Dear BACCF Members,

South Florida, by its very nature, is a very transitory business environment. Folks who do well here are often identified by their companies for bigger and better things, and we as a community lose them to other parts. As so it was with Claudio Almeida, BACCF’s President. Claudio, a very successful executive with Odebrecht North America, was tapped to run one of the company’s operations out of Panama City, Panama. This was sudden and completely unforeseen but such a great opportunity and recognition of his hard work and accomplishments, that I and all of his friends urged him to take the job, even if that meant resigning as Chamber President. So sincere thanks to Claudio for his leadership in the BACCF, best wishes to him and his family for success in Panama, and hopes that they will be back in Miami often enough to participate in BACCF functions and see old friends.

At the last Board meeting, the BACCF Board asked me to act as Chamber President for the remainder of Claudio’s term, until Board elections take place in November as usual. I was excited to accept, and will rely very much on the able counsel and assistance of the Board and particularly from Elisa Donel of Embraer Aircraft Corp., our Executive VP, as well as Mary Arnaud, our Executive Director, and the Chamber staff .

I hope everyone had a good time at the BACCF Excellence Award dinner, where we honored Allan Brenteson of Baptist Health South Florida with this prestigious award, now in its twelth year. It was a fitting tribute to Allan’s long career of dedication to Brazil/Florida business.

We are very excited about our summer events: on June 17th, our newest Patron member Ornari, an exciting furniture company, is hosting a cocktail party for BACCF members at its beautiful facilities in the Design District; plus, the Brickell Irish Pub (BIP) has agreed to become the HQ for BACCF members to watch the World Cup. During Brazil’s games (June 15th, 20th, and 25th, and on…), the BIP will offer discounted drinks and food specials, and show every game, including the morning ones, on its many, many TVs. Also, mark your calendar for the BACCF Summer Extravaganza, to take place on July 17. Those of you who went last year will remember it as a great informal social event to enjoy the summer groove, eat good food and see good friends. See you there!

Best regards and a great summer,

Ed Santos

BACCF President
 

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If you are interested in including your company’s article or news in our next chambernews edition, please contact Camila C. Fernandes (cfernandes@brazilchamber.org)

MEMBER NEWS: TAM Signs New Fidelidade Agreement with 16 Airlines

May 17, 2010

With these new partnerships, TAM Fidelidade clients will be able to accrue and redeem points in flights operated by all Star Alliance member airlines.

On May 13, when it officially became a member of Star Alliance, TAM Airlines began16 new FFP (Frequent Flyer Program) agreements, increasing even more the benefits offered to their clients through the TAM Fidelidade program. The partnerships will include the following companies within the largest airline alliance in the world: Adria Airways, Air China, Air New Zealand, ANA, Asiana Airlines, Blue1, Croatia Airlines, EGYPTAIR, LOT Polish Airlines, Scandinavian Airlines, Shangai Airlines, Singapore Airlines, South African Airways, Spanair, THAI and Turkish Airlines.
As the new agreements take place, TAM Fidelidade clients will be able to accrue and redeem points in any flight operated by one of the new partners. The same benefit is valid for frequent flyer clients of the partner airlines, who will be able to accrue and redeem points or miles through TAM flights.

"We are pioneers in launching an airline fidelization program in Brazil, and now we expand the benefits offered to our clients and Star Alliance clients,” states Paulo Castello Branco, TAM Vice President of Sales and Planning. He explains that beginning May 13, the TAM Fidelidade program will be fully integrated to the fidelization programs 26 members of the Star Alliance.

TAM already had FFP agreements with Lufthansa, United, TAP Portugal, US Airways, Air Canada, Brussels Airlines, Austrian, bmi, Continental Airlines and SWISS, all members of Star Alliance. TAM also has a FFP agreement with LAN, which adds to a total of 27 international partnerships.

"Passengers already enrolled in the TAM Fidelidade program can now accrue points in many ways. A shuttle flight between São Paulo and Rio, for example, can result in points to be used to a trip to China,” Castello Branco explains.

TAM Fidelidade clients already enjoy special benefits, such as the redemption of tickets without seat restriction for travel within South America, besides a wide range of possibilities in international flights offered by TAM and partner airlines around the world. In order to accrue points, the client only has to provide his or her TAM Fidelidade number during reservation or check-in.

Beginning May 13, all TAM Fidelidade Clients in the Blue or Red categories will also count on the added benefits of the Star Alliance Silver and Gold cards, respectively. The advantages include (according the type of card): access to exclusive VIP Lounges, priority check-in, extra luggage allowance, priority waitlist boarding, among many other amenities.

Please see below a full list of Star Alliance member airlines, which have partnered with TAM, and their corresponding Frequent Flyer Programs:

Adria Airways (Miles & More)
LOT Polish Airlines (Miles & More)
Air Canada (Aeroplan)
Lufthansa (Miles & More)
Air China (Phoenix Miles)
Scandinavian Airlines (Eurobonus)
Air New Zealand (Airpoints)
Shangai Airlines (Crane Club)
ANA (ANA Mileage Club)
Singapore Airlines (Krisflyer)
Asiana Airlines (Asiana Club)
South African Airways (SA Voyager)
Austrian (Miles & More)
Spanair (Spanair Plus)
Blue1 (Eurobonus)
SWISS (Miles & More)
bmi (Diamond Club)
TAP Portugal (Victoria)
Brussels Airlines (Miles & More)
THAI (Royal Orchid Plus)
Continental Airlines (OnePass)
Turkish Airlines (Miles & Smiles)
Croatia Airlines (Miles & More)
United (Mileage Plus)
EGYPTAIR (Egypt Plus)
US Airways (Dividend Miles)

Source: TAM

English-Portuguese Program at Ada Merritt K-8 Center - Miami

The Centro Cultural Brasil-USA celebrates the historic milestone of the graduation of ADA MERRITT’s first eighth grade class. ADA MERRITT is the first fully dual language English-Portuguese public school program in the United States. The school’s credentials are of the highest caliber – it is an accredited International Baccalaureate World School and is open to students of Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe. The school was created to expand multilingual education in order to increase the opportunities for the students to becomg bilingual as well as bicultural. The graduation of this first class represents the culmination of the dedication and determination of students, parents, teachers and many in the Brazilian community in South Florida.

Some of ADA MERRITT’s students have been enrolled in the program since kindergarten and have benefited from the rigorous academic program throughout their academic career. The students receive 40% of their daily instruction in Portuguese and 60% in English. Today these students are not only able to speak and write in Portuguese, but have also gained a deep appreciation for Brazilian culture.

CCBU is proud to have supported Miami Dade County Public Schools since 1999 in the creation of the first English-Portuguese immersion program in an American public school. The program opened in 2003 with only 64 registered students in grades pre-kindergarten to second; incredibly, in its next year it grew to 164. Today, the English-Portuguese program has approximately 250 students registered in the grades kindergarten to eighth grade. Half of these students are not of Brazilian origin. But all of them, and their families, are now linked to Brazil forever through its language and culture

ADA MERRITT’s eight graders graduated on June 7, 2010. This is a historic milestone for the community of Brazilians living outside Brazil; please join us in congratulating our graduates.

Ada Merritt K-8 660 S.W. 3rd. Street. Miami, FL 33130

Cresa Partners Tips

Exercise greater control
In today's market, companies have more leverage in dealing with landlords who want to maintain their assets. Tenants may consider negotiating new lease terms like cancellation rights, tenant improvements, and additional concessions. Companies with leases approaching expiration should determine what assets to hold onto and what to unload. Key locations should be considered for long-term commitments to take advantage of favorable terms. Locations of less strategic importance may be eliminated.

Protect the bottom line
It's critical that companies protect their assets and cut costs. In considering cost-saving measures, tenants should note that if they negotiate directly with landlords (versus outsourcing to service providers), they may overpay by about 20%. And they can save even more by partnering with a tenant advisory firm that exclusively represents them, not landlords.

Think strategically and long term
Another way to save is to make modest upfront investments in strategic planning and project management.

Ask about conflicts of interest
Landlords wary of their cash flow are putting enormous pressure on brokers to close deals. This can be problematic to tenants whey they consider that brokers from traditional firms (which represent tenants and landlords) cannot adequately serve two masters and avoid conflicts of interest.

For additional information, contact:
Luciana Carvalho, Advisor
lcarvalho@cresapartners.com
305.960.8436 Direct
786.301.3020 Mobile

NEWS!

POLL-Analysts see better Rousseff chance in Brazil race
By Raymond Colitt

BRASILIA, May 26 (Reuters) - Brazil's ruling party candidate, Dilma Rousseff, has improved her chances of winning the October presidential race, according to a Reuters poll of 16 political experts.
The poll showed Rousseff of the center-left Workers' Party with an average 56.1 percent probability of winning, up from 54.8 percent in April.
The chances of Jose Serra, former Sao Paulo state governor of the centrist PSDB party fell to 43.9 from 45.2 percent in April, the poll of political consultants and academics showed. Rousseff, who was President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's chief of staff, has drawn even with Serra in public opinion
polls in recent weeks. Most experts see Rousseff as the favorite because she can count on the backing of the enormously popular Lula and on a strong economic recovery.
Former environment minister Marina Silva trails a distant third in public opinion polls.
Lula is barred by law from seeking a third consecutive term.
The chart shows, as a percentage, the chances of victory each consultant sees for Serra and Rousseff.

Join us on October 7th for a round table discussion about The Aftermath - Brazilian Election Scenario and its Impact on Bilateral Business 

Click here for further information

Pictures and Presentations

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