The Symposium focuses distinct aspects of contemporary Brazilian society, politics, and economy with a particular emphasis on current events that helped mold Dilma Rousseff’s first term in office and the Workers’ Party legacy in face of expectations for the near future.

The first session discusses the Brazilian political context that emerged after Dilma’s first mandate and the 2014 Presidential Elections. Special emphasis will be given to the analysis of the country that emerges after the closest elections in many years. It also focuses on a topic that has gained much visibility in recent years: the debate on political reform.

The second session turns our attention to State-Society relations analyzing participatory processes in the Brazilian state and the dispute over environmental politics, confronting organized interests from distinct sectors related to developmental issues, rural and environmental groups in the country.

The third session brings the Symposium to an end discussing key issues in contemporary Brazil related to inclusion and inequality in its many faceted and interpenetrating forms. The focus is on the recent accomplishments of Brazilian government’s and State and its implications for the present and future.