Rio de Janeiro, December 20, 2018 – The U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Brazil, the Fulbright Commission and the Smithsonian Institution announced on December 17, an emergency exchange program for 14 researchers whose research was interrupted by the fire at the National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, last September. In 2019, they will travel to the United States to conclude their experiments in museums of the Smithsonian Institution – the world’s largest museum, educational, and research complex – during periods of approximately 30 days.
The 14 selected scholars had documents, specimens and other items essential to their research destroyed by the fire, making the completion of their experiments and research projects impossible. Their areas of research are diverse and include, among others, indigenous languages, ethnology, carcinology, arachnology and paleontology of vertebrates.
The agreement was celebrated in a ceremony at the Macaco Tião Auditorium, in the Rio Zoo, with the participation of U.S Consulate in Rio Public Affairs Officer Viraj Lebailly, National Museum Director Alexander Kellner, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro Superintendent for Research Marcelo Byrro, Fulbright Commission Executive Director Luiz Valcov Loureiro, and Smithsonian Institution Research Fellow C. David de Santana.
