Housed at the Watson Institute, the Brazil Initiative was established with two strategic goals: to make Brown the best university for the study of Brazil outside of Brazil and to be a hub for research collaborations between Brown faculty members and Brazilian scholars and researchers.

The Brazil Initiative facilitates and coordinates lectures, seminars, conferences, research partnerships and grants, as well as a host of other resources on campus related to Brazil. Devised both in the spirit of collaboration and as a free-standing clearinghouse for academic and research activities, the Initiative functions as a foundation for interdisciplinary conversation, a source of support for Brown's already superb Brazilian studies, and an incubator to develop emergent fields of study.

The focus is both specialized and far-reaching and includes an annual conference, research grants in the sciences, and a film festival, among many other activities. The Initiative will be involved in the co-sponsorship and coordination of events related to language and culture, environmental sustainability and climate change, democracy and governance, economic development, and social inclusion, to name just a few.

It is the hope of those working on the Brazil Initiative to bring often disparate fields of research connected to Brazil into conversation; strengthen networking, internship opportunities, and alumni connections in Brazil; and further foster Brown's excellence as a premier institution for research and scholarship in Brazilian studies.