Academia Brasiliera de Ciências

Academia Brasiliera de Ciências
Name	Academia Brasiliera de Ciências
Native name	Academia Brasiliera de Ciências
Established	1916
Type	Learned society
Headquarters	Rio de Janeiro
Location	Brazil
Language	Portuguese
Leader title	President

Academia Brasiliera de Ciências is a Brazilian learned society founded in 1916 that promotes scientific research and scholarship across Brazil, linking institutions such as Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Universidade de São Paulo, Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais, Embrapa and eminent scientists like Carlos Chagas, Sérgio Buarque de Holanda, César Lattes, Oswaldo Cruz and Antônio Houaiss. The academy has engaged with events such as the Semana de Arte Moderna de 1922, policy discussions in the Congresso Nacional do Brasil, and international forums like the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Royal Society, and National Academy of Sciences (United States), shaping debates around figures including Getúlio Vargas, Juscelino Kubitschek, Ayrton Senna (legacy discussions), and projects such as the Brasília urban plan and the Trans-Amazonian Highway.

History

The academy was established in 1916 amid intellectual currents tied to personalities like Ruy Barbosa, Euclides da Cunha, Benjamin Constant and institutions such as the Museu Nacional (Brazil), Instituto Butantan, and the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais. Early membership included researchers connected to discoveries by Domingos Barbosa, Vital Brazil, Adhemar de Barros-era infrastructure, and collaborations with foreign entities like the Académie des Sciences, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and Smithsonian Institution. Throughout the 20th century the academy intersected with national projects led by leaders including Getúlio Vargas and Juscelino Kubitschek, wartime science linked to the Allied powers and postwar engagements with organizations such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, World Health Organization, and World Bank.

Organization and Membership

Membership comprises elected fellows drawn from universities and research institutes such as Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto Butantan, Fiocruz, Instituto de Matemática Pura e Aplicada, and industrial research labs like Petrobras and Embraer. Governance follows structures compatible with international counterparts like the Royal Society, Académie des Sciences, and the National Academy of Sciences (United States), with leadership roles similar to those in the Brazilian Academy of Letters and administrative ties to ministries including the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Brazil). Notable members historically include scientists associated with CNPq, CAPES, Carlos Chagas Filho, Miguel Nicolelis, Mayana Zatz, Fernando Henrique Cardoso (policy advisor), and scholars from institutions such as Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro.

Objectives and Activities

The academy advances objectives in line with institutions like the Royal Society, Pontifical Academy of Sciences, and the National Academy of Sciences (United States), including advising policymakers from cabinets of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Fernando Henrique Cardoso, organizing symposia in partnership with the Brazilian Academy of Letters and the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science, and fostering programs akin to those run by Wellcome Trust, Gates Foundation, and European Research Council. Activities include convening panels on public health topics linked to Zika virus outbreak, Yellow fever, and initiatives related to Amazon Rainforest conservation, collaborating with agencies such as IBAMA, ICMBio, FUNAI, and engaging with infrastructure debates tied to projects like the Itaipu Dam and the São Francisco River Integration Project.

Publications and Research Programs

The academy issues bulletins and journals comparable to publications from the Royal Society and the National Academy of Sciences (United States), and supports research programs with partners including CNPq, CAPES, FAPESP, FAPERJ, FAPEMIG, FINEP, BNDES, and foundations like the Instituto Serrapilheira. Its publications address topics ranging from work by researchers such as César Lattes in physics, Oswaldo Cruz in medicine, to social analyses in the vein of Sérgio Buarque de Holanda and Gilberto Freyre, and are cited alongside journals like Science, Nature, The Lancet, and PNAS.

Awards and Honors

The academy grants medals and prizes analogous to awards from the Royal Society, L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science, and the Nobel Prize in public recognition of researchers such as César Lattes and Carlos Chagas Filho, and collaborates with national honors like the Order of Scientific Merit (Brazil), the Order of Cultural Merit (Brazil), and decorations conferred by the Presidency of the Republic (Brazil). Prizes historically have highlighted work in areas connected to institutions such as Fiocruz, EMBRAPA, INPE, and researchers who later joined international bodies including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the World Health Organization.

International Collaboration and Partnerships

The academy maintains partnerships with counterparts including the Royal Society, Académie des Sciences, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, National Academy of Sciences (United States), Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Indian National Science Academy, Academy of Sciences of the USSR (historical), and engages in regional networks like the Inter-American Development Bank-linked programs, Mercosur scientific initiatives, and collaborations with the European Commission research directorates. It has hosted delegations from universities such as Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, University of Tokyo, Peking University, University of São Paulo, and partnered on projects with agencies including UNESCO, World Health Organization, World Bank, and the Organization of American States.

Category:Learned societies of Brazil