January 22, 2019
Today we had our final day of class here in Brazil! Today Professor Shirota talked to us about the final 5 fundamental principles of economics.
- Trade offs
- Incentives
- Trade
- Distribution
- Information
We discussed how trade benefits both the buyer and the seller and the the type of concepts that can make these benefits sway to one side or the other. We also learned how information is fundamental in the allocation of resources, and misinformation can often make markets and economies very fragile. Another principle of economics we talked about was distribution. It was interesting to see how much power the consumer has over the market, as well as how the distribution of an economy can affect a nation if it is unbalanced. Brazil is currently having an issue called a “brain drain”, where because of the uneven distribution, the opportunities Brazilians want are not available, and many of their brightest minds are leaving to find work and opportunity other places in the world. An example being many leave Brazil to study in the United States.
Our usual coffee breaks were nice throughout the day, giving us a chance to conversate and enjoy the much stronger Brazilian coffee!
As our last class at ESALQ comes to a close, we are grateful to all of our professors and for all of the amazing knowledge they have shown us about the culture, economy, and history of Brazil! O-H!
Enjoying our final day of classes!
-Evan Callicoat