Patricia birman She has a degree in Psychology (1976), a Master in Social Anthropology (1980) and a PhD in Social Anthropology from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (1988). She received a postdoctoral fellowship (1995/1996) at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, in Paris, and is a professor of Anthropology at the State University of Rio de Janeiro. As an anthropologist she specialized in the field of religious studies. He has researched Afro-Brazilian cults, Pentecostalism in Brazil, and religions in the public space. Currently the object of research is the interweaving between religious and secular practices oriented to the management of poverty. He develops research work on the production of peripheral territorialities in urban spaces.