Location/Semester:
Aimores, Brazil

Host Institution/Contact Information:
College of Santa Fe
Emily Nunez
Executive Assistant to the Vice President for Academic Affairs
1600 St. Michaels Drive
Santa Fe, NM 87505
505.473.6292
Fax: 505.473.6291
enunez@csf.edu.

Website of Host Institution:
www.csf.edu

Program/University Overview:
The Documentary Studies Program at the College of Santa Fe offers a Bachelor of Arts Degree in documentary studies emphasizing the collaborative application of documentary methodologies (especially photography, film, and non-fiction writing) to the study of society. Seniors in the program spend their fall semester working on their Independent Field Projects which cover social, cultural and environmental issues. The Conservation Studies Department at the College of Santa Fe will also participate in the Brazil Program this fall. Students will pursue projects that deal with the Instituto’s activities such as monitoring of reforestation, water cycles, sustainable development, barriers to restoration, seed collection for tree planting, and creating maps using GPS systems.

Website of Program/University:
www.csf.edu

Unique Aspects of Program:
The program encourages cross-cultural and international fieldwork and therefore has established the Brazil Program at the Instituto Terra in Aimorés, Brazil in partnership with Sebastião Salgado and his wife, Lélia Deluiz Wanick Salgado.

Country and/or City Information:
Instituto Terra is a non-profit association, founded in 1999 by Lélia Deluiz Wanick Salgado and Sebastião Ribeiro Salgado Junior. It is located at the Bulcão Farm in Aimorés, Minas Gerais and covers an area of 676 hectares. It is recognized as a Private Reserve of the Natural Property (PRNP) established on October 7th, 1998. It is the first PRNP to be established on a deforested area.

The Rio Doce River Valley, where the Instituto is located, was originally covered by Atlantic Rainforest, but now is in a stage of rapid degradation. Some of the causes are the colonization process, the commercial exploitation of wood, and general deforestation.

The area at the Instituto Terra and around Aimorés is hot during most of the year, mostly due to deforestation. The city of Aimorés lies at the base of a valley which wind currents tend to pass over. The dry season (which is humid compared to Santa Fe) is from April to September and the rainy season is from October to March. The rains start in late October, at which time planting trees at the Instituto is crucial.

Admission Requirements:
Minimum Sophomore Standing.

Courses Offered:
Seniors in the program spend their fall semester working on their Independent Field Projects which cover social, cultural and environmental issues.

The Conservation Studies Department at the College of Santa Fe will also participate in the Brazil Program this fall. Students will pursue projects that deal with the Instituto’s activities such as monitoring of reforestation, water cycles, sustainable development, barriers to restoration, seed collection for tree planting, and creating maps using GPS systems.

Housing:
Instituto Terra is in a valley set amid gardens and surrounded by forests. An old corral area and the weighing room were converted into offices, an exhibition hall and a cafeteria.

Another building holds an educational and cultural center with an auditorium that can accommodate 180 people. It is used as a theater for movies and plays put on by various groups within the community. There are also three classrooms with a capacity to hold 25 people each.

There is a small library, a seed laboratory and the offices of CERA (Educational Center for Environmental Restoration). For housing, there is a faculty house that has six double suites, a visitors’ dormitory with 9 rooms that house up to 36 people, and the student residence that has 15 rooms for 2 students each. All the buildings are wheelchair accessible.

Cost:
If you are a student at one of the US Lasallian universities or colleges, you will remain enrolled at your school and pay tuition and program fees there. Tuition is based on your campus tuition rates and may include an additional surcharge depending on the program. Contact the person on your campus responsible for study abroad.

Scholarship Information:
Andrew Lovato, Director of International Education. 1600 St. Michaels Drive, Santa Fe, NM 87505 (505)473-6294. alovato@csf.edu. Fax: (505)473-6923.

Academic Calendar:
Fall Semester Only
August 27-September 12 College of Santa Fe Orientation, Portuguese Language Intensive. CSF Campus Santa Fe, NM.
September 23-Leave for Brazil. December 11, Arrive in Albuquerque, NM.

Application Deadline:
April 15th

Application Details:
Must complete Lasallian Consortium application. There are no additional applications for this program.

Student Testimonials:
With every day the river drops, blocked by the dam, commandeered by the needs of cities and industries hundreds of kilometers away. Benir will likely never see those cities. Instead he will see his river vanish, their rhyme of life disappearing into the exposed sands of the riverbed.
-- Katherine Jones