Description of the integration initiative implemented

The participant is of the opinion that her integration process took place without difficulties. The timely preparation of all documentation and the fact that she had previously got to know the space contributed to this. The coming to Portugal was prepared a year in advance. The information she obtained for his installation was given through the Embassy in Brazil. She believes it is a complex and time-consuming process. However, since she had a support network in Portugal, the whole integration process took place without incident.

Personal story
The participant is 32 years old. She was born in Minas Gerais but moved to Brasilia with her family at the age of three, where she has always lived. In Brazil she was a lawyer and a law professor. She arrived in Portugal in 2016 to do her PhD. She lives with a partner, who is Portuguese and she met in Brazil in 2014.

From a young age she set herself the goal of completing her studies outside Brazil. She chose the University of Coimbra because of her affinity with legal studies. She was admitted to the PhD course at the Faculty of Law in 2016. During her stay she took the initiative to look for a job and was admitted to a Non-Governmental Organisation, where she works with European projects. The CES was also decisive given the nature of the research she is pursuing in the sociology of law. She spent six months in Seville under the Erasmus programme. Her speech shows that all her goals were set on the basis of her studies.

In the immigration process she left her family in Brazil (parents and sister). She has no family in Portugal and there is no intention of bringing them here. However, she values keeping daily contact with them.

Her journey took place without incident. She was anxious about the emigration issue and fearful of the SEF's intervention. However, since she organised the trip well in advance she had time to prepare herself adequately. When she arrived she stayed at her partner's house for a month. At the end of that time she got a room in a student residence. For the participant it was important to create a social base that would allow her to consolidate social relations outside the affective bond that tied her to her partner. At the University her class was composed of many Brazilians. She ended up establishing social relations with them. At the same time she met an Italian woman who became her best friend.

Her main goal was to get a PhD. Since she got a job in an NGO and has a Portuguese partner, her goals have changed. She has quality of life in Portugal and security. The issue of security is very important", she says. Here she has the peace of mind that nothing serious will happen.

She did not expect to get a job in the institution where she is. At this moment, she maintains contacts with many Portuguese people since they are her colleagues in the work space. But there were other important support networks. It was the case of the Casa da Lusofonia of the University of Coimbra that welcomed her in order to provide her with the indications to complete the enrolment process and gather all the necessary documentation for the installation. It was through the University of Coimbra that she managed to obtain a form of health care assistance.

Another case has been her activism in the Bloco de Esquerda. The participant considers that inclusion in the public space is important. From her perspective, despite not being able to vote, she is active and contacts other associations linked to the Bloco. The ideas defended by the Bloco are based on the defence of women's rights. She believes that many immigrants have no interest in public issues. This happens because of a lack of information and sometimes because of ignorance about the institutions and the space around them. She is a participant who seeks to play an active role in the public space.

The visibility in the public space may reveal some stigmas towards Brazilian women. The participant never felt any kind of discrimination. She was afraid of being the target of xenophobia and of the prejudice issues associated with the Brazilian woman. However, she never felt put aside or affected by discriminatory attitudes. She is aware that discrimination exists and knows of cases that she heard about but never witnessed directly. The care she takes is in relation to her body. She thinks that she started to dress differently, covering her body more. Another aspect that she highlights concerns the language. She doesn't think that this is exactly xenophobia, but it is common for Portuguese people to joke about the way Brazilians speak. At work, this circumstance can have an impact because it provokes a need to adapt to the language.

She considers that obtaining information is crucial during the emigration process. Many compatriots come with just a tourist visa and expect to find a job easily, which is not the case. There are difficulties. In her particular case, the process of recognition of equivalences of her diplomas has been very difficult. She is a lawyer and is registered in the Portuguese Bar Association but her degree is not recognised. At the Job Centre, she only has the 12th grade. The validation process at the Portuguese Bar Association was easy. The same does not happen with the recognition of the degrees, whose process began two years ago but is not yet concluded.

In public institutions, she notes that there is a substantive difference in the way they provide information and solutions. In Portugal, she had some difficulty in dealing with the institutional "no's", which were stated in a rude way. In a process of arrival, it can be difficult to get around because the person does not know the space and the entities where they have to go. She usually says that she has "been kicked out a lot". But she thinks that "it's not out of bad faith". In the participant's opinion, there are these small constraints that are not decisive. Portuguese society is inclusive because of the proximity of cultures. She likes Portuguese food and music very much. The aspect that she likes the most is the socialization through food.

Her identity continues to be Brazilian and always will be. She tries to include some Brazilian traditions in her family space. She intends to stay in Portugal, finish her doctorate and have children. The reasons that lead her to stay are related to her objectives of concluding her studies, the fact that she has a Portuguese partner and for having found a job.

Analysis of the initiative and individual story
The participant set the goal of completing her doctoral studies outside Brazil. The migratory process took place without any incident given her previous preparation, which was done a year in advance. A very positive discourse regarding the process of integration and inclusion is denoted, which went smoothly, given that she obtained all the information she needed and had the support of her partner, who is Portuguese and was already living in Coimbra. The fact that she had managed to find a job in a qualified area also contributed to this speech.

The participant's discourse emphasises the difficulties in the lack of interest that emigrants show in participating in the public space. She accuses some difficulties regarding the language, the bureaucratic and complex process of recognition of their diplomas and the information provided to emigrants. However, she believes that Portuguese society is inclusive and she has never felt discriminated against. She mentions gender issues slightly. She is aware that Brazilian women suffer from a stigma associated with their body (sexuality) but she has never felt it. She understands that gender issues are a problem of the male society in general.

Results and Impact
The participant reveals a successful story of integration and inclusion. Her experience leads her to want to stay in Portugal. Her testimony reveals difficulties that do not apply to her specific case as she has managed to overcome them.

Her speech suggests that public entities have an inadequate discourse in the transmission of information. On the other hand, the legal form of recognising foreign degrees outside the European space is complex and bureaucratic. In fact, they may constitute a basic barrier to accessing more qualified professions.