GooseBumps: famous African scientist recalls his studies in Russia

Joseph Casimir Erinelt da Fonseca realized in his childhood what he wanted to be: a scientist-mathematician. His talent and abilities have taken him from Angola to Russia, to the Belgorod National Research University. How his career and his relationship with his mentors from a Russian university went, the scientist told Sputnik.

My hobbies inspired my father to teach me. Since the age of six, I have enjoyed “technical creativity”: inventing cars, building houses out of dirt and paper. Noticing my sincere childhood interest, over time my dad decided to involve me in something he loved himself – math. From the age of eight, he would wake me up at five in the morning and explain the properties of numbers to me. To be honest, I didn’t like it right away. But my father insisted, and he was right; after a while, I became seriously interested and wanted to become a mathematician.

The teachers in Angola also recognized my talent and mentored me individually. In 2008, I graduated from the Polytechnic University of São Paulo and went to study in Russia. By the way, like math, Russian turned out to be quite difficult. I drew diagrams to better understand the cases and I always tried to draw parallels with Portuguese. You might not believe me, but learning Russian improved my speech in my native language.

When I remember my college days in Russia, I feel goosebumps running down my spine. I now live in Angola, but hope to visit my alma mater soon, Belgorod State University (BelSU). University was like a second home for me. I think when you are away from your homeland it is very important.

I lived here for nine years, completed my postgraduate studies, met many friends and a teacher with a capital “T” – Vladimir Mikhailovich Moskovkin. He was the one who helped me edit my math books and textbooks that I wrote for my students in Angola.

The books were warmly received at home. Several generations of engineers have been trained there. I think if you really do something with love and good intentions, it doesn’t take long for significant results to materialize. For example, in 2018, I obtained an honorary doctorate in mathematical sciences. In Angola, I became the fourth person to receive such recognition. I remember my surprise when they announced my name: “the diploma is awarded to Casimir Erinelt, a great African mathematician”. I personally received my diploma from the President of Malawi.

My studies at Belgorod were an important step on the way to my dream. Now I am working as Dean of Faculty of Economics, Chairman of Academic Council and Director of Masters Course in Mathematics Education at Independent University of Angola. I am also involved in social activities. With like-minded people, I help children who cannot afford a good education.

I always benefit from the support of my teachers at BelSU in many projects. For example, together with Professor Moskovkin, we are working to improve the competitiveness of Angolan universities and to create the first database for Scopus in my country.

I would like to leave behind me decent and creative like-minded people who could continue our “mission” of developing the competitiveness of the Angolan science system. It takes a lot of work to improve mathematics disciplines in my home country. Of course, there are difficulties in everything, but I always remember my main rule in life: challenges are the path to success! This is what has already helped me, along with my BelSU mentors, to do a lot for the development of science in Angola and to take my place among scientists in Portuguese-speaking countries.