Marcela Araki Yamaguti: Neuroscientist and Brain–Computer Interface (BCI) Specialist, from Miss Brasil Global to Miss Goodwill, Supporting FISA 2027
Brazilian neuroscientist, entrepreneur and founder of the SereNova method, Marcela Araki Yamaguti pursues an interdisciplinary approach combining neuroscience, neurotechnology, artificial intelligence and human development. Her international activities include participation in the MIT COVID-19 Challenge and a scientific symposium organized by Stanford University. Crowned Miss Brasil Global 2023 and awarded the Miss Goodwill distinction for her humanitarian engagement, she is also a Board member of e-Peace Switzerland and an ambassador for Latin America. She now brings her expertise and international experience to the Swiss–Africa International Forum (FISA 2027).
Marcela Araki Yamaguti at Stanford University, California, in 2026.
From Entrepreneurial Roots to a Scientific Calling
Originally from Ribeirão Preto in the Brazilian state of São Paulo, Marcela Araki Yamaguti comes from a family with Japanese, Russian and Arab roots.
Her family history is marked by hard work, perseverance, education and entrepreneurship.
Starting from modest circumstances, her father worked in several occupations from an early age before becoming a teacher and then an entrepreneur. Together with his wife, he gradually built a construction-materials distribution and logistics business, later expanding the family's activities into agribusiness, notably coffee cultivation and livestock farming. Marcela thus grew up in an environment where discipline, knowledge and adaptability were central.
From the age of 16, she helped manage the family business's operational and financial systems. She remains involved in agricultural activities today, particularly coffee cultivation and caring for horses.
This early experience helped her develop a practical understanding of strategy, organization and decision-making.
From her parents she learned fundamental values: the importance of knowledge, perseverance, sound judgment and the responsibility to put one's abilities at the service of others. These convictions gradually accompanied her path toward neuroscience.
Marcela riding a family horse
Neuroscience: A Deeply Personal Calling
Marcela's interest in the workings of the brain dates back to her childhood.
Fascinated by astronomy, science and existential questions, she developed an early curiosity about the mechanisms of consciousness and the capabilities of the human body.
Her personal history also helped shape this calling.
At the age of one, she sustained a head injury that required resuscitation. Despite the risk of lasting consequences, she grew up without enduring complications.
This experience gradually fueled her interest in the brain's capacity to recover and adapt.
Later, when one of her dogs developed severe meningoencephalitis, Marcela began studying brain function intensively to understand the illness better.
The animal, initially given a very short life expectancy, survived for another two years and regained much of its abilities.
This period strengthened her determination to deepen her scientific knowledge.
For Marcela, neuroscience became far more than an academic discipline: it offered a way to better understand human potential and the mechanisms influencing behavior, cognitive abilities and individual autonomy.
Academic Training in Neuroscience, Leadership and Innovation
With a degree in social communication, Marcela Araki Yamaguti pursued postgraduate specialization in neuroscience at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUC-RS) in Brazil.
In 2019, anticipating the economic and social changes brought by new technologies, she complemented her background with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in leadership and innovation at Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV), a Brazilian institution known for management and public administration.
Her background also includes several specialized training programmes:
Specialization in high intellectual potential and giftedness;
Specialization in the neurobiology of trauma;
Training as a hypnotherapy practitioner and master practitioner;
Paul Ekman certification in the analysis of emotional micro-expressions.
This combination reflects an interdisciplinary approach bringing together neuroscience, understanding human behavior, technology and strategy.
It also allows her to explore interactions among cognitive mechanisms, emotions and decision-making processes.
Participation in MIT and Stanford Initiatives: Engaging with Major Scientific Developments
Marcela Araki Yamaguti has participated in initiatives organized by two internationally renowned scientific institutions in the United States: the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Stanford University.
The MIT COVID-19 Challenge: Innovation in Response to Global Challenges
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Marcela took part in the MIT COVID-19 Challenge, a collaborative initiative mobilizing innovation and interdisciplinary skills to address the health and social challenges of the crisis.
This experience reflects her interest in technological solutions and innovative approaches to complex problems.
It also strengthened her thinking about the importance of connecting scientific knowledge, entrepreneurial skills and society's needs.
Stanford: Neuroscience, Artificial Intelligence and Precision Mental Health
On 25 September 2026, Marcela attended the sixth Annual Precision Mental Health Symposium, organized by the Stanford Center for Precision Mental Health and Wellness.
Entitled From Circuits to Mindsets: Precision Mental Health in the Real World, the scientific gathering explored advances in neuroscience, psychiatry, artificial intelligence and data analytics applied to mental health.
For Marcela, attending offered an opportunity to deepen her reflections on emerging technologies and their potential for understanding the human brain.
These two international experiences reflect her commitment to following scientific and technological developments that may transform healthcare, education and human development.
SereNova: A Method Focused on Human Potential and Cognitive Sovereignty
Marcela Araki Yamaguti founded SereNova, a method she began developing before the COVID-19 pandemic and gradually consolidated during that period.
SereNova combines neuroscience, adaptive hypnotherapy, in-depth conversational analysis and behavioral integration protocols.
The method focuses particularly on psychological trauma, high intellectual potential, giftedness and neurodivergence. As conceived by Marcela, it operates on three complementary levels.
The neural level concerns mechanisms of memory reconsolidation.
The narrative level focuses on reorganizing identity through reflective dialogue.
The strategic level aims to develop behavioral structures that support autonomous decision-making.
The goal is to facilitate a transition from personal understanding to concrete behavioral change.
This approach reflects a vision of human development that combines self-knowledge, cognitive abilities and individual autonomy.
In the longer term, Marcela hopes to develop SereNova into an international institute for neuroscience, research and neurotechnology.
SereNova Brazil
Neurotechnology and Artificial Intelligence: Preserving Cognitive Sovereignty
Marcela's scientific activities also extend to neurotechnology and brain–computer interfaces, known as BCI (Brain–Computer Interfaces).
These technologies enable interaction between brain activity and computer systems, opening new possibilities in healthcare, education and the development of human capabilities.
Marcela is particularly interested in two areas:
Cognitive sovereignty;
The psychological integration of brain–computer interface users.
Cognitive sovereignty is a central concept in her thinking.
It refers to individuals' ability to preserve intellectual autonomy, identity and decision-making power in a technological environment increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.
Marcela believes technological development must be accompanied by reflection on human capabilities, cognitive rights and the psychological consequences of its use.
She advocates a view of progress in which technological innovation should strengthen human autonomy.
Miss Brasil Global 2023: Eleven Distinctions and an International Commitment
Alongside her scientific and entrepreneurial career, Marcela Araki Yamaguti has also distinguished herself in international beauty pageants. A former dancer, she developed skills in theatre, public speaking, diction and stage presence. Active in pageants since the age of 14, she has won eleven titles.
In 2023, Marcela was crowned Miss Brasil Global, before representing Brazil at the international Miss Global competition. She reached the final and received another particularly meaningful distinction: Miss Goodwill.
This recognition honored her humanitarian project combating human trafficking. Her initiative was selected as the best among projects presented by representatives from more than 90 countries.
The project helped support the emotional recovery of more than 30 children.
For Marcela, beauty pageants are also a school of discipline, leadership and responsibility.
She believes that visibility gained internationally should serve causes beyond individual success.
Her distinctions thus become tools for raising awareness and mobilizing support for human dignity.
Miss Goodwill: Humanitarian Commitment to the Most Vulnerable
Humanitarian work is an important part of Marcela Araki Yamaguti's journey.
In Brazil, she volunteered in the oncology department of Hospital das Clínicas at the Ribeirão Preto Medical School, affiliated with the University of São Paulo.
There she provided emotional support to patients nearing the end of life and their families.
She has also participated in philanthropic initiatives, including events supporting the reconstruction of Santa Casa de Misericórdia in Miguelópolis, a hospital in São Paulo state.
Her commitment to children is also reflected in her interest in neurodivergence and supportive approaches linking human abilities with interactions with animals.
As a horse rider, Marcela is particularly interested in equine-assisted therapy for neurodivergent children, especially autistic children.
Her activities in this area draw on her observations and references such as the Sociedade Hípica Paulista in São Paulo.
From hospital volunteering to her project against human trafficking, her commitment rests on a conviction: knowledge and skills should be put at the service of others.
Education and Artificial Intelligence: Preparing Future Generations
Marcela Araki Yamaguti places education at the centre of her vision of human development.
She believes technological change will require a profound evolution in traditional models of learning.
In her view, three skills will be especially important in the coming decades:
Creativity;
The ability to draw on knowledge from multiple disciplines;
Critical thinking to question technologies, systems and their consequences.
She has developed a hybrid educational approach incorporating artificial intelligence.
This approach aims to help learners use digital tools while strengthening their ability to explain, reconstruct, transfer and independently evaluate knowledge.
The goal is not only to learn how to use artificial intelligence, but also to identify its mistakes, improve its responses and recognize situations where human judgment must prevail.
This reflection is part of her commitment to preserving intellectual autonomy amid technological change.
Marcela also hopes to establish a foundation built on three pillars: education, art and knowledge.
An International Figure on the Board of e-Peace Switzerland
Marcela Araki Yamaguti is a member of the Board of Directors of e-Peace Switzerland, an association founded in Bern by Fodé Samb.
She also serves as an ambassador and a member of the Council for Strategy and International Partnerships for Latin America.
Through these roles, she contributes to the association's international dimension and its ambition to connect scientific, economic, institutional and humanitarian stakeholders across regions.
Her background complements several areas of e-Peace Switzerland's work, including innovation, human development, international cooperation and capacity building.
Her entrepreneurial experience in Brazil, neuroscience activities and humanitarian commitment are assets for developing new international relations.
On the Board, she contributes to strategic reflection and the association's international partnerships.
Her engagement particularly strengthens prospects for cooperation among Latin America, Switzerland and Africa.
This international outlook reflects e-Peace Switzerland's ambition to mobilize people with complementary expertise around sustainable development and economic cooperation.
FISA 2027: Neuroscience and Cognitive Sovereignty in International Dialogue
Within the Swiss–Africa International Forum (FISA 2027), planned for 31 March 2027 at Kursaal Bern, Marcela Araki Yamaguti will contribute to discussions on neuroscience, neurotechnology and contemporary technological transformations.
Her contribution will focus particularly on brain–computer interfaces, neuroscience and their implications for diplomacy and modern societies.
Neurotechnologies raise new questions about individual rights, protection of neural data, cognitive autonomy and human capabilities.
These issues are increasingly relevant to governments, scientific institutions, technology companies and international organizations.
For Africa, they also invite reflection on access to emerging technologies, development of scientific skills and preservation of individual autonomy.
Marcela argues that legal protection of the human mind must be accompanied by strengthening individual cognitive capacities.
She summarizes this vision in a phrase:
“Neurorights protect the mind from the outside in. Cognitive sovereignty strengthens it from the inside out.”
This perspective will contribute to FISA 2027 discussions on artificial intelligence, brain–computer interfaces, biometric technologies and cybersecurity.
It will also help examine the human, ethical and social implications of technological change.
Science, Entrepreneurship, Women's Leadership and Humanitarian Engagement
Marcela Araki Yamaguti's career brings together several worlds: neuroscience, entrepreneurship, technological innovation, international distinctions and humanitarian action.
From her early experience in the family business to developing the SereNova method, from participating in the MIT COVID-19 Challenge to attending the Stanford scientific symposium, alongside her Miss Brasil Global and Miss Goodwill distinctions, she has built a diverse path of knowledge and engagement.
Her experience also reflects her conviction that science, creativity and action can reinforce one another.
On the Board of e-Peace Switzerland and within FISA 2027, this vision broadens reflection on new forms of international cooperation, integrating neuroscience and human development into economic and technological transformations.
Her journey also carries a message for women's leadership: women can contribute simultaneously to scientific research, technological innovation, entrepreneurship and major humanitarian causes.
As a neuroscientist, entrepreneur, Miss Brasil Global 2023 and Miss Goodwill, Marcela Araki Yamaguti embodies a vision of leadership in which knowledge, innovation and international engagement serve human development.
A vision aligned with the Swiss–Africa International Forum's ambition: bringing talents, institutions, knowledge and economic stakeholders together to build lasting and mutually beneficial partnerships.
Marcela during a Muay Thai training session
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