I'm passionate about how studying and translating other languages helps me understand different people's cultures, politics, art, literature and attitudes. I now work as an ELT editor, but am also interested in all aspects of teaching, learning and improving communication between different peoples.
Latest posts by Nicola Gardner
“Me, Ex-Quota Girl, ‘Daring Bum’”: A Poor Black Brazilian Woman’s Account of How She Succeeded Against All Odds
Read the testimony of a woman who faced prejudice as a university student accepted through the Brazilian racial quota system: "It works, but makes other people feel uncomfortable."
Brazil: “Gay Cure” Approved by Chamber of Deputies
The proposed law allowing psychologists to undertake treatment to reverse homosexuality was approved yesterday, June 18, by the Human Rights Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. The commission president, anti-gay...
Popular Demonstrations in Porto Alegre Reverse Increased Bus Fares
Weeks of popular demonstrations in the city of Porto Alegre in favour of reduced bus fares have precipitated the decision to return to the previous rate.
Brazil Gets Into Carnival Mood to the Afro Beats in Salvador
The biggest party on the planet, Brazilian carnival, has grown to such an extent in Salvador, Bahia, that it’s now spread over three main points in the city, attracting half a million tourists during the days of revelry. Preserving Afro-Brazilian culture is key to the Bahian carnival, and this year the theme for the famous Pelourinho historical centre is ‘Black Carnivals’.
Solidarity Rises from Southern Brazil's Sunday Flames
One day after the tragic fire in the Kiss nightclub, in Santa Maria, which wiped away the lives of more than 230 young people, a siren went off at Vila Liberdade, in the north of Porto Alegre. 90 of the 150 houses were consumed by flames and around 800 people became homeless. The main social networking sites were used as a tool for the gathering of information about the incident, as well as a way of asking for help for the victims.
Brazil: Student Protests Against Bus Fare Increases in Piaui
Since the beginning of the year, thousands of students have been protesting against the increase in bus fares in the capital of the state of Piaui. The demonstrators are forcefully kept down by the Military Police. They have reacted by setting fire to at least one bus, and dozens of students have been arrested.
Brazil: School Bullying and the Realengo Massacre
On 7 April 2011, twelve adolescents at the Tasso da Silveira City School in the west of Rio de Janeiro were shot dead. The culprit was ex-pupil, Wellington Menezes de Oliveira, 23, who then turned the gun on himself. The growing speculation about the killer’s profile, in both the blogosphere and traditional media, raised the issue of bullying in Brazilian society.
