GRADUATE FACULTY OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCE
Nelson Barbosa
Nelson Barbosa was born and raised in Rio de Janiero. He studied economics at the Federal University of Rio de Janiero (UFRJ), receiving his B.A. in 1991. In 1994, he received an M.A. from UFRJ as well, writing his dissertation on international
finance under Maria da Conceicao Tavares, one of the leading economists of the Latin American structuralist school. Nelson’s decision to continue his education at New School University was “a natural choice, given my interest in a structuralist and pluralistic approach to economics.” With a scholarship from the Brazilian government, Nelson concentrated his studies on economic development and macroeconomics at the University’s Graduate Faculty of Political and Social Science, earning a Ph.D. in economics in 2002.
After returning to Brazil in July 2002, Nelson quickly reestablished himself in politics and academics. He began teaching at UFRJ as a professor of macroeconomics and worked as a volunteer in President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s presidential campaign. After President Lula’s election, Nelson accepted the position of deputy chief economic advisor
at the Ministry of Budget, Planning and Management.
“My main task, in general terms, is to devise a Brazilian way of sustainable growth and development for all the Brazilian population,” says Nelson. He routinely participates in fiscal management, planning and budget analysis for the government’s four-year development plan. He also is active in the government’s general discussions about economic policy. After working with the Lula government, he plans to remain in Brazil and return to teaching at UFRJ.
