CLAEC

What CLAEC does

CLAEC (Centro Latino-Americano de Estudos em Cultura) is a Brazilian nonprofit Scientific, Technological and Innovation Institution (ICT&I) operating as a think tank dedicated to the study and promotion of Latin American cultural studies, headquartered in Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, near the Triple Frontier. Founded in 2015 and recognized with CNPJ 13.448.301/0001-24, CLAEC coordinates eight research lines spanning cultural policy, diversity, borders and migrations, digital culture, cultural management, memory and heritage, and arts. Its core portfolio comprises four operating units: Editora CLAEC (an academic publishing house using Open Monograph Press for open-access books with ISBN/DOI and peer review), Portal de Periódicos (an OJS-based free journal portal anchored by the Qualis CAPES A3-ranked RELACult journal), ELACult (free and extension courses in blended in-person and distance-learning modalities), and InovaLatina (an innovation and technology-transfer agency supporting cultural entrepreneurship). The organization also convenes recurring academic events — notably the SEMLACult series (5 editions since 2017, with the V edition scheduled for April 2026) and EHM/CLAEHM congresses — and partnered in 2025 with Spain's Scientia International Press to launch multilingual Scientia Global Editions.

CLAEC's revenue model combines article processing charges (R$185 per approved book chapter, R$150-450 tiered contributions for RELACult's SCES system), event registration fees (R$35-200 depending on category and presenter status), annual membership dues (with 50% discounts across events and publications for members), and institutional funding from Brazilian government agencies including CAPES (PAEP event support and post-graduate programs) and Fundação Araucária (PROIC scientific initiation scholarships). Go-to-market is primarily event-driven and community-led: SEMLACult and CLAEHM serve as acquisition and engagement channels, supplemented by digital touchpoints (claec.org and event microsites, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn) and physical distribution through university partnerships with UNILA and UNIOESTE. Customer segments span academic researchers and scholars (primary), graduate and undergraduate students (primary), cultural managers and creative entrepreneurs (secondary), traditional knowledge holders and community leaders (secondary), and Latin American cultural institutions (secondary) engaged in South-South cooperation. In 2019 CLAEC received Ponto de Cultura certification from Brazil's Ministry of Citizenship and a seat on the Municipal Council for Cultural Policies of Foz do Iguaçu, and in 2026 it formalized adherence to DORA and achieved Qualis CAPES A3 status for RELACult — credentials that anchor its funding eligibility and academic legitimacy.

Name

CLAEC

Legal name

Centro Latino-Americano de Estudos em Cultura

Website

https://claec.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CLAEC is a Brazilian nonprofit scientific and innovation institution (think tank) operating open-access academic publishing, journals, courses, and the SEMLACult congress series for Latin American cultural studies researchers, students, and cultural institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Publishing and Cultural Research Services

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313), Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Open Access Scholarly Journals & Monographs (EDAGAFAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Open Educational Resources (OER) & Open Access Academic Publishing (MPAJABAG), Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing (MPAJABAK)

Keywords

• Academic publishing services
• Open access journals
• Cultural research think tank
• Academic conference organization
• Extension higher education courses

Headquarters

HQ city

Foz Do Iguaçu

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Publishing Services: CLAEC operates a publishing house (Editora CLAEC) producing academic books, e-books, and journal issues. The publisher charges article processing fees for book chapters (R$ 185 per approved chapter) and implements a tiered contribution system (SCES) for the RELACult journal ranging from R$ 150-450 (Social to Institutional Support levels).
2. Event Registrations: Revenue from registration fees for academic events including SEMLACult (listener fees R$ 35-60, presenter fees R$ 70-200), with 50% discounts for CLAEC members and institutional partners.
3. Institutional Partnerships and Grants: Funding from government agencies including CAPES (PAEP support for SEMLACult 2026) and Fundação Araucária (scientific initiation scholarships). CLAEC also receives institutional support from partner universities.
4. Membership Dues: Annual association fees providing membership with benefits including journal access, event discounts, and participation in research groups. Multiple association categories with corresponding benefits published in 2021.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

CLAEC runs an open-access academic publishing house (Editora CLAEC) producing books and e-books in Latin American cultural studies, the Qualis A3-ranked RELACult journal, and the SEMLACult seminar plus EHM/CLAEHM congresses. It complements publishing with free extension courses through ELACult, an open periodicals portal, and the InovaLatina innovation and technology-transfer agency supporting cultural entrepreneurs. Memberships, event registrations, article processing fees, and institutional grants fund the portfolio.

Product overview

CLAEC (Centro Latino-Americano de Estudos em Cultura) is a scientific, technological, and innovation institution operating as a think tank for Latin American cultural studies. The organization offers a multi-platform portfolio centered on academic publishing (Editora CLAEC and RELACult journal), open-access knowledge dissemination (Portal de Periódicos), professional development (ELACult courses), and innovation support (InovaLatina). The portfolio includes specialized e-book initiatives (CLAEC e-Books and Scientia Global Editions for international bilingual publications) and the SEMLACult conference series. All offerings emphasize open access, peer review, Latin American cultural focus, and South-South cooperation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• RELACult journal achieved Qualis CAPES A3 classification 2021-2024
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Latindex: Latindex is a regional cooperative information system for academic journals published in Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain, and Portugal. It is comparable to CLAEC's open access scholarly journal publishing and regional academic indexing focus.
• Directory of Open Access Journals (DOAJ): DOAJ is the global index of vetted open access academic journals, widely used as a quality signal in Latin American publishing. It is comparable to CLAEC's open access scholarly journal publishing (RELACult) and serves as the de facto standard that Latin American open access journals like CLAEC's target for inclusion.
• Redalyc: Redalyc is a Latin American open access academic publishing platform founded at Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, indexing journals in social sciences and humanities. It is comparable to CLAEC's open access scholarly publishing model and its focus on social sciences/humanities in Latin America.
• CEBRAP: CEBRAP (Centro Brasileiro de Análise e Planejamento) is a respected Brazilian think tank producing research and publications in social sciences. It is directly comparable to CLAEC's think tank function and academic publishing output in the Brazilian context.
• CLACSO: CLACSO (Consejo Latinoamericano de Ciencias Sociales) is a Latin American council of social science institutions that operates as both a think tank and a publisher (including open access journals and book collections). It is directly comparable to CLAEC's hybrid think tank + open access publisher model in the same region and field.
• SciELO: SciELO is the dominant open access academic publishing platform in Latin America, operating journals and books from Brazil, Chile, Argentina, and other countries. It is the most direct comparable to CLAEC's Editora CLAEC + RELACult + Portal de Periódicos stack, with a similar open access mission and multi-country reach.

Emerging players

• Open Library of Humanities: Open Library of Humanities is a non-profit open access publisher and platform for humanities scholarship. It is comparable to CLAEC's open access publishing model for humanities and cultural studies, though operating at a global rather than regional scale.
• SciELO Preprints: SciELO Preprints is a preprint server operated by the SciELO network, focused on open access early research outputs in Latin America. It is comparable to CLAEC's open access publishing infrastructure, though at a different stage of the publishing lifecycle.

Broad incumbents

• FLACSO: FLACSO (Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales) is a larger, established Latin American social sciences institution with university programs, research centers, and publishing. It is comparable to CLAEC as a think tank + academic publisher in the same region, though broader in scope (political science, sociology, public policy) and larger in scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/claecult
• Facebookfacebook.com/claecult
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/claec
• Instagraminstagram.com/claecult

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CLAEC