The Inter-American Dialogue is pleased to host Societies in the Mirror, a series of high-level conversations examining the social, political, and economic forces reshaping Brazil and the United States.
Societies in the Mirror brings together leading thinkers, researchers, journalists, policymakers, and voices from across the political spectrum to explore how both societies are responding to shared transformations, including economic insecurity and demographic change, as well as technology, religion, social mobility, and evolving expectations of government and democracy.
The first Societies in the Mirror dialogue explored political and social change in Brazil and the United States, examining how transformations within both societies are reshaping political behavior, representation, and democratic institutions.
This conversation takes that question one step further and turns the lens toward Brazil.
Journalist Tatiana Vasconcellos will speak with sociologist and writer José Henrique Bortoluci to explore the Brazil beneath the electoral map: which social transformations matter most today, which established ways of understanding the country may no longer be sufficient, and what these changes mean for political representation and democratic institutions.
Over the past several decades, profound changes in work, education, social mobility, religion, family life, geography, connectivity, gender roles, and individual aspirations have transformed how Brazilians live and how they understand their place in society.
But what do these transformations tell us about where Brazil is heading? Beyond the immediate electoral contest, what kind of society will the country’s political institutions be called upon to represent after 2026? Which social divides are becoming more important, which traditional categories are losing explanatory power, and what new demands, aspirations, and frustrations are emerging?
Join the Brazil Program on Wednesday, September 2, from 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM ET for a virtual fireside chat exploring how Brazilian society has changed, how these shifts are shaping the country’s politics today, and what they may tell us about Brazil beyond the 2026 elections.
The event will be held in Portuguese, with simultaneous interpretation available.
