Visiting London this week, Marta Suplicy announced plans to create a permanent cultural exhibition space at the Brazilian embassy. She also had meetings with her British counterpart Maria Miller and with senior figures involved in the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad. Read more

For the fourth consecutive year annual deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen to the lowest level since 1988, when satellite monitoring of deforestation in Brazil began. Read more

Following the ceasefire this week between Israel and Hamas, the Brazilian foreign minister called on the international community to resume meaningful talks on the Israel-Palestine issue. He also expressed Brazil's support for Palestine in its bid to achieve the status of observer state in the UN. Read more

On 12 November Brazil was elected to serve a three-year term (2013-15) on the United Nations Human Rights Council, a body responsible for promoting and protecting human rights worldwide. Read more

A recent survey reveals that 90% of foreign tourists who visit Brazil want to go back again. The survey was based on questionnaires completed by 39 thousand tourists at Brazil's international airports and land border crossings. Read more

In a recent interview published in the Brazilian current affairs magazine CartaCapital, foreign minister Antonio Patriota was asked to predict what changes will take place between now and 2030 with regard to Brazil’s economy and society, its role in international affairs, and how it is perceived by the rest of the world. Read more

On 28 September President Dilma Rousseff held talks in Brasília with David Cameron during the British prime minister's two-day visit to Brazil. The two leaders declared their commitment to sustaining a strong and open partnership between the UK and Brazil and discussed strategic issues both with regard to the bilateral relationship and the broader international agenda. Read more

According to the latest estimate the population of Brazil grew by 1,570,000 (0.81%) between July 2011 and July 2012. The rate of growth has been declining for about the last 50 years. Brazil is the world's fifth most populous country but is likely to be overtaken in fifth position by Pakistan in the near future. Read more

Census results released in August show that between 1991 and 2010 Brazil’s indigenous population rose from 294 thousand to 897 thousand – an increase of more than 200%. The results point to the positive impact of Government policies in the areas of health and the demarcation of indigenous reserves, which now cover more than 12% of Brazil’s territory. According to the census, Brazil’s indigenous population comprises 305 distinct ethnic groups which speak 274 different languages. Read more

On 15 August the Brazilian Government announced a programme of concession licenses to attract major private-sector investment in the country's road and rail network. Investment will total R$133bn (US$66bn), more than half of it coming in the next five years. Read more

On 12 August British prime minister David Cameron and Brazilian vice-president Michel Temer co-hosted an event at 10 Downing Street on the theme of global hunger, challenging global leaders to step up efforts to improve nutrition and reduce the rate of stunting among the world's poorest children. Specific targets include removing the risk of stunted growth from 25 million children during the four-year period between the London and Rio Olympic Games. Read more

Since December last year the Science without Borders programme has provided more than 6,700 Brazilian students with scholarships for study overseas. In September a further 12,000 will be setting off for universities in Europe (including the UK), the US, Canada, Australia and South Korea. Read more

At the London 2012 Olympic Games there will be 259 Brazilian competitors (136 men, 123 women) competing in 32 disciplines. The Brazilian Olympic Committee expects the medal haul to be similar to Beijing 2008 (15, including 3 golds) – and Brazilian football fans are hoping the long wait for Olympic gold will finally come to an end at Wembley. Read more

With the view to facilitate the arrival of press personnel that will be covering the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development Rio+20 (20-22 June), designated immigration areas has been set up specifically for the official delegations and accredited media at the international airports of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, as well as special addresses for email enquiries. Read more

The Brazilian government will foster the manufacturing and technological research of hybrid cars (running on ethanol & electricity) in Brazil. "It is not enough only to manufacture. We want a research center in Brazil", said the Minister for Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, Fernando Pimentel, during a recent visit to several car manufacturers in South Korea. Read more

Brasil Carinhoso (Caring Brazil), an extension of the Bolsa Familia social welfare programme, comes into operation this month. Targeted at poor families with children under six years of age, the government anticipates it will reduce the number of Brazilians living in extreme poverty by a further 40%. Read more

Brazil's foreign minister Antonio Patriota recently spoke at length about international affairs and Brazilian foreign policy in a public discussion hosted by the Folha de São Paulo newspaper and UOL. Read more

In the areas of animal health, welfare and genetics, sustainable agriculture and climate change, Brazil's Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) is developing various forms of collaboration with a group of Scottish scientific institutions. Read more

Brazil's Ministry of Education (MEC/CAPES) is inviting applications for the Rio Branco Chair at the University of Oxford for the 2013 calendar year. Read more

President Rousseff said this week that in sustaining economic growth while reducing inequality, Brazil has moved beyond the old adage that "the cake needs to get bigger before it can be cut into more equal slices". Read more

During the recent visit to Brazil by the UK's Secretary of State for International Development, Andrew Mitchell, the two countries discussed further ways of sharing expertise so as to boost agriculture in developing countries. Read more

Representatives from 53 countries will be converging on Brasília for the annual meeting of the Open Government Partnership (OGP) on 17-18 April. The OGP was created last year to foster international cooperation aimed at making governments more transparent, effective and accountable. Brazil and the United Kingdom were among its founding members. Read more

The University of Campinas UNICAMP ( Brazil ) is currently accepting submissions for São Paulo School of Advanced Studies. This is a one-week summer seminar on “Globalization of Culture in Nineteenth Century” that will take place in Campinas , Brazil (August 20th to 24th). Read more

Ambassador Jaguaribe met with Carwyn Jones, First Minister of Wales, during a visit to Cardiff on 26 March. Among the issues they discussed were the growing links between Brazil and Wales in the field of education, which include the participation of five Welsh universities in the Brazilian Government's Science without Borders programme. Read more

Launched last year by Brazil's Ministry of Education and Ministry of Science and Technology, the Science without Borders programme will offer grants to more than 100 thousand Brazilian students so that they can study science-related subjects at universities around the world, both at undergraduate and postgraduate level. This month 5,800 scholarships are being made available for university places in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Holland, Portugal, South Korea and Spain. From 26 April there will be 20 doctorate scholarships for study in the UK at the universities of Nottingham and Birmingham. Read more

The Brazilian ambassador has praised the work of Sheffield Hallam University's research centres, and commended the collaboration between Sheffield's businesses and researchers. Read more

During a three-day visit to Rio de Janeiro the prince declared that Brazil and the UK have a "flourishing partnership" in diverse areas such as innovation, education, technology and fashion, and that the two countries are "forging bonds that will stand the test of time". Read more

Meeting this week in Brasília, Brazil's Minister of External Relations Antonio Patriota and European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton said they were confident there will be significant progress in negotiations towards a Brazil-EU trade deal in 2012. Brazil's total trade with the EU is greater than with any single country including China and the United States: last year it totalled almost $100bn. Read more

Brazili's foreign minister Antonio Patriota said this week that the attempts at mediation in the Syrian crisis should be conducted with "greater urgency" in the wake of the veto by China and Russia of a UN resolution that would have put pressure on President Assad to step down. Read more

Brazilian holidays are more likely to bring to mind sand than saddles, but major investment in new cycle paths around the country has made cicloturismo an increasingly attractive option. The various networks of cycle paths, stretching 2,500 kilometres, include excellent routes in Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba and the state of Santa Catarina. Read more

Brazilian foreign minister Antonio Patriota had talks with UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon this week while attending the World Economic Forum in Switzerland. He also participated in a lively debate entitled 'Is democracy up to the challenge of the 21st century?' Read more

Speaking at the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre this week, President Dilma Rousseff expressed sympathy with the 'indignation' behind the recent international protests against social and economic inequality. The 'dissonance between the voice of the markets and the voice of the streets' is increasing, she said. Read more

William Hague this week made a two-day visit to Brazil during which he met with foreign minister Antonio Patriota and defence minister Celso Amorim. A joint communiqué spoke of a 'new momentum' in the Brazil-UK relationship – recently reflected by the significant increase in bilateral trade. It also covered the UK's support for Brazil as a permanent member of a reformed UN Security Council, continued cooperation on hosting the Olympics, and the growing partnership between the two countries' academic institutions. Hague said during the visit that the UK welcomes Brazil's 'growing impact on the economic and political landscape of the world'. Read more

Finance minister Guido Mantega predicts that Brazil's economy will grow by between 4% and 5% during 2012. In an overview of Brazil's economic performance during 2011 he expressed particular satisfaction with the rate of job creation, which has seen unemployment fall to a historic low of 5.2%. Read more

Brazil last year achieved an agricultural trade surplus of almost $80bn – the biggest since records began. The main exports were soy, sugar, ethanol and meats, while the principal importers were the European Union, China, the US, Russia and Japan. Read more