Creating Possibilities
Reaching Brazil
After 22 hours of travel, I reached Florianopolis, Brazil on Aug 6th 2019. It has been exactly a week since I landed here and it has been a wonderful week of cultural immersion. I have spent most of the week as a guest of Professor Geraldo Campos who invited me not only to the university but also into his home. Geraldo and his wife Fernanda, their two sons and two dogs made me a part of their family.
Since Fernanda is an English teacher, she was my language bridge who translated everything and always included me in the conversation. I have been trying to learn Portuguese on DuoLingo for the last few months so was comfortable with a few words. But DuoLingo cannot teach you how to be a part of the conversation, and I was very grateful to have Fernanda help me bridge the language gap.
Visiting UNISUL
A couple of days after my arrival, I had an opportunity to tour the UNISUL campus with Geraldo and meet a couple of professors who teach business planning and entrepreneurship. As Geraldo pointed out, they are trying to build entrepreneurship into the curriculum of all majors, because it is a skill that all students will need when they graduate. For example, I met Professor Carolina Rubin who teaches naturopathy and incorporates entrepreneurship in her curriculum; so that students know how to build and grow an independent practice when they graduate. Professors at UNISUL are passionate about creating an ecosystem of entrepreneurship.
Startup Environment
Florianopolis has the second largest startup ecosystem in Brazil after Sao Paulo. The major emphasis here is on Impact Innovation (Social Entrepreneurship). Entrepreneurs not only want to create products but also want to create an impact on society. I had an opportunity to engage in one-to-one startup mentoring at NexxLabs with Geraldo. Most startups are working on platform technologies to help alleviate unmet needs. Entrepreneurs are extremely passionate about creating change through their innovations. Since early stage funding in Brazil is extremely minimal, most entrepreneurs self-fund their startup for the first 2–3 years. Investor funding is available only after they have achieved R$500,000 in sales. So the entrepreneurial environment here is all about “creating possibilities” as I hear Geraldo always say and I have fallen in love with the phrase.
This is very different from the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the US where founders have access to multiple sources of pre-seed funding including grants, competitions, accelerators and friends and family. The availability of SBIR/STTR grants for technological and scientific innovations really helps drive the US economy by fueling and supporting breakthrough innovations.
Cultural Immersion
The weekend was a busy affair as I was invited to participate in two major events.
Graduation ceremony
Saturday was the graduation ceremony for some of the undergraduate students at UNISUL. Graduation ceremony in Brazil is an extremely beautiful and festive affair. The ceremony was held offsite in an auditorium which was decked up like a wedding hall. Students and family come dressed in ballroom gowns and suits for the event, since there is an elaborate after-party following the ceremony.
Graduating students from each school elect a professor who will lead them. Geraldo Campos was elected to lead the students from the school of business administration.
Students walk up to the podium (runway style) led by the professor. Each student is awarded the limelight as they walk up the ramp. After everyone is seated and a few speeches, the convocation ceremony begins. A representative student from each school administers an oath regarding staying true to their profession and then students are invited individually to receive their degrees.
After the degrees are awarded students honor the professors from each school with a gift and a thank you plaque. The ceremony ends by honoring the parents of each student, where each student is featured on the screen and the parents are presented with a rose. Needless to say there were a few misty eyes in the auditorium. Fifty students graduated over the weekend and the ceremony took about two hours. I was completely mesmerized by the grandiosity of the event. Graduation is a big milestone in a student’s life and I think the celebration was fitting to the achievement.
Dias dos Pais
Sunday was Dias dos Pais (Father’s day) in Brazil which was celebrated with Brazilian barbecue with the extended family. I was heartily welcomed into the family by everyone and had a wonderful time sharing stories over a delicious meal and cerveja (beer). Language did not seem a barrier as we somehow managed to communicate effectively with words, gestures and translations. The event also gave me a chance to pull out my camera and capture some priceless family moments.
Since Florianopolis (or Floripa as the locals call it) is a beach town, I did spend some time on the beach as well. We visited Praia de Joaquina which had some impressive waves and is very popular with surfers.
After enjoying 5 days of hospitality with the Campos family, I finally figured out my living situation. On Monday I moved into a gorgeous condo apartment to start my independent life in Brazil.
Phrase of the Week
Muito Bem (F) or Muito Bom (M), depending in the gender of the person/object, means Very Good. This is Geraldo’s favorite response to most questions.
Spotlight of the week: Professor Geraldo Campos
This week’s spotlight is on Professor Geraldo Campos. Geraldo has been a professor of entrepreneurship at UNISUL for the last 20 years and is the founder of Innovation and Entrepreneurship lab (iLAB) at UNISUL. He is extremely passionate about creating an ecosystem of entrepreneurship in Floripa and Brazil. He embraces the concept of effectuation entrepreneurship (by Saras Sarasvathy), which expounds that available resources should inform next steps in a person’s entrepreneurial journey. Geraldo was trained at Babson College as well as spent a semester in Italy working with sociologist Domenico DeMasi. He has combined his learnings from socialism and capitalism to create his own models of social entrepreneurship.
Geraldo also serves as a startup development consultant at NexxLabs and Nexxera Institute and is the CEO of Studio Sapienza, a co-working space.
Geraldo lives with his wife, two sons and two dogs in Palhoça, Brazil. He enjoys Samba dancing, spending time with his family and passionately promoting and supporting entrepreneurship in Brazil.
