# Indigenous Diplomats Join Brazil's Foreign Service

> Brazil's first indigenous and quilombola diplomats sworn in as part of diplomatic training program.
- Title: Indigenous Diplomats Join Brazil's Foreign Service | Shortify
- Summary: Brazil's first indigenous and quilombola diplomats sworn in as part of diplomatic training program.
- Keywords: indigenous diplomats, quilombola diplomats, diplomatic training, ministry of foreign affairs, brazil, diversity in diplomacy, indigenous rights, diplomatic corps, Agência Brasil
- Source: Agência Brasil — https://agenciabrasil.ebc.com.br/en/direitos-humanos/noticia/2026-11/indigenous-quilombola-diplomats-join-brazils-foreign-service
- Published: 2026-11-06T16:46:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: indigenous diplomats, quilombola diplomats, diplomatic training, ministry of foreign affairs, brazil, diversity in diplomacy, indigenous rights, diplomatic corps, news
## First Indigenous Diplomats Sworn In
Brazil's first indigenous and quilombola diplomats joined the country's diplomatic corps on November 4, 2026.

> This marks the first time in Brazilian history that indigenous representatives have joined the country’s diplomatic corps.
## 2026 Diplomatic Training Class
The 2026, 2028 class includes 27 students from underrepresented groups, with 17 black students, seven students with disabilities, and one Quilombola student.

> Nearly half of the incoming class belongs to groups underrepresented in Brazilian diplomacy.
## Diversity in Diplomatic Corps
Women account for 45 percent of the 60 students in the Diplomatic Training Program at the Rio Branco Institute.

> The class also has the highest proportion of women in the program’s history, with women accounting for 45 percent of the students.
## Acting Foreign Minister's Statement
Acting Foreign Minister Maria Laura da Rocha emphasized the importance of ensuring the diplomatic corps reflects Brazil's diversity.

> At a time when democracy and the rights hard-won and enshrined in the 1988 Constitution are under threat, celebrating the arrival of the first indigenous and quilombola diplomats at this bicentennial institution is an act of resistance.
## Minister of Indigenous Peoples' View
Minister of Indigenous Peoples Eloy Terena highlighted the realization of 'Bringing the State to indigenous Communities' through diplomatic inclusion.

> It is a highly symbolic moment. It is not just an individual or collective achievement; it is an achievement for the entire nation and the Brazilian state.
## Indigenous Diplomats' Backgrounds
Marcelo Kariri Menezes holds a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering and an MBA in Digital Business, while Idjahure Terena is a Ph.D. candidate in Social Anthropology.

> Being at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs means acknowledging this entire history of exclusion and paternalism and fighting for an ancestral future and a new present in which our ethnic diversity is finally reflected in the State.
## Key takeaway

Brazil's 2026 class of diplomatic trainees includes 27 students from underrepresented groups, with two indigenous diplomats sworn in at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.