· March, 2009

Stories about Portuguese from March, 2009

Brazil: Beyond cyberspace – when blogs move offline

  29 March 2009

Books are becoming e-books and blogs and websites have appeared as books and other types of media. In this state of flux, it looks like the paper book has the power to beat virtual writing rather than the other way round. In Brazil, there is more than just a fashion of launching e-books to attract readers and writers but also an opposite stream in which blogs have reached the offline shelves as well as the movie screens.

Global Recession Survey: Survival Tips and Business Opportunities

  27 March 2009

Everybody is trying hard to cope with the global economic crisis. Bloggers are offering survival tips to their readers. Businesses around the world are adjusting. Some are even profiting from the crisis. In this post, I will feature individuals and companies exerting their very best to overcome the recession.

Brazil: A Private Nature Reserve – Is It Possible?

  24 March 2009

Society demands green action and Brazil’s policy that motivates land onwers to join the National Conservation Units Systems is having a great impact on society. Under the program known as RPPN, land onwers receive investments and credit too. Land use is restricted to research, environmental education and ecotourism. Blogs are one of the tools used to report experiences and document the work being carried out to keep Brazil green.

Brazil: The snake blogger

  22 March 2009

Amazonian blogger Altino Machado [pt] received an impromptu visitor last week: a snake came to see what he was blogging about. Check the pictures out.

Angola: Pope is greeted by the largest crowd of his African tour

  22 March 2009

The climax of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Angola was an open-air mass this Sunday, when nearly million people from various Angolan provinces and other African countries came to Luanda to hear the mass in Cimangola, on the outskirts of Luanda. Bloggers report on the Pope's remarks during his first pilgrimage to Africa, and also on the facelift Angola was given to receive Benedict XVI.

Brazil: Controversial demarcation of indigenous land confirmed

  19 March 2009

Five indigenous tribes of Brazil have won a 30-year battle to reclaim 1.7 million hectares of their ancestral land in Roraima in the Amazon on the border to Venezuela and Guyana. On March 19, the Brazilian Supreme Court (STF) ruled on the integrity of the Raposa Serra do Sol indigenous land, keeping its size and borders intact as a continuous area, disappointing ranchers and rice farmers who coveted the land.

Global: Bubbles, Bailouts and Stimulus Plans

  18 March 2009

Identifying the economic woes of the United States is crucial. But we should also understand that other countries are also grappling with bankrupt companies and shrinking economies. Many countries are also implementing their own stimulus plans. What are some of the examples used by bloggers around the world when they discuss the bubble economies, bailout of banks and stimulus plans of their countries?

Angola: Celebrating Angolan Women's Day with poetry

  17 March 2009

March is a month of double celebration for Angolan woman: apart from International Woman's Day, Angolan Woman's Day is celebrated on March 2nd because of the bravery of four women who fought for Angola's Independence. Bloggers celebrate by publishing poems and paying homage to women who suffer, love and fight with a large smile on their lips and bold eyes.

Brazil: Lula and Obama meet as economic crisis hits Brazil

  15 March 2009

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is the first Latin American leader to have met the US President Barack Obama. The meeting took place in Washington, this Saturday March 14. The leaders have talked about Global economic crisis, trade, environment, energy and biofuel technology, and building a more constructive relationship with neighboring countries. Meanwhile, the global crisis has begun to hit Brazil hard.

Brazil: On the Vatican's condemnation of raped-child's abortion

  12 March 2009

A 9-year-old girl several times raped and made pregnant by her stepfather was guaranteed the right to have an abortion legally in Brazil. After the operation, the Roman Catholic Church excommunicated the mother, the doctor and the whole medical team responsible for the operation. This has sparkled a great debate in Brazil: What is the Church's role in society?

Japan, Brazil: Crisis puts an end to the dream of a better life

  11 March 2009

After 30 years of a strong immigration trend from Brazil to Japan, young Brazilians who have crossed the ocean in search of a better life are now leaving their adopted country. It is estimated that between 40,000 and 50,000 Brazilians have lost their jobs and, unable to compete in the shrinking Japanese job market, have decided it is time to make the journey back home.

Brazil: Introducing the Web, a “Digital Baptism”

  8 March 2009

A "Digital Baptism" workshop brought digital inclusion to Belo Horizonte, the capital of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais this Saturday, introducing the basics of using a computer to those who had never had the chance before or teaching more advanced tools to more advanced users. See some pictures and videos from the action packed day.

Brazil: Uproar over newpaper's editorial on “mild dictatorship”

  7 March 2009

The Brazilian blogosphere reacts strongly against an op-ed by broadsheet Folha de São Paulo calling the country's former military dictatorship "mild". A petition against the papers use of 'mild' has gathered over 7,500 signatures in one week, and this Saturday a live blogged protest organized by bloggers gathered over 200 people.

Guinea-Bissau: Mixed feelings after double killing

  6 March 2009

The speaker of Guinea-Bissau's parliament has been sworn in as interim leader after the President Joao Bernardo Vieira and the army chief Batista Tagme Na Waie were assassinated. A presidential election must be organized within two months. The army has withdrawn from the streets, and bloggers have reported that life in the city has begun to return to normal, although many people remain very scared.

Guinea-Bissau: President's assassination sparks alarm at instability

  2 March 2009

Guinea-Bissau President Joao Bernardo Vieira was assassinated in the first hours of this morning, a few hours after his long term rival, the country's army chief General Batista Tagme, was killed by a bomb blast, late on Sunday. Although the reasons are still unknnon, the crimes have sparked alarm at instability in the young West African republic.

About our Portuguese coverage

Manuel Ribeiro
Manuel Ribeiro is the Portuguese editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write here.