Four new partnership agreements will bring Brazilian
students to McGill and foster future research collaborations
between the two countries
McGill University is building on longstanding research
collaborations with Brazil by announcing four partnership
agreements with Brazilian universities. These agreements are being
signed this week by Prof. Heather Munroe-Blum, Principal and
Vice-Chancellor of McGill University. Principal Munroe-Blum is
among the 30 Canadian university presidents who are visiting some
of their Brazilian counterparts as part of a higher education
mission organized by the Association of Universities and Colleges
of Canada (AUCC). The mission is being led by Canada’s Governor
General, His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston.
McGill researchers have already established over 50
collaborations with Brazilian colleagues in areas as diverse as
biofuels, engineering, dentistry and information technology. The
new agreements signed this week are designed to enhance training
and research opportunities for students at all levels of study and
to promote further collaborations between faculty members from the
two countries. These include agreements with the Universidade de
São Paulo, the Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná,
Universidade Estadual de Campinas, and the Universidade Estadual
Paulista “Julio de Mesquita Filho“.
“I’d like to thank the AUCC and our hosts here in Brazil for
this opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to collaborative
research and student exchanges,” said Prof. Munroe-Blum. “As one of
Canada’s most international research-intensive universities, McGill
is committed to providing our researchers and our students with
opportunities that allow for an optimal flow of ideas and
knowledge. Whether our researchers are working on creating
sustainable energy sources or fighting debilitating disease,
international collaborations are key to providing them with a true
global perspective.”
As part of this Brazilian tour, Principal Munroe-Blum, among
other engagements, attended the opening of the Conference of the
Americas on International Education, participated in a roundtable
with her Brazilian counterparts, as well as in the Canada-Brazil
Innovation Forum, the objective of which is to explore successful
models of university-industry linkages to advance research and
innovation in key sectors of mutual interest. She will also attend
a reception in honour of Science without Borders scholarship
recipients. Through this program, the Brazilian government will
award a total of 2 billion dollars over four years, including
scholarships to allow students to study abroad.
This initiative aligns with McGill’s international recruitment
strategy. McGill’s international students come from over 150
countries and make up 20 per cent of its student body. McGill’s
international activities have an economic impact in Quebec of more
than 320 million dollars, according to a study published in
March 2010 by SECOR. In total, McGill has an economic impact in
Quebec of 5.2 billion dollars.
For more information:
Universidade de São Paulo: http://www5.usp.br/en/
Universidade Estadual Paulista Julio de Mesquita Filho: http://www.unesp.br/eng/
Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná: http://www.pucpr.br/
Universidade Estadual de Campinas: http://www.unicamp.br/unicamp/?language=en