The recent visit of the Portuguese ambassador and his lecture at the Kennedy Center for International Studies continued a tradition of ambassador visits that began in 1996.
Portuguese Ambassador to the U.S., Nuno Brito, addressed BYU students Feb. 27 in a lecture entitled, “A Portuguese Perspective on Europe and the World.”
Brito described how Portugal is facing the challenges of globalization but reminded students that the situation mirrors the Age of Exploration, in which Portugal was a key player.
Jarrett Lever, minoring in Portuguese, was pleasantly surprised by the ambassador’s optimistic tone about Portugal’s fiscal challenges. He was also surprised to hear that Portugal, traditionally a stronghold for socialist government, is privatizing several sectors of its economy. Lever compared this to the current policy of the U.S., including healthcare.
“What are we doing in the U.S. if they’re going back to it (privatization)?” Lever asked during the presentation.
Brito spoke of Portugal’s support for the U.S. from its beginning and mentioned that Portuguese troops have been involved in Afghanistan alongside Americans.
“The Middle East is literally on our doorstep,” Brito said.
The lecture was followed by an open question-and-answer session. Most students began their questions by addressing the ambassador in Portuguese. Brito answered one such question by starting with a compliment.
“First of all, let me congratulate you on your accent,” he said. “You are a citizen of Lisbon.”
Erland Peterson, the associate international vice-president, said this is normal. Peterson invited Brito to BYU. He tries to invite three ambassadors to speak each semester, and they are generally impressed with BYU.
“It’s interesting to see the ambassadors’ reactions,” Peterson said. He explained that ambassadors comment first on the beautiful setting of BYU, then the well-kept campus, how well-dressed the students are and then the questions students ask.
Peterson invited Ambassador Brito partly because the BYU Young Ambassadors’ plan to tour Portugal next year. Brito attended a private performance by the Young Ambassadors after the lecture and a luncheon that included Portuguese-speaking faculty.
Ambassadors are generally impressed with the number of faculty who are knowledgeable about their countries. Peterson arranged for a BYU professor of Portuguese, Kit Lund, and his wife to host the ambassador during his visit. He always asks faculty with ties to the respective country to host ambassadors.
“We always try to tie in the visit here with faculty who (have) natural ties for long-term contacts,” Peterson said.
He added that John Rosenburg, the dean of humanities, has always hosted the Spanish ambassador. He has now become so close to the diplomatic department that he usually meets the new Spanish ambassador to the U.S. before he even leaves Spain.
Peterson said the ambassador program benefits BYU academically and strengthens international ties for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They saw this unexpected benefit after an LDS missionary was abducted in Russia. The Russian ambassador had recently visited BYU, and he helped expedite the process of bringing security officials from the Church into Russia because of his positive experience in Utah.
Ambassadors are always busy, but Peterson has little trouble persuading them to visit BYU and speak to students. He described the excitement of an ambassador from Korea upon being invited to BYU. He had often heard other Asian ambassadors describe their trips to Utah and was thrilled to be joining the club at last.
“It’s fun to showcase BYU because BYU showcases so well,” Peterson said.
The next ambassador lecture will be given by the Danish ambassador in April. His visit will coincide with an exhibit of Danish artists in the Museum of Art.
