Sergio Burgi obtained in 1984 the degrees of Master of Fine Arts in Photography (MFA) and Associate in Photographic Science (AAS) from the School of Photographic Arts and Sciences, Rochester Institute of Technology, NY (SPAS/RIT/1984), with specific graduate work in Museology and Photographic Conservation, holding also an undergraduate degree in Social Sciences from the University of São Paulo (FFLCH/USP/1980). He was responsible for establishing and coordinating the Photographic Conservation and Preservation Center at the National Institute for Photography / National Foundation for the Arts (FUNARTE), in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, between 1984 and 1991. Since 1999 brazilian born Burgi is Head Curator of Photography at the Instituto Moreira Salles in Rio de Janeiro, which is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to promote the development of cultural projects in photography, literature, libraries, visual arts and Brazilian music. IMS 19th and 20th century collection of Brazilian photography is one of the most significant holdings on the history of the medium in the country. His participation as one of the leading scholars of photography in Brazil, with an interdisciplinary approach and role in promoting the arts will facilitate the discussions and possibly help to secure a Brazil-based venue for this project. He is the author of numerous books on photography in Brazil. His co-authored bilingual English/Portuguese book, Augusto Stahl: obra completa em Pernambuco e Rio de Janeiro (Editora Capivara / (Coleção Visões do Brasil ; 3.) 2001) unpacks the history of Augusto Stahl, one of the photographers engaged by Agassiz in Brazil in 1865. He has also collaborated with the publication Hartt: expedições pelo Brasil Imperial 1865 – 1878 (Metalivros, 2001) and more recently has also authored the book Marc Ferrez, Território e imagem (Instituto Moreira Salles, 2019), with extensive research on the role of Ferrez as official photographer to the Imperial Geological Commission of Brazil, under the direction of Charles Frederick Hartt (1875-1878).