Design Has Room to Grow in Brazil

This piece from Architect looks at some of the potential for work in the country, and how American and other foreign firms can approach the booming Brazilian economy.

"With a population of almost 200 million, Brazil has long been touted as a "country of the future"-for so long, in fact, that Brazilians joke about the tag. But an unusual confluence of good news in recent years does seem to justify its use. First, there's the rate of economic growth: Brazil's GDP grew by 5.7 percent in 2007 and by 5.1 percent in 2008, before contracting by a slight 0.2 percent in 2009. Here, the Great Recession was only a hiccup. Thanks to abundant commodities such as iron ore, timber, gold, grain, and coffee; massive oil reserves discovered in 2007; and a government that is supportive of free-market reforms, Brazil has become the world's eighth-largest economy. Capping all this off is the country's win of the world's two premier sporting events, virtually back-to-back: the World Cup, to be hosted at locations around Brazil in 2014, and the 2016 Summer Olympics, which will take place in Rio de Janeiro."