Zodiac sign: Taurus, with pride!
Favorite color: Orange
Favorite food: Any Arabian food
A book and an author: “The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis”. José Saramago forever and ever.
Been a journalist for: 19 years
And she’s been working in Cásper for: 8 years
Disciplines that teaches or have taught: Graphic Design for Magazines and Planning.
Why do you teach? I love dealing with young people and every challenge involved in the process of teaching. Also because studying constantly, which my profession requires, is a great pleasure for me. Teaching does not let you stay static, especially in communication. It is essential to learn, to go back to everything you once learned, and try to understand brand new territories in which students are far in front of me, such as technology.
What are the main challenges women face in journalism? We’ve got to deal with a lot of challenges. Most bosses are still man and being a woman in leadership positions often means dealing with confrontations that would not be directed to a male head. Our challenge in journalism is to show the reality of women, as the world is still uneven, both in gender and in skin color and everything else.
How is it to assume a coordinating place in the area of communication? A huge challenge, certainly one of the greatest in my life – it’s just not higher than placing a child in the world and educating he or she the way I consider appropriate, which is, the way that the student becomes a principled, humanist citizen, having in mind that we are social beings and that respecting each other and the differences between us is always the most important. If he can fight for the world to be more fair and equitable, it would be lovely, but then begins their parent’s delirium.
The coordinating body involves a super complex universe of students and teachers, different people who bring many problems – some too complex to be solved, so we do it as far as possible every day. Dealing with people is something pleasurable for me, which is also because I chose to teach. Dealing with such issues is not easy, but when we reach a solution, it is very pleasurable. And coordinate the disciplines, the pedagogical project of the course is very good.
Why Cásper? Working in Cásper is working with the Brazilian journalism in essence; the school is the main reference in our area. It was a dream to work here, and I never thought it would come true. But then it happened. That’s really amazing.
Can you imagine your child in communication? How is your relationship with him? I don’t like to make projections for my 5 year-old son, Pedro. He will be whatever he wants. I only wish, as I said, that he has principles and cares, which does not imply directly the he should be a member of our humanist area, of course. He can work with communication, engineering, medicine. He can be himself, as long as he’s got a good character. Our relationship is amazing. We play, roll, set Lego, walk together and love each other very much. Having a child was one of the best decisions of my life. Pedro’s flaw, like every good Aries, is to be VERY impatient. He wants everything ready for yesterday. Mine, as a convicted Taurean with ascendant in Cancer, is to be stubborn and dramatic at the same time.
In which way journalism helps you deal with him? Being a journalist is trying to know and do everything at the same time. Being a mother is this in a much higher degree – as Luis Mauro Sá Martino says would say, in a Jedi level. I think I’ve learned a lot from my profession, without any doubts.
Tell me a little about some of your passions. It’s hard to believe that people do not know that one of the greatest passions of my life are cats. I’ve got the pleasure of feline company since I was one year-old and I will not ever drop it. Cats are my spiritual doors to the world, large and cute mentors. Another passion is travelling. There’s nothing better, there is no money that pays for the feeling of knowing a new place, having new experiences. I would exchange jewelry, expensive events, expensive clothes, everything for miles. Literally.
Helena’s cats
And an advice for future journalists: Do not give up and don’t be intimidated by that boss who tries to subjugate you. Expose, shout, and argue. I was harassed while working on writing and I deeply regret not having denounced the publisher formally. Do not be silent. And keep the faith. It can be difficult, but being a journalist is the basis of my life. No other profession makes you so attentive to everything in the world as journalism. They say we are experts in all for 15 minutes, which is dangerous, but it opens our minds to the world and the stories of the people, which is wonderful.