an industrial and agricultural powerhouse.
Rohter served as a Newsweek correspondent and later as the New York Times bureau chief in Rio de Janeiro for 14 years. He is widely considered the leading expert on Brazil.
