The University of Edinburgh is to open a new office in Brazil today.
The University's Office of The Americas in Sao Paulo will aid collaboration between the institution and partners in education, business and government across Latin America.
The Scottish university has a tradition of involvement in Brazil in energy, public health, economics and the preservation of delicate ecosystems.
It is working with the Brazilian government on its Science without Borders initiative, which plans to bring 10,000 Brazilian students to the UK by 2016.
It is to fund 12 new £5000 scholarships – the Edinburgh Global Latin America Masters Scholarships – for one-year master's degrees for the best students from Latin America.
Last year the Brazilian footballer Pele received an honorary degree from the university in recognition of his charity work.
