Final full day in São Paulo

My last full day in São Paulo was busy with two lengthy back-to-back meetings in the afternoon with the American Chamber of Commerce and Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing (ESMP/SP). Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to take any photographs of the facilities.

The American Chamber of Commerce-São Paulo is located in the neighborhood of Santo Amaro, not far from SENAC. The Chamber hosts an impressive number of meetings and events every year, averaging around one event per day at their impressive office and conference complex. The international affairs staff were incredibly kind and helpful, highlighting many opportunities to partner on both CIBER and Kelley School projects and programs. Approximately 5000 businesses are members of the Chamber, with around 70% of those members local, Brazilian-born businesses. Other universities have successfully tried social enterprise projects working directly with small Brazilian businesses, but these have not been approached in a sustainable manner up to this point - meaning that the projects were completed with no intentional continuation over the coming years. The Chamber has also offered to help CIBER with its international business conference in 2011 by hosting at least one day of meetings and coordinating speakers from local Brazilian businesses.

After this meeting, I rode across the city to meet with two faculty members from ESMP. The institution is interested in expanding its international partnerships, for both short and long term study abroad opportunities for its students and research collaborations across international borders. ESMP's facilities were quite impressive, with specialized labs in consumer marketing (including a replica of a real supermarket), consulting, and creative design (with team-based computer stations). The school also has an active group of students and faculty that do various social enterprise projects. With over 5000 undergraduate students, the school has grown significantly since the government relaxed restrictions on public and private institutions, and their reputation has only continued to strengthen.

Later in the evening, stumbled across Galetos on Alameda Santos. The restaurant had superb bread and salt-encrusted slow-roasted chicken. Skip the capirinha, however, as it is overpriced and not nearly as great as Margherita Pizzaria.