Recommended Reading: Fordlandia

The idea of North Americans going South to spark change and innovation is not really a new concept.
Nearly 100 years ago, car-maker Henry Ford has a righteous vision to tame a portion of the Amazon jungle (about the size of the State of Connecticut) and transform it into a rubber plantation.
Homes, churches, ice-cream parlors and other fashionable Midwestern USA cultural trappings were part of the plan, but the whole concept – including the idea of paying workers cash – was a colossal failure.
Fordlandia, recounts Ford’s challenges and his wide-eyed ignorance about dealing with the harsh conditions of the jungle. Authored by historian Greg Grandin, we recommend it on your next flight to Rio or Sao Paulo.