Promoting Civic Engagement for High-Risk Youth: A Project for Brazil

April 9 - 14, 2015

About Brazil

Youth leaders in Brazil are a huge part of the force behind recent movements regarding education and transportation. Youth initiative is supported by programs involving foreign languages, arts and sports. In Brazil, youths have a major impact on the country as the voting age is 16, and with rising youth activism, Brazil will feel their presence [1]. In recent years, volunteerism in Brazil has seen a change as it is now often required at some universities and many employers see it as a competitive advantage. The hosting of the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio provided a massive international window of opportunity for young leaders to network and also created endless volunteering opportunities [2]. Civic participation is relatively high in this developing country. Sharpening the potential of youths and exposing them to events, political situations and real problems the country faces will promote a higher interest in involvement to better the future of Brazil.

About the Program

The IVLP is a professional exchange program that seeks to build mutual understanding between the U.S. and other nations through carefully designed short-term visits to the U.S. for current and emerging foreign leaders. Over the last 70 years, the IVLP has developed into the premier professional exchange program in the U.S. and brings over 200 emerging leaders to Jacksonville every year.

[1] http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/brazil/volunteerism.htm

[2] https://www.unv.org/news/rio-2016-volunteer-programme