Arriving I expected to find a chaotic, dangerous and gray metropolis. Instead, I was more than surprised to find a colorful, dynamic and vibrant city. These same qualities are uniquely evident in Brazilian design. For those of you who may not know, IDEA/Brazil is the Brazilian version of the IDEA Awards. Now in its third year, IDEA/Brazil is promoted by the design organization Objeto Brasil and led by Joice Joppert Leal, who according to my friend, Helen Walters of BusinessWeek, is “a force of nature.” After a week with Joice, I couldn’t agree more!

"Is Brazil Design's Next Superpower?", by John Barrat @Fast Company

In 2008, Brazil made history with 12 award wins in the U.S., a feat never achieved by any South American country. This secured the third position among participants, trailing only the U.S. with 114 podiums, and South Korea with 19. Last year, two Brazilian projects, including the Havaianas store in São Paulo, won IDEA gold. Design work competed in 18 categories, including one exclusive to Brazil: jewelry. Industrial products, personal accessories, home living, environments, eco-design, packaging, transportation and student projects, among others, were awarded [...]

via Is Brazil Design’s Next Superpower? | Fast Company.

Read Also:

• Business Week’s Bruce Nussbaum talk about the “Best Design From Brazil”
• CLIO honors Marcello Serpa with “Lifetime Achievement” award
• Brazilian Design at the New York’s MoMA Store
• Brazilian CG artist nominated to Autodesk’s “Master Awards”
• Daytripper is a stunning one way ticket to Brazilian stories, lifestyle and souls

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Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná featured on the "World's Best Design Programs" list by BusinessWeek magazine

Companies in every industry have adopted design thinking to offer fresh insight in functions from strategy to finance. BusinessWeek selected 39 master’s and MBA programs from North America, Europe, Asia, South America and Australia that significantly integrate design thinking and business. Students in these programs take classes in art, management and science, for example, and create projects in multi-disciplinary teams with students from other schools. They aim to use design for strategy rather than merely for aesthetics and may find jobs as design managers, researchers or business consultants. BusinessWeek’s Bruce Nussbaum compiled a list of 30 programs have formally established hybrid curricula:

Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná

Paraná, Brazil

Program: MBA* Emotional Design
Business Partnerships: Electrolux Brazil, Volvo Brazil, Whirlpool do Brazil
Why it’s on the list: This Portuguese-language MBA started in 2008 in partnership with Electrolux. The program is offered mainly to employees of partner companies and includes 365 hours of classes. It aims to teach executives about another, softer side of business. Course titles include “Cognition and Emotion in Design.”

via World’s Best Design Programs – BusinessWeek.

Read Also:

• Business Week’s Bruce Nussbaum talk about the “Best Design From Brazil”
• 4th Information Design International Conference, Rio de Janeiro
• Interaction South America ’09: São Paulo, Brazil
• Luiz Carlos Barreto lifetime achievements highlighted in the New York Times
• Brazil outsourcing industry featured in Design Council Magazine’s “The Latin American renaissance” article

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In 2008, the Industrial Designers Society of America ran a new contest in Brazil and some of the winners were included in this year’s Top International Design Excellence Awards. Amazing design and innovation is taking place in Brazil and this slideshow of winners (Brazil placed third behind the US and Korea in the number of IDEA awards in 2008) shows the wide range of activity. We tend to focus on design coming out of China, Korea, India or Japan these days, as well of Europe of course, but Brazil is booming and so is its design. Brazilians are designing sophisticated medical equipment, autos, clothes and jets. São Paulo is home is some great design consultancies that US, European and Asia companies should be tapping (many already are).

via BusinessWeek

Read Also:

• Brazil highlighted as “Design’s Next Superpower” by Fast Company Magazine
• A Brazilian talk about Asian design
• Brazil outsourcing industry featured in Design Council Magazine’s “The Latin American renaissance” article
• Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná featured on the “World’s Best Design Programs” list by BusinessWeek magazine
• The launching of Guarana Jesus new can wins the Gold Medal from IDSA IDEA 2010 Awards

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