Miguel Said Vieira

Vieira is a Brazilian researcher and activist in the field of free knowledge and culture. Since 2008 he has been preparing a thesis on the subject of ‘Intellectual commons and commodification’, at the University of São Paulo (Education Faculty, department of Philosophy of Education). He has graduated in Communications (minor: Publishing) and Philosophy, both also at the University of São Paulo, and has a specialization degree on intellectual property management (from a course promoted by UBV, SAPI and OCPI — respectively: Bolivarian University of Venezuela, and the Venezuelan and Cuban intellectual property offices). He has published some texts on the subjects of intellectual property and, more recently, collaborative production, commodification and the commons (all of them available at ); through them he has helped to introduce the concept of intellectual commons in Brazilian academia (along with prof. Imre Simon, with whom he wrote two book chapters). Vieira has also been invited to take part in two international debates on commons: the Crottorf retreat (Germany, 2008) and a workshop at the Summer University of International Solidarity (France, 2010). He is a member of Epidemia, a Brazilian collective which advocates for free knowledge and culture and keeps an eye on the intellectual property-related agenda. He is also member of Scientiae Studia, a philosophic association focusing on science and technology. He represents Epidemia at the Science & Democracy World Forum's international secretariat, and has participated in its planning. Vieira has also had an active role in mobilizations for the reform of Brazilian copyright law and against Projeto Azeredo, a cybercrime bill that jeopardized internet privacy.

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