The São Paulo and South America Liaison Office, together with the Alumni Office of Freie Universität Berlin, hosted a dinner for alumni in Brazil on September 5th in São Paulo. As part of the evaluation of the joint project “Maria Sibylla Merian Centre Conviviality-Inequality in Latin America” (Mecila), which took place that same week, the group was pleased to welcome many professors from the FU Berlin, specifically from the Latin American Institute (LAI).

The very diverse group of participants once again underscored the broad reach that the FU Berlin has in São Paulo and Brazil. A total of 24 alumnae from almost all humanities and social sciences, as well as from literature, communication, and economics, for example, as well as from philosophy, history, veterinary medicine, and anthropology, attended the event.

The Executive Vice President, Prof. Dr. Verena Blechinger-Talcott, who had traveled to São Paulo for the Mecila inspection, gave a very warm welcome speech to kick off the evening. The alumnae then introduced themselves to facilitate discussion during the evening. As the reviewers' funding recommendation for the third phase of Mecila had already been announced the day before, this evening marked the culmination of a very intense and successful week.

The topics of the evening included the current professional situations and research projects of those present. In addition, there was much discussion about the possibilities of resuming more intensive contact with the FU – which, given the very academic profile of the participants, could lay the foundation for future collaborations.