The Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner has been held annually by the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce since 1970. The Gala honors two outstanding leaders – one from Brazil and one from the United States – who have been particularly instrumental in forging closer ties between the two nations. Past honorees have included President Fernando Henrique Cardoso, President Bill Clinton, Min. Henrique Meirelles, and Henry Kissinger.

The 2025 Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner, will take place at the American Museum of Natural History  in New York, on Wednesday, May 14th.

Over 1,000 leaders from the international business, financial, and diplomatic communities have convened in New York City at this traditional gala to pay tribute to the honorees.

The Person of the Year Fellowship Program is funded by proceeds from the Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner, and conducted in partnership with  Fundação Lemann, Instituto Ling, and United Airlines and has co-supported over 178 Brazilian students who have already graduated or are studying to obtain graduate degrees from top tier American universities.

In addition to the gala, a series of parallel events sponsored by institutions such as Financial Times, Banco Itaú, BTG Pactual, Bank of America, Citi, Forbes Brasil, and J. Safra Group contributed to making the week of the gala “Brazil Week” in New York.

The POY has become the premier event of the Brazilian-American community in the United States, and its success has enabled the Chamber to expand its annual programming to further develop the ties between Brazil and the United States.

Sincerely,

Awards Committee
Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce, Inc.

For more information, please e-mail awardscommitteepoy@brazilcham.com, or call (212) 751-4691.

About the “Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner”

The Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner (POY) is the central event of the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce’s “POY Brazil Week.” Originally designated “Man of the Year,” the name was changed to Person of the Year in 1990 when Carla Hills, US Trade Representative, became the first female POY honoree since the event’s inauguration in 1970. Attended by 1,000 special guests, the POY attracts a host of parallel programs designed to highlight Brazil’s accomplishments and showcase the country’s many business and investment opportunities, while honoring two outstanding leaders representing Brazil and the United States.

About “POY Brazil Week”

Since the inception of the Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner in 1970, then at the St. Regis Hotel, the week of the ceremony has grown into a premier event line-up, garnering the greatest representation of the Brazilian business community in New York. While the gala dinner is the central focus, many other events have since taken place throughout the week, the success of which has allowed the Chamber to further its mission of forging closer ties between Brazil and the United States. Beginning in the 1970s, Edmond Safra was the first to offer a welcome reception for special guests attending the gala dinner. Those luncheons, held at the Republic Bank’s landmark headquarters at Fifth Avenue and 41st Street, attracted the elite of New York’s financial community. For three decades, the Chamber and its members were honored by the extreme generosity of Mr. Safra. The Consul General of Brazil in New York offered a cocktail reception for visiting guests – while several New York banks promoted a series of smaller events and presentations for Brazilian clients. The 1980s were marked by receptions offered by Luiz Eduardo Campello, Chairperson of Eluma, at his townhouse on the Upper East Side, attended by 200 guests. The evening before the POY, the Chamber’s President & Chairperson of the Board always hosted a dinner, initially held at the Union League Club and, later, at various other venues. This “rehearsal dinner” eventually morphed into a reception and dinner hosted by Banco Safra, first at the Metropolitan Club under the leadership of Carlos Alberto Vieira, and more recently, at the Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center and The Plaza under the presidency of Simoni Morato. In the late 1980s and 1990s, Citibank, under the direction of Bill Rhodes, hosted a luncheon the same day as the POY. In 2009, Banco Itaú coordinated with the Chamber, integrating its New York conference to take place the same week as the POY – an important step in solidifying the concept of “POY Brazil Week.” In 2011, BTG Pactual began hosting a conference the same week, which eventually increased in magnitude and moved to The Plaza. During this time, under the leadership of Alexandre Bettamio, Bank of America hosted a high-profile luncheon the day before the POY at its office overlooking Bryant Park. On several occasions, the Sugar Dinner (officially known as the New York Sugar & Ethanol Conference) was programmed to coincide with the week of the POY. Attracted by the strong presence of business leaders in New York, numerous NGOs have also promoted events this same week. Considering the alignment of events, guests and members of the press began referring to the week of the Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner as “POY Brazil Week.” Sponsoring institutions of these parallel events have grown to include – in addition to aforementioned companies – FGV Projetos, LIDE, Banco Bradesco, Safra Securities, Money Report, Bloomberg, the Financial Times, Forbes Brasil, and several law firms. “POY Brazil Week” has become the primary time during which Brazilians come to New York to discuss new ventures and collaborate with their business counterparts.

Fabricio Bloisi is the recipient of the 2025 Person of the Year Awards from Brazil.

Fabricio Bloisi is CEO of Prosus (market cap: $166 billion), a Dutch internet company serving two billion customers and one of the largest technology investors in the world – and CEO of its South African parent group Naspers. He is also Founder of mobile technology company Movile Group and Chairman of the Board at iFood (market cap: $5.4 billion), a Brazilian online food delivery platform (owned by Prosus and Movile).

Mr. Bloisi founded Movile Group in 1998, at the age of 21, and served as CEO until 2020, when he was appointed President. He has expanded Movile into 20+ digital businesses including iFood, bought in 2013 as a 20-person start-up. iFood has since grown into Latin America’s leading food delivery company, holding over 80% market share of the food delivery sector in Brazil. In 2013, technology company Prosus invested $2 million in Movile, / iFood. In May 2024, Prosus and Naspers appointed Mr. Bloisi as CEO, leveraging his deep operational experience and exceptional leadership to identify new technologies to impact emerging markets around the world.

Mr. Bloisi earned a degree in Computer Science from Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP) and an MBA from Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV / EAESP). His thesis focused on high-growth start-ups, innovation, and strategy. He also completed the Executive Program for Growing Companies at Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Owner / President Management Program at Harvard University.

The choice of Mr. Bloisi recognizes his exemplary entrepreneurship in developing and operating world-class technology companies that have revolutionized the tech landscape in Latin America and demonstrates his profound commitment to innovation, sustainable development, and education, factors that coincide with the values promoted by the Chamber.

Dara Khosrowshahi is the recipient of the 2025 Person of the Year Awards from the United States.

Dara Khosrowshahi is CEO of the multinational transportation company Uber Technologies, Inc. (market cap: $162.29 billion), where he manages the company’s business in more than 70 countries, including Brazil. Previously, he served as CEO of Expedia (market cap: $25.32 billion), one of the world’s largest online travel companies, and before that, as CFO of IAC Travel, a division of IAC (which purchased Expedia in 2002 and spun it off in 2005).

A seasoned executive with a background in engineering and finance, Mr. Khosrowshahi was born in Iran and immigrated to the United States with his family during the Iran-Iraq War, eventually moving to Tarrytown, NY. In 1987, he graduated from the Hackley School, a private preparatory school in Tarrytown – and in 1991, earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Brown University.

Mr. Khosrowshahi serves on the Board of Directors of Expedia and Catalyst.org, and previously served on the Board of Directors of The New York Times Company. He is a passionate advocate for refugees in crisis around the world. In June 2013, he received the “Pacific Northwest Entrepreneur of the Year Award” from Ernst & Young.

The choice of Mr. Khosrowshahi recognizes his exemplary entrepreneurship in operating world-class technologies that have revolutionized the global tech landscape and demonstrates his profound commitment to innovation, sustainability, and the environment, factors that coincide with the values promoted by the Chamber.

Movimento Bem Maior is the recipient of the 2025 Philanthropy Award. The award recognizes the organization’s dedication to philanthropy, promoting the betterment of society at large.

Founded in 2018, Movimento Bem Maior (MBM) unites philanthropists, social organizations, and a network of partners who together, confront inequalities and promote social justice to drive the systemic transformation of Brazil. MBM supports initiatives that shape projects with the potential to influence public policy and actively works to strengthen the philanthropic ecosystem in Brazil, acting as a catalyst for structural change and building alliances to improve social programs and expand large-scale impact solutions.

MBM was born from businessman Elie Horn’s desire to create a network of people with the aim of transforming Brazil through philanthropy. Mr. Horn, also Chairman of Cyrela, recognized the opportunity to engage Brazilian leaders in promoting a culture of giving and strengthening strategic philanthropy as a tool for social development. Since its foundation, MBM has mobilized more than R$ 130 (BRL) million and has supported 215 initiatives across the country, benefiting millions of people.

Under the leadership of Executive Director Carola Matarazzo, MBM operates on two main pillars: (1) Foco, which fosters the institutional development of social organizations with a variety of causes, in various communities and regions throughout Brazil, and (2) Impulso, which stimulates the ecosystem of support for philanthropy, working to raise awareness and encourage a culture of giving. On this trajectory, the organization has already met important milestones that reflect the results of its work – in 2021, MBM was awarded the “Social Entrepreneur Award” by Folha de S. Paulo and Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship for its Emergency Health Fund to combat COVID-19 – and in 2024, MBM was recognized for the second time as the 7th most influential NGO in Brazil and 103rd in the world by Swiss initiative thedotgood.

Within the MBM vision, society has the opportunity to opt for coordinated, collaborative, and intersectoral actions in the search for solutions to Brazil’s social challenges. To this end, engaging more people in the collective responsibility of building a more equitable Brazil is the way forward.

The Philanthropy Award will be presented to Movimento Bem Maior at the 2025 Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner on May 14th at the American Museum of Natural History.

Ensina Brasil is the recipient of the 2025 Social Responsibility in Leadership Development Award. The award recognizes the organization’s entrepreneurship in social responsibility in the area of leadership development, promoting the betterment of society at large.

Co-founded by social entrepreneur and 2012 Person of the Year Fellow Érica Butow, Ensina Brasil is a non-profit organization that aims to mobilize diverse talent and develop leaders to transform the educational system in Brazil, beginning in the classroom.  The organization recruits, selects, and trains young graduates from the best universities in the country to become full-time teachers in high-need public schools.  These teachers develop as future leaders, multiplying their impact within and beyond the classroom to transform Brazil’s educational ecosystem.

Ensina Brasil currently has 220 teachers working in 130 public schools in six Brazilian states and, in its nine years of operation, has touched more than 430,000 students.  This impact is enhanced by robust training and skill development focused on problem solving, creativity, innovation, self-knowledge, networking, and collaboration, to multiply the impact of participants as teachers and leaders in education.

The Ensina Brasil network strengthens a culture that inspires and engages its community.  The motivation and mindsets shaped in the classroom profoundly affect the worldview of participants and positively radiate to students, other teachers, principals, and the school communities as a whole, creating a multiplier effect that generates greater opportunity for all.

Since 2017, Ensina Brasil has mobilized more than 109,000 applicants and is among the largest independent social education organizations in Brazil.  Through leadership development, Ensina Brasil generates profound structural change within Brazil’s educational system and paves the way for all children to receive quality education.

The Social Responsibility in Leadership Development Award will be presented to Ensina Brasil at the 2025 Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner on May 14th at the American Museum of Natural History.

Leona Shluger Forman, Founder of BrazilFoundation, is the recipient of the 2025 Lifetime Achievement in Social Responsibility Award. The award recognizes Ms. Forman’s exceptional contributions to philanthropy and social impact in Brazil, celebrating her dedication to mobilizing resources, connecting global support networks, and fostering transformative change in communities across the country.

Born in Tianjin, China to a Russian Jewish refugee family, Ms. Forman experienced displacement early in life.  During the turmoil of the Chinese Revolution, her family found refuge in Rio de Janeiro, and at the age of 13, she had to navigate a new language, society, and culture – an experience that profoundly shaped her enduring commitment to global citizenship and social justice.

Ms. Forman earned a bachelor’s degree from Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro and a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. A journalist and communications specialist, she spent over two decades serving in senior leadership roles at the United Nations, where she played a key role in informing global publics about the work of the UN. Upon retiring from the UN, she founded BrazilFoundation in 2000 with a vision to connect international philanthropy with grassroots social initiatives in Brazil. Under her leadership, BrazilFoundation has played a pivotal role in mobilizing resources to advance education, social justice, gender equity, entrepreneurship, and environmental sustainability.

Over the past 25 years, BrazilFoundation has made a profound impact, investing $53 million in 930 organizations across 300 cities in Brazil. By identifying and supporting initiatives that promote equity, socio-environmental justice, and opportunities for all, BrazilFoundation has established itself as a leading philanthropic institution with significant national reach.

Ms. Forman’s commitment to empowering individuals and communities has played a vital role in advancing socio-environmental justice and sustainable development in Brazil. Her leadership has not only transformed BrazilFoundation into a global model for effective philanthropy, but has also inspired a new generation of social investors – individual, family, and corporate – dedicated to creating lasting impact.

The Lifetime Achievement in Social Responsibility Award recognizes Leona Forman’s extraordinary leadership and legacy in the non-profit sector, her dedication to fostering social change, and her contributions to strengthening ties between Brazil and the international philanthropic community.  The award will be presented to Ms. Forman at the 2025 Person of the Year Awards Gala Dinner on May 14th at the American Museum of Natural History.