Dean Magid to accompany Gov. Patrick to Brazil

Mission aims to increase trade, investment and job growth

Photos/Mike Lovett

President Fred Lawrence (left) and Dean Magid (right) welcomed Gov. Patrick to the Global Trade Summit at Brandeis last spring.

Dean Bruce R. Magid of Brandeis’ International Business School will be a member of Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick’s trade mission to Brazil in December.

It will be the second time Magid, the Martin and Ahuva Gross Chair in Financial Markets and Institutions, has joined the governor on an international trip. Earlier this year, Brandeis was one of two academic institutions to participate in the Massachusetts Innovation Economy Partnership Mission 2011 to Israel and the United Kingdom.

The mission to Brazil will include participants from academia, the arts, business and government. It is intended to solidify the strong bonds Massachusetts has with Brazil and to provide new opportunities for collaboration on trade, investment and job growth.  The trip also will enable Magid to advance the school’s efforts to attract more students from the region and to open doors there for internships and jobs for graduates.

“This trade mission recognizes the growing impact of Brazil on the global economy,” Magid said. “We are eager to strengthen our relationships with this country and to expand the opportunities for job creation. We want to emphasize the benefits of working with the innovators and higher education institutions here in Massachusetts.”

Magid’s participation will also lay a foundation for the Second Annual Global Trade Summit, to be held at Brandeis in April. The summit’s program will feature Brazil among other countries. The first summit, held earlier this year, focused on expanding exports and building international partnerships.

Magid brings an extensive international business background to the mission; he worked for many years in South American countries, including Brazil.

Brazil is the largest economy in South America and the seventh largest in the world. It is expected to become the fifth largest in the near future. With that much growth on the horizon, the country has been courted heavily by various states.

Brazil already has a strong trade relationship with Massachusetts. In 2010, Bay State exports to the country reached $396 million, and they are up by 31 percent this year. Imports last year totaled $80 million.