The Challenge
ABEP (the Brazilian Association of Population Studies) was co-founded in 1977 by Dr. Elza Berquó, one of the most influential demographers in Latin American history. For nearly five decades, ABEP has produced an extraordinary body of scientific work spanning demographic transition, population aging, sexual and reproductive health, and racial health disparities.
But that body of work was scattered. Proceedings from decades of conferences existed across disconnected systems. Papers were hard to discover. Authors were difficult to attribute. The institutional memory of one of Brazil’s most important scientific associations lacked a unified, indexed, searchable home.
As ABEP approached the centennial of Dr. Elza Berquó’s birth, the question became urgent: how do you honor a legacy that shaped an entire field, while making that knowledge accessible to the next generation of researchers?
The Solution
Galoá built the Biblioteca Virtual Dra. Elza Berquó, the most extensive national collection dedicated to Demographics and Population Studies research in Brazil, on the proceedings.science platform.
A Structured Scientific Archive
Every paper, poster, and oral session ABEP has published is now organized, indexed, and citable. This is not a file dump. It is a structured repository where researchers can search by author, topic, year, and event, with DOI assignment and Crossref metadata compliance.
Open Access by Design
The entire collection is freely available. Dr. Elza Berquó dedicated her life to making the invisible visible: surfacing crucial data on fertility, sexual education, freedom of choice, and youth suicide. The repository carries that same commitment: knowledge that liberates must be accessible to all.
A Living Tribute
The library opens with a curated section honoring Dr. Berquó’s centennial: her publications within ABEP, the founding letter from 1977, and a gallery of moments from her career. It is both a research tool and a piece of institutional memory, ensuring that young researchers are always greeted by her boldness, courage, and pioneering thinking.
The Results
The Biblioteca Virtual Dra. Elza Berquó transforms ABEP’s relationship with its own scientific production:
- 50 years of proceedings organized, indexed, and searchable in one place
- DOI assignment and Crossref metadata ensuring long-term discoverability and citation
- Open-access repository honoring the association’s commitment to knowledge dissemination
- Institutional memory preserved, from ABEP’s 1977 founding letter to the latest conference
- A living resource that gives members a reason to engage with ABEP beyond the annual meeting
