Thaís Gasparian earned an LL.M. from Harvard Law School in 2017 and, for the past 15 years, has been working in the area of mergers and acquisitions and corporate law, including contractual issues and corporate governance. She is a partner at the Brazilian law firm Mattos Filho, and had international experience as a foreign associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP in New York. Last year, after serving on the board for three years, Thaís was elected president of the Harvard Alumni Club of Brazil (HACB).
In this interview with the DRCLAS Brazil Office, Thaís shares about her personal journey and expectations for the future of the alumni community in Brazil.
Thaís, could you share with us a bit about yourself? What key aspects of your journey would you like the community to know?
Hello! It is a pleasure to share a bit about myself with the alumni community. I am originally from São Paulo, but currently I live in Rio de Janeiro. Despite working with Law, I always found time to dedicate myself to the most diverse activities, such as student magazine, social projects, events organization, food blogging, among others.
My experience at Harvard further expanded my interest in developing projects beyond the “ordinary course of business”. I was actively involved in organizing the Brazil Conference at Harvard & MIT, and engaged in mentoring programs, female leadership groups and various events involving the Harvard community.
With the intention of expanding interaction among members of the alumni community, I decided to apply for the management of the Harvard Alumni Club of Brazil. After serving on the Board from 2020 to 2023, I ran for president of the Club at the end of last year. I took office as president in December 2023, just a few days after my first daughter (Maria Alice) was born!
Congratulations on Maria Alice! And on the election as well! Can you tell us about the Club and its main projects in recent years?
Thank you so much! I am very happy to continue working for our community. The Harvard Alumni Club of Brazil is a non-profit organization that has certain purposes related to the Harvard alumni community in Brazil, including the promotion and dissemination of projects and activities to increase interaction among the community members.
In the recent years, the Club developed several projects and activities, including two editions of the Summit and the Book Prize, a podcast series, several networking and cultural events, and a fundraising partnership with Fundação Estudar.
Together with my colleagues of the Board, I hope to continue these projects and activities, as well as to promote new ones to fulfill the Club’s mission. We also intend to invest in “give back” programs and use our alumni network to develop social impact opportunities.
Alumni involvement is crucial for the success of any university community. How do you envision the Alumni community evolving over the next few years? How can Alumni get more involved?
I believe that the evolution of media and communication tools has been increasing interaction among members of the alumni community. WhatsApp groups and social media, for example, help disseminating opportunities, promoting discussion on relevant topics, connecting people with common interests and, in general, strengthening community ties.
I see a lot of potential to further develop the Club. Our team would love to receive feedback and suggestions on projects and activities. Furthermore, help is always welcome. Alumni are encouraged to not only attend the events and activities, but also to join the organization team.
Alumni interested in getting involved with the Club may send us an e-mail to harvardalumnibrazil@gmail.com.
The Harvard Alumni Association Global Networking Night is coming up on March 13th. What can alumni expect from this event, and how do you anticipate it will contribute to strengthening the bonds within the alumni community?
I absolutely encourage everyone to attend the Global Networking Night on March 13th (click here to register). This is a global initiative coordinated by the Harvard Alumni Association to occur simultaneously in several cities in the world. For the second time, the Club is hosting the event in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Brasília.
It will be a great opportunity for everyone to interact with alumni from all Harvard schools and generations, as well as to meet the new Board members in person. The community members will also have the chance to update their contact information and share their view on the projects and activities to be developed by the Club in the upcoming years.
The elected members of the 2024-2026 Board of the Harvard Alumni Club of Brazil are:
- Thaís Gasparian Moraes (LLM '17), President.
- Barbara Schmidt-Rahmer (MBA '93), Vice President.
- Marcus Vinicius de Lemos Schalch (MPA-ID '10), Financial Director
- Daniel Maia (PLDA '22), Secretary.
Board of Directors:
- Anna Carolina Venturini (Visiting Doctoral Researcher '17)
- Claudia Kimie Suemoto (MSc '13)
- João Pontual de Arruda Falcão (LLM '04)
- Mariana Behr Andrade (MPA '10)
- Sylvia Wachsner (PMD '78)
- Walquíria Bolognani Cardoso Lajoia Garcia (AB '21)
- Ya Jen Chang (EdM '00)
Fiscal Board:
- Gustavo Matias Hüning (Surgical Leadership Program '19)
- Maria Athayde (GMP24 '18)
- Natalie Unterstell (MPA '16)